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MALVA

This diverse group includes annuals, biennials and perennials. All that I grow I started from seed. They like full sun to light shade and self seed.

• Malva sylvestris 'Mystic Merlin'

• Malva sylvestris 'Primley Blue'

• Malva sylvestris 'Zebrina'

  

MELISSA - Lemon Balm

A lovely herb, with a wonderful lemony smell, but because of its bad habits I keep it restricted to a small area. The variegated form is not nearly as invasive as non-variegated, but it is hard to remove once established. That said, full sun and very well drained soil will make it happy.

• Melissa officinalis 'Variegata'

MERTENSIA - Bluebells

Sun or shade in deep, fertile, well drained soil. Mostly the blue form is available but occasionall the white one shows up. It is not as robust as the blue. These self seed gently. Die back after blooming to return the next spring.

• Mertensia virginica

  

• Mertensia virginica 'Alba'

• Mertensia virginica with pink flowers

MIRABILIS - Four O'Clocks

One of my favorite annuals. Occasionally self seeds here, but not reliably. Full sun.

• Mirabilis jalapa (pink and yellow)

• Mirabilis jalapa (pink and white)

MONARDA - Bergamot or Bee Balm

Best in full sun and moist soil. Zones 4-8. Leaves smell minty. A large variety of colors.

• Monarda 'Blue Stockings'

• Monarda 'Cambridge Scarlet'

• Monarda 'Claire Grace'

• Monarda 'Marshall's Delight'

• Monarda 'Petite Delight'

  

• Monarda 'Prairie Night'

MUKEDNIA

Small plants, leaves reminiscent of a Tiarella or Heuchera. Pretty flowers mid-summer. Light shade makes it happy here in rather rich soil under the chestnut trees.

• Mukdenia rosii

• Mukdenia rosii 'Crimson Fans'

• Mukdenia rosii bloom

MUSA - hardy banana

• Musa basjoo

MYOSOTIS - Forget-Me-Not

Full sun to part shade. Lovely blue flowers. Low growing - maybe even good as a ground cover in the right spot.

• Myosotis sylvatica 'Compacta'

NEPETA - Cat Mint

Summer flowering, full sun. Will enjoy tumbling over rocks. Appreciates good drainage.

• Nepeta faassenii 'Six Hills Giant'

NICOTIANA - Flowering Tobacco

Annuals, but self seed here and the 2 pictured below come true from seed, though they are late to reappear, sometimes not until mid-summer. Full sun to light shade.

• Nicotiana langsdorfii

  

• Nicotiana sylvestris

• Nicotiana variegata

NIGELLA

OK, this isn't a perennial, but rather, an annual, but it self seeds nicely so it always comes back regardless of its classification.

• Nigella

OPHIOPOGON

Evergreen perennial, grasslike, for sun to part shade. Well drained soil. Flowers in late summer followed by 'berries' in fall.

• Ophiopogon japonicus 'Gyoku Ryo'

• Ophiopogon planiscapus

• Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Niger'

  

• Ophiopogon planiscapus 'Niger' berries

• Ophiopogon nigrescens 'Edge of Night'

• Ophiopogon nigrescens 'Edge of Night' bloom

• Ophiopogon 'Tears of Gold'

ORIGANUM - Oregano

Good ground cover. Full sun and very well-drained soil.

• Origanum vulgare 'Aurea'

OXALIS

• Oxalis regnelii 'Triangularis'

PACHYSANDRA

Evergreen, creeping perennials. Good for ground cover. The variegated forms are quite showy, unlike the over-used green variety. Will tolerate dense shade, but much happier with a little sunshine.

• Pachysandra procumbens 'Kingsville'

• Pachysandra variegata

PAPAVER - Poppies

Perennials and annuals both grow here. The annuals seem to self seed, or most do. They like especially well-drained soil. The perennial types go dormant after flowering and reappear in the fall. Full sun for both kinds.

