A collection of this evergreen species from Taiwan by Adam Black who is the Director of Peckerwood Gardens in Texas.  This Taiwan form was known as A. albopurpurascens but recently has been lumped into Acer oblongum.   We have not yet trialed this outside here but Crug Farm in Wales who grows this suggests a sheltered site protected from freezing winds.  We think it is a candidate for mild gardens here and may go deciduous.

A subtle woodlander for most of spring and summer until late summer and fall when it suddenly busts a move and starts strutting its stuff.  Fern-like foliage backs small white puffs of flowers in May which become showy clusters of bright white fruit in late summer & fall.  The white version of our red fruited native.

This is a dandy spreading evergreen Chinese wild ginger with delectable silver splashed bold leaves and beefy flowers of purple-brown tempered by a little cream. This came through 9F here with nary a whimper. Great in containers or the moist woodland/shade garden.  This is not a clumper but will ramble splendidly.

Found in China by Gary Hammer and named for him by pop-faux rap afficionado Tony Avent who is rumored to secretly favor those baggy pants in the old MC Hammer video. this is one we received via the old Asiatica Nursery of Barry Yinger.  Nice cream speckling on evergreen leaves and maroon flowers set flush in the soil.

Very uncommon Japanese selection that came out of Asiatica Nursery at the end of its run.  This is a pretty stellar foliage plant whose new growth is richly colored in yellow which greens up as the leaves mature.  It is an unexpected and exciting eruption of color when growth commences and the muted colors of winter are in keeping with the season. Tough evergreen tolerant of dry shade but with water, it will grow faster.

A Taiwan collection from the Wynn-Jones of Crug Farm Nursery in Wales.  The leaves immediately grab you as they are the most succulent soft green.  They just scream "Mouthfeel".  This rhizomatous species has pink flowers in late summer and is hardy in our area especially with a good mulch during arctic outbreaks.

A Dan Hinkley collection from Mt Emei and touted as being hardy to Z7 but only by those in serious zonal denial.  That said, a customer told his that he mulches his deeply and it has survived our worst winters.  An attractive plant with late season pink flowers and well worth trying in a sheltered spot.

A Far Reaches Botanical Conservancy Offering.  Evergreen vine exceptionally rare to find for sale……..if there was only some nursery somewhere mental enough to invest the time and effort needed to acquire this and grow it for the sake of a few die-hard plant nerds……that would be so cool!  From cool rainforests in Australia, small pink flowers and red fruit.

Allegheny Brook Foam or Brook Saxifrage.  A never common species native streamsides and moist locations in woodlands from West Virginia down into Alabama and Georgia.  Reddish stems and attractive leaves with nice white flowers in late spring.  This adds to the necessary layer of complexity in the shade garden.

A plant of refinement to be sure.  One that is appreciated and admired by the higher echelons of gardening.  A collector's plant.  Different ways of saying that this is not a flamboyant show-stopper but a tasteful blend of delicate texture and airy soft pink flowers that helps make it all work.

Heal-All, Stone Root.  Tuberous form of this widespread East Coast species which we received from Aaron Floden.  Widely used ethnobotanically and homeopathically, this is an interesting shade ornamental in its own right.  Broad soft leaves and curious late season small creamy yellow flowers smelling of Lemon Pledge.

Lily of the Valley.  A good selection of this stalwart species with a yellow margin to the leaves and said leaves are larger than average as well.  Typical scented white flowers.  There are numerous spellings of the cultivar name but since this is an American introduction, we can only assume this is correct.  Sad.

Evergreen Solomon Seal relative from Taiwan via plantsman Ozzie Johnson. Loves moist shade in zones 7-9 where the rounded leaves on stems up to a foot shelter the hanging white bell flowers.  Combines well with all of those shade garden plants that any self respecting plant collector loves so rest assured that garden harmony will remain intact.

Collected by Riz Reyes in Sichuan in 2005, this is a superb form of the species with the largest flowers of any of the clones we grow.  Admittedly, Disporopsis in flower will never make the cover of glossy magazine but this is good.  Whitish flowers with yellowish tones in the interior.  Evergreen to 24".

