Europe

A choice woodland creeper to 6"-8" tall for the shade or partly shaded garden where it behaves like Anemone nemorosa - making a mat of ferny foliage but in this case, it has vibrant yellow flowers. A patch of this is to be coveted and the twiggy rhizomes can be easily divided or broken in winter to spread about. Very hardy and goes mid to late summer dormant.

An intriguing curiosity that combines beauty with novelty. In this selection, the flower petals have become lacy green petaloid structures that are perfectly arranged to create amusing and intricate green flowers. A fun addition to the shade garden.

Choice selection of the Wood Anemone with flowers densely packed with numerous small white petals which appear all white at first but as the flowers mature or awaken, a central blue eye is revealed which is quite delightful. I go through a similar slow process every morning and tell myself that it is the same delightful end result.

Named for British plantsman E.A. Bowles, this variety of wood anemone sports attractive lavender to purple flowers. For the true purple lovers, the foliage is an added bonus emerging with a purple tinge or margin that nicely delineates the prettily dissected leaves and provides a purple haze that would make Jimi proud.

A lovely form we brought home from Scotland a few years back. This varies from the norm of mid-blue flowers by embracing the blending nature of Impressionist pastels with its goes-with-anything non-confrontational light lavender-blue flowers in April and May. Not surprisingly, this form is a Libra.

Have trouble picking between the albas and roseas of the woodland shade perennial world? Never fear 'Tomas' is here! This selection of wood anemone opens pure white and fades to pink as the season progresses. Plan your spring break wisely and you can pretend you got two plants for the price of one!

A nice small flowered light pink form of this necessary Anemone species which followed us home from the UK a few years back. What is a necessary Anemone, you ask? One which is indispensable in your shade or woodland garden and whose absence would not only be noted but commented upon and repeated, a gardening gaffe going viral.

This excellent hardy orchid is one we received many years ago from our late Plant Guru, Jerry John Flintoff as Dactylorhiza incarnata subsp. africana. Well, that has been merged into D. elata and it looks right to us but we are not orchid botanists. Vigorous, with green leaves and richly colored flowers. Native to Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia in north Africa, dallying on some islands in the Med (smart orchid!) and jumping to France, Spain and Portugal up to Belgium and the Netherlands.

This excellent clone of the Wood Anemone has larger than usual white flowers held nicely above the foliage with better than usual substance and poise. Hard to describe precisely but like some things that are elusive in definition, you know it when you see it.

This native of the Alps is one of the premier little shrublets in the world and one we have seen in the Swiss Alps. Slow-growing evergreen spreader with profuse pea-like flowers carrying purple-pink wings and a yellow keel reminding me somehow of candy corn when I was a kid. I guess because they don't look real. Doing fantastic in our sunny garden.

From Wendy Perry of Bosvigo Plants in S. England comes this unfortunately scarce and choice Campanula. Gently and very controllably spreading to make an impressive clump with spires of pure white flowers. Pairs impeccably with Hosta 'Patriot'.

A fine little European woodlander which can tolerate some sun as well. Spreading by twiggy rhizomes, this will make a good patch in time when happy, The semi-double white flowers adds extra petals to the mix, giving lie to the "less is more" maxim because don't we all know in our publicly inaccessible heart of hearts that "more is more"? Hilda, you work it, girl!

Soft pale blue flowers on this clone which we brought in from the UK a few years ago. This species seems a necessary part of the spring woodland garden and the twiggy rhizomes will in time form a dense floriferous carpet with flowers backed by deeply segmented green leaves.

Soft Shield Fern. These ferns are excellent textural additions to the shade garden as they make broad mounds of dense, fine evergreen foliage. Even though they become substantial plants with an obvious visual weight, it retains a daintiness of appearance. Tough and easy to please.

Hungarian Clover.  Why should I buy a Clover? What are these yayhoos trying to pull? I didn't just fall off the turnip truck. Well, if you get this you will be in Deep Clover and that is a very good thing.  This has mondo white flowers and trashes the ballyhoo and acclaim of this week's plant darling.

Willow Gentian. One of the truly excellent late summer/early fall blooming plants which jazzes up the shade garden with lots of stems in a circular arching vase shape with ranks of blue to lavender blue to sky blue flowers ranked along the stems. Just what you need when you are sick of Hostas. *These are seedlings and flower color will vary*

Seed-grown plants of the dwarf red pussytoes which we presume will come true to form.  Short stems with clusters of red flowers over small mats of dense small leaves  Tough small-scale carpeter for a sunny area and can take drier conditions when established.  Perfect for the rock garden or hell strip where it can cope with some foot traffic. Native to Alaska and Eurasia.

Grown from seed given us by the originator, Dr. Keith Ferguson and named for his wife, Lorna. They have grown this spectacular, heavy flowering selection for over 40 years in their garden in the Cotswolds. From the Maritime Alps, this resembles our native Veratrum viride with similar bold pleated leaves and green pendulous flowers but this elevates that look to a ridiculous level with its sheer volume of flowers on stems that can reach 8 feet! We have been also gifted seed from the late Michael Wickenden of Cally Gardens and our friend, the redoubtable German plantsman Christoph Ruby. The fact that this trio holds this in valued esteem, should be ample endorsement. Long-lived, hardy as the bejabbers (been wanting to use that for years) and deer resistant. These are young plants not of flowering size but give them a rich moist soil and a bit of amply rewarded patience.

A collection of this stalwart Solomon Seal by Jeaninne E. M. Hoog and Michael H. Hoog at 400m in eastern Belgium in the Ardennes, Luxembourg Province.  This is the true species that just chugs along with paired ranks of dangling green-tipped white flowers followed by blue-black marbles of fruit.

A no-fuss restrained yet refined evergreen Cardamine which is nearly faultless. We haven't found a fault yet but most overachievers are hiding something deep under that charm and industry. Rest assured, this will never go postal in your garden. Dark green dense leaves set off flowers of of purest white in early summer.