Variegated Polygonum, Variegated Fallopia, Variegated Mexican Bamboo       po-LI-go-num cus-pi-DA-tum

• Deciduous herbaceous perennial, to 4 ft (1.2 m) tall, spreading by underground runner indefinitely, clump forming; leaves variegated with splashes of dark green on a creamy white background, spring growth is pinkish.
• Sun to shade.  Grows best on moist, well-drained, nutrient rich soil but tolerates adverse conditions.  The above ground parts of plants die with the first fall frost (then cut back to ground), but rhizome buds over winter just below the soil surface and form new shoots in spring.
• Hardy to USDA Zone 4
• Reportedly not as agressive as the green-leaved species type, but I have not seen any published comparisons.  Please read about the invasive tendencies of the species, Polygonum cuspidatum   [Japanese Knotweed].