Primula vulgaris ‘Kerbelnec’
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Primula vulgaris ‘Kerbelnec’ Family: Primulaceae (PRIM-yu-luh vul-GAIR-iss) Syn. Primula vulgaris Belarina® Nectarine Common name: Belarina® Nectarine Primrose |
| Description: A low growing, clump-forming, evergreen perennial with bright green, wrinkled leaves. Fully double flowers open a deep yellow-orange colour and slowly transform through shades of apricot-pinky-orange to a gorgeous rose-orange as they mature. Bloom time begins in April and lasts through into June or July with regular dead-heading. Plant may go dormant in the high heat of summer if in full sun.
Special Notes: For clarity sake, Primula vulgaris ‘Kerbelnec’ is the patented name of this plant. Belarina® Nectarine is the registered trade name by which it is more commonly sold. It was bred by Cambridge, UK plant breeders, David and Priscilla Kerley, and introduced in 2014. Double-flowered primulas were once very popular in England a century or two ago but had become largely extinct. Through careful breeding, the Kerleys have bred a number of different cultivars in the Belarina® series for the gardener’s growing pleasure. (I have acquired a few in this series: Belarina® Pink Ice, Belarina® Valentine, and Belarina® Amethyst Ice.)
In our Zone 7a garden: Belarina® Nectarine was a new acquisition to our garden in 2017 and was planted in the front garden out of direct sunlight behind a Weigela spp. and shaded by the canopy of our large chestnut tree. A very stunning plant. Highly recommend this cultivar.
Posted on February 28, 2018
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Viola odorata
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Viola odorata Family: Violaceae (vi-OH-lah oh-dor-AY-tah) Common name: sweet violet; English violet; wood violet; garden violet Zone: 5 – 9 Height: 4-6 in (10-15 cm) Spread: 12-18 in (30-45 cm) Aspect: full sun; partial shade; full shade Soil: sand; loam; clay; well-drained Water: moderate |
| Description: Hardy, rhizomatous perennial with deep green, roughly heart-shaped leaves appearing in late winter. Fragrant flowers are either deep violet or white and appear in early spring. Disease and pest resistant. Propagation is from seed and spreading stolons, or rhizomatous roots.
Special Notes: Originally native to Asia and Europe, the early settlers carried specimens with them to Australia and North America where the specie has become established. The fragrant flowers are very important to the perfume industry in southern France where the flowers are also harvested for use in making flavourings, toiletries, and the violet-coloured liqueur called Parfait d’Amour. The whole plant contains salicylic acid…the main ingredient in aspirin…which may be why the ancient Greeks wore garlands of flowers on their heads during festivals to thwart dizziness and headache brought on by imbibing too liberally. The leaves contain antiseptic compounds and have been used as poultices or added to ointments for centuries. Infusing them in a tea or making a syrup has long been a remedy for coughs. The flowers have a mild laxative effect. Roots and seeds contain purgative properties. Herbalists have long recommended the use of a liniment made from violet roots and vinegar to cure spleen disorders and ease the pain caused by gout. More recently, it has been discovered throat cancer patients who drink violet leaf infusions have realized relief from pain caused by their treatment. Reportedly, there have actually been several cures of this cancer by drinking leaf infusions. The edible flowers can be added raw to salads, made into dainty crystallized candies for decorating cakes, made into a delicate violet jelly (recipe here), added to vinegar for colour, or fermented for a sweet wine. An infusion of sweet violet flowers can also be used as a substitute for litmus paper to determine pH. When it comes into contact with alkaline substances, the colour of the infusion turns green. Acid substances will turn the infusion colour red.
For some gardeners, sweet violets are too invasive for their preferences. John will not have them in his garden for this reason. However, any wayward plants are very easily removed if the patch gets too rambunctious.
Note: None of the medicinal claims are meant to be followed without the express knowledge of your doctor or a certified herbalist. Please act responsibly in regards to your health.
