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Plant List
I won't be attending any shows in 2008 and stocks
will be low!
Key: [P]
Perennial :[A] Annual or tender perennial :[B] biennial : [Bb] Bulb/Corm
etc.: [Cl] Climber/Twiner : [H] Hardy : [HH] Half-hardy : [Sh] Shrub :
[T] Tree : **
Scented : ! Irritant or poisonous*
| Plant name | Species/Cultivar | Description | Availability | Price |
| Abutilon [Sh/T H/HH] | - vitifolium | Grows into a tree with alacrity, soft silvered leaves and large open pale mauve flowers, for warmer sites [small plants]. | June | £3.00 |
| Acacia [T H/HH **] | retinodes | One of the hardier acacias, also known as 'Wirilda', a fast growing tree for a sheltered spot with well scented flowers. Unlike A dealbata this one has flat leathery leaves [phyllodes]. | April | £5.50 |
| Achillea [P] | Walther Funcke - brick red sibirica Stephanie Cohen |
Panicles of flowers rise up from low growing softly ferny foliage. One of the staples of the prairie planting style and good for later summer colour. Most don't like to be too crowded. - Stephanie Cohen is a very chunky Achillea with dark green serrated leaves and solid large pink daisy flowers in florets. |
May | £3.50 |
| Agapanthus [Bb H/HH ] | africanus Purple Cloud Sandringham Gayle's Lilac |
South African natives: Vigorous evergreen foliage, mid blue flowers on tall stems. Best kept in a pot and sheltered over winter. - Vigorous strappy evergreen foliage and dramatic deep purple flowers. - Non evergreen lower growing with narrow deep blue bells. |
May | £4.00 - £5.50 |
| Agastache [P H] | nepetoides [6 ft / 1.6m] | Giant Yellow Hyssop - a US native of sunny wood edges and clearings. Needs moist but well draining soil to do well. Grows up to 6 feet, off white to yellow flowers, great for bees. | April | £3.00 |
| Agave [HH] | parryi | Said to be one of the hardier agave [to -7°C maybe]. Full sun, well drained soil or in a container [ditto]. Matte glaucous leaves with toothed edges. Slow growing with me, said to make 3ft x 3ft [90cm] eventually, flowers after 20 odd years and then dies. 'Pups' freely, these are very small 2yo pups. | April [small] | £3.00 |
| Akebia [Cl D **] | quinata | The Chocolate Vine - a vigorous twining climber with attractive deeply lobed leaves and clusters of puffball skirted maroon flowers in spring. | May | £4.25 |
| Allium [H Bb] | carinatum pulchellum Alba nigrum schoenprasum tuberosum* |
Late summer flowering - a little sparkler in flower - From S Europe to Iran flat white umbels, June flowering - Unusual white flowered chive - Chinese Chives late flowering clumps with fragrant white umbels - great for bees and butterflies |
April | £2.75 - £3.75 |
| Aloe [P H/HH] | striatula | This succulent is one of the hardier aloes from South Africa. Can eventually make a 2m 'tree' lit up with yellowy orange flower spikes - good for bees [and Sugar Birds!!] | April | £3.25 |
| Aloysia [Sh H/HH] | triphylla | Lemon Verbena - a half hardy to hardyish in the south at least, deciduous shrub. The scent from the leaves is instantly refreshing when brushed against, the leaf tea is said to be good for migraines, fatigue and digestion [among other things] | May | TBC |
| Amsonia [P H] | ciliata | Blue starry flowers, willowy foliage. | May | £3.20 |
| Angelica | pachycarpa | Really glossy crinkled leaves for that just varnished look! | May & Sept | £4.00 |
| Anthriscus [P H] | sylvestris 'Ravenswing | The purple form of the otherwise somewhat maligned 'Cow Parsley'. Displays a pinkness in the white flowers. From seed, so variable depths of colour | May | £3.20 |
