Wednesday 20 March 2024

Zingiber mioga Crûg's Zing BSWJ4379

Zingiber mioga Crug Zing
An excellent form of this hardy ginger which produces orchid like blossoms directly from the ground in spring and then the standard upright leafy stems afterwards. Crûg's Zing differs from other mioga commonly in cultivation in that the flowers are pink instead of creamy yellow. 
Zingiber mioga Crug Zing
This is a genuinely hardy species (or at least, as hardy as any of the Hedychiums or Roscoeas) needing nothing more than perhaps a bit of mulch to stop the roots freezing. It does not need a dry winter. The new shoots can be harvested as a vegetable.
£12

Monday 18 March 2024

Lonicera gracilipes JP5573

Lonicera gracilipes
A relatively small pink-flowered winter flowering species from Japan. 
Lonicera gracilipes
The leaves are rounded and somewhat glaucous. 
Hardy and adaptable.
£16



Friday 12 January 2024

Ribes malvaceum

Ribes malvaceum
Soft pink flowers in dangling clusters among soft green foliage any time from autumn to spring in its native California, where it is important for nectar for birds and insects. 
Ribes malvaceum
Not the most brightly coloured Ribes but certainly one of the earliest flowering - in full flower here through frost and snow in January. 
Completely hardy here. Suitable for sun or shade, especially among evergreens.
£16


Friday 13 October 2023

Deutzia crenata nakaiana

Deutzia crenata nakaiana
A popular creeping dwarf shrub with bell-shaped white flowers in late spring. 
Deutzia crenata nakaiana
Easy and hardy
£12

Datisca cannabina

Datisca cannabina female
An amazing large herbaceous perennial from Crete with luxuriant pinnate fresh green leaves on tall arching stems to 7 or 8 ft. The small green flowers appear in long tassels at the ends. 
Datisca cannabina female
Despite its origin, the natural habitat of Datisca is moist and shaded ravines and stream sides, and they grow well in ordinary soils in the UK.
£12

Crambe maritima

Crambe maritima
Our classic native Sea Kale (seed collected locally, on Shoreham Beach by the way) with phenomenal big waxy wavy pale grey leaves and chunky heads of honey-scented white flowers. 
Crambe maritima
The new leaves are purple and can be blanched under an old bucket and then steamed as a vegetable. 
Crambe maritima
Easy almost anywhere sunny but definitely looks best planted among pebbles.
£12

Buddleja loricata

Buddleja loricata
A compact and hardy South African species with very striking narrow foliage - the undersides and stems being soft and white, contrasting with the deeply veined green upper surfaces. 
Buddleja loricata
The flowers are small and white and often dismissed as uninteresting, but I like them for their dark brown eyes which has a striking effect. Full sun, good drainage and some shelter.
£22