Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Agrimonia gryposepala

Family: (Rosaceae)

(P) to 5′. Tall Agrimony. North America. Slender, erect racemes of bright yellow, five-petalled blooms open from the bottom upwards, atop upright, softly hairy plants bearing paired, coarsely toothed, chartreuse green leaves. This native of open woods and thickets makes a surprisingly attractive garden plant. A patch planted outside our greenhouses was a joy all summer. Well-drained soil. Partial shade/sun. 3 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Akebia quinata

Family: Lardizabalaceae

Hardy vine to 20′.  Chocolate Vine.  China, Korea and Japan.  Fast growing, deciduous, and ideal for covering trellises, pergolas or other structures.  The compound leaves are tinged purplish when new and mature to a handsome blue-green.  Rather showy, pendant racemes of vanilla-scented flowers with wide, purple to dark chocolate maroon sepals.  The intriguing fruits are like fat, purple sausages, opening to reveal a white, pulpy interior with black seeds.  Well-drained soil.  Sun/partial shade.  3 & T1

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Allium albidum subsp. caucasicum (syn. Allium denudatum)

Family: (Alliaceae)

Hardy bulb to 6″.  W Russia, Romania, Bulgaria.  This rhizomatous Allium is a fine, compact, mat-forming onion for the rock garden.  The white, star-shaped flowers in July and August are large, plentiful and sublime against the carpets of fine, green, flat foliage.  A great way to jazz things up in the rockery in mid to late summer.  Full sun and average moisture soil.  3 & 6

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Allium atropurpureum

Family: (Alliaceae)

Hardy bulb to 3.5′. South Europe. On top of sturdy stems, very dark wine-red florets with prominent purple anthers form an intense, two-inch wide, spherical inflorescence in late spring. Very striking in our Purple/Magenta Square in the Flower Garden. Sun. 3 & 6

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Allium caeruleum (syn. Allium azureum)

Family: (Alliaceae)

Hardy bulb to 2.5′. Siberia, Turkestan. Rich azure blue flowers form a small head atop upright stems. Blooms late spring/early summer. Very sweet. Sun. 3 & 6

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Allium schoenoprasum

Family: (Alliaceae)

Hardy bulb to 18″.  Chives.  Europe, Asia.  Ornamental, purple, umbellate, small flowerheads and bright green, cylindrical, hollow leaves.  Mild onion flavour.  Great in omelettes and salad.  Cut down to the ground when they get floppy and they spring back up.  Sun.  3 & 6

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Allium sphaerocephalon

Family: (Alliaceae)

Hardy bulb to 3′.  Drumstick Allium.  Europe, North Africa, West Asia.  Cylindrical, hollow, grey-green leaves to 14 inches long form a grass-like foliage clump in spring.  Sturdy, slender stems rise in late spring and are topped with oval, clover-like flowerheads. Each flowerhead is a tight, dense, one-inch umbel of tiny florets that emerge deep green but mature (top to bottom) to rose-purple, displaying an interesting bi-colour effect.  Excellent when weaving through their neighbours.  Blooms mid-summer.  Sun. 3 & 6

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Allium togasii

Family: (Alliaceae)

Hardy bulb to 6″. Shikoku Island, Japan. A delightful alpine or rock garden plant sporting small, spherical heads of the very palest pink over neat tufts of thin, grass-like foliage. Blooms August/ September. Well-drained, sandy soil. Sun. 3 & 6

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Allium zebdanense

Family: (Alliaceae)

Hardy bulb to 16″.  Lebanon.  Dainty, cup-shaped, pure white flowers are held upright in loose umbels over dense clumps of smooth, bright green foliage.  Really brightens up the woodland in late spring.  Sun/partial shade.  3 & 6

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Althaea cannabina

Family: (Malvaceae)

(P) 7′. Europe. A tall, wiry plant producing lavender-pink, cup-shaped blooms with darker central eyes in the leaf axils of slender, branching stems. The palmately lobed leaves are roughly pubescent with a greyish white underside. “The whole plant is light and graceful.” (GST**). Moist soil. Sun. 3 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Alyssoides utriculata

Family: (Brassicaceae)

Subshrub to 14″. Bladder Pod. Mountains of Europe. Alpine with succulent, matte green leaves and panicles of fragrant, bright yellow, mustard-like flowers, which bloom with Phlox, Alyssum and Saxifraga moschata. Later on, interesting ovoid, inflated seedpods emerge and eventually fall apart to reveal their inner, translucent septum with seeds attached resembling a miniature Honesty plant. Sun. 4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Amaranthus caudatus

Family: (Amaranthaceae)

(A) to 3.5′.  Love-lies-bleeding.  Andes.  Long, drooping, tassel-like flower spikes of crimson to wine red, from late summer into autumn. Lush green foliage and red-tinted stems add to the ornamental value.  A classic.  Sun.  3 & T3

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Amaranthus cruentus ‘Copperhead’

Family: (Amaranthaceae)

(A) to 5′. A stately summer annual that shows off its splendid, dense, copper-coloured, plume-like flowerheads held above its sturdy stalks. Makes an interesting addition to the yellow-orange border. Sun. 3 & T3

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Amaranthus gangeticus

Family: (Amaranthaceae)

(A) to 5′.  Elephant Amaranth.  South America, Africa.  This plant is a delightful point of interest in the flower or vegetable garden.  The tiny, congested sprays of crimson flowers form rounded, dense clusters that make up one extraordinarily shaped form, rather like an elephant’s trunk, or a pointing finger or two.  Sun.  3 & T3

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Amaranthus hybridus var. erythrostachys

Family: (Amaranthaceae)

(A) to 5′.  Peruvian Tassel Flower.  Many branched panicles of crimson, tassel-like flowers accentuated by the deep maroon foliage of this plant, creates drama in the border.  Sun.  3 & T3