03 Apr

North Creek's Legacy Plants

By Chelsea Ruiz

Thirty years ago, North Creek’s first catalog was a simple, hand-illustrated creation. While much has changed, our heart remains the same. Today, we’re revisiting the classics—North Creek Legacy Plants—timeless favorites from our debut catalog that have thrived for over three decades!

Plants that stand the test of time

When North Creek’s very first catalog went out thirty years ago, it was typed with occasional small, hand-drawn illustrations. We’ve come a long way since those first black-and-white catalogs (we couldn’t even conceive of it then - everything online with snazzy colored photographs??). But as much as times have marched on, we still are the same ol’ North Creek.

From our start in 1988, North Creek is guided by the ethos of finding and growing garden-worthy plants that withstand the test of time, delight our customers, and are not invasive in the environment. We try to balance what is a proven perennial, adaptable to a wide range of conditions, with research and trialing to find plants that have the possibility to be excellent in the landscape if given the chance. New things make us excited for tomorrow but today, we are doing a deep dive into our archives and showcasing a list of North Creek Legacy Plants - plants that were featured in the very first catalog and have been with us over three decades. Our customers still love them, you still see them in landscapes all over the Mid-Atlantic, and we still love to grow them because they’re easy-to-grow, durable, hard-working, and beautiful plants. Time shows that these plants endure, weathering the trends, and still come out on top. While new varieties come and go, left in the pages of previous catalog editions, these legacy plants hold their own in trial evaluations and in home gardens.

Check the list - do you grow these reliable favorites?

 

North Creek Legacy Plants

Native Average-Dry Sun

 

Native Average-Moist Sun

 

Native Shade

 

Well-Behaved Perennials

 

Checking In

What do you think - were you familiar with these varieties or did any of the Legacy Plants surprise you? Sometimes, we think we’re spring chickens, and the plants are new and trendy (like seeing the excitement online around Bowman’s root or Purple Dome aster) and then reality hits and we realize they’ve been in gardens for more than several decades. Oof, how can thirty years just sneak up on you like that?

We’d love to hear your thoughts - let us know what your tried and true garden plants are on our social media or by shooting us an email.

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