| Anthyllis [P H] | vulneraria Coccinea | A variably red form [scarlet to deepest red] of our native Kidney Vetch. Makes mats of fine creeping foliage topped with bunches of clawed flowers in June. | May | £2.75 |
| Antirrhinum [A H] | majus - Black Prince Night & Day |
Snapdragons: Deep purple foliage and blackcurrant flowers - Deep maroon and white snaps …. |
Late May | £1.75 - £2.50 |
| Aquilegia [P H] | Green Apples Milk & Honey**24-30 ins [60cm] Roman Bronze viridiflora |
Granny's Bonnets, a favourite cottage garden plant: - Doubled greeney flowers - Sweetly scented spurred flowers in blues and creams - Golden to almost tan foliage flowering in a range of blues. - chocolate and green scented flowers, unusual and delicate. |
April & June | £3.00 - £3.50 |
| Artemisia [H Sh] | vulgaris 'Variegata' | Filigreed silver foliage splashed yellow and cream. For a warmer sunny spot. | May/June | £3.75 |
| Asclepias [P H] | incarnata [P H] Ice Ballet Soulmate |
Swamp Milkweed, native to the US from Canada to Florida. Prefers a moist soil, in the wild can be found on pond and stream margins. Flowers from mid summer into September. The white flowers are attractive to butterflies. Pinky flowers on this selection. | May | £3.20 |
| Aster [P H] | turbinellus | One of the last to flower - tall dark wiry stems are topped with small single lilac daisies. | May | £3.00 |
| Astrantia | x Hadspen Blood seedlings Ruby Wedding Shaggy |
Willing and generally easy these elegant umbels last for ages. The seedlings are open pollinated so will be variable. Ruby Wedding is another good pinky red - these are from division as is the delightful green and white 'Shaggy'. | May | £3.75 |
| Begonia [P H/HH] | palmata hatacoa Silver |
Palmate [hand shaped] leaves. Pale pink flower sprays in summer - moistish shade. In Manipur the juice is apparently used to kill leeches. Having read Jamaica Kincaids book on plant hunting in that region very handy I should think! Frost hardy in the south perhaps with a good mulch? - Use in pots outside in summer, delicious silvered leaves. |
June | £3.50 |
| Berkheya [P H/HH] | purpurea | A South African thistly thing, spikey foliage and lavender flowers all summer, likes it hot and dry [well drained in the winter]. 15 - 25 ins [40-60cm] | June | £3.25 |
| Buddleja** | albiflora {Sh] | A gently sprawly buddleja makes a good wall shrub. | May | £6.75 |
| Buddleja** | loricata [Sh E] | An evergreen buddleja, with thick nubbly leaves, white underneath. Off white/cream flowers in summer, has proved to be pretty hardy so far in S.Somerset. | May | £6.00 |
| Buddleja** | davidii [Sh] | Border Beauty - an unusual rich violet-red : Nanho Blue - finer leaved and looser growing than other B.davidii cultivars, thinnish spikes of intense deep purple-blue : Pixie White - small with white flowers not unsurprisingly! :White Tor - leaves have a lovely silvery sheen and the flowers are a pale bluey-purple. | May | £5.50 |
| Camassia [Bb] | esculenta | startling blue flower spikes in May/June. Good for naturalising in grass. | May | TBC |
| Campanula [P H] | ex Iran [was Symphyandra] | Shortish wiry stems and crinkled heart shaped leaves topped with pale blue downward facing bells - a spreader. | May | £3.50 |
| Campanula [P H] | punctata | Clusters of fat pink bells in summer requires moistish soil in sun. Low growing spreader. | May | £3.00 |
| Carex [P H] | buchananii testcea |
These New Zealand Carex are extremely useful for 'evergreen' colour. C buchananii has copper brown colouring and forms drought tolerant loose mounds. C testacea combines a sharp light green with orange tints and more graceful movement in playful breezes. | May | £3.25 |
