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TALL AND LOVELY
Judy Harry 2001
Generally speaking I don't like being told what I will like. When someone says 'You must read this book: I know you will love it,' I feel a quite unreasonable resistance to opening its pages. Even plants can meet with my hostility when foisted upon me.
This can be a more reasonable reaction however. A plant that is forced upon you may present all sorts of problems: it may be very invasive (we've all been caught out by these), or just not suited to the soil and conditions, in which case it will sit miserably in the ground and look reproachfully at you every time you pass by. Life has enough anxieties without having to worry about a miserable plant you had thought of growing in the first place.
So I probably accepted two particular plants with a certain amount of caution when they were very generously pressed into my hand about four years ago. The occasion was a visit to our small nursery (now defunct) by the well known Dutch nurseryman Coen Joanne. He had ordered some plants from me, and I had taken the opportunity to order some from him. But I had not included on my list Veronicastrum. Fortunately, he being a wise and practical plantsman, had in the boot of his car not only the plants I had professed to want, but several that he thought “I would like”.
After a very pleasant and instructive hour or two he departed with the plants he had ordered plus, of course, some that I thought he would like(!) and I was left with, among others, Veronicastrum 'Pink Glow' and V.v. 'Lavendelturum'. How lucky I was as these have become firm favourites.
They flower very late in the summer, and as they are related to the herbaceous veronica they have narrow spikes of flowers. They are, however, very much taller with very stiff and strong stems that I have never yet had to stake. The flowers are arranged in an exciting sort of candelabra which gives these imposing plants an air of great energy, and since the flowers are so high up, they almost seem to explode among other plants in the border. Veronicastrum 'Pink Glow' has flowers of a pretty warm pink, while 'Lavendelturum's flowers are more, well, lavender coloured. Once flowering has finished they develop handsome seed heads that continue to look good all winter.
They are in fact plants that are ideally suited to the 'new perennial' style of gardening, which depends on interesting winter outlines almost as much as summer colour. I quite quickly cottoned on to the fact that a failure, through idleness, to tidy up the garden in the autumn could be turned to advantage when dressed overall some weeks later by hoar-frost. It is rare to find so generously rewarded! And while I winters, Veronicastrum with its stiff habit, remains looking good in wet or dry winter weather. (Others that I find perform well in our climate are Euphatorium, Verbascum and the big, white-flowered Achillea that I have always called grandifolia but which I should now probably call something else following John Humphris' talk on Sutton Place.)
As far as conditions go, Veronicastrum seems to be easy to please. I doubt if it I would perform well in a very thin, dry soil but otherwise, given reasonable fertility J and moisture retention, it seems to do well. Some sun I think is desirable and I have moved one clump further out into the light because I could see that it wasn't really reaching its full potential. The plants build up gradually, and are certainly never going to present me with the problem of becoming invasive, so I had absolutely no grounds for being so suspicious of such a wonderful gift!
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LOOKING OUT FOR COMBINATIONS
Judy Harry 1998
A moment that I particularly enjoyed during Eleanor Fisher's second talk to the Group in 1997 was the story of her combinations. If you weren't there to hear it, an American visitor apparently burst into her house after a walk round the garden to exclaim, “Gee, I just love your combinations!
He was not referring of course to her underwear but to her skill in combining plants so that they create satisfying visual relationships. In a small garden it is often not possible to express yourself on a large canvas, but it is possible to produce small cameos here and there that can stop you in your tracks and make sometimes they are planned Sometimes the cameos turn out to be more like caricatures because the imagination fails to envisage some element, but whatever happens, it is a way of concentrating the mind when placing plants in the garden.
Leaves alone can create interesting partnerships, as when I realised that the down turned palmate leaves of Helleborus foetidus were being mimicked, in miniature and very pertly, by the similarly shaped leaves of Geranium sanguineum next to them. Although the green of the leaves was almost the same, the texture and of course the scale were different enough to make a really interesting “similar but dissimilar” relationship, which, in this case, was entirely unplanned!
