A purported G. papilio hybrid, our mama plant when in bloom with its 5 foot stems of red-mauve flowers sporting dark eye patches, frequently caused plant geeks to start speaking in tongues and offer creative enticements in exchange for a wee bit.  We have had to say "No." until now.

These are seed-grown from our plant of 'Hakure' which is often seen as 'Hakuree'.  The parent plant was bred and selected by Hiroshi Hayakama in Japan in the early 90's who chose this for its floriferous display of white flowers just touched with fleeting lavender and sporting twisted tepals.  Our seed-grown progeny will vary from deep purple to white but all will be good. 18"-30" tall.

Long my favorite Bergenia with large upright broad paddles of leaves which turn the  best maroon in the winter of any in the genus.  Oh sure, the dark pink flowers are good in spring but this plant is one of the few reasons I look forward to winter.  Galanthus for contrast - oh my.

Much sought-after jewel of the rock garden is this slow dwarf Willow.  This was found as a natural hybrid on the moors in Scotland and is prized by rock gardeners for its slow 2"-3" of growth per year with nice rounded foliage and stoutly twiggy habit.  Always spendy, always worth it.

Saxifraga cochlearis is native to the southeastern Alps and this form 'Major' is speculated to be a hybrid with S. callosa which would account for its extra vigor.  Not a bad thing at all!  This makes clustered rosettes of foliage encrusted in silvery deposits and has white flowers in spring.  Good in a trough or rock garden.

We collected this in 1997 on the Tibetan Plateau near Zhongdian in an area of Tibetan open range. The early October withered, deciduous leaves and dried seed pods shrieked Iris! Eventual flowers confirmed the species, first described in 1995. Thin leaves and basal gorgeous flowers. Young plants.

Fabulous Award of Garden Merit shrub that has lovely pinnate Pea-like foliage and scads of luscious pink Pea flowers for several weeks from early to mid-summer.  Quite pest free and wanting only good sun and drainage.  A little light pruning for shape once a year and you are set to enjoy.

Dwarf Scandanavian selection of Chives which is way more ornamental than usefully edible.  Lots of pinkish lavender flowers on a very compact plant.  Quite useful in the rock garden or detailed planting site such as edge of a stepping stone or against a rock.

One of two similar but subtly different chance seedlings in our garden thanks to the tireless hybridization efforts of our various bee species. Apparently they visited the nursery and purloined pollen from 'Dixter Pink' or 'Cottage Apricot' and placed it on our Chrysanthemum yezoense - awesome! Why didn't we think of that?  Softly pale pink flowers with petals flat to slightly reflexed.

Very rare Libertia - which is a genus in the Iris family - from New Zealand which was thought to be extinct until a population of 30 individuals was discovered in 2006.  Closely allied to Libertia ixioides, this species is critically endangered in the wild but gardeners are helping with ex situ conservation through cultivation.  Evergreen olive-green leaves to 15"-18" on a clump forming plant with white flowers and persistent orange-ish seed pods.

A very hardy Royal Horticultural Society Award of Garden Merit Ceanothus.  If you are going to name something the Glory of Versailles then it had better be good!  A deciduous shrub to 6' or 7' high or more and 5' or so wide with soft powder blue panicles of scented flowers mid summer into fall.   C. americanus and the Mexican C. coeruleus are it's parents.

Mountain dweller in the Cascades BC to CA, popping over to Colorado and up into the northern arctic regions.  Good rock garden plant down here where the livin' is easy.  Succulent blue-green leaves clad the many stems while the terminal clustered red flowers glitter like a garnet hatpin.

A hybrid seedling selection between Eucryphia glutinosa and E. cordifolia that showed up at Mount Usher Gardens in Ireland thanks to some discerning work done by the local pollinators.  The deciduous E. glutinosa brings good hardiness and the E. cordifolia adds excellent flower and evergreen foliage.  Uncommon in the trade.  Tall narrow habit.

A rare introduction of this small alpine Allium that is scarcely represented in cultivation.  Small flattened leaves arch close to the ground and the short-stemmed blue flowers are quite pleasing.  The leaves distinguish it from the similar but with rounded leaves, Allium cyaneum, which it shares habitat.

Rare and choice goody that Jim Fox brought to us from England.  Surprisingly hardy with screaming hot bright fuchsia pink daisies in summer.  Don't plant it with Dahlia 'Bishop of Llandaff' like we did - a memorable combo for its garish bad taste.  Winter dormant.