| Cerinthe [A H] | major Purpurascens | Glaucous foliage, cowled heads which partially conceal bruised purple bells. The seedlings are surpringly hardy and bees love it. Not as fashionable as it was but still a show stopper! | May/June | £2.50 |
| Chaerophyllum [P H] | hirsutum Roseum [12 -18 ins/60cm] | Hairy Chervil is a native of France and Germany, this form has cow parsley-like leaves and pale pink/purple florets in May and June but is fairly low on the ground. Best in semi-shade. | June [small] May |
£3.50 |
| Chelonopsis [P H] | yagiharana [24ins/60cm] | A Japanese native of the lamium or dead nettle family, sulky purplish flowers late summer to autumn. Sun or semi shade but needs moisture. | May | £3.75 |
| Cirsium [P H] | rivulare Atropurpureum | Took Chelsea by storm in the Oudolf/Maynard garden some years ago. Impressive stiff deep purple thistley heads rise up over spikey foliage. Moistish soil in sun and good for bees. | June | £4.00 |
| Cistus | mixed from RHS Seed | Classic plant from the Mediterranean and great for dry, well drained sunny positions. | May | £3.00 |
| Colquhounia [Sh H *] | coccinea var vestita | A shrub with soft pineapple scented felty leaves and intense tangy orange whorls of flower in late summer, comes from the Himalayas and SW China. | June | £5.75 |
| Conopodium | majus | Pignut - another British native plant and another umbellifer on the list. Finely cut leaves fairly low growing, flowers in June/July. Found in the wild on grassland and on woodland fringes. The tubers are edible apparently. | May | £2.50 [small plants] |
| Convallaria [Bb !**] | majalis Hardwick Hall | A Lily of the Valley with a difference - the leaves are edged and streaked with subtle green-gold. | May | £3.75 |
| Crithmum [P H] | maritimum | Rock Samphire. Found on cliffs by the sea, a fleshy umbellifer with greeney umbels, well drained dry soil should do nicely. | June | £3.25 |
| Crocosmia [Bb H/HH] | Culzean Peach -pinky/peach Custard Cream - golden yellow Solfatare -bronzed foliage, yellow flowers Star of the East - huge orange flowers and pale throat |
A range of generally but not exclusively larger flowered Crocosmia for later summer colour. Do best in soil that’s not too dry but is well drained over winter. | May | £3.75 |
| Cucumber | Long Green Maraicher | May only | TBC | |
| Dactylorhiza[P H] | fuchsii Alba | This is a white selected form [with faint markings] of the wild terrestrial orchid the 'Common Spotted Orchid'. These plants are not taken from the wild! Very little spotting on the leaves. Divisions | May-June | £6.00 - £9.00 |
| Dahlia [Bb H/HH] | coccinea palmeri merckii |
Dark leaves and variable scarlet single flowers. - D merckii forms tall loose waving stems topped with small single lilac flowers. |
June | £3.00 - £5.50 |
| Dianthus [P/ Bi H **] | barbatus Nigricans - deep red Oeschberg Bridal Veil Ursula le Grove |
This Sweet William has really dark almost black flowers over variably red foliage. Bridal Veil doubled white fringed flowers with a blood spot deep in the centre - splits its calyces - who cares! Ursula is a heavily flashed white and crimson single - well scented. | June | £2.75 - £3.00 |
| Diascia [P H/HH] | fetcaniensis | A South African native which forms vigorous low running mounds topped with spikes of pink flowers which go on for months. Doesn't like heavy wet soils. | May | £2.75 |
| Dichroa [Sh HH] | febrifuga | This shrub is a tenderish relative of the better known Hydrangea, intense indigo-blue clusters of 'flowers' for months in late summer/autumn. | May | £6.50 |
| Dierama [Bb H/HH] | pauciflorum | Low growing Dierama with thin 'grassy' leaves. The pink bells are not pendulous like the more familiar [and somewhat larger growing] Angel's Fishing Rods but open and upward facing. | May | £3.00 |
