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Amsonia
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Sun Zone: 4-9 15" tall Origin: USA Hybrid alternate image
This amazing selection of blue star was discovered in a seedling block of A. tabernaemontana at Connecticut's Sunny Border Nursery by Michael Dodge, then of White Flower Farm in Connecticut. (We suspect it is actually a hybrid with A. montana, but a paternity test is still pending.) Regardless of its origin, the 2' wide mound of narrow, dark green deer-resistant foliage is topped in early spring with large clusters of very dark, lavender-blue flowers...much more vivid than other blue stars. For us this has been an amazingly vigorous plant, lending credence to a hybrid origin. This is a superb introduction for the spring garden. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #04225
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SunZone: 5-9 36" tall Origin: USA alternate image
Discovered in 1942 in Arkansas by Leslie Hubricht (and named in his honor), this blue star sports the narrowest, laciest, most threadlike foliage of any upright amsonia species. Introduced into cultivation by Woodlanders Nursery, this fine southern native is truly the best of the blue stars. The sky blue flowers emerge atop the deer-resistant foliage when it breaks the ground in April and continue into May. In the fall, the deciduous golden foliage is stunning! A. hubrichtii makes a clump to 3' tall x 3' wide. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #00759
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Sun to Part SunZone: 5-9, possibly colder 36" tall Origin: USA
Open House/Web-Only!
This US native can be found along streambanks from Missouri south to Texas. The 3' tall stems clothed with glossy green deer-resistant leaves resemble Amsonia tabernaemontana except for the glossy leaves. In early spring, the clumps are topped with terminal clusters of light sky-blue flowers...a very tough and long-lived perennial. These seed grown plants are from a population in St. Louis County, Missouri. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #07812
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Sun to Part SunZone: 6-9, at least 42" tall Origin: USA alternate image
Open House/Web-Only!
This rare wetland species of blue star is native from South Carolina to Louisiana but is hardy north to Zone 5. The 3.5' tall stems compose a 3' wide deer-resistant clump and are adorned with short leaves (hairy grey-green beneath in spring). In May (NC), the clumps are topped with attractive clusters of sky-blue flowers. This is an easy species to grow and will tolerate extreme drought despite its wetland upbringing. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #05920
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Sun to Part SunZone: 5-9, at least 10" tall Origin: USA
Open House/Web-Only!
We love blue stars, and we are particularly excited to introduce one that is smaller and better-suited to spatially challenged gardeners...even suitable to most rock gardens. We selected this cutie from a batch of seedlings we grew in the late '80s. Of all the seedlings, this one was the shortest and had the best form. The plant was selected and planted in our display beds, where its dwarf, 10" tall x 18" wide, perfectly rounded form has been superb. The clean, dark green, deer-resistant foliage contrasts nicely with the medium sky-blue flowers that top the plant in early spring...a real winner! Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #04653
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Anemia
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Sun to Part SunZone: 7b-9, at least 8" tall Origin: Argentina
NEW!
Ferns do the strangest things, and anemias are near the top of the strange fern list. This Argentine native makes a delightful small clump to 8" tall x 8" wide. In nature, we saw these growing in well-drained soils and in rock cracks in the Catamarca Province of northern Argentina. The fertile and sterile fronds look similar, except the fertile fronds produce long alien antennae-like "flower" stalks that are home to the developing spores. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #05559
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Anemone
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Sun to Light ShadeZone: 4-8 24" tall Origin: Japan
Open House/Web-Only!
This unusual form of the fall-blooming Japanese anemone has attractive crinkled green leaves that are quite un-anemone-like. In early fall the basal foliage serves as a foil for the 2' tall stalks of single rich-pink flowers. So far, we have not seen this spread in the garden and due to its less vigorous nature, we don't anticipate the aggressiveness of typical Anemone hupehensis cultivars. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #06368
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Anemonella
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Part Sun to Light ShadeZone: 4-8 6" tall Origin: USA
Open House/Web-Only!
This cute selection of the deer-resistant US native Anemonella thalictroides makes a small rock garden specimen to 6" tall x 6" wide. Starting for us in early April, the button-sized double lime-green flowers appear atop the foliage. Although anemonellas are easy to grow, they are quite small and do not compete well with larger more aggressive neighbors, so we recommend these for experienced gardeners who treasure and can spend time cultivating such small gems. Anemonellas are spring ephemerals and therefore are dormant by midsummer. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #08118
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Part Sun to Light ShadeZone: 4-8, at least 6" tall Origin: USA
Open House/Web-Only!