• Papaver armenicum

• Papaver orientalis 'Big Jim'

• Papaver orientalis 'Carousel'

• Papaver 'Flemish Antique'

  

• Papaver nudicaule

• Papaver orientalis Orange

• Papaver orientalis 'Patty's Plum'

• Papaver orientalis 'Watermelon'

• Papaver 'Sarah Elizabeth'

• Papaver somniferum

• Papaver somniferum 'Fringed'

• Papaver somniferum 'Black Cloud'

PARIS

• Paris podophylla

PENSTEMON

Full sun only for these. Well-drained soil a must. Some are evergreen here if the winter is not too bad.

• Penstemon 'Elfin Pink

• Penstemon 'Husker's Red'

• Penstemon 'Husker's Red' bloom

  

PERILLA

• Perilla frutescens atropurpurea

PEROVSKIA

Full sun and exceptionally well-drained soil. Lovely lavender flowers in late summer to fall.

• Perovskia atriplicifolia 'Little Spire'

PERSICARIA

Sun or shade in fertile, moist soil.

• Persicaria bistorta

• Persicaria bistorta (closeup)

  

• Persicaria 'Lance Corporal'

• Persicaria microcephala 'Red Dragon'

• Persicaria Red Dragon bloom.

• Persicaria microcephala 'White Dragon'

PETASITES - Butterburr

Flowers in February or early March, long before the leaves appear. Great 'guy' plants with its oversized leaves, some almost 3 feet across. Likes wet conditions and part sun, though it will grow in average soil and in part shade. They will wilt in the afternoon in full sun.

• Petasites hybridus

• Petasites hybridus bloom scape

• Petasites hybridus seeds

• Petasites japonica gigantea

• Petasites japonica gigantea bloom

  

• Petasites japonica purpurea

• Petasites japonica purpurea bloom

• Petasites japonica variegata

• Petasites japonica variegata bloom

• Petasites palmatus 'Golden Palms'

• Petasites palmatus 'Golden Palms' bloom

PHLOX

Summer flowering, full sun. Lots of colors, some with eyes.

• Phlox paniculata 'Andre'

• Phlox paniculata 'Blue Paradise'

• Phlox paniculata 'Bright Eyes'

• Phlox paniculata 'Delta Snow'

• Phlox paniculata 'Katherine'

• Phlox paniculata 'Nora Leigh'

  

• Phlox paniculata 'Starfire'

• Phlox subulata 'Candy Stripe'

PHYTOLACCA

Not the well known weed, but rather a lovely variegated version for the garden. Comes true from seed. Berries are poisonous. Sun or light shade.

• Phytolacca americana 'Steve Silberstein'

PINELLIA

Summer flowering tuberous perennials which produce slender, hoodlike spathes.
each with a quite long, curling spadix. Partial shade in rich, woodsy soil. Spreads by roots and seeds. Polyspout seems to be more of a clumpter.

• Pinellia atropurpurea

• Pinellia cordata

• Pinellia 'Golden Dragon'

  

• Pinellia 'Polly Spout'

• Pinellia 'Polly Spout'

• Pinellia ternata

• Pinellia tripartita

• Pinellia tripartita 'Dragon Tails'

PLATYCODON - BALLOON FLOWER

• Platycodon grandiflorus

• Platycodon grandiflorus 'Astra Pink'

PODOPHYLLUM - Mayapples

Spring flowering with the flowers held under the 'umbrellas'. Semi-shade and moist, peaty soil. Can be propagated by seed.

• Podophyllum 'Kaleidoscope'

• Podophyllum 'Kaleidoscope' bloom

• Podophyllum peltatum

• Podophyllum 'Spotty Dotty'

• Podophyllum 'Spotty Dotty' bloom

POLEMONIUM

Summer flowering. Prefers mostly sun and fertile, well-drained soil.

• Polemonium pulcherrimum

POLYGONATUM - Solomon's Seal

Spring or early summer flowering with 'bells' held under the arching stems. Shade and fertile, well-drained soil.