Posted on April 18, 2017
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Helleborus x nigersmithii ‘Walhelivor’
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Helleborus x nigersmithii ‘Walhelivor’ (hel-LEB-ore-uss) Family: Ranunculaceae syn. Helleborus ‘Ivory Prince’ Common name: Christmas rose; lenten rose Zone: 3 – 8 Height: 12-18 in (30-45 cm) Spread: 12-18 in (30-45 cm) Aspect: partial shade; full shade Soil: fertile, humus-rich, well-draining Water: moderate |
 Description: An evergreen perennial with an upright, moderately bushy, clump-forming habit. Leaves are made up of three to seven oval-shaped leaflets. Leaflet margins are serrated. Foliage colour is grey-green with a muted silver veining. There are usually up to six stems on a mature plant, each one supporting twelve ivory-hued flowers, tinted with green and pink markings. Flowers can retain their shape for as long as two months. As cut flowers, the blooms only last about one week. They are not fragrant. Bloom period lasts from mid- to late winter through into mid-spring.
Special Notes: Hellebores are originally native to Europe and Asia, primarily China, Greece, Italy, Turkey, Slovenia, Croatia, and Bosnia. Nowadays, they are a favourite of many gardens outside of those regions.
Deer resistant. Relatively disease free, although leaves can be susceptible to hellebore leaf spot. Black Death is a new virus that has been infecting hellebores in private collections and nurseries. If your plant becomes infected with this virus…as evidenced by black streaking on flower petals, stems and leaves…carefully dig up the plant and immediately bag it for the garbage.
In our Zone 7a garden: The three ‘Ivory Princes’ growing in my garden were actually gifts to my mom from her long-time friend, my godmother. Unfortunately, the plants languished indoors in my parents’ solarium…having sold our childhood home and relocated to a condo with a beautiful ocean view, but no garden. So my garden became the rescue garden for which I am eternally grateful. The ‘Ivory Princes’ have flourished nicely…albeit perhaps a little slowly. Now seven or eight years on, they have become a nice clump and exhibit all of the wonderful traits they have been bred for…foliage which survives the ravages of winter, upright form, and masses of flattened flowers which brighten the garden for at least two months. And right at a time when you need some serious “brightening”.
Caution: All parts of the plant are poisonous.
Great Plant Pick 2013 |
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Eranthis hyemalis
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Eranthis hyemalis Family: Ranunculaceae (air-AN-thiss hye-em-AY-liss) syn. Aconitum hyemale Common name: winter aconite; winter hellebore |
| Description: A spring-flowering, low growing, herbaceous, tuberous perennial. Rich green-coloured, palmately lobed basal leaves form a rosette on top of the soil. Each upright stem supports a bright yellow, cupped flower cradled on a collar of deeply lobed stem leaves. Flowers have a sweet, honey scent. It is a spring ephermeral…with leaves emerging in late January, setting flowers with seed pods following…the whole process taking a mere two to three months before the plant disappears below ground again to rebuild its strength for a beautiful floral display again the following winter.
Special Notes: Native to southern Europe from Italy to Bulgaria, and including Turkey. Has naturalized outside of its native boundaries. Introduced into English gardens by 1596, it has since spread to establish naturalized colonies in the wild in that country.
This plant is non-aggressive…it does not run rampant through the garden. Indeed, many gardeners bemoan the fact their golden patch of winter aconites does not increase. Propagation is by fresh seed…either by allowing the plants to form seed pods and self-scatter, or buying very fresh seed from a reliable source and immediately sowing them. Germination time is long, and needs winter stratification temperatures to break dormancy. Cleaning up the garden bed or walking on the soil are two main reasons why Eranthis spp. are difficult to grow.