This selection of the native deer-resistant rue anemone is the fastest multiplying of the double rue anemones...which still isn't saying much. The short clumps of thalictrum-like foliage are topped from April-June with the cutest double light pink flowers. Plant Anemonella 'Cameo' in a special well-drained place away from larger competitors...great for the rock garden, but mark the plant well since it is dormant by late summer. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #08403
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Part Sun to ShadeZone: 4-8 6" tall Origin: USA
Open House/Web-Only!
Without a doubt, this selection of the easy-to-grow Anemonella thalictroides is among the most incredibly beautiful US native plants we grow. The dainty thalictrum-like foliage makes a small 6" tall x 6" wide deer-resistant clump. Starting in early April (NC) and continuing for at least two months, the clumps are topped with 1" wide stunning pink pompoms, then are dormant by midsummer. This is a slow-to-propagate selection highly prized by keen gardeners around the world. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #04993
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Angelica
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Sun to Part SunZone: 7-9, possibly colder 18" tall Origin: Japan
Open House/Web-Only!
Native to the sea coasts of Honshu, Japan, this umbellifer (carrot family) has proven to be a great bold-textured garden specimen, forming an 18" tall x 3' wide basal rosette of glossy dark evergreen leaves. After a year of growing, the rosette is topped with a thick 5' tall spike of upright-facing large white umbels. Angelica keiskei is used medicinally as a diuretic and health food, as well as to prevent heart attacks and cancer...a regular renaissance plant.
Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #08157
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Anisacanthus
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Sun to Part SunZone: 7-10 36" tall Origin: USA, Mexico
(syn: A. quadrifidus var. wrightii) Our evil cat Zirconia thought we had baited the garden for hummingbirds after we planted a clump of Texas firecracker. This dazzling deer-resistant native to Texas and adjacent Mexico is composed of small pointed green leaves held along the tan stems of the clump. Starting in late spring and continuing until frost, the 3' tall x 2' wide plants are covered in masses of long-tubed, bright orange star-shaped flowers. In warmer climates where there is no winter dieback, Texas firecracker can reach heights of 6'. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #05119
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Anomatheca
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SunZone: 7b-10 8" tall Origin: S. Africa
Open House/Web-Only!
(Aka: Lapeirousia laxa) This delightful, little, and easy-to-grow South African iris relative makes a small clump of 8" green, iris-like foliage, topped in May and June with small but brilliant scarlet-red flowers. For a small rock garden-sized plant, it puts on quite a show. The clump will go dormant in dry summers but returns from dormant corms in late winter. We have found these to be amazingly drought-tolerant, even in brutally hot climates. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #06986
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Antirrhinum
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SunZone: 5-7, at least 24" tall Origin: Spain
Open House/Web-Only!
Antirrhinum braun-blanquetii is another of the great perennial snapdragons that has performed well in our trials. The Spanish native A. braun-blanquetii makes a 2' tall x 2' wide clump of light green fuzzy foliage, topped starting in late spring with 2' tall spikes, each holding up to 20 flowers in shades of yellow. Well drained soil in the winter months is important for longevity. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #08562
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SunZone: 5-8 12" tall Origin: Spain
This amazing deer-resistant snapdragon from Spain was shared with us by the JC Raulston Arboretum. A. hispanicum makes a 1' tall x 2' wide clump of fuzzy grey-green leaves, topped all summer with spikes of pink and yellow bicolor flowers. A. hispanicum thrives in our hot, humid summers where most snapdragons fear to tread. A. hispanicum prefers a baking hot, well-drained sunny site.
Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #08364
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Aquilegia
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Sun to Light ShadeZone: 4-8, at least 24" tall Origin: Hybrid
Open House/Web-Only!
