Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Leonotis menthaefolia

Family: (Lamiaceae)

(TP) to 2′.  Mint-leaved Lion’s Ear.  South Africa.  Vibrant, warm orange, tubular flowers are held in whorls.  Small, serrated leaves have a pungent, spicy fragrance, reminiscent of Agastache.  A long blooming, compact Lion’s Ear perfect for containers.  Overwinter in a frost-free conservatory.  Summer through to fall.  Sun.  4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Ennealophus euryandrus (syn. Herbertia euryandra)

Family: (Iridaceae)

Tender bulb to 12″.  Argentina.  This Iris relative has pleated linear to lanceolate leaves.  Intriguing, blue to violet flowers with three large, broadly spreading, triangular to obovate, outer tepals with white markings at the base…they look like an airplane propeller.  The three smaller, inner tepals are rounded, erect and reflexed, with a spot of orange on the reflex.  In the centre, the trifid, white stigma is showy and heavily clefted, with the stamens held below.  The flowers only last for part of a day. Grows on humid slopes near the forest’s edge but nicely for us in a pot.  3 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Campanula rigidipila

Family: (Campanulaceae)

(P) to 12″.  This rare plant is the world’s most southerly occurring Campanula from Ethiopia and the Kenyan highlands.  From a clump of thick, triangular, hairy, grey-green leaves, arise strong, erect stems carrying pale buds that open to lovely, clear blue bells with flared tips edged with white hairs.  Summer-blooming.  Sun.  4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Cenolophium denudatum

Family: (Apiaceae)

(P) to 3′.  Baltic Parsley.  Europe and Asia.  A lovely, hardy, Queen Anne’s Lace relative.  Abundant, five-inch, flat-topped umbels of creamy white flowers on branching red stems, float atop mounds of dark-green, fern-like foliage.  Blooms mid-summer to mid-autumn.  Attractive to many beneficial insects, especially butterflies.  Adds a delicate airiness to the summer border.  Full sun and well-drained soil.  3 & T1

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Catananche caerulea White

Family: (Asteraceae)

(P) to 2′.  Mediterranean.  A lovely white form of Cupid’s Dart.  Clumps of short, grey-green, grass-like foliage put up multiple branching, wiry stalks topped with white, cornflower-like blooms.  The dark markings at the base of each notched, ray floret create a central dark-eye.  The flowerhead is subtended by an involucre of multiple papery, scale-like bracts.  Starting in early summer, these long-lasting blooms make worthy cut flowers.  Sun.  Well-drained soil.  3 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Salvia forsskaolii

Family: (Lamiaceae)

(P) to 3+’. Indigo Woodland Sage. Balkan peninsula, Bulgaria to Turkey. This plant was named after Finnish explorer Peter Forsskål, a student of Carl Linnaeus.  Large basal clumps of textural green foliage give rise to long, branched flowering stems with whorls of showy, bi-lipped, violet-blue flowers with white streaks on the lower lip.  A great Salvia for open woodland plantings.  Blooms summer into early autumn.  Full sun to part shade.  Moist, well-drained soil. 4 & T3

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Hornungia alpina (syn. Hutchinsia alpina)

Family: Brassicaceae

(P) to 3″.  Chamois Cress.  South and central Europe.  This charming little creeper forms neat spreading mats of bright green, pinnate, fern-like foliage, topped with dense clusters of tiny, four-petalled, white flowers from spring to autumn. Even out of flower, this Cress makes a sweet impression. Sun and well-drained soil. 3 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Berkheya purpurea

Family: (Asteraceae)

(P) to 3′.  Purple Berkheya.  Mountains of South Africa.  This treasure forms clumps up to 18 inches in width of thistle-like leaves with spiny margins.  The single flowering stem carries numerous flowerheads on short side branches with the buds opening in succession from the top of the stem downwards. The flowers are comprised of a ring of pale smoky lavender outer ray florets with central dark purple disc florets.  Bees go crazy for this extraordinary plant that blooms June through August.  Full sun, well-drained soil.  4 & T1

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Dianthus turkestanicus

Family: (Caryophyllaceae)

(P) to 12″.  China and Kazakhstan.  This gem forms mats of blue-green, fine foliage.  Fringed, pale pink, scented flowers cover the plant in mid-May.  Sun and well-drained soil.  4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Daucus carota ‘Dara’

Family: (Apiaceae)

(B) to 2.5′.  Queen Anne’s Lace.  Europe.  A new twist on an old-fashioned beauty.  The lacy blooms deepen color as they age to a rose-purple and eventually turn a darker red-purple. Simply lovely.  Full sun and well-drained soil.  3 & T1