Aster

A very attractive introduction by us from Yunnan if we do say so. Broad lightly hairy leaves in a dense clump with lots of large soft lavender daisy flowers fringed heavily in very fine petals surround a prominent dark "cone". This steals the show in mid to late July here in our gardens. Karen, a friend of ours who has exceptional taste was strolling the gardens last night (July 20), saw this Aster blooming and said "I want that plant!". And she had barely touched her glass of wine so it was a completely valid assessment. When shipped in the fall, we'll need to cut this plant back.

One of the jewels in the tiara of shade garden royalty which is supposed to sound aristocratic and appealing and I believe it does. Put this little Chinese gem in a special spot where you can enjoy the white flowers over the patterned foliage. This would likely thrive in a moist rotting stump. Found up to 12000' in alpine meadows, we've also seen a tiny form in forests in Chongqing. These are from our own divisions.

One of those plants that turns you to jelly when you see it blooming. We saw this grown to perfection at the Charlton-Sale garden in North Vancouver BC where it had grown over a stump in the woodland and crept over to the fissured bark of a nearby Douglas fir and was creeping up the furrows with over-sized red-pink trumpets of flowers which left us stricken dumb in the wilderness. Fortunately it was right on the path and we could see the house and Charlie was nearby, so we were able to stumble along muttering "Asteranthera - must have Asteranthera" in relative safety until our wits returned. Now we are haunted by what other treasures we might have missed along the way while we were blinded by beauty. This Chilean and Argentinian gesneriad demands a cool, humid, acidic, moist, somewhat shaded and relatively mild situation to thrive. If you have these conditions, then this an automatic add to cart. A small-leafed evergreen groundcover which will climb tightly appressed over or up boulders or logs. Given time and proper conditions, it will climb up tree trunks or shaded brick walls to 10' or bit more and leave you steeped in wonder when it flowers..