Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Verbena hastata

Family: (Verbenaceae)

(P) to 5′.  Simpler’s Joy.  Eastern North America.  Tall, erect stems with a branched inflorescence of tiny, tubular, purplish pink blooms in dense terminal panicles.  The lance-shaped, toothed foliage is rough textured and somewhat coarse in appearance, making this a better candidate for informal plantings.  Blooms July to September.  Sun.  Moist soil.  Sun.  4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Allium moly

Family: (Alliaceae)

Hardy bulb to 12″.  Golden Garlic.  Southern and southwestern Europe.   Star-shaped, 1/2” diameter, bright yellow flowers appear in loose umbels atop leafless stalks in late spring above with flat, tulip-like, blue-green, basal leaves which appear in 2’s.  Sun.  3 & 6

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): Jasione laevis

Family: (Campanulaceae)

(B/P) to 12″.  Shepherd’s Scabious.  Western Europe.  Globose, terminal heads of pale blue, narrow-petalled, pincushion-like flowers on slender stalks arise from densely tufted rosettes of lanceolate, wavy-edged foliage.  Blooms midsummer.  A plant of dry, open grassland and rocky cliffs.  May prove to be biennial, so allow to self-sow.  A charmer.  Well-drained soil.  Sun.  4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Verbena rigida

Family: (Verbenaceae)

(A/TP) to 2′.  Slender Vervain.  South America.  Abundant clusters of small vibrant purple flowerheads on long-stalked, upright branching stems.  Rough, clasping, oblongate foliage is irregularly toothed.  Full sun and well-drained soil.  3 & T2, cover and keep dark.

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Lychnis coronaria

Family: (Caryophyllaceae)

(P) to 3′.  Rose Campion.  Asia, Europe.  A cottage garden classic.  Tall grey stems with vivid, five-petalled, rose-magenta blooms are borne over clumps of ovate, densely woolly, silver-grey, flannelly leaves.  Blooms June and July.  Sun/partial shade.  Prefers moist soil but will tolerate poor soils with some dryness.  4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Eupatorium hyssopifolium

Family: (Asteraceae)

(P) to 3′.  Hyssop-leaf Thoroughwort.  A plant of sandy soils and coastal areas from New England to Florida.  Large, flat-topped inflorescences of white flowers up to one foot across.  Fine textured foliage of narrow, whorled, grey-green leaves.  Easy and a good late summer bloomer.  Well-drained soil.  Sun.  4 & T2

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Eryngium yuccifolium

Family: (Apiaceae)

(P) to 4′.  The Rattlesnake-Master of North America.  Greenish, prickly, thistle-like flowers on a towering branched stalk.  Broad, blade-like, blue-grey serrated leaves form large striking rosettes.  Well-drained soil.  Sun.  3 & 6 & Δ

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Anthriscus sylvestris ‘Moonlit Night’

Family: (Apiaceae)

(B/P) to 4′.  Another stunning, dark-leaved cultivar of the European Cow Parsley and cousin of Anthriscus sylvestris ‘Raven’s Wing’.  We got this seed from the Hardy Plant Society /Mid-Atlantic Group, and it has become a reliable fixture in the Apiaceae bed on the Systematic Order Beds.  We are not sure how it varies from ‘Raven’s Wing’, but we keep them very separate and enjoy them both.  Self-seeds gently.  Sun/partial shade.  3 & 6

Scientific Name (Genus/Species): Pycnanthemum pilosum

Family: (Lamiaceae)

(P) to 3′.  Hairy Mountain Mint.  Eastern and Central US.  This herbaceous perennial branches frequently to create a slender bushy appearance with flowers appearing in both terminal and axillary clusters.  The stems are light green, 4-angled, densely pubescent on all sides (giving an overall grey appearance), and very aromatic when bruised.  The upper stems terminate in branching flowerheads that are flat-topped, spanning up to one inch across.  The typical mint-like flowers are hooded and lipped with purple specks and dots scattered across its throat and the lobes of its lips.  The nectar-rich flowers are very attractive to many native pollinators.  A good candidate for the white garden.  Sun.  4 & T2