| Digitalis [P H] | ferruginea | A perennial foxglove with small brwn 'bells' closely clustered up the flowering stem. | May | £2.75 - £3.25 |
| Dregea [Cl H/HH* *] | sinensis | More prosaically 'Wattakaka', a vigorous deciduous climber in a sheltered place with softly felty leaves and panicles of white and pink hoya-like flowers in summer. | May/June | £3.75 |
| Eccremocarpus | scaber | 'Chilean Glory Vine' - rampant fleshy twining climber with finely cut leaves. Can withstand some frost in a sheltered place and will overwinter in milder years .[Few] | June | £2.80 |
| Echinacea [P H] | paradoxa | From Arkansas and Texas, I guess this echinacea is a paradox because it is yellow rather than purple - the large daisy flowers last for weeks. Unusual | June | £4.20 |
| Eschscholzia [Bi H/HH] | californica | These Californian Poppies provide colour and interest in sunny positions. Seedlings will often overwinter to give earlier flowers the following year. | June | £2.50 |
| Eucomis | Sparkling Burgundy | Pineapple plants. Sparkling Burgundy - a large strapping fleshy leaved monster with variably purple foliage and flowers. | May | £3.75 - £5.75 |
| Euphorbia [!] | mellifera** stygiana |
Not the 'normal' sort of Euphorbia both grow into large treelike shrubs. - Waxy red, honey scented 'flowers' in late Spring. Not totally hardy. - Similar to E mellifera but greener and shorter - flowers unscented? |
May | £3.00 - £5.00 |
| Foeniculum[P H **] | vulgare Purpureum | In spring silkily bronzed foliage provides a backdrop for spring flowers. In later summer tall flower stems topped with yellow flowers add height and colour. Self-seeds prolifically. | May | £2.50 - £3.50 |
| Fragaria | vesca Golden Alexandria x ananassa Cambridge Late Pine |
A golden leaved alpine strawberry. - Smallish fruits and intense flavoured older variety. [May only] |
June | £2.50 |
| Galactites [A] | tomentosa Alba | A thistley thing from the Mediterranean. Silver and green netted leaves and white thistley flowers, probably good for bees. Collect seed. | May | £2.40 |
| Galanthus [Bb H] | nivalis Lady Elphinstone | A somewhat wayward lady. A double snowdrop variably edged normal green or celery heart yellow. Rare. [Price per bulb] | March/April only | £5.50 per bulb |
| Galium [P H **] | odoratum | A rampant carpeter in loose soil and after a slow start in heavier soils too! Forms mats of whorled foliage and in May, white cross stitch flowers. Good for dry shade but attempt to keep in check around more precious plants! Dried makes a lovely scent for your laundry drawers. | May | £2.50 |
| Geranium P H/HH] | palmatum pratense Purple Haze sessiliflorum Nigricans |
G Palmatum is the hardier of the 'madeiran' geraniums, glossy bright green foliage is topped with sprays of large pink flowers in summer. - G Purple Haze is a seed strain with variably red to purple leaves and pale to dark blue flowers. - ground hugging scalloped mound of dark leaves and pale pink flowers. |
£2.80 - £3.75 | |
| Geum [P H] | Mandarin | For sun in moist soil or semi shade. Mandarin is one of the flashiest with large single golden orange flowers, originating from Cally Gardens in Scotland. | May | £3.75 |
| Gladiolus [Bb H/HH] | Black Jack - intense rich red-black Charm - delicate pink x colvillei The Bride - elegant single white |
Gladdies - love them or hate them they have impact. Many will overwinter quite happily in not soggy soils in a sunny position. | May | £3.00 - £5.00 |
| Helianthemum [SSh H] | Henfield Brilliant Seedlings |
Rock Roses - Henfield Brilliant is one of the earliest to flower with tangy deep orange papery flowers over silver foliage. - Seedlings from open pollinated plants. |
May | £2.75 |
