This native classic is best known as a food of larval monarch butterflies (along with its cousins A. incarnata and A. tuberosa). Robust, yet beautiful with deep pink clusters of fragrant flowers in June and July followed by lovely pods of silky seeds in October.
This member of the Wood's Aster group has the typical low rounded habit and profuse blooming associated with all three. 'Wood's Blue' has perfectly clean foliage, and in the early fall it is covered with clear, medium blue flowers with gold centers. Bred for compact habit, long bloom period and heavy flowering, all of the Wood's Asters are outstanding pot crops and should be used far more often as a sturdy perennial alternative for mums.
A dark pink fall-blooming aster with a tidy habit and smothered in flowers? Oh man, we think we may have developed a crush. A 'Pink Crush' that is. An introduction from Walters Gardens, this New England aster is a shorter variety that doesn't splay in the late season like other aster cultivars.
Calamagrostis brachytricha is a clump-forming grass with bright green leaves reaching about 2 feet. In late summer blooms emerge with a pink tint and reach 3 to 4 feet. The feathery flowers fade to cream in fall and finish in a straw color in winter. A graceful addition to the shade or part shade garden! One of the few flowering grasses that is happy in the shade. Wonderful for cut flowers.
One of the most popular garden grasses in the world, 'Karl Foerster' is known for its ease of culture, tidy vertical habit and beautiful feathery blooms. In mid summer flowers open a creamy white tinged with pink. As they age they become narrow plumes of golden straw and last well into winter.
An outstanding and very attractive plant with low growing, deeply dissected dark green foliage that gives rise to an explosion of electric purple, single, upright flowers from July to early September. This plant behaves like an ivy. It is taprooted and can be difficult in containers if not well spaced. Let it drape over stone walls or creep between stones. Requires full sun and good drainage. Native to the Midwest.
This beautiful selection has narrow (1/4") leaves with white margins, giving it a very fine texture overall. Rhizomatous, forming thick silvery clumps. A bright addition to the shade palette!
According to Plantipp, the motto of this stunning Caryopteris isbig, blue & beautiful! We found that to be true in our own trial gardens here at North Creek. Its powdery grey-green foliage is the perfect skirting to present the long wands of stacked deep blue flowers. The flowers are bigger than other Caryopteris that we have trialed with long wands lasting weeks on end. It is a wonderful addition to the landscape or container garden and excellent for cut flowers. Superior low growing habit.
The leathery leaves of Dryopteris marginalis are a beautiful addition to the woodland garden and can form a lovely and easy to maintain groundcover. A sturdy east coast native, it forms a tidy clump that will not spread and is very tolerant of dry shade conditions once it has established. Marginal wood fern is often found in shaded crevices of rocky ledges and bluffs from Newfoundland to Georgia, west to Oklahoma and Minnesota.
We are very excited to offer our own selection from the woods of Landenberg! Pale lavender-pink flowers over very attractive maroon-purple foliage. A bold new look for our native cranesbill, useful as a groundcover or shade garden feature plant. G. maculatum is found naturally in open woods, clearings, woods edges and roadsides throughout the Eastern US.
A widely used and attractive evergreen groundcover which is dense, but not invasive. Deep green, oval leaves and 2" gold flowers with pincushion-like, center-clustered stamens in late spring and early summer. One of the nicest groundcovers when in bloom. Most content in cooler areas away from drying winter winds, although quite tough once established.
A uniform plant both in production and the garden. Extremely tolerant to heat & humidity with superior winter survival and hardiness to Zone 5 - this lavender has been tested in several locations in Minnesota and Michigan with excellent results. Also resistant to common root and foliar diseases. Blooms best after vernalization. Developed & introduced by Peace Tree Farm. Required breeder tags must ship with all orders.
'Gardenview Scarlet' is one of the most mildew resistant Monarda varieties available. A classic variety that is well-earned, it's rose-red flowers sit on stems rising to 3' tall. Blooming from June to August, this long-flowering Monarda is beautiful, especially when massed in drifts to attract butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds.
We’re thrilled to offer Chris Hansen’s breakthrough new Sunsparkler® series! Selected for compact growth habit, attractive foliage, large flower heads, and brilliant bloom color…'Cherry Tart' does not disappoint! Masses of brilliant pink, 5" diameter flower clusters explode above cherry-red leaves from late summer into early autumn. Perfect for the landscape or container garden.
This clump forming, non-invasive native perennial boldly displays arching wands of golden clusters in September, contrasted by blue-green stems. Adds life to a dry shady spot. Great with Aster cordifolius and Chasmanthium. Incredible butterfly magnet and cut flower!
This cultivar features smaller leaves and finer texture than 'Helene von Stein', and seldom blooms. Silky hairs cover the leaves, giving them a very silvery appearance overall. Great for hot, dry locations.
'Sweet Kate' is an easy-to-grow perennial that produces a profusion of unusual deep-blue flowers from summer to fall. An eye-catching accent for the border, the vibrant golden-yellow foliage is the perfect foil for its bloom and a bright companion for purple-foliaged plants.
One of the few varieties of Tricyrtis with variegated leaves that is a good, tough garden plant with clean foliage! Green leaves with creamy, almost gold edges are topped in fall with lily-like flowers of purple with dark purple spotting with yellow throats. Best admired from close by, it is lovely planted near a patio or sitting area mixed with other shade perennials.
This selection of the Arkansas native comes to us from Dr. Allan Armitage's trials at the University of Georgia. It has lovely fine foliage like Amsonia hubrichtii and is a compact, well-branched and vigorous plant. In late summer it is covered with true purple flowers that attract plenty of butterflies. Found in rocky flood plains, Vernonia lettermannii is very tolerant of hot, dry locations, yet can withstand brief periods of inundation.