Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Foliage Follow-Up June 2012

FFU June 2012 copy
It's time for Foliage Follow-Up y'all! I know, it's about a week late...but better late than never, right? For more fabulous foliage-centric posts, head on over to Digging, hosted by the inimitable Pam Pennick.

matrona  1782
This year I moved every single Sedum 'Matrona' in my garden into the parking strips. For one thing, they were all getting smothered by their more-aggressive bed partners...and it saved me big $$$ having to buy new ones! I don't know if it's the weather or the stress of getting moved at the beginning of June, but the color of their stems is particularly intense this year.

sumac persicaria calamagrostis  1750
One of my fave foliage combos is embodied by this pairing of Rhus 'Tiger Eyes' and Persicaria 'Red Dragon'. They are so totally opposite, and a really wonderful, contrasting combo. They seem to stop just short, however, of being jarring, which is a good thing. Just behind them are the wonderful, feathery flowers of Calamagrostis 'Karl Foerster'

veronicastrum  1768
While it is flashy, I adore the wonderful, whorled foliage of Veronicastrum 'Fascination'. There is something so incredibly elegant about that tiered foliage.

teucrium  1753
I got this plant (Teucrium scorodonia ‘Crispum Marginatum) from the always-generous Mr. Impatiens last fall...after spying it at a nursery, but neglecting to buy it. I love the undulating edges with their contrasting purple stems.

selinum  1760western maidenhair fern  1776
Selinum wallichianumAdiantum aleuticum
The above plants both fall under the "delicate beauty" category. I first discovered the Selinum in one of Piet Oudolf's books and instantly fell in love with those finely-divided leaves and it's large (yet delicate) umbels of white flowers (much like a very-refined Queen Anne's Lace). I've always loved the Maidenhair Ferns...and got this from Bosky Dell Natives a few years ago...I LOVE the black stems!

sedlinum  1763
Another shot of the Selinum, showcasing one of my favorite traits...the purple stems!

sedum angelina  1745
The invaluable (in my garden) Sedum 'Angelina' is so tough and beautiful, what more could you ask for?

schizachyrium blue haeven  1780
A new form of Little Bluestem (Schizachyrium 'Blue Heaven') for me this year...even though it's only a few inches tall at the moment, the leaves are a wonderful mix of green, blue, red and purple...gorgeous!

persicaria lance corporal  1770persicaria iris panicum  1777
Persicaria 'Lance Corporal'Persicaria 'Golden Arrow'
As far as foliage goes, as much as I like 'Red Dragon', I have to admit that 'Lance Corporal' is my fave. It's very compact and well-behaved (well, except for the crazy re-seeding). I love the pairing of the bright chartreuse leaves with the contrasting burgundy chevron. Persicaria 'Golden Arrow' is intensely yellow-green...and really stands out in a border of darker-leaved companions.

Persicaria Eutrochium Panicum Agastache
Here's the same area of the garden, from another angle. In the foreground is Agastache 'Golden Jubilee', another golden-leaved perennial that I have scattered around the garden.

oxalis iron cross  1765
Oxalis 'Iron Cross' is one of those plants that I can't believe are real...they look too amazingly perfect!

euphorbia dixter  1774
As much as I like Euphorbia 'Dixter', it hasn't produced more than 2 stems in the past two years it's been in my garden. If it doesn't improve next year, I'm pulling it out.

corydalis  1761
The yellow-flowered Corydalis that Ryan Miller gave me last year has turned the most amazing shade of coppery-orange...does anyone know if this is typical???

geranium oxalis persicaria verbena  1767geranium and rodgsersia  1759
On the left, I love how Geranium 'Ann Folkard', Persicaria 'Golden Arrow', Oxalis 'Iron Cross' and Verbena 'Homestead Purple' all share the same color palette...it's kind of awesome. On the right, we have the Rodgersia patch, fronted by Geranium macrorrhizum.