| Heliotropum [Sh HH **] | Gatton Park | Cherry Pie - deliciously scented, put outside for the summer in a position with some sun during the day. Gatton Park has mid violet flowers and taller growing than some. | June | £3.50 |
| Hemerocallis [P H] | American Revolution Bali Hi** Penny's Worth |
Day Lilies - American Revolution has large dark red flowers. - Bali Hi is more dainty with scented pale peach flowers. - you certainly do get value for money! Dwarf plant with small golden flowers on and off for a long period. |
May | £4.50 |
| Heptacodium [T/H **] | miconioides | A vigorous late flowering shrub from China with scented white clusters of flowers. | May | £6.00 |
| Hyacinthoides [Bb H **] | non scripta | The English Bluebell - demure blue bells hang daintily from one side of the stem unlike the dumpier Spanish Bluebell. The very essence of May. A spreader so keep to wilder parts of the garden. [Price per pot] | May | £3.00 per pot |
| Hyssopus [P H **] | officinalis | A little shrublet with distinctively scented foliage and the most gorgeous deep blue flowers - a wonderful bee plant. | May | £3.75 |
| Impatiens [P H/HH] | omeiana | A lovely juicy plant, umbrellas of brown marked with yellow leaves top fleshy stems with apricot hooded flowers in late summer. Moist semi shade and a loose soil or keep in pots. | May | £3.75 |
| Ipomoea [Cl HH] | Heavenly Blue Kniola's Black |
Twining annuals or half hardy's in a range of colours from dark purple to sky blue. | May/June | £2.50 |
| Iris [Bb H] | germanica Florentina** sibirica Blue Flyer Blue King Memphis Memory Papillon |
- sombre hued flowers in a pale off white to grey mauve violet scented. - Iris sibirica provide lovely dancing flowers on tall stems in June, some are more tolerant of dry conditions than others. |
May | £3.00 - £3.75 |
| Ixiolirion [Bb] | tartaricum ssp ledebourii | Lovely blue bells for a warm sunny place flowering May/June. | May | TBC |
| Knautia [P H] | arvensis | Field Scabious, soft amethyst flowers. Flowering later in the year this native of chalk areas provides much needed colour and tolerates drier conditions. | May | £2.60 |
| Kniphofia [P H/HH] | Nancy's Red Alcazar Ice Queen Tawny King |
Red Hot Pokers - Nancy's Red is a very willing smaller dainty poker in a pleasing terracotta red shade. May have a few other cultivars as listed |
May | £3.25 - £4.50 |
| Kniphofia [P H/HH] | northiae | A chunky brute of a 'Red Hot Poker' - first time I saw it I thought it was an aloe. Grow as a specimen in a pot for impact. Has thick stumpy flower stems and heads. | May | £6.00 |
| Lathyrus | odoratus** | This year - Hunters Moon [cream], Percy Thrower [lilac], Wiltshire Ripple [crimson and purple speckles on cream ground] and maybe a couple more. [avail May] | May | £3.25 per pot |
| Lavandula [Sh H/HH **] | Cedar Blue Grappenhall stoechas |
Who can resist lavender on a hot summer's day with the bees a buzzin' and the refreshing aroma lifting from the baking leaves? | May | £2.50 - £3.50 |
| Leonurus [P H] | cardiaca | Motherwort - a serious 'female' herb and good for bees too being a labiate. | May | £2.75 |
| Leucanthemella [P H] | serotina | Single white daisy flowers over light green foliage, useful as it comes in to flower in the autumn just as most things have given up. Tallish growing and spreading. | May | £3.50 |
| Leucanthemum | x superbum John Murray Sonnenschein |
Shasta Daisies - John Murray also known as Summer Snowball has cheerful very very double white flowers. - a little slice of delicious lemon sunshine on this single flowered daisy. |
May/June | TBC |
| Levisticum [P H **] | officinale | Lovage - a spicily celery flavoured herb, its use goes back to Greek and Roman times for cooking and medicine. Another umbellifer and a quiet background sort of plant. | May | £2.75 |