• Polygonatum biflorum

• Polygonatum cirrhifolium

• Polygonatum cirrhifolium bloom

• Polygonatum humile

• Polygonatum humile 'Streaker'

• Polygonatum humile 'Streaker' blooms

• Polygonatum kingianum ssp. kingianum

• Polygonatum odoratum 'Dai Ko Ga'

  

• Polygonatum odoratum variegatum

• Polygonatum 'Spiral Staircase'

• Polygonatum thunbergii

• Polygonatum verticillatum

• Polygonatum × 'Grace Barker'

• Polygonatum × striatum

POLYGONUM - Knotweed

Sun or shade in damp but well-drained soil. Some types can be invasive. We don't grow them or sell them. Those pictured are all quite well behaved, clumping types.

• Polygonum cuspidatum spectabile

• Polygonum japonicum 'Tricolor'

POTENTILLA

Blooms with a profusion of flattish to saucer-shaped flowers. Full sun, though a little afternoon shade will keep the darker flowers from fading. Well drained soil.

• Potentilla 'Pink Beauty'

PRIMULA - Primroses

A huge group encompassing rock garden plants, full sun things and shady things, tall and short, spreading and clumping. All pretty, for sure.

• Primula 'Freckles'

• Primula 'Green Lace'

• Primula japonica

• Primula 'Ken Dearman'

• Primula kisoiana

• Primula 'Mahogany Sunrise'

• Primula 'Miller's Crimson'

  

• Primula polyanthus

• Primula sieboldii 'Ice Princess'

• Primula sieboldii 'Lacy Lady'

• Primula 'Van Powis Castle'

• Primula vulgaris (Cowslip)

• Primula 'Wanda'

PULMONARIA - Lungwort

Spring flowering, mainly blue, but also some in white and pink. Shade in moist, well drained soil, though we have sum in sull sun which self seeded there and are quite happy. May be evergreen over winter and get new leaves after flowering in the spring. Moist but well-drained soil.

• Pulmonaria 'Blaues Meer'

• Pulmlonaria 'British Sterling'

• Pulmonaria cevenensis

• Pulmonaria 'Cotton Cool'

  

• Pulmonaria 'David Ward'

• Pulmonaria 'Dora Beilfield'

• Pulmonaria 'Excalibur'

• Pulmonaria 'Hoot Owl'

• Pulmonaria 'Majeste'

• Pulmonaria 'Raspberry Splash'

• Pulmonaria 'Silver Streamers'

• Pulmonaria 'Tim's Silver'

• Pulmonaria 'White Wings'

PULSATILLA - Pasque Flower

• Pulsatilla vulgaris

RABDOSIA

A rather short lived perennial which blooms with blue tubular flowers in September.

• Rabdosia longituba

• Rabdosia longituba closeup

RANUNCULUS - Buttercups

Another big family of annuals, perennials and aquatics, some evergreen. Sun or shade in moist but well-drained soil. Mostly cheery yellow flowers in spring to early summer.

• Ranunculus 'Buttered Popcorn'

• Ranunsulus ficaria - Double Flowers

• Ranunculus ficaria 'Brazen Hussy'

• Ranunculus ficaria 'Limelight'

RICINUS - Castor Beans

Full sun in rich, fertile, well-drained soil. Frost tender, but may self seed. Poisonous seeds.

• Ricinus communis 'Rubra'

RODGERESIA

• Rodgeresia elegans pinnata

• Rodgeresia rozenzipfel

• Rodgeresia rozenzipfel bloom

ROHDEA

Sort of looks like a Sanseviera for your garden. Green or variegated. Likes shade.

• Rohdea japonica

• Rohdea japonica 'Mure Suzume'

• Rohdea japonica 'Olympic Torch'

• Rohdea japonica 'Variegata'

  

RUBUS - Blackberry, Raspberry

Full sun in fertile, well-drained soil. Usually prickly stems. Sometimes yummy fruit.

• Rubus phoenicolasius

• Rubus buergeri 'Variegata'

• Rubus cockburianus 'Aurea'

RUDBECKIA - Black Eyed Susans

Sun or light shade. Well-drained soil.

