Japan

Easy there, steady yourself - remember to breathe……..you are reading this right - this is a double flowered Heloniopsis of the dark flowered persuasion. Dense heads of tightly packed double flowers of dark pink-lavender makes this very collectible for those who love rare aberrations, and isn't that true of most of us?

A fine selection of this deciduous Japanese species which was introduced by We-Du Nursery. Sizable flowers of rich purple are the hallmark of this plant and it more than holds it own against more recent hybrids. All Epimediums can't be painted with the same drought tolerant brush and this one appreciates more water than the real drought tolerant species.

An uncommon variety of the standard evergreen Tongue fern found across East Asia. To this already attractive species 'Keikan' adds wide fronds with rippling deeply lobed margins resulting in a striking flame-like effect. Best grown in a well drained location or on a slope where it will happily spread by its trailing rhizomes.

One of the better selections of Aucuba and very rare in the nursery trade. This was brought to the US by the now defunct Asiatica Nursery and shared with us by Lance Reiners. Narrow leaves consistently freckled in gold presents as major pizzazz with unmistakable elegance. A tough evergreen tolerant of dry shade once established. Zones 7-9.

Tongue Ferns are widespread in China and Japan where they can be epiphytic as well as lithophytic on rocks. Fantastic variants are being selected by the cult followers of Pyrrosia in Japan and "Tachiba Koryu' is one with evergreen blade-like leaves sporting rounded lobes along the margins. Does fantastic at Peckerwood Gardens near Houston. We have seen the species making impressive colonies on rock faces or in mossy rubble during various China forays and it is always like coming across an old friend in the forest. This is best grown in loose, well drained soil and would be happy in a rotting stump or lightly shaded scree bed.

This choice Tongue Fern is notable for the yellowish variegation on its evergreen 12" long leaves, and is likely conspecific with the clone sold as 'Variegata', Pyrrosia are easy but require great drainage and unless you are planting it in a stumpery, rockery or slope, you will need to seriously amend with gravel, bark or assorted detritus of life. Nice divisions from our stock plants.

Asian terrestrial orchid shared with us years ago by Adam Black at Peckerwood Botanical Garden with caveats as to species ID. It could be sinense or ensiformis or a hybrid of the two. Does well in the Southeast but protect from extreme cold there. We have not flowered this clone.

The Wynn-Jones of Crug Farm collected this woodlander from Japan's Shikoku Island and represents a link to the shared flora we have here in the Northwest as there are native Mitella in our nearby woods. This is a low and evergreen species with foliage patterned in chocolate markings. The flowers are small pinkish-brown affairs with strongly recurved corolla lobes and held on stems 8"-15" above the leaves. This won't stop anyone in their tracks on its own but as part of the intricate plant tapestry that is required for an exquisite shade garden, this is an essential element. Plus if you are a tiny bit competitive, you can't disregard the fact that you will have something that is very unlikely anyone visiting your garden will have in their own garden. Zone 6 at least, likely lower and best in shade to part shade.

Uncommon herbaceous Chinese Hydrangea relative named for the distinctive cleft or bifid leaves. Pale green foliage with terminal clusters of white flowers showing their affinity to Hydrangeas. The individual flowers are quite intricate and we always look forward to our annual momentary submersion of our selves into these blossoms. The herbaceous stems dies to the ground in winter. Light to heavy shade and best in moisture retentive soil.

Japanese Foam Flower. Uncommon evergreen groundcover which thrives in shaded, moist acid conditions and is uncommonly well suited to clothing a fallen mossy log or rock as it spreads by stolons like a restrained strawberry. Late spring/early summer small white sprays of flowers. Gotta love these monotypic Saxifragales genera!

Choice shrubby flowering cherry that gets to 8' and as wide. Makes a mass of zig-zag twigs in winter followed by profuse white flowers with pale pink calyces, and all the hot colors in fall from rich yellow to rich purple. Hard to find fault with this and there is too much of that going around nowadays anyway. Excellent for bonsai.

