I think I probably reference my website more than anyone else 🙃 and lately I’ve felt like there isn’t really a place for me to track what I’m learning and appreciating about plants (on my Gardening journey). So I’m adding this page to the database, but not putting it anywhere yet.
References:
Garden Answer’s favorite tools
9:09 on this video from Dec 2023
Best landscape fabric: DeWitt Pro (Garden Answer favorite) (they also make a tarp with velcro)
Sourcing plants
Especially good for rare and heirlooms:
Hellebores:
Impatient Gardener gets some seeds and plants from Select Seeds, e.g. purple bell vine (which didn’t germinate so she bought the plant).
Hydrangeas
- I think I like the lace-cap varieties the best — not a big fan of the balls of blossoms or the more pointy clusters, unless they’re more open and airy.
- I also like the short habit of these ones I came across in a suburb of Frankfurt — maybe they’re “Mountain” hydrangeas which are generally hardier? Possibly a cultivar like Tuff Stuff? Though in Europe maybe it’s more likely to be a “Teller” variety.
- I also like the more vibrant colors and it seems clear that this is a variety that shifts from blue to purple to pink depending on the acidity of the soil.
South African Daisies (lots of other names, even scientific ones—possibly hybrids if Osteospermum and Dimorphotheca?)
- I also found these outside Frankfurt and thought they were delightful.
Update: they come in more colors! 😍
[note for the future: I should probably create a separate database of plants so that I can easily create collections based on different filters and also see the photos at a glance]
Cut and come again flower varieties:
Zinnia Sunflowers Rudbekia Dahlias Cosmos Bachelor’s Buttons Snapdragons Lisianthus Scabiosa China asters Statice Sweet peas Nigella Larkspur - giant imperial blue (north lawn flower farm) Craspedia Marigolds Calendula Gaillardia
Flowers with a long vase life:
Zinnias Chrysanthemums Dianthus Delphiniums Peonies Glads Freesia Alstromeiria Gomphrena Strawflowers Paper daisies
Flowers that you direct sow (instead of starting inside and transplanting):
Cosmos Bachelor’s buttons Sunflowers Zinnias Amaranth Morning Glory Tthonia Marigold Nasturtiums Larkspur Nigella
Flowers that grow well in shade:
Heuchera Astilbe Anemone Lily of the valley Solomon’s seal Bleeding hearts Hellebores Northern sea oats Lady’s mantle
Hellebores
The King of Hellebores is a gentleman named Barry Glick, who also happens to breed (and ship) lots of other fascinating plants.
Heads up that the website is a little patchy: the speaking engagements haven’t been updated since 2015, the gift card page thinks it’s eternally Christmas, and other limitations on specific plant descriptions refer to growing more of them in a future year that’s already a few years in the past now, but: the fb page gets posts regularly, and this vendor is vouched for by Erin from Floret Farms as well as Lisa from Gardener’s workshop when it comes to sourcing hellebores, which are generally quite pricey (they don’t bloom until year 3) and also difficult to find in specific varieties.
Note: some types are sterile; something to keep in mind if you’re hoping that they drop seed to increase the size of your collection over time.
Perennials:
Garden Answer recommendations:
Salvia:
Indiglo girls (Garden Answer)
Caradonna (PepperHarrowFarm)
Not smelly?
Blooms in the spring and again in the fall (smaller)
Dried flower (muted)
Nepeta:
Cat’s pajamas (garden answer & impatient gardener) — possibly the lowest growing varietal
Walkers low (floret)
Monarda:
Monarda bradburiana (Floret)
Lambada (Lisa Mason Ziegler)
Lupine:
(PepperHarrowFarm)
Yarrow:
Summer Berries (PepperHarrowFarm)
Coronation Gold (PepperHarrowFarm)
Dried
Baptisia:
(PepperHarrowFarm)
Greenery
Seed pods
Geum
Totally tangarine (PepperHarrowFarm)
Shorter
Clematis
Stand by me (bush type) (garden answer)
Easy-grow (impatient gardener):
Big root geranium
Nepeta (cat’s pajamas is lowest?)