This seed strain of columbine produces colorful 18" wide clumps of gold and chartreuse speckled foliage, topped in late April and early May with 2' tall spikes of violet flowers...a great way to brighten the spring garden. After flowering, cut the clump (foliage and old flower stalks) to the ground to refresh the foliage. The timing of this horticultural circumcision depends on whether you want more offspring or not. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #07681
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Arachniodes
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Light ShadeZone: 7-9, at least 18" tall Origin: Japan
This new fern to the trade hails from one of the Japanese islands where it forms a slowly spreading clump of 2' long triangular fronds. The dark green foliage feels as though it is made from a shredded piece of hard plastic...a far cry from what we typically think of as a fern. I'd like to see a slug try and take a bite out of this one. A. davalliaeformis makes a unique, albeit a slow growing specimen for the woodland garden. If you manage to kill yours, please remember to use the plastic recycling bin. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #08592
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Light ShadeZone: 5-8a, at least 18" tall Origin: China, Japan, Korea
Arachniodes miqueliana is an easy-to-grow favorite of fern guru Dr. John Mickel, who generously shared spores from his home garden. A. miqueliana is similar in form to the beloved A. standishii, with 2' long arching lacy fronds that are extraordinarily wide at the base. The slowly creeping (not weedy) rhizomes form a superb patch. Just as with its relative A. standishii, A. miqueliana is very late to drop its foliage for the winter. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #05521
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Light ShadeZone: 7-9, possibly colder 18" tall Origin: India
Open House/Web-Only!
This fabulous 18" x 18" evergreen fern features a wide streak of yellow down the center of each plastic-textured leaf. It is reliably hardy in Zone 7, although the new growth emerges very late (reports indicate success in parts of Zone 6). This is the one plant that visitors to your woodland garden will absolutely drool on, so invite a crowd of folks over if you're having a drought. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #01428
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Light ShadeZone: 4-8 18" tall Origin: Japan, Korea
Finally! After walking through acres of Arachniodes standishii on Korea's Uulong Island, I understand why it is probably the most sought-after fern by gardeners worldwide. The lacy, cutleaf 18" fronds rise from a thick, slowly creeping rhizome. Our 18-year-old clumps are only 3-4' wide. Unfortunately, it is also one of the least-available ferns in commerce due to reproductive issues. After 16 years of intensive sex therapy, our plant finally set a few viable spores. We're not sure how long it will stay in the mood, so get 'em while they last. Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #06234
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Aralia
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Part Sun to Light ShadeZone: 4-8, at least 96" tall Origin: Japan alternate image
Open House/Web-Only!
With the huge number of plants we've grown over the years, it's still hard to beat Aralia cordata. This easy-to-grow deciduous, deer resistant perennial matures in rich moist soils as an 8' tall x 8' wide monster...perfect for those who like bold, tropical-looking textures in their garden. Each pinnately-compound 4' long x 3.5' wide leaf attaches to the bumpy thick green upright stalk, resembling an astilbe on steroids. Starting in late June, the clumps are topped with 2' long racemes of tiny white flowers, which later turn into equally large racemes of small purple berries. In the South, we refer to plants like this as "big honkers." Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #02174
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Part Sun to Light ShadeZone: 4-8, at least 36" tall Origin: Japan
NEW!
We found a gold Aralia cordata seedling in 1998, but after four years, a late spring frost killed it before we could propagate it so we were thrilled to see this similar plant arrive recently from Japan. Aralia 'Sun King' forms a dazzling 3' tall x 3' wide clump that emerges in mid-spring with bright gold compound leaves. With a few hours of sun, the foliage remains bright gold through the summer, at which time the clumps are topped with 2' tall spikes of tiny white flowers, followed by black fruit. Brought to the US and named by Barry Yinger, who found it in a Japanese department store nursery, this is truly one of the most amazing new perennial introductions in the last decade! Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #09133
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Araucaria
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SunZone: 8-10, at least 480" tall Origin: Hybrid
Open House/Web-Only!
This amazing hybrid of the Chilean native Araucaria araucana and the south Brazilian Araucaria angustifolia will hopefully create an adaptable plant for more of the country. A. araucana is winter hardy to Zone 6, but hates moist summers, while A. angustifolia hates cold winters. It is our hope that these F2 hybrids (the siblings have even had meaningful sex) will combine the best genes of each species...but of course there is always the chance they will combine the worst genes and die quickly...to quote that great gardener, Dirty Harry, "You've got to ask yourself one question: 'Do I feel lucky?' Well, do ya punk?" Pot size: 24 fl. oz (709.77 ml) #08948
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| <Amorphophallus] | [Arisaema> |