Chilean Fire Tree.   Our classic all-time Desert Island plant where if we were stranded and could only choose one plant etc. we would be sitting beneath an Embothrium munching a Tyler Street Pesto Savory Scone and drinking a Townsend Bay Pinot Gris.  A 4 alarm inferno of flame red flowers.

We presume this is simply a good form of Dactylorhiza maculata as the leaves are broader and the purple-pink flowers held in fatter heads than many of the forms we see around.  A good plant and one we have slowly increased by division and now have a scant few to offer.  Leaves are nicely spotted.

Choice little bulb for the rock garden, this increases quickly to make a dense grassy tuffet of leaves with lots of pink flowers in summer.  Likes moisture when it is growing and good drainage in the winter when it is dormant.  You would make some points with it by mulching if quite cold.

This was one of those "Holy shit - lookit that fern!" moments when we first spotted this species growing at the base of soaring pinnacles of vertical peaks in Guizhou, China where it was not intimidated in the least and perfectly in scale.  Massive 4'-6' wide fronds 6'-8' tall in the wild and clumping.  Likely smaller in cultivation but still BIG!  Zone 7b-9.

Rich deep blue trumpets with exterior pale striping on this collection from a 10,000' alpine moist meadow where it mingled with too many Primula, dwarf Rhododendron and a Bistorta that unexpectedly threatened to steal the show. This requires rich, moist acid soil with afternoon shade in hot sun areas.

A fine variegated selection originating at Cally Gardens in Scotland and given to us by the late Michael Wickenden who named it.  Michael was a plantsman of the keenest sort and he is sorely missed.  Good clean cream margins on the young leaves which turns white as the foliage matures.  The variegation plays well with the red flowers atop the two foot stems.  We reckon this is the first introduction of this choice plant to the US and we have just a few.

Near red selection of this cheerful little plant.  Rhodohypoxis fill a pot with flowers like few other plants their size and 'Albrighton' is no exception.  Ideally suited for container culture, these are easily overwintered in a cool frost-free spot indoors when they are dormant.  If growing outside, give them good drainage as prolonged winter wet can be a terminal annoyance.  Fortunately in our Port Townsend rain shadow, not a big consideration.

This collection is from nearly 6000' in San Miguel Co., New Mexico and hardy down to Zone 5.  This yucca relative makes dense clumps of thin grassy leaves to 3' tall and holds the dense plumes of creamy flowers nestled in the uppermost leaves.  The brown seed heads evoke fat cigars.

Evergreen alpine Aussie growing in the same habitat as Snow Gums.  This has billowy gray-green foliage and 1" white flowers borne on last year's wood.  With age the bark exfoliates and reveals a very shiny trunk which adds to the allure.  Sun, good drainage, dryish and phooey to the deer.

This charmer with white unarmed Thistle-like flowers may well be ssp. insularis but there is a dearth of both information as well as time to review that information.  Maybe this winter when the plants are dormant.  Under a foot high with nice showy white flowers in mid to late summer.

Got lots of sun and sandy or well-drained soil with average to low fertility in a dryish garden beset by rabbits and deer but still want lots of flowers for the bees and other pollinators? Look no further as this will nicely fill the bill. Mature plant has hundreds of pink papery bracted flowers in midsummer on drooping stems. Best displayed in a raised bed.

A Dan Hinkley collection from Japan of this fine mid to late summer blooming Allium species. Good richly colored purple flowers are freely produced on this densely clumping little dude. Good in containers and great in the rock garden or special little niche.  This was originally misidentified as Allium thunbergii.

This rugged South African is sun, wind and drought tolerant and absolutely hardy in the PNW.  One of the most admired plants in our border for its profuse display of large yellow to orange daisies on low stems.  Good drainage.

A sure-to-be favorite is this hybrid from Denver's Kelly Grummons who crossed or perhaps found a bee seedling between Salvia darcyi and S. microphylla. This 2015 Plant Select introduction wowed us when we saw it in Denver in 2014. Blood-red flowers on 3'-4' stems from late June to October and hardy to zone 5. Grummons - you rule, dude!

Flower power is the smallest of packages, this little but mighty rhizomatous yet bulbous Iris family member from South Africa brings a degree of satisfaction far beyond it's size when its short grassy foliage becomes completely obscured for weeks in late spring by rose red flowers literally cheek to cheek.  Good increaser, hardy in zones 7-8.