| Libertia [H] | peregrinans Gold Leaf |
Stiff strong fanned leaf blades in orange and gold stripes especially good for colour through the winter. | May | £3.25 |
| Lobelia [P H] | cardinalis | Deep red foliage brilliant for 'black' planting schemes moistish soil, sun. | May | £2.75 |
| Lunaria [Bi H] | annua Albiflora | White biennial honesty - always a pleasure to see these early flowerers providing food for early bees and butterflies. | May | £2.25 |
| Lychnis [P H] | arkwrightii Vesuvius viscaria Alba |
- Green and maroon fuzzy leaves with large single orange flowers, very showy. Is perennial but not totally reliably. - White Sticky Catchfly - low growing foliage with taller spikes of clustered flowers in May/June. |
May | £3.00 |
| Lysimachia [P H/HH] | minoricensis ciliata Firecracker |
- Glossy green foliage heavily veined in white and spikes of small cream flowers in late summer. A native of the Balearics but apparently extinct in Minorca, 18 ins. Fairly slow growing. - Deep red-black foliage pity about the yellow flowers, moistish soil sun. |
May | £2-50 - £3.00 |
| Matthiola [B **] | inacana Alba | Silvered whorls of leaves topped by multiple heads of single white flowers. Should overwinter in a sheltered warm spot, flowering in May - June. Can be ungainly, the rosette of leaves topping a thick bared stem, but worth it for the heavy scent. | May | £2.00 |
| Melittis | melissophyllum | Bee or Bastard Balm. Pretty native of shadier spots with white and pink flowers in whorls up the stems [think superior small catmint!] Good bee plant. Flowering May - July. | £3.75 | |
| Meum | athamanticum | Another native umbellifer with the most delicate fuzzy foliage, quite late emerging forming a soft low mound topped with white flowers in early summer. | small plants June | £1.75 - £3.75 |
| Mina [P Cl HH] | lobata | Spanish Flag - a tender climber for later summer flowering outside. Fingered fig-like leaves and spikes of claw flowers that run from cream to red. Grow through shrubs or up canes in a pot. Can sulk early on like the Ipomea but then romps away! | May | £2.50 |
| Mirabilis [Bb P H/HH **] | jalapa | The so called Four o'clock Flower as it doesn't open until later in the day and stays open all night, so presumably a moth attractant? Mixed shades and scented, can be lifted and over wintered like a dahlia. | May | £3.00 |
| Monarda | Mahogany Snow Queen Squaw |
Bee Balm - if you please them they love you but they need sun and moisture but not too retentive a soil if you want them to stick around and not sulk. Always a pleasure when weeding to bump into this plant. | June | £3.50 |
| Myrrhis [P H **] | odorata | A lovely herb - looks a little like a soft cow parsley, the leaves are pale green with white splashes. The flowers groups of white umbels. Used to replace some sugar in stewed fruits amongst other things. Semi shade and some moisture suit it best. | May | £2.75 |
| Nectaroscordum [Bb H] | siculum | Large grey and pink striped drooping bells atop long stems, the seed heads then turn upwards. Self sows prolifically in gravel. The garlic smell lets you know where it is when bruised! The leaves die down after flowering and it disappears for the summer. | May | £2.75 |
| Nepeta [P H **] | parnassica | Makes over 4 feet with purple flowers and aromatic foliage. | May | £3.00 |
| Olearia [Sh H **] | solandri | A wonderful shrub [or tree] upright evergreen growth, stiff little leaves have a golden tinge. In winter the foliage emits subtle wafts of vanilla/honey. In summer the tiny white daisy flowers also give off the same delicious scent. | May | £5.00 |