Lady’s mantle
Hakonechloa macra
Hosta
Grasses:
Karley rose panecitum
Hakonechloa gold
Prairie Winds: Cheyenne sky
Miscanthus cabaret (garden answer’s favorite)
Thin man Indian grass (Karl forester alternative)
Superbell vintage coral (impatient gardener)
Queen Tut papyrus
Dried flowers:
Imperial blue larkspur
Mexican bush sage
Gomphrena
Flamingo feather celosia
Strawflower
Lavender:
English:
- Sweet Romance 12-18” tall and wide, continual bloomer
- This is the variety grown by Laura at Garden Answer (not the only variety though)
- Munstead Lavender 12-18” (more sparce, lighter in blooms, ok in part-shade)
- Hidcote Lavender 3’x3’ (longer stems, but still English rather than hybrid)
- Aromatico™ Blue Imp. Lavender 14-20 tall but 12” wide (tall without getting in the way)
Hybrid:
- Grosso Lavender 3.5’ tall and wide (silvery leaves)
- Phenomenal Lavender 2.5’ tall and wide (fast growing, tolerant of high humidity)
- This is the variety grown at Blossom & Branch in CO
- Sensational 18” foliage canopy, bloom spikes 30”, 2’ wide. (Dense spikes, vibrant color)
English
- best smelling
- hardy
Hybrid
- not grown from seed
- Only purple/lavender
- bred for oil (high yielding)
- hardy
- Taller (for wreaths)
- Coarser
French
- not as hardy
- best for foliage (rather than blossoms)
Spanish
- strongest smelling
- can handle heat
- long bloomers
North American drought tolerant natives for cut flower garden
Anise Hyssop Echinacea Purpurea Blue Grama Black-Eyed Susan Chocolate Flower Milkweed Penstemon Coreopsis
Bulbs:
Sourcing:
Colorblends: garden answer
Longfield gardens: impatient gardener
Varieties:
Snow drops (short)
Snow flake (taller)
Grape hyacinth (mescari)
Daffodils:
Bella Estrella
Thalia
Erlicheer? (Smell like paperwhites)
Alliums:
Allium siculum- honey garlic
Christophii
Note: the foliage yellows at the same time that they bloom (so maybe put them behind something)
Plant in late fall, early winter; after frost but before the ground freezes.
Anemone:
Blue shades
Ranunculus:
Elegance from Onings
Tecolote from Leo Berbee CA-grown (more open face; more like a poppy)
Amandine pastel mix or La belle from Ball seed company or Ednie
Beginner recommendations
12:00
Fall garden:
- Sedum - autumn joy?
- Crabapple - Evereste
- Seven suns flower - Heptacodium
Crabapple
Evereste - Floret favorite
Note: persistent type leaves fruit on the branches until new growth - less mess, food for birds, winter interest
Shrubs:
Spirea
Glow Girl - impatient gardener favorite, garden answer too zones 3-9 3-4’ tall and wide
Double play blue kazoo - impatient gardener favorite (actually grows 6’ wide, 4’ high)
Aronia
Lowscape mound - impatient gardener (shiny foliage)
Roses:
At Last?
Lady of shallot - David Austin (obelisk?) —not compact
Sunorita?
Distant drums? (Floret fav)
Best melon: Sarah’s Choice cantaloupe.
Verbena
Vanity (more tidy) - recommended by Here She Grows
Sedum
Matrona- recommended by Here She Grows
Garden accessories
I love the look of these “garden fish” which look amazing in grasses but also around shrubs, but which might be perfect for stone streams in water conscious gardens.
Chicago area greenhouse: sunrise greenhouse (recommended by Here She Grows)
Washington state greenhouse: Christianson’s in Vernon, WA
See also:
Plant Index
