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Acorus americanus is a hardy perennial swamp or bog plant with sweet, spicy-scented leaves. Spadix like flowers appear in June and July, followed by dark berries. Found at water's edge from Nova Scotia to Virginia to Washington to Alaska. Great for stabilizing pond edges or filling a boggy area.

Delicate nodding white flowers bloom early to mid spring atop lustrous dense, green foliage. A low maintenance groundcover for bright shade! Easy to grow in containers, overwinters well in cold frames if protected from heavy rain and snow melt.

Asclepias curassavica is a tender perennial that grows upright and tall with spiraling lanceolate leaves. The flowers, in small scarlet red and orange umbels, are very bright and showy, and wonderful at attracting Monarch butterflies. Blood Flower is a milkweed and thus contains a milky sap that exudes from the foliage when cut or damaged.

This native classic is best known as a food of larval monarch butterflies (along with its siblings A. incarnata and A. tuberosa). Robust and stoloniferous with deep pink clusters of fragrant flowers in June and July, followed by lovely pods of silky seeds in October.

Clouds of blue flowers in early fall in shade! A great nuturalizer under trees, at the edge of woods, or as a filler among Hostas and Astilbes, which look pretty rough by September. Found in woods and dry meadows.

Tall and majestic, New England Aster rules the prairie in autumn. The deep blue to purple, and sometimes pink flowers are highlights of the late season wildflower garden. Blooms late into the fall, well after the first frosts. This is a critical late season nectar source for butterflies, especially for Monarchs, as they stock up for their long migration to Mexico.- Prarie Nursery

Local midatlantic native of moist to wet meadows. Flowers in shades of blue and purple in early fall, which is late August and early September here in PA.

Strong-growing and dependable, the Lady Ferns are great garden plants. This selection from the New England Wildflower Society features red stems, making it a great choice to combine with purple-leaved plants. Tough and easy to grow, this sultry beauty is the right choice for perennial borders and woodlands alike. A breathtaking flush of new fronds appears in the spring, with new leaves appearing throughout the season for a continuously fresh look.

Twilite Prairieblues™ is the first introduction from the Baptisia breeding program conducted by Dr. Jim Ault at the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe, Illinois. The australis x sphaerocarpa cross has brought us a very strong and production friendly plant with excellent hybrid vigor. By the third year these plants produce almost 100 flower spikes of unique deep violet-purple, nearly burgundy flowers highlighted by a lemon-yellow keel. Held above the handsome foliage, the inflorescences can be up to 32 inches long! Tags will ship unless otherwise requested.

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.

Carex amphibola is a widely adaptable native sedge naturally occurring from Texas to Quebec and Georgia to New Hampshire. The compact and semi-erect mound has proven to be semi evergreen (zone 6b) and prefers deciduous shade in upland or even floodplain conditions; easily adapts to fine or medium textured soils. Creek Sedge lends itself well to native shade gardens, along wood paths or as a slope stabilizer. It is a vigorous clump former with shiny, narrow green foliage 1/8" wide by up to 12" long. C. amphibola is an excellent companion for Phlox divaricata, Asarum, Chrysogonum and Polygonatum...among others!

A wonderful naturalizer, Carex eburnea is the ideal native groundcover for the woodland or rock garden. Petite colonies of 6-8 inch long soft, thread-like foliage takes on a spherical shape as inconspicuous whitish-green flower spikes appear in early spring.

A sport found in the garden of Wolfgong Oheme by Tony Avent, this sedge emerges as light green, but soon clear yellow edges appear. The foliage radiated horizontally on top of 12"-18" stems, resembling a small palm tree. A great native substitute for dwarf variegated bamboo. Spreads slowly and tolerates a wide variety of conditions. Found in moist meadows and along streams in the central US.

With its tough disposition and spreading habit, this native grass makes an excellent shade groundcover. Fine texture and fountaining habit give this sedge a soft appearance that is lovely as an underplanting for bolder shade perennials or on its own as a shade lawn. Great in containers too! Easy to grow. Happiest in the company of oaks, but who isn't?

Snow Fairy's outstanding white-rimmed leaves provide a delicate and full texture in the border all summer. Its habit is compact and well-branched, and it shows beautifully in a nursery pot. In late summer or early fall it is topped with airy blue flowers with long curved stamens, resembling hundreds of floating butterflies. Leaves are slightly aromatic when crushed, but are not as strongly scented as the species.

Pixie Meadowbrite is a floriferous Echinacea tennesseensis hybrid from Chicagoland Grows that is compact with upward facing flowers of soft pink. It presents beautifully in containers and with a long bloom season it has great shelf life potential - not that it will need it! It is tidy enough for the most formal garden, yet has that wildflower appeal as well and would be at home in any low meadow.

An evergreen plant that is excellent in sun or shade. A carefree, slowly spreading groundcover with shiny, deep green, leathery leaves. Yellow green disc-like bracts back chartreuse yellow flowers in late spring which last for months. Looks fantastic in a pot and in the garden. Grow in protected site for best winter foliage. Unbeatable! Most importantly, this plant has just about zero maintenance requirements.

This great floriferous and low-growing native is very attractive in the garden and in flower arrangements. Its delightful brown spherical cones are surrounded by a flowing fringe of bright yellow reflexed petals looking like hundreds of yellow skirted dancers in motion. The foliage is compact and bushy. Tolerant of a wide variety of conditions, H. flexuosum blooms from mid-summer into fall. Native from Massachusettes to Florida.

