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Collected in Ecuador at nearly 12000', this bromeliad will certainly tease with possibilities of hardiness.  The stiff evergreen sword-like leaves are well-protected by evenly spaced sharp teeth which are the pinnacle of personal protection against herbivory.  Critically, they guard against unwanted advances upon the infrequently produced stiff flower stem whose stoutly erect bearing is regarded either as a triumph of botanical engineering or the epitome of salacious horticultural projecting. The many stemless flowers were not seen but are arranged in stimulating tight spirals up the upper half of the thick vertical shaft. Growing on slopes in the humid páramo zone of mixed grass-forb-shrub communities with wide temperature swings and ample water from rain, clouds, fog and frost.   

Our collection from Asia of this Solomon Seal where it grew at 5500' in a mixed old growth forest of broadleaf evergreen and deciduous trees along with massive Rhododendrons. This was handsome in fruit with black fruit hanging under the leaves on the 18" tall arching stems. Two to six small white flowers in the leaf axils.

Into the rabid cutthroat world of the Gesneriad convention goes the strongest soldier of rare plant reconnaissance, Steve Hootman, curator of the Rhody garden and out comes a treasured jewelbox of all but unseen Gesner hybrids. Move over Mr. Cage there's a new heist-master, and I guess that makes us the black market dealer and you the faceless, nameless, glitterati of the botanical underworld. Imagine the gasp as the auctioneer brings forth this beauty, all red-bracted and silver-veined. Let the bidding begin

Lives up to it's common name of Felt Fern. Felty-soft, three to five-lobed fronds stay evergreen and have coppery undersides. Growing as an epiphyte in its native range, this prefers good drainage and a partly shady spot.  Spreads very slowly, but definitely worth the wait. What we are selling here is a predominantly 3-lobed form that is going around incorrectly as P. hastata.

A Wynn-Jones collection of this fantastic climbing hydrangea relative from Northern Taiwan. A plethora of glossy evergreen sickle-shaped leaves hanging down like so many executioner's blades make for a truly stunning wall cover, add to that the airy foam of white flowers in summer and you've got an elegantly understated taste-maker that deserves a pairing of fine brick or stonework. It could also use the radiant heat of said masonry as it is slightly adverse to cold winds, likes its shady and wet but a bit more sun may provide a bit more flower.

Dwarf Solomon's Seal to just 6" but spreading with very nice lavender-pink flowers which go well with the gray-green whorled leaves. This rare Yunnan Diana Reeck collection differs from the Nepal form which is typically cultivated. Floden thinks this is closer to pumilum, Wynn-Jones says it's graminifolium.

From our breeding work with Podophyllum, comes a very vigorous hybrid between a good form of pleianthum and a robust delavayi hybrid. These have large, rather olive-green leaves touched in mottled light bronze especially when young and has red flowers that are well-displayed. This is not flamboyant but has a redoubtable solemnity of purpose and inherent courtliness which has earned our respect.

Unidentified species of a seriously good Asian Pittosporum. This was an attention-grabber being essentially a small 15' tree with large - for a Pittosporum - evergreen leaves. What really stopped us was the large green seed capsules like small figs. These split open when mature to reveal showy orange seeds. Young seed-grown plants. We are hoping these will have good hardiness growing as they were a stone's throw from Acer griseum. A Far Reaches Botanical Conservancy Offering. Proceeds from this offering go to support the mission of Far Reaches Botanical Conservancy.

Long have we had a love affair with this most noble of the weed clan Plantago. Hailing from Spain where sun and good drainage and robust olive oils and sturdy red wines are so critical to properly growing and appreciating this gem, this adapts easily to the NW. A delight in the rock garden

Very rare Solomon's Seal from NW India which has proven to be evergreen at least in our cool greenhouse. We've not tested it outside but suspect it will be evergreen in mild winters at least. Creamy bells with darker mottling hang beneath the glossy leaves. Loose moist organic soil.

A selection of this Japanese native from our friends at the wonderful Free Spirit nursery just across the border from us in British Columbia. The whole place is saturated with taste and sensibility which is tempered by whimsy. This has a salmon tinge to the new growth of incised maple-like leaves to 8"-10" tall. Yellow flowers in late summer on this mat-former.

Not one you will easily find, this tough rarity hails from China's Xinjiang Province and neighboring Kazakhstan & Kyrgyzstan. High moist meadows are home sweet home for this blue-lavender drumstick Primula dusted in farina. Sue brought this west from VT over 20 years ago. Said it was tough!

One of the pleasing elements of our PNW woodlands is this Fairy Bell which always feels like we have just bumped into an old friend when we come across it hiking. Recently moved from Disporum into Prosartes, this has small white flowers in spring and nice orange fruit in mid to late summer.

Seedlings of this Drumstick Primrose from a red or "Rubin" flowered selection which will undoubtedly be all over the map in flower color as long as that map runs from point blue to point red since we cleverly have this growing near a blue denticulata. The older we get, the more we know and the less able to act on it apparently! Pedigree aside, these bastard children will easily become accepted members of the garden's upper crust through sheer perseverance and irrefutable beauty.. If yours turns out red, feel free to call it 'Rubin Selection'.

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.

One of our favorites, this came to us years ago from Washfield Nursery in England as Polygonatum geminiflorum but according to Polygonatum expert Aaron Floden, this does not match recent collections of Polygonatum geminiflorum by Ron McBeath and our plant and is actually P. singalilense. This species hails from the Singalila Ridge area which runs from Nepal west and north to the Darjeeling area and up into Sikkim. This slowly but steadily makes a nice clump with the leaves arranged in whorls which are wider than typical for the more familiar whorled species. The subtle bit of elegance that sends us is the small maroon shading at the leaf axil. It sounds silly but style is so often in the accessories.

Mountain Toatoa. Middle-earth mind-bender of a conifer in the Podocarpaceae from the mountains of New Zealand. At first glance and even after a period of unhurried contemplation, this defies easy categorization. Small flattened phylloclades take up the photosynthetic reins from the vestigial leaves and the narrow pyramidal shrub has no comparatives in the garden. Sl-o-o-o-w growing.

One of the stars in our shade garden is this Chinese Trillium relative. We find this eminently superior to the typical Paris polyphylla typically offered. These are seedlings from our garden plants which are marvels of vegetative increase. The 3 bulbs we originally planted 8 years ago have now increased to over 50 stems up to 40" tall with elegant flowers and showy orange fruit. Hope this kids have learned something from their folks. These might flower next spring as a few did flower this year and some of these young plants are already starting to differentiate into multiple growth buds.If you are ordering this as a dormant bare root bulb, it is fine to plant it outside now (assuming the ground isn't frozen etc) as these have been growing outside here at the nursery. Three inches deep should suffice and if you live in harsh winter climates, a good mulch will help. These come up late in the spring for us - later than other forms - so don't worry too much. They like an acid soil, moist yet draining, and we expect that if you can grow Trilliums successfully, you should succeed with this one. Zone 6 for sure and probably into zone 5 although we have no personal experience with it in those regions.

This plant smells so good in flower that it should be illegal or barring that, taxable. This could help with budget shortfalls because it is frankly addictive. One sniff and the response is "Ooh! Do you have this for sale?" Southwest native remarkable hardy with grape koolaid fragrant white flowers in masses.

A certain innocent muscularity is displayed in these gently questing tendrils carrying flowers whose familiarity is overshadowed by their startling size. Intricate blue and white flowers, steeped in Christian symbolism, are twice the normal size. Average soil, good drainage, a vine of distinction.