Perennials
What is a perennial? A plant that lives for several years but is not woody. What is a herbaceous perennial? One that dies down each winter and regrows each spring. An evergreen perennial? A herbaceous perennial that doesn't die down. Ahh! A sub-shrub then? Might be. Woody then? Possibly, or not. Confusing! Yes, but never mind, we know what we mean by a perennial. A lupin is a perennial. Fine. A short-lived perennial actually. But..........
Arduaine garden has a good selection in all of these categories. As we have an amazing display of spring-flowering shrubs we tend to go for perennials which flower later in the season, and it's not unusual to see a good show into October and beyond if the weather is reasonably kind. The greatest percentage here are herbaceous and are cut down each autumn to regrow in the spring, which gives staff an opportunity to divide the clumps, redesign the beds or simply mulch them with rotted compost.
Some are popular, ground-covering plants such as Geranium endressii and Alchemilla mollis, others are the typical upright herbaceous border plants like Phlox maculata andDicentra spectabilis. Different again are those with the spiky upright foliage and separate flowers stems of the Iris sibirica or Libertia grandiflora persuasion and some of the most handsome border plants are those with striking basal foliage and tall flower stems after the fashion of Veratrum nigrum or Gentiana lutea.
Evergreen perennials sometimes need some additional shelter as cold winter winds can spoil the foliage and lead to a tatty beginning to the new season. A good example of this type is (Myosotidium hortensia) the Chatham Island forget-me-not which has gorgeous, powder-blue flowers and handsome, rounded, glossy leaves which deserve to be treated well. Some low-growing species are evergreen, or at least semi-evergreen and plants such as Omphalodes cappadocica and Geranium macrorrhizum prevent the borders from being completely empty in winter.
The collection relies heavily on species perennials such as are found in the wild, or in some cases cultivars raised in cultivation but only those which retain their natural elegance and charm. Perennials with huge or double flowers, horribly variegated leaves or some other gross distortion of their natural good looks are generally shunned here! The ideal perennial has an elegant habit, handsome foliage, sturdy stems which don't need support and a good display of attractive, late flowers. One plant fulfilling most of these criteria is the monkshood Aconitum carmichaelii, one of the first through the ground in spring but flowering from September to November. Poisonous though. Nothing is perfect.
Arduaine garden has a good selection in all of these categories. As we have an amazing display of spring-flowering shrubs we tend to go for perennials which flower later in the season, and it's not unusual to see a good show into October and beyond if the weather is reasonably kind. The greatest percentage here are herbaceous and are cut down each autumn to regrow in the spring, which gives staff an opportunity to divide the clumps, redesign the beds or simply mulch them with rotted compost.
Some are popular, ground-covering plants such as Geranium endressii and Alchemilla mollis, others are the typical upright herbaceous border plants like Phlox maculata andDicentra spectabilis. Different again are those with the spiky upright foliage and separate flowers stems of the Iris sibirica or Libertia grandiflora persuasion and some of the most handsome border plants are those with striking basal foliage and tall flower stems after the fashion of Veratrum nigrum or Gentiana lutea.
Evergreen perennials sometimes need some additional shelter as cold winter winds can spoil the foliage and lead to a tatty beginning to the new season. A good example of this type is (Myosotidium hortensia) the Chatham Island forget-me-not which has gorgeous, powder-blue flowers and handsome, rounded, glossy leaves which deserve to be treated well. Some low-growing species are evergreen, or at least semi-evergreen and plants such as Omphalodes cappadocica and Geranium macrorrhizum prevent the borders from being completely empty in winter.
The collection relies heavily on species perennials such as are found in the wild, or in some cases cultivars raised in cultivation but only those which retain their natural elegance and charm. Perennials with huge or double flowers, horribly variegated leaves or some other gross distortion of their natural good looks are generally shunned here! The ideal perennial has an elegant habit, handsome foliage, sturdy stems which don't need support and a good display of attractive, late flowers. One plant fulfilling most of these criteria is the monkshood Aconitum carmichaelii, one of the first through the ground in spring but flowering from September to November. Poisonous though. Nothing is perfect.