• Rudbeckia fulgida 'Flora Plena

• Rudbeckia fulgida 'Goldsturm'

• Rudbeckia 'Goldilocks'

  

• Rudbeckia 'Henri Eilers'

• Rudbeckia maxima

RUMEX

Seems to be able to grow most any place from sun to shade and sort of dry to the water's edge.

• Rumex sanguineus

SALVIA - Sages

Sun and fertile, well-drained soil. A huge family with colors ranging from white, yellow, red purple, pink and blue in my garden.

• Salvia 'Eveline'

• Salvia 'Furbee'

• Salvia glabrescens

• Salvia koyamae

  

• Salvia lyrata 'Purple Knockout'

• Salvia lyrata 'Purple Knockout' bloom

• Salvia nemorosa 'Caradonna'

• Salvia officinalis 'Variegata'

• Salvia splendens

• Salvia superba 'Merleau Blue'

• Salvia ulinginosa

• Salvia × sylvestris 'May Night'

• Salvia × sylvestris 'Snow Hill'

SANGUINARIA - Bloodroot

A genus of one species of early spring flowering rhizomatous perennial.
Sun or semi-shade (shady seems better here).
Humus rich but well-drained soil.
Single and double flowered forms.
Stems have red sap when cut. Zones 3-9.

• Sanguinaria canadensis

• Sanguinaria canadensis 'Multiplex'

SANTOLINA

Perennial or small shrub. Aromatic foliage and buttonlike flower heads, each on a long stem. Sun and a not too rich , well-drained soil.

• Santolina ericoides

SAPONARIA - Soapwort

Summer flowering. Good for rock gardens, screes and banks. Sun and well-drained soil.

• Saponaria officinalis variegata

SARRACENIA - Pitcher Plants

Insectivorous perennials. Pitchers fromed from modified leaves with hooded toops. Sun or part shade in peat and moss.. Keep very wet, except in winter when cool and slightly drier conditions are needed.

• Sarracenia Bog

• Sarracenia bloom

• Sarracenia

• Sarracenia catesbaei

• Sarracenia leucophylla 'Tarnock'

• Sarracenia 'Little Love Bug'

• Sarracenia lutea

• Sarracenia purpurea

  

• Sarracenia rubra

SARUMA

Lovely yellow flowers on a plant with slightly fuzzy heart-shaped leaves. About 18" tall. Late spring blooming.

• Saruma henryi

SAXIFRAGA

Excellent for rock gardens. Nice as a ground cover. Zones 4-6. Most common ones we grow need light shade. Airy pink/white flowers.

• Saxifraga 'Harvest Moon'

• Saxifraga stolonifera

• Saxifraga stolonifera 'Maroon Beauty'

  

• Saxifraga × arendisii

SCABIOSA - Pincushion Flower

• Scabiosa 'Butterfly Blue'

SEDUM - Stonecrop

Fleshy or succulent perennials. Most are semi-evergreen or evergreen. Good for rock gardens. Needs sun. Not too fussy as to soil.

• Sedum 'Autumn Joy'

• Sedum cauticola

• Sedum 'Frosty Morn'

• Sedum 'Frosty Morn' - bloom

• Sedum kamtschaticum 'Variegatum'

• Sedum lineara 'Variegatum'

  

• Sedum 'Ruby Glow'

• Sedum sieboldii

• Sedum sieboldii blooms

• Sedum sieboldii 'Variegatum'

• Sedum spectabile

• Sedum 'T. Rex'

• Sedum 'Verea Jameson'

SEMPERVIVUM - Hens and Chicks or Houseleek

Evergreen perennials that spread by short stolons and are grown for their symmetrical rosettes of oval to strap=shaped, pointed, fleshy leaves. Good for rock gardens, screes, and walls. Flowers are start shaped. Needs sun and gritty soil. Takes several years to reach flowering size. Rosettes die after flowering but leave numerous offsets.

