The Stinking Hellebore! With a name like that, you just have to have one in your garden.
Hornungia alpina ‘Icecube’
Hornungia alpina ‘Icecube’ is a darling plant for the rock garden that is not very well known, especially in North America.
Viola ‘Dancing Geisha’
Violets are darling little plants for the spring garden, but some are little devils that seed all over the place and become a weed. Viola ‘Dancing Geisha’ is not a devil. I find no seedlings in my garden.
Anemone hupehensis v. japonica ‘Pamina’
Anemone hupehensis var. japonica ‘Pamina’ is more commonly known as Japanese Anemone ‘Pamina’. Pamina flowers in fall for up to 2 months. A cold spell and even snow will not slow it down. It makes a great display in any situation from full sun to shade but does best in part shade.
Anemone ranunculoides
An absolutely gorgeous yellow wood anemone. This plant has received the Award of Garden Merit by the Royal Horticultural Society, an award that is given to special garden worthy plants. It forms a tight low mat of ferny leaves and at the center of each leaf it produces a bright yellow flower. The flower has five … Read More
Asplenium trichomanes
A perfect rock garden plant, and by rock garden I mean growing right on top of rocks. Asplenium trichomanesis a great little evergreen fern that likes some shade, and can grow with virtually no soil. It is quite happy growing in a small crack in a stone. They will also grow in the ground if given a very porous soil.
Camassia leichtlinii
Are you interested in growing a bulb that few others are growing? Do you want to eat the surplus bulbs as they grow? Do you want a bloomer in late spring, in that void between spring gluttony and summer excess? If so, then Camassia leichtlinii is for you.
Berkheya purpurea
A thistle you can actually love and best of all, your friends will be extremely envious of your prized possession. Berkheya purpurea (purple berkheya) is one of those rare plants from Africa that seems to do quite well in gardens including cold northern gardens. Many sources on the net report a hardiness of only 6 or 8, … Read More
Cephalanthus occidentalis
Cephalanthus occidentalis, the buttonbush, is a very interesting shrub that is rarely seen in gardens. It’s flowers are so unique that it always attracts attention when in flower. Even the seed heads make a statement in the garden.
Colchicum autumnale
The flowers look just like a crocus but only show up in the fall which explains its common name, autumn crocus. It is actually a Colchicum, a plant that is unrelated to the true crocus.
Cymbalaria muralis
Cymbalaria muralis is a very short ground cover that grows in sun or shade. It makes a nice matt of leaves and blooms most of the summer. In mid-June it produces the most flowers to make a nice display. The flowers are very interesting but so small that you need to get up close to appreciate their detail.
Diervilla lonicera
This plant won’t win an award for its flowers, but it is a very versatile plant that grows well in sun, part shade, full shade, moist or very dry. It has a nice light green color all summer and gives a good red fall show. For a shade garden, it is a true competitor to hostas.