Differently shaped leaves can combine to make an appealing group, particularly if they have a colour in common, in this case soft creamy variegation. Since all the plants in this happy band are also evergreen, they make a particularly effective container full for the winter garden. For height and detail, the finely cut leaves of of Ruta graveolens 'Variegata' gently complement the silky textured tresses of Carex 'Frosted Curls' while spilling around and over the edges of the container, pours the very rampant clover Trifolium repens 'Green Ice'. These three make a most elegant combination, understated but full of interest for winter and summer alike.
The clovers are most useful plants, for they are mostly of the low and spreading variety, and can be relied on therefore to provide a backcloth. At Pam Tatars' there is a place where the very handsome Trifolium repens 'Wheatfen' partners a beautifully coloured Heuchera. (I think it is Persian Carpet') Both plants have reddish or burgundy leaves and dusky pink flowers. Each on its own would be lovely, but putting the two together has supplied an answer that is very much more than the sum of the parts.
A friend also discovered that the very common rockery soapwort, affectionately known as “Tumbling Ted” looks lovely spilling over a backcloth of Trifolium repens 'Purpurescens'. In our garden, this very brown clover is near to the bright orange Geum x borisii which fortunately flowers at the same time as Tulipa sprengeri. This wonderful, very late flowering tulip has a colouring that words can hardly do justice to: just imagine elegantly shaped narrow flowers of a fiery scarlet and a petal reverse that is burnished with old gold This group of warm colours is completed with Carex comans 'Bronze' and makes up a most cosy yet dramatic set of combinations!
Sometimes, combinations go for a long time unnoticed. Viburnum bodnantense 'Dawn' gets plenty of attention during its gratifyingly long flowering season, but once the shrub has turned to leaf, I think that most of us stop noticing it. So when I realised that the soft pinky purple of Clematis alpina 'Ruby' and a purple Honesty were being enhanced by the pinkish shading on the young leaves of the Viburnum which formed their backdrop it was a real bonus.
Sometimes a combination occurs before the plants even get into the ground At a plant sale this spring I was delighted to find the handsome Grape Hyacinth Bellevedia paradaxa on one stall, and on the next the rather unusual (and I hope not too miffy) periwinkle Vinca difformis 'Jenny Pym'. I put them both in a box to take home, and to fill up the gaps, by chance popped in some plants of Erysimum 'Bowles' Mauve'. The effect was stunning, because the Bellevdia flowers are a dull, bloomy denim blue, the periwinkle flowers are a rich purple/pink with white eyes, with leaves very glossy and bright green, while the Erysimum of course has dull almost metallic leaves to contrast with the purple flowers which, in this form, show a certain amount of the streaking that occurs from time to time on 'Bowles'Mauve'. They combined to make a rich and varied working of texture and shape, tied together by the magic of the colour wheel of which we read and hear from time to time.
The really interesting thing about this combination was that the box that they were standing in was red. Not a scarlet red, but more of a cherry red The really daring I thing would be to plant something of that colour to finish off the picture. As it happens, I can't think of any flower that would be just the right red (apart perhaps from a tulip) and in any case, this particular set of “combinations” was never likely to be put into the garden as a group. Indeed, the Vinca is still awaiting its final resting place, because I believe it can be a little on the tender side. As is often the case, practical considerations have to come before theories which means that this very fetching set of combinations will just have to stay in the drawer for the time being.
On garden visits, it is very rewarding looking out for these planned or unplanned groupings. Not only does it give one inspiration for one's own garden, it almost forces plants into one's mental filing cabinet, because some special character of their leaves' or flowers' colour or texture is highlighted. It helps to make a visit a much more focused and positive experience.
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THE PERENNIAL PEA
Gwen Grantham 1998
The first to appear in spring is Lathyrus vernus, and very welcome it is too. At 30cm, it is usually purple, but sometimes pink and white ( Lathyrus vernus 'Alboroseus'), and makes a rounded clump of much-divided foliage. Lathyrus aureus follows a little later and is a tawny yellow-orange growing to 60cm and bearing one sided racemes of flowers.