• Sempervivum - Hens and Chicks

  

• Sempervivum arachnoideum

SILENE - Campion or Catchfly

Sun and fertile, well-drained soil. 5-petaled flowers.

• Silene uniflora 'Druette's Variegated'

SILYBUM - Variegated Thistle

• Silybum marianum

SMILACINA

• Smilacina racemosa

SOLIDAGO - Goldenrod

Summer flowering. Short, lovely garden plants, to tall obnoxious weeds and
everything in between. Sun or light shade in any well-drained soil.
May self seed.

• Solidago 'Baker's Acres'

• Solidago 'Baker's Acres' bloom

SPIRANTHES - Bog Orchid

Deciduous terrestrial orchids. Hardy zones 3-9. Spikes of delicate orchid-like white flowers in late summer to fall. Semi shade.

• Spiranthes cernua 'Chadds Ford'

• Spiranthes convallarioides

STACHYS - Lamb's Ears

Grows in any well-drained soil in sun or light shade. Particularly tolerant of poor soils. Mostly with fuzzy leaves.

• Stachys byzantina

• Stachys byzantina 'Primrose Heron

• Stachys byzantina variegata

SYMPHYTUM - Comfrey

Vigorous, coarse perennials, best for the wild garden with the exception
of those pictures which are variegated and quite well behaved.
Sun or semi-shade and moist soil.

• Symphytum 'Goldsmith'

• Symphytum uplandicum 'Variegatum'

SYNELLESIS

Shady well-drained soil. Umbrella shaped, deeply cut leaves.

• Synellensus aconitifolia

TANACETUM - Tansy

Aromatic foliage, yellow flowers. Full sun in fertile, well-drained soil.

• Tanacetum parthenium

• Tanacetum vulgare

• Tanacetum vulgare var. 'Crispum'

TARAXICUM - Dandelion

A Japanese species. White flowers. Comes true from seed.
Sun or light shade. Blooms spring through fall.

• Taraxacum officinale alba

TELLIMA

A genus of one species of spring flowering perennial. Good ground cover for a cool, semi-dhaded woodland gardens. Well-drained soil.

• Tellima grandiflora 'Forest Frost'

TEUCRIUM

Often described as wanting full sun, but ours are most happy in light shade. Purple flowers and small, blue/green leaves.

• Teucrium chamaedrys

THALICTRUM - Meadow Rue

Grown for its fluffy flower heads. Happy at the edge of the woodland garden. Some are quite tall.

• Thalictrum delavayi

• Thalictrum 'Evening Star'

THYMUS - Thyme

Mat forming herb with wonderfully fragrant foliage. Good on banks, in rock gardens or between stepping stones. Can take light foot traffic. Sun and moist but well-drained soil. Flowers in various shades of white, pink and lavender.

• Thymus citriodorus

• Thymus 'Doone Valley'

• Thymus 'Elfin'

• Thymus 'Lavender'

• Thymus 'Pink Chintz'

• Thymus praecox 'Highland Cream'

• Thymus serphyllum coccineum

• Thymus vulgaris

TIARELLA - Foam Flower

Excellent ground cover, most of which spread by runners. Will tolerate rather deep shade. Likes a moist but well-drained soil.

• Tiarella 'Black Snowflake'

• Tiarella 'Black Velvet'

• Tiarella 'Brandywine'

• Tiarella 'Cygnet'

• Tiarella 'Eco Eyed Glossy'

• Tiarella 'Eco Rambling Silhouette'

• Tiarella 'Eco Running Tapestry'

• Tiarella 'Eco Running Tapestry' bloom

• Tiarella 'Eco Splotched Velvet'

• Tiarella 'Heronswood Mist'

  

• Tiarella 'Pink Skyrocket'

• Tiarella 'Pinwheel'

• Tiarella 'Skeleton Key'

TITHONIA

• Tithonia rotundifolia

TOLMIEA

Another genus of one species. Sometimes semi-evergreen. Good for cool woodland gardens. Shade in well-drained neutral to acid soil. The one pictured is often called Piggyback Plant because it makes baby plantlets on the tops of the leaves which can be rooted for new plants.