| Origanum [P H **] | vulgare Aureum | Lovely bright gold leaved Marjoram, perfect for pots [and cooking] | end May | £2.75 |
| Ornithogalum [Bb] | nutans | Spikes of greeny white flowers whih can take semi shade - May flowering. | May | TBC |
| Papaver [A/Bi H] | rupifragum | Frail, single soft orange flowers over low mounds of cut green leaves. I have it growing in gravel. Shortish lived but it is a prolific self seeder. | May | £2.00 |
| Pelargonium [P HH **] | Hansen's Wild Spice Rober's Lemon Rose |
Scented leaf pelargoniums, great for pots outside in summer - take warm dry conditions. Take cuttings in late summer to overwinter in a light cool place but frost free and water sparingly until growth starts again. | end May | £2.75 - £3.50 |
| Pelargonium [P HH] | sidoides** | From rosettes of small crinkly grey green leaves erupt long stalks topped with small black scented spidery flowers. | May | £3.50 |
| Penstemon [P H/HH] | Hidcote Pink Mother of Pearl |
Star performers for the later flower show. | May | £3.00 - £4.25 |
| Pepper [Capsicum] | Dulce Italiano Grisu of Sardinia |
- a sweet red pepper - a hot early red chilli pepper |
May only | £2.50 - £3.00 |
| Phlox | paniculata Eventide | A superb misty blue which really comes into its own as a summer day shades into evening light. | May/June | TBC |
| Pimpinella [P H] | major Rosea | An early flowering umbel with pale pink flowers, low growing dark pinnate leaves send forth tall multi headed stems up to 3 feet in semi-shade. | May | £2.75 - £3.50 |
| Platycodon | grandiflorum | Balloon Flower - most often seen as a cut flower but a perfectly hardy and striking perennial. | June | £3.00 |
| Polemonium [P H] | caeruleum Album liniflorum paucilforum |
A white form of the familiar Jacob's Ladder. - P liniflorum displays sprays of small blue flowers. -pauciflorum has pendulous yellow downward facing long shanked bells. |
May | £3.25 |
| Potentilla [P H] | Etna Gibsons Scarlet Gloire de Nancy |
- deepest red single flowers rising up from mounds of fingered foliage. - scarlet single flowers on sprawly stems over mats of fingered foliage. - tawny maroon doubled flowers. |
£3.75 | |
| Ptilostemon | casabonae | Another purple thistley thing from S Europe | May | £2.50 |
| Pycnanthemum [P H] | pilosum | Hairy Mountain Mint from N America. A retiring sort of plant with off white flowers but heaven for bees. | May | £2.75 |
| Reseda [A **] | odorata | Not much to look at, but the yellow/green flower tufts give off a strong pleasant scent. In addition to growing in the summer border, can be grown in pots to enjoy through the winter months.Place pots near to somewhere that you sit in the garden. | May | £2.75 |
| Rostrinucula [Sh HH] | dependens | An unusual semi tender shrub which in later summer bears pendulous fuzzy deep pink flowers. | May | £5.75 |
| Salvia | pratensis turkestanica uliginosa** |
- Meadow Clary a showy native, mixed colours, great for bees - tall showy biennial - Late flowering salvia with tall waving stems and the skiest blue flowers, moist soil and runs. Neither are 110% hardy |
May | £3.75 |
| Sanguisorba | tenuifolia Alba | Very finely cut ladder runged leaves send up tall drooping stems ended by fuzzy white tassels, a definite - what's that? When seen for the first time. | May | £4.00 |
| Scabiosa | drakensbergensis | Softly hairy leaves, tallish in flower. The flowers are creamy white. | May | £3.00 |
| Scabiosa [P H/HH] | atropurpurea Chile Black |
Deep black pin cushion thimbles of flower when growing happily a very arresting sight. Is reputedly borderline hardy but some plants have overwintered with me for a couple of years. | May/June | £2.75 - £3.25 |
