Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Patrinia monandra

Family: Caprifoliaceae

(P) to 4′.  Golden Lace.  China to Taiwan.  A showy, clump-forming perennial with five-petalled, yellow-green flowers borne on dense, upright, branched, flat-topped clusters.  As the flowers fade, the bleached, flat seed heads provide an extended period of interest lasting through late summer.  Basal, dark green, lobed foliage with crenate margins.  An uncommon, stunning species great for the flower garden.  Sun to part shade.  3 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Deinanthe caerulea

Family: Hydrangeaceae

(P) to 18″.  False Hydrangea.  China.  An unusual herbaceous Hydrangea relative first identified in the wild in the early 20th century by Ernest Henry Wilson, (1876-1930).  Medium-to-dark green leaves up to eight inches long are rugose with dentate margins, prominent veins and pointed tips.  Nodding, cup-shaped, violet-blue, fertile flowers bloom above the foliage in June-July.  The petals of each flower curl around a decorative central boss of light violet stamens. A great collector’s pick for the shade garden.  Best grown in peaty, fertile, humus-rich, well-drained but consistently moist soils in light shade.  4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Veratrum nigrum

Family: Melanthiaceae

(P) to 5’. Black False Hellebore. Central Asia to southern Europe.  A stately, back of the border plant with large, parallel-veined, pleated leaves arranged spirally around erect stems.  Narrow branched panicles of small, six-tepaled, star-shaped flowers are dark purple to black.  Best in part shade. All parts of this plant are poisonous.  July to August.  3 & T1& Δ

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Astilbe chinensis

Family: Saxifragaceae

(P) to 3′.  China.  This clump-forming perennial features graceful, fern-like mounds of mostly basal, compound leaves with sharply-toothed leaflets that emerge coppery bronze. Tiny rose-purple flowers are densely packed into erect, plume-like flower panicles rising above the foliage on slender stems. August.  A tough and reliable plant that provides long-lasting interest through the season.  Moist soil.  Sun/partial shade.  4 & T1

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Dianthus pavonius

Family: Caryophyllaceae

(P) to 4″.  Southwestern Alps.  Low, needle-leaved cushions smothered in early summer with deep to pale rose-pink flowers.  Blooms are quite large with a distinctive buff reverse.  An ideal choice for the rock garden.  June.  Sun and well-drained soil.  4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Araujia sericifera

Family: (Apocynaceae)

(TP) to 6′. Cruel Plant.  South America.  This twining, woody climber is another unique member of the Stonecrop plant collection.  The softly hairy, stalked leaves and loose cymes of waxy flowers belie its sinister relationship to its pollinators.  The five-petalled, white flowers are striped with two pink lines on each petal that act as a track to guide nocturnal moths toward the centre.  The sticky pollen then traps moth’s proboscides and holds them until they either escape or perish, ensuring the transfer of pollen within the flower.  An invasive species in many parts of the world, Araujia is not hardy here and thus can be safely cultivated as a handsome specimen for the warm glasshouse.  We bring our Araujia outside in the summer to enjoy its fragrant and showy flowers, and in the winter we enjoy the unique fruits under glass.  The large, leathery pods contain seeds tipped with a tuft of silky hairs, which give the plant its Latin species name of sericifera, meaning silk-bearing. Sun.  3 &T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Azorina vidalii

Family: (Campanulaceae)

(TP) to 18″.  Azores Bellflower.  Azores.  Particularly interesting for the cool greenhouse. Thick fleshy deep green leaves give rise to a candelabra of two-inch waxy, dusky pink bells. Sun. 4 & T3

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Linaria triornithophora

Family: (Plantaginaceae)

(P) to 3′.  Three-Birds-Flying.  From Spain and Portugal.  Fascinating, long, single-spurred, lilac-purple flowers are speckled and etched with purplish black and a dab of yellow.  The flowers are arranged around the stems in groups of three, looking incredibly just like budgerigars, hence the common name.  Broad, grey-green, ribbed foliage clasps the stem.  Sun.  4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Armeria juniperifolia

Family: (Plumbaginaceae)

(P) to 3″.  Dwarf Spanish Thrift.  Europe.  This alpine form makes a very dense bun or cushion of greyish green, needle-like leaves with soft pink, globe-shaped, five-petalled flowers with papery bracts which are held just above the foliage.  Sun, well-drained soil.  3 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Bellevalia dubia

Family: (Asparagaceae)

Tender bulb to 16″.  Portugal.  An unusual bulb that we grow in our Pit House, formerly in the genus Muscari.  A Grape Hyacinth look-alike.  In bud, loose racemes of bright, violet-blue flowers with green tips turn to a maroon-brown with yellow-tinted lobes as they open.  Blooms in early spring.  Summer dormant.  Sun.  3 & ∆, then T1