Why on earth would you ever put a tall plant in the front of your garden—even in the middle? You’d block whatever is behind it, right? Not necessarily. Enter the amazingly versatile category of see-through plants. Many of these unsung heroes have a bulk of tufted foliage that stays under a foot tall, but from that mass shoots a plethora of delicate flowers that allow the garden beyond to be seen. Other options include incredibly fine-textured plants with leaves resembling smoke. We even talk about an ornamental grass that shoots off its own bottle rockets just in time for the 4th of July. Listen to the interesting options in this episode and you’re sure to put a few tall plants at the front of you garden ASAP.

Expert testimony: Leslie Harris, owner of LH Gardens, a landscape design and maintenance firm in Charlottesville, Virginia.

STEVE’S PLANTS

Bronze fennel (Foeniculum vulgare ‘Rubrum’, Zones 6–9)

‘Skyracer’ purple moor grass (Molinia caerulea subsp. arundinacea ‘Skyracer’, Zones 5–8)

Knautia (Knautia macedonica, Zones 5–9)

‘Brunette’ black cohosh (Actaea simplex ‘Brunette’, Zones 3–8)

DANIELLE’S PLANTS

Tall verbena (Verbena bonariensis, Zones 7–11)

Meadow rue (Thalictrum rochebruneanum, Zones 4–9)

Peruvian feather grass (Stipa ichu, Zones 8–10)

New York ironweed (Vernonia noveboracensis, Zones 5–9)

EXPERT TESTIMONY

‘Anastasia’ Orienpet lily (Lilium ‘Anastasia’, Zones 5–9)

‘Purple Lady’ Orienpet lily (Lilium ‘Purple Lady’, Zones 5–9)

‘Hyperion’ daylily (Hemerocallis ‘Hyperion’, Zones 3–9)

‘Autumn Minaret’ daylily (Hemerocallis ‘Autumn Minaret’, Zones 3–9)

‘Moon Ladder’ daylily (Hemerocallis ‘Moon Ladder’, Zones 3–9)

Variegated Japanese water iris (Iris ensata ‘Variegata’, Zones 5–8)

Yellow flag iris (Iris pseudacorus, Zones 5–8)

Gaura  (Gaura lindheimeri, Zones 5–9)

‘Chocolate Shogun’ astilbe (Astilbe ‘Chocolate Shogun’, Zones 4–8)

Plants mentioned in this episode