Cimicifuga
I have to admit, I'm tempted to move the Persicaria 'Golden Arrow' in the photo above and replacing it with one of these, Cimicifuga 'Brunette'. I think the contrast would be amazing! I love the sultry, almost somber, coloring of the dark Cimicifugas. I have this planted among the front Astrantia patch, and can't wait for them to all grow together.

astilboides damage  1778
Earlier this spring, my poor Astilboides tabularis was schredded (and I mean SHREDDED) but cutworms. As you can see, there wasn't much left of them...and I wasn't even sure they would come back.

astilboides recovery  1779
Yay! Over the past few weeks, they've rebounded nicely, much to my relief!

aster prince and agastache golden jubilee  1751asgastache rupestris  1775
On the left, a nice pairing of Aster 'Prince' and Agastache 'Golden Jubilee', it's always nice when the foliage is as good (if not better) than the flowers themselves, right? On the right is a wonderful Agastache (Agastache rupestris). These poor Agastache have been moved more times than I can count, and right now are in the worst place ever...on the back side of our back-yard fence. Somehow, they are thriving there...looking better than ever, and now I get to enjoy them everytime I enter and leave the backyard...WIN!

amsonia  1769
Amsonia hubrichtii (Thread-leaf Bluestar) is one of those plants that takes a few years to settle in, but once it's there, it's THERE for good. This is the oldest of my plants (would you believe, purchased on E-Bay?). This is its third year in the garden and it's finally formed a really handsome clump. I value it mostly for it's amazingly buttery fall color, but even when it's just green, it's quite lovely.

acaena purpurea  1771
And lastly, I leave you with my favorite diminuitive, purple-leaved, evergreen ground cover, Acaena inermis purpurea. How can you NOT love that color!?!

34 comments:

  1. I'm a firm believer in making severe pronouncements in order to smarten up plants - probably came from watching a Kentucky Derby one year, and they'd said, if a horse didn't win they were thinking of running him as a gelding. He won...... So many lovely persicaria - makes me want to rethink sections of my garden. There just isn't enough chartreuse in the world as far as I'm concerned. The Aceaena is grand, what other plant makes mulch look so good. Alas, it would be too cruel to try to grow it here, so I'll just have to enjoy it in your marvellous photo.
    B.

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    1. Hahaha...glad I'm not alone there! I'm usually such a wuss about tossing a plant, but this one is in a prime spot, and I need something there that earns its keep! Glad to know I'm not alone in my adoration of chartreuse!

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  2. Your Rhus combo is beautiful and I really do love those Persicaria. Very cool looking plants. I am so into foliage plants.
    Cher Sunray Gardens

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    1. Glad you like the Sumac, Cher...I really love it too :-)

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  3. So much beautiful foliage, Scott! Love it all, from the variegated to the purple, the chartreuse to the bronze, and the delicate to the bold. Scrumptious!

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  4. Okay, where did you get the Selinum? I bought it from the old Heronswood, back before Dan Hinkley sold it, and haven't seen it for sale since. It seems hard to find, at least in the east (probably because it's hard to grow here).

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    1. You're right, it's sort of impossible to find around here too. I finally found some at Annie's Annuals...and then soon after, at Far Reaches Farm (both of which do mail-order). I hope you give it another try...perhaps it would do well in your new, sheltered city garden?

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  5. Beautiful combos! You are such a master, not just with the camera, but with plant placement too. That Amsonia is going to look AMAZING in the fall!

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    1. awwww...you're making me blush ;-) I know...I can't wait to see the Amsonia this fall!!!

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  6. I love that no matter how late you always come through with an excellent Foliage Follow-up post! You've also managed to answer a question I had before I even had a chance to ask it. Later in the week I'm posting pictures of a ground cover that caught my eye but I didn't have a name...now I do! Acaena inermis purpurea...gotta have it!

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    1. Hahahaha...that makes me feel better about always being late! I have to say, I have enormous respect for those of you who manage to post those two back-to-back! Oh, and I LOVE the Acaena...it's just sumptuous!