If you purchase tubers from a nursery, buy as fresh as you can. Dried out tubers usually do not produce plants…although some gardeners have had limited success by soaking dried tubers before planting. Deer, rabbit, and squirrel resistant. Not many disease problems, although smut…black spots appearing on leaves, caused by a fungus in the genus Urocystis…can be devastating. It is best to carefully dig up the infected plant and place it in the garbage…before the black spores are released to infect other plants in the colony.
In our zone 7a garden: We started our patch of Eranthis hyemalis sometime around 2006 or 2007 from fresh seed gathered from a neighbour’s plants. The seeds were immediately sown underneath the Viburnum opulus ‘Roseum’ where they flourished and multiplied to become a delightful patch. (Sadly, the Viburnum had to be removed due to a serious infestation of viburnum leaf beetles. A native Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Monlo’ Diablo® has been planted in its place.) I am very fond of the bright little winter aconite flowers as they are a ray of sunshine bursting forth in the dead of winter…instilling hope that spring is finally on its way.
Caution: All parts of the plant are poisonous…the toxic compounds of note are cardiac glycosides. These are not as toxic as those toxins found in Aconitum spp.
RHS Award of Garden Merit 1993; Great Plant Pick 2012 |
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Asclepias tuberosa
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Asclepias tuberosa Family: Apocynaceae (ah-SKLEE-pee-us too-ber-OH-sah) Common name: butterfly weed, chieger flower, Indian paintbrush, pleurisy root, white root, windward root |
| Description: An herbaceous perennial with an erect, clumping habit and a long tap root. Narrow, lance-shaped leaves are green. Vibrant orange-red, umbel-like clusters of small, uniquely-shaped flowers appear atop hairy, milk-less stems in early summer through into autumn. (There can be some flower colour variations ranging from orange to yellow.) Spent flowers give way to 3-6 inch (7.5-15 cm) long, spindle-shaped seed pods which split open when ripe. The numerous, silky-tailed seeds are dispersed by the wind.
Special Notes: Native to the eastern regions of North America, stretching to the western borders of Ontario, Minnesota, Iowa, and south to the Gulf of Mexico. One of very few Asclepias species which does not contain the typical milky sap found in other plants in the milkweed family, Apocynaceae. Because of this lack of toxic milky sap, this plant is the major food source for the Monarch and Victoria butterfly larvae. The flowers also lure other nectar-loving insects as each individual small flower produces copious amounts of sweet nectar. Once upon a time, the dried root of this plant was used medicinally to treat pleurisy, an inflammation of the lungs. Asclepias tuberosa has a long taproot which precludes its abhorrence to relocation. Best give its destination in your landscape design full consideration before placing it in the ground. If you really must move it, be sure to dig down deeply to ensure you get all of the taproot with the plant. Word to the wise…according to Allan M. Armitage in his book, co-authored with Judy M. Laushman, Specialty Cut Flowers: The Production of Annuals, Perennials, Bulbs, and Woody Plants for Fresh and Dried Cut Flowers (2008), “if you break the taproot when transplanting, it can take two years for the plant to recover, if ever”. There are no serious insect or disease problems, although the leaves can be susceptible to rust and leaf spot. Of great note…this plant is deer and rabbit resistant. Also drought tolerant, once established. Propagate by fresh seed in autumn. Seeds need stratification…a period of exposure to winter cold temperatures…of 0.5 – 3 °C (33-38 °F) for at least a month. If buying packaged seeds, place a few seeds (not the whole packet) in the refrigerator for 4 weeks…or in the freezer for 2 weeks…before sowing. Be patient. They may take longer than the typical 7 – 14 days to germinate.
In our Zone 7a garden: We used to have this plant in our garden. However, I suspect John moved this plant, as he is constantly tweaking his landscape design. Allan Armitage’s words of warning have a ring of authority to them because I fear John did not get all of the taproot when he embarked on its transplanting. We sadly no longer have Asclepias tuberosa in our garden. But…if at first you don’t succeed…try, try again! I will keep you posted.
Posted on January 21, 2017
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