Another one of those hyphenated names which pique our interest beyond sane rationale no doubt due to some character defect on our part but there is nothing defective about this Japanese gem. Glossy evergreen leaves are evocative of Blechnum which is high praise in our book. Gently, almost apologetically creeps to form a congenial aggregation of crowns. This formerly was placed in different genera such as Diplazium and Lunathyrium and one can sometimes find this plant labeled as such. Thanks to plantsman Lance Reiners for sharing this with us.

These are cutting-grown from a plant Steve Hootman found growing in a garden in Philadelphia where it was defying conventional wisdom as to its hardiness. Being a savvy sort of fellow, he snagged a few cuttings thinking this might prove to be very useful. We think so too although we have not yet trialed it out in our garden. So many plants, so little space. This does seem promising and if your are looking for a small-leafed evergreen creeper that will cling to rocks or a wall, then this might be just the ticket.

Crazy fern that takes away the need to fuss of growing this from spore, as it makes a multitudinous panoply of ready-to-go plantlets on the leaves that will soon have you owning the corner in your 'hood dealing in fern babies. Remember, if it's a kid, the first one is free. Warmer gardens or indoors, mulch protect in zone 8 winters.This is often seen as W. orientalis in the trade but the pterido-prophets say the signs point to prolifer. 

Oyster Leaf. The leaves are edible and taste - and feel - exactly like raw oysters. If raw oysters are your thing, this is an OMG veg alternative. The now closed El Bulli in Catalonia, regarded as one of the greatest restaurants ever, ran with Oyster Leaf innovative ways. Loved to have tried the leaves striped in golden caviar and splashed with Grey Goose. Beautiful glaucous blue-green leaves on sprawling stems tipped in small sky blue flowers. This likes ample nutrition. Perennial and dormant in winter. This is a plant of just above high tide line on cold northern hemisphere beaches from Maine to Greenland and Japan to Alaska so if you have a cool to cold garden, here you go.

Frosted Jade Ajuga. A rare Ajuga the likes of which you may have never seen. We all are familiar with the utilitarian carpeting-with-abandon slug magnet ubiquitous in gardens everywhere. This is a different critter altogether and resembles Bugleweed about as much as a Bichon Frise does a Junkyard Dawg. Stays put in a clump with erect stems to 16" with showy leaves of white, green and cream and intense violet blue flowers. This has been one of the most asked about plants in our shade garden and when we say what it is, the answer usually is "That's an Ajuga? Do you have it?" It is completely deciduous as well which is another mind boggler. And for slugs - they do like this one too, but really it is mainly the new shoots in early spring. We just keep an eye on the growth and if they are getting nibbled then we go out one or two evenings and inflict bodily harm and don't worry much about the plant afterwards.

This is very close to 'Kaleidoscope' and comes from the same Japanese nursery from which a plant was purchased and patented in this country as 'Kaleidoscope'. One has to wonder how a plant already in the trade on an international basis can be patented but that is a discussion that can run long into the night. 'Galaxy' is nearly indistinguishable from 'Kaleidoscope' and may well be a sister seedling or another selection in Japan. Lightly hairy stems hold the pale green leaves with their radially symmetrical chocolate splotches. Red flowers held beneath the foliage but who cares, really? It's all about the leaves. Moist shade and be prepared to be envied.

Gorgeous little gem out of Japan with a rich yellow center to the leaf surrounded by green with some nice feathering details. This will increase quickly but not aggressively and adds a nice splash of color in the shade garden. The white flowers go well with the whole package.

This was one of those "Holy shit - lookit that fern!" moments when we first spotted this species growing in a moist stable and vegetated scree at the base of a soaring vertical cliff face fronting this mountainous outcrop of improbable pinnacles in Guizhou, China, The fern was perfect in scale and not intimidated in the slightest with 5'-6' wide leaves on a clumping plant 6'-8' tall. We were dismayed not to collect spore but happy to get a small plant of this species from fernologist Sue Olsen a few years back. This grows to be a pretty hefty clump but does not run. Hardy to zone 8 and mulch crown if it gets serious in winter.

This is a heralded Japanese Jack in the Pulpit whose species name sikokianum I believe translates into English as 'divine whup-ass' because this truly and gloriously kicks some tail in the garden. A mysterious yet provocative regal beauty. A classic for the shade garden.