The first of the climbers is L rotundifolius, which is brick red and comes from the Crimea It's followed by the magnificent L grandiflorus, with large, two tone purplish-pink flowers, which despite its beauty, needs to be carefully placed because its a rampant spreader. Much more manageable is L. pubescens, a beautiful lilac-blue pea which comes from Chile and can reach 1.5m; it also has the bonus of a delicate scent.
Due to the mild winter, L. nervosus is early this year. It has steely blue-green foliage and true blue flowers, but is much harder to please than any of the others. Both the last two species have come through the winter intact.
Perhaps my favourite perennial pea is the easy and hardy L. latifolius 'White Pearl'. A slow starter, it has a wonderful ethereal quality, L latifolius 'Rosa Perle' follows a little later.
L. tingitanus the Tangier Pea has smaller pink flowers and is the last into bloom None of the perennial peas is fussy as to soil type, and they need little room if a suitable host or bank can be found for them. They should come true from seed, so it's worth looking out for them on seed lists and in catalogues specialising in less usual plants.
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Honesty is Best
by Sally Grant 2002
On a visit to Joan and Cliff Curtis's garden some years ago, I asked the identity of a plant that caught my eye. Not only was I given the name Lunaria redidiva but also some seedling to take home. I have become very fond of this perennial Honesty as it is happy in shade and brightens up a dark border in the front garden under the large beech tree. At dusk the pale mauve flowers take on an iridescent quality and during the day they are shown off against the backdrop of yew and a blue leafed conifer. The flowers also compliment the crimson foliage of Clematis recta atropurpurea.
It is not a plant I see very often in other gardens and I really think it should be more commonly grown. I also grow the various forms of the annual Honesty which I am very fond of, but I think that the subtle colour of Lunaria redidiva makes it my favourite. In a garden which is becoming more and more shady, I find I am drawn to plants which enjoy such conditions.
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Hosta – The Plant for Any Situation!
Derrick Targett 2002
The contribution of hostas in the garden over the past decade is remarkable. No other hardy plant has such sumptuous and richly coloured foliage, that is distinct in leaf outline and clump shape. It could be said that the hosta is the perfect perennial. Few perennials offer a six to eight month display in the garden, granted, the plants pass through different stages, looking their best in late spring and early summer but remain attractive from the time they emerge until the first frost turns the clumps into golden yellow, to brighten up the late autumn border.
I believe that no other perennial offers the diversity seen in the modern hosta – plant sizes from tiny to huge, plant habit from tall to short, leaf shape from grass-like to near perfect round circles, leaf features from flat to dimpled, leaf colours from blue-green to chartreuse, from yellow to silvery white, multi-coloured streaking and splashes. Some hostas flower in early June though a succession of bloom can be provided through to October. Flowers can be diverse and come as large waxy, white trumpets, emanating a delicious fragrance, or as purple, wide open bells.
Hostas give a high return on investment of initial cost and subsequent labour. They are long lived once planted and, given reasonable care hostas multiply with ease, and in most cases, rapidly.
Finally hostas are the makers of a gardener because what makes enthusiastic gardeners out of reluctant ones is the sweet smell of success. Hostas practically guarantee success and with success comes a willingness to achieve more.
Pest Resistant Hostas. Abiqua Blue Crinkles, Blue Umbrellas, El capitan, Fragrant Gold, Fringe Benefit, Green Sheen, Invincible, Hypoleuca, Krossa Regal, Lucy Vitols, Sum and Substance, Siebildiana, Silvery Slug Proof , Leather Sheen.
Sun Tolerant Hostas. August Moon, Blue Umbrellas, Fortunei Aureomarginata, Fragrant Gold, Green Sheen, Honey Bells, Invincible, On Stage, Plantaginea, Royal Standard, Sum and Substance, Alex Summers, Gold Regal, Lady Isobel Barnett, Albigue Moonbeam .