My Garden

Miscanthus sinensis ‘Yakushima Dwarf' is, as you will have guessed, a dwarf form of this invaluable ornamental grass.

The problem is that because it's been raised from seed there are quite a few different dwarf forms all available under that one name - and some are far better than others. But you're never quite sure what you're going to get: the good, the bad or the ugly.

Neil Lucas at Knoll Gardens has solved the problem by selectinging an especially good seedling, naming it, and then propagating it by division so that all the plants are the exactly the same and you can always depend on getting an excellent plant. Miscanthus sinensis ‘Abundance' takes its first bow at the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show.

"This is the new name for our best form of ‘Yakushima Dwarf' which is actually a mix of seedlings and not a clonal cultivar," Neil told me in the run up to the Show. "So, with encouragement from Rick Darke, we've taken the step of naming this particularly good form to avoid continued confusion.

"It's not always in flower by Hampton though it's looking hopeful, and we will certainly have plants for sale," he said. The heat wave has made it difficult for everyone.

‘Abundance' forms wonderful mounds of attractive narrow leaves covered in masses of delicate buff white flowers. The plumes glint in the sunshine. Neil says "it's one of the very best Miscanthus for general garden use" - though it's his baby so he's bound to be proud!

It's deciduous with the leaves turning an attractive tawny shade as they age, it reaches about 1-4-1.7m/4.5-4.8ft in height, and it thrives in sun or light shade. Ideal as a specimen in a border in a small garden, some gardeners grow these dwarf miscanthus in large tubs - where they look amazing.

You can buy Miscanthus sinensis ‘Abundance' at the Show, or order Miscanthus sinensis ‘Abundance' online at Knoll Gardens.

 
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One of the great things about visiting any big flower show - and the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show is the biggest of them all - is that you get the chance to talk to the breeders of some wonderful new varieties.

Richard Fulcher, who runs Pine Cottage Plants in Devon, is a holder of a National Collections of Agapanthus and is expecting to be showing perhaps three new varieties he's raised himself.

Getting the timing for the Show right is always tricky, and with the recent scorching weather his timing may be thrown out at the last minute. But one fine new variety he's confident of being able to unveil is ‘Northern Star'. "The plants are looking to be on target," he told me - although that was before the heat wave.

‘Northern Star' is one of the hardier, deciduous, types with unusually large rounded heads packed with flowers. Each individual flower opens from an inky purple bud to a blue flower with a darker blue stripe along the centre of each petal. Then the petals continue to roll back as the flowers mature until each is like an exploding star creating a lively sense of movement. The foliage is interesting too, the base of each leaf is stained violet-blue, almost black.

Richard himself calls ‘Northern Star' "spectacular" and "one of the finest hardy Agapanthus in cultivation" and even for allowing for a little parental pride it must be good!

You can buy Agapanthus ‘Northern Star' at the show or order it online. I'll be reporting on ***'s other newcomers which made it to the show later in the week.

Another holder of a National Collection of Agapanthus who can also be seen at the Show is the Hoyland Plant Centre, exhibiting in the Plant Heritage Marquee.

 

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As the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show - the largest flower show in the world - approaches I'm beginning my series of posts about the new plants introduced at the Show. I'll be posting here every day until Sunday 12 July, when the show closes, bringing you news and pictures of all the new plants on display.

One of the highlights of the Show is the Tudor Rose Festival and, along with the announcement of the Rose of the Year for 2010, quite a range of new varieties will be launched. So to start us off, here's a taste.

The rich red ‘Josephine', new from C & K Jones, looks gorgeous. It's neat in habit, growing just 90cm-1.2m/30-36in tall and no more than 60cm/24in wide, so is ideal in small garden or even a container.

But it's the flowers which make this rose special. Unusually large in size, and almost blood red in colour, set against the bright green foliage they look especially striking. But it's not just their colour which is appealing. From the opening of the first blooms in June. ‘Josephine' will continue to bloom through the summer and into the autumn until November, unless halted by the first hard frost of the winter. Dead heading significantly enhances the display.

The rose is named for the bestselling author Josephine Cox, whose latest of thirty six novels, Born Bad, was published in February. A donation from the sale of each rose will be made to Barnardo's, the long established charity which works to support vulnerable children.

You can buy plants of ‘Josephine' at the show or order it from C & K Jones after the show.

* And by the way.... C & K Jones have a great domain name for their website. It's obvious really, but still excellent: jonestherose.co.uk

 
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Ever since Blooms of Bressingham began exhibiting a spectacular terracotta pot of Hakonechloa macra ‘Aureola' at Chelsea years ago, and continued to do so year after year as the specimen grew more and more impressive, this has been a very popular grass. There were one or two others around, but ‘Aureola' got all the attention.