• Tolmeia menziesii (closeup)

• Tolmeia menziesii

TOVARA

Sun or shade in fertile, moist soil. Fall flowering with sprays of tiny bead-like red flowers.

• Tovara virginiana 'Painter's Palette'

• Tovara virginiana 'Variegata'

• Tovara bloom

TRACHYSTEMON

• Trachystemon orientalis bloom

• Trachystemon orientalis leaf

TRADESCANTIA - Spiderwort or Snotweed

Fertile moist to dry soil in sun or partial shade. Self seeds and may become a bit invasive, though it is too lovely to avoid for that reason. Flowers in spring and usually sporadically throughout the growing season.

• Tradescantia 'Bilberry Ice'

• Tradescantia 'Blue Stone'

• Tradescantia cerinthoides

• Tradescantia 'Concord Grape'

• Tradescantia 'Hawaiian Punch'

  

• Tradescantia 'Karminglut'

• Tradescantia 'Little Doll'

• Tradescantia 'Maiden's Blush'

• Tradescantia 'Osprey'

• Tradescantia 'Snow Cap'

• Tradescantia 'Sweet Kate'

• Tradescantia 'Zwanenburg Blue'

TRICYRTIS - Toad Lilies

Late summer and autumn-flowering perennials. Purple/white/spotted/orchid-like flowers. Light shade. Needs humus-rich, moist soil.

• Tricyrtis albomarginata bloom

• Tricyrtis 'Gilt Edge'

• Tricyrtis hirta 'Miyazaki hybrid'

• Tricyrtis puberula

TRILLIUM - Wake Robin

Petals, sepas and leaves are all in whorls of 3. Excellent for woodland gardens. Full or partial shade and fertile, moist neutral to acid soil. Dormant after blooming.

• Trillium albidum

• Trillium catesbaei

• Trillium cuneatum

• Trillium erectum

• Trillium erectum beige

• Trillium flexipes

• Trillium grandiflorum

• Trillium luteum

• Trillium parviflorum

  

• Trillium sesile

UVULARIA

Spring flowering perennials that thrive in moist woodlands. Semi-shade and peaty soil. Pendant yellow bell-shaped flowers.

• Uvularia perfoliata

• Uvularia perfoliata bloom

• Uvularia sessifolia variegata bloom

• Uvularia sessifolia variegata

VANCOUVERIANA

• Vancouveriana planipetala

VERBASCUM - Mullein

Summer flowering. Tolerates shade, but prefers an open, sunny site and well-drained soil.

• Verbascum

• Verbascum phoeniceum 'Violette'

  

VERBENA

Mostly summer flowering in full sun and well-drained soil.

• Verbena 'Apple Blossom'

• Verbena bonariensis

VERONIA - Iron Weed

Yes, I know, it's a weed and I pull it out of the formal gardens, but I do love the color of the flowers.

• Veronia altissima variegata

VERONICA

Upright plants and ground covers. Sun and well-drained soil. Wide range of flower colors. Some spring blooming, other summer and fall.

• Veronica 'Giles van Hees'

• Veronica 'Sunny Border Blue'

VIOLA - Violets

Sun or shade in well-drained but moisture retentive soil.

• Viola blanda

• Viola 'Freckles'

• Viola 'Fuji Dawn'

• Viola 'Helen Mount' (Johnny Jump Up)

• Viola labradorica

• Viola labradorica bloom

• Viola x wittrockiana

• Violet yellow flowers

YUCCA

Bold, sword-shaped leaves and tall spikes of flowers in early summer. Full sun is best but will grow in light shade. Well-drained soil.

• Yucca filamentosa

• Yucca filamentosa 'Color Guard'

• Yucca filamentosa 'Golden Sword'

• Yucca filamentosa smalliana 'Bright Edge'

• Yucca flacida 'Ivory'

• Yucca glauca

• Yucca glauca bloom

• Yucca linearifolia