A beautiful selection with golden yellow semidouble flowers in mid summer.

We are delighted to have introduced this magnificent new series from Hellebore breeder David Culp! His 15 years of breeding using rare species and prized selections from collectors and specialty nurseries has produced a premium strain with clear colors and distinctive forms. This group promises plenty of doubles and anemones, as well as dark reds, spotted pinks, picotees, and apricots. A keen eye, hand pollination, and years of careful selection mean beautiful plants for you!

"For the past fourteen years I have traveled to personally hand select parent plants from the best breeders from around the world, including Elizabeth Strangman, Ashwood Nursery, Blackthorn Nurseries, Gisela Schmiemann, and Phedar Nurseries. I journeyed not only for the plants but also to reap the benefits of their knowledge and encouragement. Brandywine Hellebores™ are seedlings that originated in my garden, and are the result of decades of work with these hand selected plants. I've used these tried and true hellebore foundations to build upon, and now my hybrids contain hand-pollinated, open-pollinated and self-pollinated plants. Color and form are the chief focal point of my breeding work, as evidenced by the single, anemone (semi-double) and doubles that abound in this premium mix." ~ David L. Culp

BrandywineHellebores.com

Wonderful blooms of brilliant pink grace this compact hybrid from mid to late summer. Foliage transitions into a deep purple when in full sun, providing lovely contrast to the bright, showy flowers. Another great container perennial from the Flemings, it reaches only 3' tall and branches beautifully. (Tags will ship unless otherwise requested.)

Soft, fragrant, gray-green foliage with sprays of large, distict bluish purple flowers from April to October. Compact, prolific and beautiful! Named for English garden Walker's Low.

A Sunny Border introduction that is head and shoulders better then the species or any other selections we have seen of P. orientale. Delightful fluffy rose pink flowers begin to appear in July and continue to form well into fall. A slowly spreading grass, it is a vigorous and reliable garden plant. Outstanding!

Selected here at North Creek, Manita is an outstanding addition to the woodland phlox group. Its individual flowers are 50% larger than May Breeze and it is vigorous and floriferous as well. Manita also has a delicate indigo eye and on cool spring mornings the violet spreads further into the petals giving the drifts of white a smoky purple look. An easy pot crop for spring, plant this native in the fall for best results with bloom timing. It overwinters in pots well.

Phlox 'Mary Helen' is an easy to grow and vigorous beauty that blooms in mid to late spring. It features lovely indigo flowers softly streaked with deep magenta for an overall violet blue appearance. Very floriferous and quick to finish, and the foliage holds up beautifully throughout the season.

Found by and named after Jeana Prewitt of Nashville, TN, this selection possesses outstanding mildew resistance with varying shades of sweetly scented, lavender-pink flowers, vibrant midsummer through early autumn. Foliage remains clean green while flower clusters create a tiered effect along upright, multi-stemmed branches. Expect a flurry of pollinator activity!

Mat forming habit with masses of perfect blues cymes. A beautiful, cloudlike groundcover that will bring elegance to the native shade garden. 1990 Perennial Plant of the Year.

An amazing garden performer, Salvia 'Ultra Violet' was selected by Lauren Springer and Scott Ogden from their garden in Ft. Collins, Colorado. An abundance of intense violet flowers adorn dark green, finely cut foliage well into autumn. 'Ultra Violet' thrives in lean-loamy and clay-loamy well-drained soils in full sun. Thought to be a hummingbird initiated cross between blue flowered Salvia lycioides and rose-pink Salvia greggii, the aromatic foliage of 'Ultra Violet' keeps the deer and rabbits away while blooms entice hummingbirds throughout the seasons.

From Beate Zillmer of Zillmer Pflanzen in Uchte, Germany. Imagine 'East Friesland' with violet blue flowers and glowing purple stems. Incomparable! Its tidy upright habit makes it an excellent companion for Geraniums, yellow Baptisias and purple Heucheras.

A true blue grass that loves the heat and humidity. In the fall the glowing blue becomes burgundy red and mingles throught the entire clump. Soft seed heads appear, adding a silvery winter effect. Selected by Dr. Richard Lighty, introduced by Tony Avent, and blessed by Kurt Bluemel.

From Jelitto Perennial Seeds, Schizachyrium 'Prairie Blues' is an improved selection of one of the most prevalent native grasses in the eastern United States. Consistent grey-blue, ribbon-like foliage takes on hues of orange and red as the season transitions to autumn. This warm season grass has sturdy, narrow stems with an upright habit. 'Prairie Blues' thrives in hot, dry areas.

Delightful, golden-yellow flowers are borne in axillary clusters along reflexing stems from late summer into fall. Reliable, deep green, glossy foliage remains clean throughout the growing seasons. Not an aggressive runner, 'Solar Cascade' is a clump forming perennial reaching knee height, maxing out somewhere between the taller 'Fireworks' and more compact 'Golden Fleece'. Performs best in moist to average garden soil under full sun or partial shade; extremely drought tolerant once established. This great garden plant is easy to propagate and proved to be a standout in The Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden perennial trails. Plant en masse for a dramatic effect or incorporate into seasonal arrangements.

The "energizer bunny" of Violas. Purple Showers is a clump-forming selection with large, 2 inch long, slightly fragrant flowers that are bright clear purple. They create a dramatic color impact in the spring garden, especially when combined with yellow and red tulips. Though this variety blooms the heaviest from late spring to early summer, it will continue to send up flowers sporadically throughout the summer in cooler zones.