In more recent years a number of other varieties have appeared - there are now nine in the RHS Plant Finder - forms with different patterns of variegation, with reddish tints and with gold leaves. The latest to appear, this year, is ‘Stripe it Rich', the first with golden leaves which are striped in white.

‘Stripe it Rich' is as vigorous as other forms, making a clump about 25-30cm/10-12in high and twice as wide with fine flowers fluttering amongst and above the leaves in late summer and early autumn.

As with ‘Aureola', and indeed all the varieties of this indispensable grass, this is a lovely plant in a container and also as an accent in the shade garden. The bright gold leaves with their white stripes really light up shady areas, rippling in the breeze, and as Adrian Bloom used to make clear with his Chelsea display, treating it as a container specimen and allowing the plant to slow grow in size and impact is a good approach.

‘Stripe it Rich' is a sport of ‘All Gold' which arose amongst plants of ‘All Gold' which were being propagated in the laboratory by tissue culture at Terra Nova Nurseries, the prolific breeder of good new perennials in Oregon (no retail sales).

Hakonechloa macra ‘Stripe it Rich' is available from these four RHS Plant Finder nurseries.

 

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Since the RHS trial of ajugas ended in 2001, a number of good new varieties have appeared. Which is just as well, as at the end of the three year trial it was decided that not one of almost forty entries was good enough to deserve an Award of Garden Merit. Many recent introductions have either been unusually large or unusually neat and compact in growth, the latest on the market is ‘Dixie Chip'.

‘Dixie Chip' has two features which are especially striking. First, its dwarf and compact habit. Reaching only 10cm/4in high it's one of the smallest bugles and with its slow spread it takes a few years to reach 25cm/10in. Being so tight in its growth, when it blooms in spring the short spikes of purplish-blue emerge so close together that they make a real impact even though they are so short.

But it's the foliage which is the most striking. The short and slender leaves come in a delightful varying blend of green, cream and rosy purple - colours which set off the flowers beautifully.

Of course bugles like shade and, with its unusually compact and neat growth, this is an ideal plant to grow in cracks in paving in shady places - and situation for which there are not too many candidates. Its dense weed suppressing habit makes it valuable in shady corners in small gardens and it's lovely in troughs in shady places.

‘Dixie Chip' is a sport of the equally compact A. reptans ‘Valfredda', which is known in the the United States as Chocolate Chip. It arose at ItSaul Plants, a wholesale grower in Georgia, which has created many of the hybrid echinaceas which have had such an impact in recent years. Dixie is the name used for the states in the south of the USA, including Georgia, which fought on the Confederate side in the American Civil War.

Ajuga reptans ‘Dixie Chip' is available from Lodge Lane Nursery, owned by Sue Beesley who took over the nursery in 2007 after being chosen as BBC Gardener of the Year in 2006.

 
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In my experience, most so-called "dwarf" buddlejas are nothing of the kind. Both ‘Pixie Blue' and ‘Nanho Purple', which are supposed to be dwarf, have reached almost 1.8m/6ft in my garden so some genuinely dwarf varieties would be very welcome.

Step forward the new Buzz Series from Thompson and Morgan, the first two colours in the series have just been announced.

Created at T&M's own plant breeding station by their multi-talented breeder Charles Valin, ‘Buzz Lavender' is a strong lavender purple in colour, while ‘Buzz Magenta' is a vivid magenta shade. They'll reach just 1.2m/4ft in height in the garden and half that in a pot.

"The Buzz Buddlejas were developed after about 10 years of selecting for true dwarf habit, good branching and short internodes," breeder Charles Valin told me. "They are based on B. davidii and are perfect for growing in a pot in a patio or on the balcony. More colours are on the way."

You can order the Buzz buddlejas from Thompson & Morgan.

They sound excellent, but I have to point out one thing: T&M are announcing this series as "the world's first patio buddleja". Sorry folks, but ‘Blue Chip' from the USA has beaten you to it. Indeed it was a bit hit in last year's RHS trial of buddlejas at Wisley and was the second most popular buddleja in the visitor voting. In the garden it reaches 60-90cm/2-3ft but it's not yet available to British gardeners - so "Britain's first patio buddleja" would be fine!

 
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We've seen a few new variegated sedges recently and with their slender variegated foliage they're undoubtedly appealing. Now we have another excellent new one, this time from New Zealand - Carex trifida ‘Rekohu Sunrise'.

Of course it's the foliage which is so striking. The rich green leaves tend to arch as they mature and are striped lengthwise; the striping varies both in its positioning and in its colour. Some leaves are simply striped along each edge but others have four or five stripes of varying widths and their colour may be primrose, almost gold or various shades cream with greenish overtones. When grown in bright light the undersides of the leaves develop a slightly bluish haze. There are flowers too, chestnut brown spikes.