| Schizostylus [Bb H] | coccinea Alba | Valuable for its late flowering. Delicate spikes of white flowers amidst broad 'grassy' bladed foliage, 12 -14 in. | June | £3.75 |
| Scutellaria [P H] | incana | A US Native, showy blue snapdragon-like flowers, for an open sunny situation. | June | £3.50 |
| Sedum [P H] | x Purple Emperor | Varying gradations of red to purpled leaves, more subtle than Purple Emperor [which I do like too] Don't disappoint those late bees and butterflies now! | small plants June | £1.50 - £3.00 |
| Sempervivum [Bi H/HH] | Commander Hay Sir William Lawrence Blue Moon |
A selection of houseleeks. At their best in groups planted in complementary pots, Commander Hay makes a huge rosette. | May | £1.50 - £3.50 |
| Seseli [P H] | montanum | Low growing mats of dark green finely cut evergreen foliage with delicate white umbels in the summer. Tolerates some shade and dryness. | May | £3.75 |
| Seseli [P H] | libanotis | Moon Carrot - a white native umbellifer for lime and dry grassy habitats, rare in Britain. Loose heads of white flowers and nicely dissected foliage. | May | £3.75 |
| Solanum [A HH] | sisymbrifolium | Morelle de Balbis - large white tinged purple, 'potato' flowers, very spiny stems and leaves [definitely ouch!]. Edible fruits when ripe. | May | £2.50 - £3.00 |
| Solanum [P HH] | laciniatum [N/A] linearfolium |
From Australia 'Kangaroo Apple' or 'Poroporo'. Fast growing up to 5ft [1.5m] in a year [will grow taller], large bluey-violet 'potato' flowers and showy fruit, toxic when unripe, need to be fully ripe or cooked - after you! - a more refined and supposedly tougher version of the above. |
June | £3.00 - £4.50 |
| Squash | Blue Banana Olive Potimarron |
May only | TBC | |
| Thalictrum [P H] | uchiyame | Delicate leaves a little like a Maidenhair Fern. All moody purple and silvered, overseen by tall flowerheads with dancing downward facing lilac bells in mid summer. | May | £4.50 |
| Tomato | Miel du Mexique Pantano Peche Teton de Venus |
May only | TBC | |
| Triteleia [Bb H/HH] | ixiodes Starlight laxa Queen Fabiola [Koningin Fabiola] |
An explosion of creamy yellow panicles of flowers in June likened by someone as looking like fulmars heads in bud! Flowering in July they look a little like agapanthus, warm and well drained suit them best. |
May | 2.75 |
| Tulipa [Bb H] | sprengeri | Rich lipstick red flowers on this elegant and late flowering tulip. Won't increase much for me but is willing from seed if you are prepared to wait. | May | £4.25 each |
| Umbilicus [P] | rupestris | Navelwort - a native plant often seen growing in walls and on rocks. Pale spikes of green flowers in summer which made rather an eerie show on the red cliffs to the east of Bristol Temple Meads Station last summer. | May | TBC |
| Verbena | bonariensis officinalis** |
V bonariensis may have had its day in the 'must have the latest' garden but is a fabulous insect attractant. Tall gangly stems topped with chunks of tiny purple flowers for months in the summer. Simpler's Joy or Vervain, thin spikes of pale blue flowers on a branched stem, lowish growing, flowers all summer. |
May | £2.80 |
| Vernonia [P H] | gigantea | Ironweed - a tall US native for semi shade, good for late flowers and to attract bees and butterflies. | May | £3.50 |
| Veronica [P H] | grandis | Belies its name, a not so grand veronica with spikes of blue flowers. | May | £2.75 |
| Zigadenus [Bb H !] | elegans | Unusual green flowers over neat rosettes of foliage. Some are extremely poisonous. | May | £3.80 |
* I have marked some plants as irritants or poisonous but this is not intended as an exhaustive survey, if in any doubt at all check with other sources before you buy