This is a clone from a wild collection in China which came to us from a friend and we have finally a few to offer.  Evergreen leaves in our climate looking a lot like a Solomon Seal with similar white bells in spring.  The lavender fruits offer a subtle attraction in the shade garden later in the season.  We clip the old stems off in spring as the new starts to grow.

Evergreen Solomon's Seal.  This is a darn good plant from Sichuan China that really performs here in the Northwest.  This makes dense clumps of upright stems clad in glossy evergreen leaves below which dangle white bells in spring.   We typically cut back last years growth in spring.   Easy.

A collection from China by the folks at Quarry Hill Botanic Garden, home to one of the finest collections of Asian plants in North America.  A nice addition to the 3 or 4 forms of this species in cultivation with rounder, broader and glossy foliage with flowers a trifle showier being whiter.  Evergreen in mild winters.

Snow Poppy.  This Chinese Bloodroot relative is a great addition to the large wild garden where its rambling tendencies can be a positive attribute rather than a curse.  Neat looking 4" leaves and glistening white 2" flowers for several weeks really light up the shade garden.  Deciduous.

Willow Gentian.  One of the truly excellent late summer/early fall blooming plants which jazzes up the shade garden with lots of stems in a circular arching vase shape with ranks of blue to lavender blue flowers ranked along the stems.  Just what you need when you are sick of Hostas.

An exciting introduction of this evergreen species from Gaolingongshan of NW Yunnan.    Why is this so good? Bright yellow flowers on 5'-6' stems on a 6"-8" floral cone.  Each bract on the floral cone contains 3-5 flowers as opposed to one typically, so each flowering spike can last a good 5 weeks. And a pleasant light scent to boot. It's best kept in a container and overwintered inside.

Our collection from Sichuan of this very ornamental and hardy species.  Hardy is a relative term of course - it is hardy here west of the Cascades especially with mulch in winter.  This is much like an improved Hedychium spicatum - larger growing with similar flowers but way more of them and packed more closely together for a superior display.

Interesting and showy Japanese species that makes tidy little evergreen clumps.  Our original plant came from the Portland iconic Bovees Nursery.  Unusual lavender-pink flowers held well above the foliage.  Makes nice patches by rooting at leaf tips.  Good moist soil.

Ok, here is a weird one.  In the family Helwingiaceae there is but one genus, Helwingia which has 3 species.  Helwingia has epiphyllus flowers which means they  bloom from the midrib of the leaves.  This male plant was collected by Hinkley in Sichuan and will be evergreen.  Small light pink flowers.

Fabulous big blue hosta as seen in our shade garden.  Grand white flowers.  Even though it is an old favorite, it still teaches the new upstarts a thing or two about beauty, durability and garden worthiness.

Chinese Bleeding Heart.  This is a departure from the ferny foliaged Dicentras we are used to by sporting broad leaflets looking more Astilbe than Dicentra.  Another departure is the cream to soft yellow flowers.  Vigorous in moist rich soil, this makes an impressive patch quickly.

We got seed of this interesting tuberous African species from John Grimshaw via Jim Fox.  John has done a lot of botanical field work in Africa and not surprising that he grows this in his own garden.  As hardy as I. tinctoria, this is a bit smaller with salmon flowers in late summer.  Overwinters here, good drainage.

This is a rarely offered "Poker" species and threatened in the wild and was thought extinct until the late 1990's when Cameron McMaster rediscovered 3 small lost populations of this species.  This has elegant deep green 3'-4' long leaves and very late fall to early winter flowers. Big flower heads densely packed with florets which are soft yellow in bud and then turn creamy when they open.

Neat selection from Japan of this fall-blooming woodlander.  Golden yellow are its hallmark in spring to mid summer after which they become a light yellow-green but still an element of light brightness in the shade.  Late in Oct/Nov, this defies conventional wisdom by producing  yellow bottlebrush flowers.  Hardy to zone 4.

Extremely rare lily native to just a few sites in the southeastern US and discovered by Mary Henry in 1940, known as the Panhandle or Pot of Gold Lily.  This is found growing along streams and  pitcher plant bogs.  It is unusual in that it is adapted to warm winters and high humidity. It is a Turk's Cap type and will be 3'-6' at maturity. The bulbs will make a nice little colony when happy.