This is an adaptable plant thriving in sun or partial shade and in most soils that are not permanently wet although good drainage is its preference. Reaching about 60cm/2ft in height, and 80cm/32in in spread as it matures, it makes a slowly expanding clump and doesn't run. This is a good partner for bolder hostas and to set against the foliage of spring flowering shrubs.

The first ever variegated form of New Zealand native Carex trifida, ‘Rekohu Sunrise' was discovered as long ago as October 1992 when nurseryman Lindsey Hatch spotted one variegated plant in a batch of Carex trifida raised from seed on his nursery on New Zealand's North Island. He propagated the plant by division over eleven generations and it never reverted to plain green. Rekohu is one of the native names for the remote Chatham Islands, 800Km (500 miles) east of southern New Zealand.

You can order Carex trifida ‘Rekohu Sunrise' from these four RHS Plant Finder nurseries.

 

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Hosta ‘Halcyon' is the most famous British-bred hosta and one of the most popular across the world. Its neat habit and intensely - often slug-resistant - blue leaves have made it a worldwide favourite.

‘Halcyon' has produced a number of variegated sports, shoots which differ from the original plant, and ‘June' is probably the best known with its yellow leaves retaining a margin of ‘Halcyon'-blue colouring. Now there's another - ‘Blue Ivory'

You can see from the picture that this is a dramatic plant. At first the leaves are ‘Halcyon'-blue with a broad creamy white edge, then as summer progresses the creamy area becomes white and may develop a hazy green "blush" on young plants; the centre becomes a slightly greenish blue. The green hazing is much reduced as plants mature in the garden.

Another valuable feature is the lavender flowers which are held clear of the foliage to make an effective display.

There are other sports of ‘Halcyon' with creamy or white marginal variegation but `First Frost`, `El Nino`, and `Sleeping Beauty` all have margins that are half as wide as that of ‘Blue Moon'. The foliage of ‘Aristocrat` is more rounded, and also has narrower margins, while. `Tambourine` has a narrower margin closer to yellow in colour along with darker purple flowers and is less blue in the centre than `Blue Ivory`.

‘Blue Ivory' was found by American hosta collector Bill Meyer in a nursery in Connecticut. It was then spotted by Dutch perennial wizard Luc Klinkhamer in Bill's garden (amongst about 1000 other hostas!) and Luc has now ensured its availability on both sides of the Atlantic.

I'm looking forward to growing this plant, Hosta ‘Blue Ivory' is now available from these two RHS Plant Finder nurseries.

 
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This is a plant that takes choisyas to a new level. We all love the long flowering season and orange-blossom fragrance of Choisya ternata and then there was the yellow leaved ‘Sundance' and narrow-leaved ‘Aztec Pearl'. Now we have Choisya x dewitteana White Dazzler (‘Londaz').

Another from the superb shrub breeding of former Hilliers propagator Peter Moore, now at Longstock Park Nursery, this is a three way hybrid resulting in a neat and dense growing evergreen shrub with small and slender foliage. In early spring and again in autumn it's covered with a vast profusion of fragrant white flowers.

What's more, it's delightful even when it's not in flower and needs little or no pruning to make an attractive shrub for mixed borders, large containers or even as an informal hedge.

White Dazzler (‘Londaz') is a hybrid between Choisya dumosa, native to New Mexico and Texas, and Peter's earlier variety ‘Aztec Pearl' which is itself a hybrid of  C. ternata, from south west Mexico, and C. dumosa var. arizonica from Arizona.

Peter Moore has brought these three different plants from different parts of the south west USA and Mexico together to create another in his succession of fine evergreen shrubs which are unexpectedly hardy considering the climate in which their parents are native.

Choisya x dewitteana White Dazzler (‘Londaz') had only limited availability last year, though some Wyevale Garden Centres - it was Wyevale's Sue Jenkins who came up with the name. Now it's available in all major garden centre chains and good independent garden centres and from these RHS Plant Finder nurseries.

 
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OK, normal service is resumed here at the RHS New Plants blog after the frantic flurry of coverage of all those new plants at Chelsea. Today's newcomer is a lovely new form of an old favourite.

Slowly but surely, centaureas (perennial cornflowers) are creeping up the popularity charts. The yellow leaved ‘Gold Bullion' certainly made us take notice a few years ago and now we have new form in a unique flower colour.

The name ‘Amethyst in Snow' describes it well for the heart of the flower is vivid amethyst in colour and the contrast with the snowy white petals is dramatic. Reaching only about 38cm/15in in height, this is a fine border plant, flowering around now, and this form in particular makes a captivating cut flower.

Although thriving most heartily in limey well-drained soil in full sun, ‘Amethyst in Snow' is tolerant of less favourable conditions including even a little shade. Cut the whole plant back hard after flowering, soak well and you'll be rewarded with a fresh crop of attractive foliage and more flowers later.

