Plants to grow

One of the new plant introductions this year, King Tut papyrus, really loves the heat.  It seems to put on more height the hotter it gets.  The stalks, which are three-sided, can grow to 6 ft. x 36 in. (1.8 m x 90 cm) . King Tut is a papyrus that does well in...
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Eagerly anticipated by gardeners are the new plants that nurseries, seed companies and breeders roll out every year. It could be a new colour, a novel variation, or increased pest or disease tolerance in one of their old favourites that piques their interest. Here are a few of the new annuals, herbs, perennials and...
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A way to extend the all-too-short but oh-so-glorious peony season is to include tree peonies in your garden. Paeonia suffruticosa hybrids bloom a week or two earlier than P. lactiflora and P. officinalis hybrids. Their exoticism may make you think they’re temperamental, but that’s not the case at all, although they are slightly less...
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I’m not an expert dahlia grower, but I am an enthusiastic one. Every year, I try six or more different shapes and colours, ones I’ve never grown before. That’s your first clue that I’m not an expert—I don’t save tubers to replant the following year. Or maybe that speaks more to my lack of...
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Even small gardens have room for big plants. Bold and dramatic, they can be conversation pieces that liven up the garden party. If you’re unconvinced, experiment with a tall annual one year to see if you like the effect. One recent summer, I grew a row of audacious amaranthus (A. caudatus) at the side...
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Nothing outshines a beech in autumn, although it is an imposing tree in all seasons. The leaves glow orange and russet, like the dying embers of a bonfire, before drying to a warm, burnished tan. They hang on throughout winter, rustling in the wind, a good foil for the steely blues and muted greens...
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Currently, there are about two dozen Explorer roses on the market, and I’ve grown about 10 of them. In spring 2002, I planted three of the relatively new ‘A.C. William Booth’ in Canadian Zone 7 (Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario). Some catalogues describe him as a sprawler, others a climber. With arching, flexible canes of about five...
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Planting blue Icicle pansies at the base of dusty orange tulips provides a more bracing spring tonic than the usual soft pastels so prevalent at that time of year. A few deep purple hyacinths and the glossy green leaves of Vinca minor fill out the tapestry. The ‘Prinses Irene’, an early blooming Triumph tulip,...
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