New & Restocked

Received as seeds from the self-proclaimed (and rightly so) "Veratrum Guru" Christoph Ruby, these plants originate from a now long devastated patch of habitat in the Balkans. Luckily careful stewardship by the esteemed gardeners of Hof Botanic has ensured the preservation and indeed proliferation of their genetics. The var. flavum has been the victim of taxonomic erasure but is kept here to denote the vibrant yellow-green flowers in this strain. The usual lush pleated foliage, deer resistance, and imposing size combined with provenance you can't help but feel good about make these a winner in a moist spot with a bit of shade. 

Potentially the first offering of this plant in the US we brought this back from Far Reaches sister city Pan-Global Plants, the stellar nursery of plantsman Nick Macer who wild collected these in Guizhou. Very unique look with dark green rosettes of leaves centered by a cluster of yellow flowers, will slowly spread to form a truly special groundcover Broader and fewer leaflets than the more often seen var. stenophylla. 

Tiny little gem with bright variegated leaves and teeny yet brilliant cerise flowers. This would look smashing in a mixed container of summer annuals. Someday we'll do an Elvish Fantasy garden with plants of diminutive scale that are cute beyond their physical proportion and this would be one of the centerpieces.

When Paradise is in the name there's a lot to live up to and while I don't know that this is the harbinger of Morian utopia, it certainly isn't The Inferno. Rosettes of narrow strappy leaves and 3 feet tall spikes of white flowers. Will seed around but the architecture is relatively airy so it can play nice with others if not weeded out, or would make a great meadow component. Pretty easy and deer resistant.

An adorable little dwarf Stachys we salvaged out of maniac plant collector Marian Raitz's garden.  Lilac-plum 10" flower spikes in midsummer are perfect arising from the soft cottony foliage.  Low small-scale groundcover for full to half sun.

A UK selection of this smaller, deciduous Agapanthus shared with us by plantsman Jim Fox.  Short foliage is appropriate for the 20"-24" tall flower stems holding baseball-sized heads of deep dark blue flowers that are right on the edge of having some purple influence.  The size works well in containers - just don't leave out over winter to freeze - and would be excellent near the front of garden beds paired with other sun-lovers like Blood Grass, Imperata cylindrica 'Rubra' or the groundcover Cotula 'Tiffindell Gold'.  We mulch our Agapanthus prior to arctic blasts and this selection might be good to zone 7a with enough mulch and if the freezes are not prolonged.

As they begin to emerge and unfurl, the huge trifoliate leaves catch the 30"-40" threadlike spadix appendage dangling from the white-striped, maroon-purple hooded flowers and carry it aloft in a decidedly wanton display. The horizontal rhizomes will increase over time leading to several flowering stems, becoming something about which one has no recourse but to brag shamelessly. This Jack in the Pulpit has proven itself over many years to be a stellar performer in our shade garden. There are some Jacks that languish or don't persist but this simply gets bigger and better every year. The rhizomes can push up near the surface so check in the Fall and mulch if necessary - most prudent in the event of severe winter cold. Seed-grown, these are still small tubers but of all the things you have waited for in your life, this surely must rate among the most worthy.