Be Still My Astilbe

I've always thought that the perennial Astilbe was an OK flower. It just never grabbed me in that way that makes me want to put them in my garden. I since changed my tune completely. Driving down East Dudley in Westfield there is the most stunning display of Astilbe that I've ever seen. It made me covet them for my garden. The Astilbe are color coordinated with the house, and it compliments it perfectly. Sometimes we try to put so many different things into our garden we forget that a large simple mass of one item can be even more effective.

For those that don't know, an Astilbe is a perennial that has deeply lobed, almost fern-like and airy foliage. It's flowers are feathery plumes that are born on tall stalks above the foliage. Flowers come in shades of white, pink, and red. Flowers stay in bloom several weeks and slowly fade in color as they dry.

They prefer partial shade and they generally are disease and insect free. Even when they're done blooming, their flowers will dry on the plant, and will still look attractive for several months.

New Arrival - Milky Way

 
 
Pulmonaria 'Milky Way'
is a show stopper in the spring garden. Wine pink blooms that fade to blue cover the plant in spring. In addition to the beautiful flowers, the green leaves are speckled with silvery spots that glow in shady sites. These speckles keep the foliage interesting even after the flowers fade. Pulmonaria has the unfortunate common name of Lungwort, derived from the spotting on the leaves which were said to resemble the X ray of unhealthy, spotted lungs. Despite its common name, Pulmonaria brings a beautiful and colorful accent to a shady garden. Growing to about 12 inches tall, they attract hummingbirds and are extremely deer resistant.

New Arrival - True Blue Flowers

 
Corydalis 'Canary Feathers'
Corydalis flex. 'Purple Leaf' What amazing blue flowers! Foliage is bronze tinged with clusters of violet blue flowers. All Corydalis prefer partial to mostly shady sites, making them a perfect perennial for the woodland garden. The ideal soil should be rich and evenly moist. They make excellent companions with Ferns and Hostas, and are extremely tough despite their delicate appearance.

Don't lick this Toad lily

I took this picture at the ofa show this Summer. I originally thought
that I wasn't going to be able to get them until 2009, but I found a
supplier that had a few listed for this weeks availabity. (they
haven't been confirmed yet, but if we are going to get them it will be
towards the end of this week)

The plant is Tricyrtis 'Imperial Banner' which is a new variety of
Toad Lily. Toad lilies are fall blooming perennials that tollerate a
fair amount of shade. This one is unique in that it has a creamy
varigated folliage.

The flowers of the tricyrtis is very exotic looking. They are covered with lots of contrasting speckles. They may look like they are from some tropical island, but they are extrememly happy in our climate.

Beware the Lamium Man

I have a friend that used to work as a landscape contractor who now
teaches . He loved this plant so much, he would come out to our store
and buy it by the tray. He would use it on all his landscape jobs. It became such a regular occurrence that we started calling him the Lamium Man. He still stops in occasionally, and even though over a decade has passed, we still call him by his old title.
I like this plant as much as LM does. I took the picture on the way back from dropping Dakota off at school. It is Lamium Beacon Silver.
The common name is Dead Nettle, but I think the botanic name sounds way better.
It will grow in shade to sun, but tends to fill in quicker when it has some sunshine. It doesn't like to dry out. It will flower from May thru July. It makes a great ground cover as it will only grow up to 6 inches tall.
I've also used this plant in containers. The bright silver foliage is a great contrast to annual flowers.

Shady character

No not me... The ferns...Just got these ferns in from Monrovia
growers...Wow!!

These are the biggest one's we've ever gotten.

European Ostrich Fern

• Matteuccia struthiopteris
• Key Feature: Shade Loving
• Ferns
• Cold Hardiness Zone: 3-7
• Mature size: Moderate-growing 3 to 5 ft. tall, 18 to 24 in. wide. Spreads by underground stems.
• Growth Habit: Fountain
• Flower Color: Brown
• Blooms: Dark brown fertile fronds in late summer.
  

Don't Monkey with me!

This flower, MIMULUS tigrinus Grandiflora is called the monkey flower. According to what I've read online, the name comes from the flower resembling a smiling monkey face. (OK, so I don't see the face, but the name has stuck...maybe after a few glasses of wine in the dim light, you'll look to the garden and see these smiling up at you)

Mimulus is a great annual for shade to partial shade. It prefers slightly damp soil. It will grow to a height of about tweleve inches, and will make a great edging in front of impatiens. It will also do well in a container.

Another huge plus, is that its one of the few DEER RESISTANT annuals that will grow in the shade.

We have them in Red, Yellow, and the spotted one that you see in the picture.

Impatiens Color Planting Poll Final Results

Thanks to everyone for voting.

Here are the results for this years color choices:

What color impatiens are you planting this year? You may choose more than one.

• Blue 17 (32%)
• Carmine 6 (11%)
• Deep Pink 19 (35%)
• Mixed -Regular 6 (11%)
• Mixed -Pastel 8 (15%)
• Orange 10 (18%)
• Red 10 (18%)
• Salmon 6 (11%)
• Violet 18 (33%)
• White 22 (41%)
• I don't plant impatiens! 4 (7%)