Browse Plants

(2 user reviews)

This tuberous begonia bears green heart-shaped foliage with red veining and claret-stained undersides that steal the show when backlit. Pendent clusters of slightly fragrant, satiny pink or white blossoms open from midsummer until frost. It makes a good perennial companion for ferns and hostas.

'Ice Dance' is a dense, spreading sedge grown for its foliage. This sedge looks good year round, even in winter.The early-spring flowers are insignificant, but the white-edged leaves complement most other plants. Grow as a groundcover in woodland areas or in a shade garden. This sedge is evergreen in warm climates. -Jane Hutson, Regional Picks: Midwest, Fine Gardening issue# 127

With its yellow-trimmed foliage, ‘Oehme’ is truly the palm sedge with an edge. I love this species for its tropical feel and cascading texture. This North American native prefers a damp spot but tolerates many growing conditions. It’s attractive to butterflies and birds but is usually unappealing to deer. Use ‘Oehme’ to brighten a shady bed or as an ornamental approach to erosion control on a stream bank. -Justin Nichols, Fine Gardening #147 (October 2012), page 70 

This species produces copious purplish-blue flowers in spring and fall. It has light green ferny leaves with a mid-rib of silver.

(1 user review)

This striking clump-forming bamboo, with olive-purple stems, dark green leaves, and an upright habit, is suitable for screening. May be grown in a container if provided with adequate moisture.

Some gardeners love Japanese forest grass because it looks like a baby bamboo grove or a lush woodland carpet. I love it because of the graceful motion that it adds to the garden—even on windless days. Such evocative beauty coupled with overall garden vigor (notably disease and deer resistance) are what make it a popular garden choice. In response to demand for greater variety, plant breeders have been working hard at increasing the palette of available cultivars. Of these newer selections, ‘Nicolas’, a dwarf variety that boasts lustrous green leaf blades with burgundy staining, is a notable standout.

 The pigment variegation of this plant pre­sents early in the season and intensifies to a vibrant reddish orange for a gorgeous late-season show. The long blades also add a nice texture to floral arrangements. Japanese forest grass is a versatile plant. It can stand alone as a ground cover or intermingle with other perennials, deciduous flowering shrubs, and spring bulbs. But because large varieties can sometimes swallow their perennial pairings and smother the lower foliage of shrubs, a dwarf cultivar, like ‘Nicolas’, offers a significant design benefit.