‘Amethyst in Snow' was discovered by Dutch seedsman the late Kees Sahin back in May 2002 amongst a seed-raised planting of C. montana and its distinct colouring was instantly recognised.

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For the very last post in my coverage of the new plants seen at the Chelsea Flower Show this year, here's my final list. It contains an amazing one hundred and twelvr (yes, 112) new plants.

I've taken all the announcements in the press releases with a bucket of salt, poked around the show for a few days, talked to lots of people, done some checking and come up with this list. Some great new plants this year, many of them discussed in the previous posts here starting on 1 May. If I hear of more, or discover that any are not new after all, I'll amend this list so it will always be the most up-to-date version.

(Sorry, life's just too short to put in all the italics for the botanical names!

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In the run up to the Chelsea Flower Show and for the last week since I took my first look at the show as it was being set up, I've been blogging about the new plants. Thirty four posts in all, plus eight in the run up to the show. But here's the thing: what do we mean by "new", exactly?

For the purposes of this series of Chelsea posts, a new plant is one that has not been available before or seen before. The RHS Plant Finder is a very helpful reference in this respect.

It's true that discussing a plant like the white form of Streptocarpus gardenii on the City of Durban stand is more interesting than useful as it will be some years before it's available to gardeners to buy. But having only recently been discovered in the wild there's no disputing that it's new. By contrast, you could order the new roses at the show itself although for them too it was a first sighting.

A rather less rigid definition of new, a definition which serves nurseries' marketing and sales effort more than accuracy, covers a plant which a nursery may have on display for the first time or in its catalogue for the first time - even though other nurseries have been selling it for a while or even for many years.

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The world famous French iris nursery Cayeux has been showing irises at the Chelsea Flower Show for a few years ago. But, up till now, their exhibits have been disappointing.They grow their show plants in England and this year, for the first time, their irises were grown for the show by Woottens of Wenhaston in Suffolk - and the quality has improved noticeably.

As you'll see from my report on the Cayeux new 2009 introductions, they planned to have three new irises, all raised by Richard Cayeux, at the show. In the event, not all were open by opening day, but one of them looked spectacular.

‘Coeur d'Or', on a prominent corner of the exhibit, stopped people in their tracks. It really is a dramatic plant. The ruffled upright standards are pure white, the ruffled falls are the same pure shade but with a bold true blue edge with the white seeping into the blue. Then, in the throat of the flower, a golden flash - hence the name.

Derived from the similar but much paler ‘Elegant', which features a lavender edge, this is a good grower, with healthy foliage and just so dramatic. I'm told 'Nuits de Noces' and 'Bel Avenir' opened later in the week.

Plants can be ordered direct from Cayeux Irises or from their British agent, Viv Marsh Postal Plants

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I was surprised by the wealth of attractive but unfamiliar chrysanthemums on the Chelsea Flower Show display staged by Graeme Iddon. A lovely colour-coordinated display featuring what for gardeners are unfamiliar chrysanths, they should prove easy to grow and valuable cut flowers.

These are all bred as commercial cut flowers, so you may have seen them in bouquets before now, but I've not seen plants on sale anywhere.

In particular I was impressed by ‘Dance', a cross involving an older variety, ‘Augusta', made by Yoder Brothers, one of the world's leading chrysanthemum breeders in California. The result is a dramatic spoon type - that is with the lower part of each petal rolled into a tube and the tip flattened out to reveal the colour. The result is a dramatic white centred vivid pink flower. It was shown arranged with Eryngium ‘Supernova Starlight', another newcomer. Impressive newcomer seen as a cut flower but not as plants at the moment.

Other chrysanths on show that I'd never seen before, and I admired most of them on Graeme Iddon's Silver Medal winning display I have to say, include ‘Anastasia Pink Improved', ‘Artistry Pink Improved', ‘Asenka Splendid', ‘Bacardi Pearl', ‘Biarritz', ‘Le Man', ‘Pink Lollipop', ‘Posh Pink', ‘Regan Improved' and ‘Santini Pink'.

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There show's over, and a great show it was, sell-off was late yesterday afternoon - but news of new plants keeps on coming. Just so you know... three more batches of newcomers and then a long list of every one.

Now, there are more new roses from Harkness Roses than from anyone else. I took a look at their spectacular Persian Mystery series a few days ago, but there are more - four more, in fact. All four have interesting connections.

In support of the Equity Benevolent Fund, the celebrities were out in force to support Equity (‘Harplayer'), the rose whose sales will support actors with financial hardship or special needs. A classic Floribunda rose, clusters of unusually pretty buds open to sprays of up to seven pink, beautifully fragrant, slightly ruffled blooms with peachy overtones. They're likely to be more vivid pink when not specially encouraged to flower for the show. Equity (‘Harplayer') is prolific with a long season and is good in mixed borders, as a low hedge or in more traditional rose beds

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