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  7. Hi Scott,

    Beautiful foliage, I've already looked up a few of the plants to see whether I can have them here! :D

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    1. I hope you can find the ones you want, Gwirrel!

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  8. The Tiger Eyes combo is stunning. I just pulled out a 10 year old green cutleaf Rhus that finally lost its battle with canker. Perhaps I need a Tiger to ease my grief. Beautiful photos as always!.

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    1. You should really go for it, they are absolutely stunning...although not quite as vigorous as the regular green ones.

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  9. Oh yes, I come here for the beautiful photography....I must say Lance is a handsome thing!

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  10. Oh so many plants to comment on....love the combo of the Tiger Eyes, Red Dragon and Karl Foester. Still would love to have a Tiger Eyes, but after killing off two, will have to wait a few years.....
    Gorgeous plantings Scott.

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    1. Oh no! That's so very sad...and I have to say, it's one of the plants I am always afraid of losing. Having to plant another one and wait ANOTHER 4 years for it to look decent would be awfully difficult!

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  11. All the plants are alien to me and I believe not grown in my part of the world. However I enjoy your great photography.

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  12. I have never seen the corydalis turn that color. Maybe you've got a new variety there.

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    1. Maybe! I think it might just be stress or something...who knows!

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  13. So much to covet! I have that selinum in a large container, kinda struggling. That acaena struggles too but I keep tormenting it by planting new ones. I really should keep it in a container for more even moisture. And love the color on that corydalis!

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  14. Another gardener who likes chartreuse as much as I do! So many knockout combinations going on. And Teucrium scorodonia ‘Crispum Marginatum is going on my wishlist--those leaves!

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  15. Taking notes...taking notes, and watching something that looks like snow falling out my window. Ah! It's R shaking out the dust mop.
    I planted two of the Accaena (little 4" pots from the super market). One promptly died, but the other took hold and now spills charmingly over the edges of its berm...enough to give some away.

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  16. Although I haven't been able to post in six months, I always follow your work and rely on you for that eye candy to enrich my soul particularly when I'm in the hospital. So you're a legs man just like me. LOL Although the southern maidenhair fern hails from my country of birth, I find the northern species enchanting in its own right. And now for something completely different, I love Matrona.

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  17. Thanks for adding your post to GBFD; you have some lovely plants. I love your Oxalis 'Iron Cross' with Verbena, as you say they look too perfect to be real. your foliage is looking lush, I imagine you have had some rain recently? How much do you irrigate? Sedum are really easy to propagate from leaf or stem cuttings; one stem can produce, maybe half a dozen plants or more. I posted abpout how it here. http://myhesperidesgarden.wordpress.com/2012/05/20/the-greenhouse/
    Christina

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  18. gorgeous foliage! I can't believe that plant recovered from all that cutworm damage. The purple evergreen is awesome!

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  19. I love it ALL, Scott, but especially your persicaria collection and those wiry, black stems of the maidenhair fern. You're making me long for another visit to the color-rich, damp Pacific NW!

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  20. Wow, wow, wow. Usually I'm not a fan of chartreuse and burgundy together. It seems to be often overused and not too imaginatively, but your Tiger and Dragon combo made me gasp out loud. Likewise the first Oxalis and Verbena photo really struck me. Really awesome.

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  21. Oh yes everything is lovely, but that last one is very special. And it has the most unusual things it has to grow from!

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  22. So much beautiful foliage! I love the persicaria 'Golden Arrow'--where did you buy it? I'm in SE Portland too, and I'd love to have some in my own yard, but I can't find it locally. I checked with Cistus, Joy Creek, and Portland Nursery, but no luck. It looks like my only option is to take a day trip up to Far Reaches Farm in Port Townshend (or, you know, wait patiently for a local nursery to start carrying it again, but that's no fun!). I'm hoping maybe there's a secret persicaria nursery in town that I just don't know about...

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