New and Restocked Plants

This is the Japanese version of our native False Hellebore. Wonderful broad pleated leaves and when old enough, nice spikes of white starry flowers to 3' or more. This likes a rich moist soil, emerges early in spring and goes dormant by mid to late summer. Deer resistant and very hardy.  Young plants.

We briefly offered this as Plectranthus but Cody, our taxonomist fixed that.  From a meadow area at 10,000' in Sichuan with companions of Reineckea, Paris, Roscoea, Aconitum and Salvia. This mysterious beguiler will have small rounded hairy leaves with many stems and myriad motes of lavender-white flowers.

This lacks the variable purple streaking in the flowers commonly associated with typical x beesiana.  Held well above the leaves, exotic flowers are a clear pale yellow the color of moonlight caressing the languid limbs of your beloved as you lament the bright moon dimming the Perseid meteor shower.

A very good hardy hybrid Hebe from the UK which handles our winters here with no problem.  This is a low sprawler getting only about 6"-8" high and 20" wide or so.  Leaves of a nice gray olive green (or something like that) and nice flowers of blue-mauve.  A cross between H. allanii and H. pimeleoides.

Exceptional form of the species we received from the Master Of Leptospermum, Ian Barclay of Desert Northwest. This fast-growing Tea Tree will become a fine large shrub to 15' in mild areas.  Silver-purplish needle-like leaves in summer turn darker purple in fall & winter.  The small white flowers are visual madness.

Pretty awesome new hybrid that came up at Suncrest Nurseries in CA thanks to some inspired work by the bees.  This outshines its parents with gray-blue leaves and branched erect stems to 3' holding lots of lavender-blue flowers for many weeks.  This can take drier conditions and the vermin deer don't like it.

Nice hairy-leafed species from the Himalaya ranging from Nepal to Pakistan. This is semi-deciduous in our area and will go totally deciduous in colder zones. Like most Bergenia, this can take full sun,  but late spring frosts can ding the new leaves and pink flowers. Rounded hairy mid-green leaves with reddish petioles.

Named for the stringently impeccable plantswoman and designer, this large-leafed deciduous Bergenia with pink-white flowers is a worthy namesake. She had a deserved reputation of not brooking fools gladly but strangely was always pleased to see us - perhaps a case of the exception proving the rule.

Our collection from Taiwan of this species which was formerly ascribed to T. stolonifera but is now merged into the variable T. formosana. Good clumper via - you guessed it - stolons with mottled leaves especially on new growth. Upright stems with light purple flowers heavily spotted with darker purple.

Initially, we placed this in the genus Loxostigma but upon flowering, the arrangement and shape didn't quite fit. Fortunately, FRBC taxonomist Cody Hinchliff keyed it out. This is from the Vietnam -Yunnan border region which is a hot spot of Gesneriaceae. Large pink flowers on a vigorous plant.  Protect from freezing.

Here is the answer for those who want to grow a classy groundcover Manzanita that isn't Kinnikinnick.  We planted a 1 gallon plant 5 years ago in our dry garden and it is 1 foot tall and making a 6 foot circle.  Small glossy leaves on reddish stems and white bells in spring. Good things come in small packages.

A very welcome addition to our rock garden thanks to our generous taxonomist, Cody Hinchliff.  This native to the mountains of South Africa forms an architectural mound to 3' or so with many stems clad in short, stiff and persistent green leaves.  Terminal clusters of small cheery and sweetly scented yellow flowers.

We wouldn't have guessed we could grow Acacia here in our cold pocket garden but we had a random seedling of this appear in our never-water Arctostaphylos/Garrya bed and it has not had a bit of damage from several winters down to 10F.  Poofs of yellow flowers among the evergreen leaves.  Lean soil, great drainage and dry.

'Evening Glow'.  Sturdy German hybrid which excels in all areas of foliage, flower and garden worthiness. Good rich glossy green foliage colors up very well in winter especially given exposure to sun. The March and April flowers are a strong pink with an infusion of magenta which glam rocks Spring's murmuring pastels.

A Chadwell collection from the Himalaya which we've grown for over two decades.  This species is found at higher elevations than B. pacumbis which shares the same range.  The green leaves are not uncomfortably large but pleasantly average.  I've used this description before - seems familiar somehow....  White flowers.

The correctly named true species as what is generally seen in gardens are forms of Cardiocrinum giganteum.  The only deviation from the key of 3-5 flowers are some with up to 9 flowers which we attribute to easy living in our garden and variation within the species. This is most closely allied to C. cordatum

Excellent Irish selection formerly called 'Helen Dillon' but determined to be properly 'Irish Crimson'  One of the most requested plants in our garden and forever associated with the amazing gardener Helen Dillon.  Small upright leaves brilliantly colored in winter with vivid pink flowers.  Very few from division.

This native Afghani is unrivalled among Thalictrum for textural achievement and presentation of foliage. A diaphanous haze of small gray-green leaflets makes this well worth growing despite the insignificant flowers. Normally we insist on nice flowers but this foliage woos one and all, lasting long after any bloom.

A favorite from the Himalaya, this thistle mimic is pretty outrageous in the garden. Robust clumps of gently spiny leaves and taller stems bejeweled in rank upon rank of long-tubed, white flowers which turn pink when pollinated. Nice to see we aren't the only ones who get a sexual flush during pollination.

This is an excellent mat-forming perennial with handsome leaves and 1" amber orange flowers with a glowing red center in May-June and occasionally thereafter. Tough little dude getting a foot or more across with semi-evergreen leaves and best in decent soil that doesn't dry out. Long-lived too - always a plus.

Silver Sage. Leaves so silken soft that you want to line your slippers with them. Fabulous big rosette of shimmering foliage the first year and then a branched 2'-3' stem with lots of white flowers. Usually biennial, it can be a short-lived perennial up to 4 years or more. Easy from seed . Good drainage.  Deer proof.

Alpine Water Fern. Found at higher elevations in Australia's New South Wales and Tasmania growing in grasslands, moist rock crevices and sphagnum bogs. A stalwart fern and go-to evergreen low groundcover because it looks great despite your prolonged attention lapses from pandemic Netflix binge-watching.

Mountain Holly.  This is one of the hardiest of the New Zealand Olearia as it gets well up into the subalpine zone.  This makes a large evergreen shrub with leaves edged in friendly prickles.  This flowers in early summer with corymbs of fragrant white daisy flowers.  Should be deer resistant which is extra bonus points.

We have just a handful of this choice form of the species in which the pinnae are distinctly undulated adding yet another layer of tasteful complexity to a species already awash in attributes.  It really isn't fair to be born with gorgeous 6'-7' fronds but do you have to flaunt undulation too?  Well, yes.

Lives up to it's common name of Felt Fern. Felty-soft, three to five-lobed fronds stay evergreen and have coppery undersides. Growing as an epiphyte in its native range, this prefers good drainage and a partly shady spot. Spreads very slowly, but definitely worth the wait. Some winter protection cold Z8 is best.

A robust form of the species collected by Dr. Peter Zale.  We have long been enamored by this genus and this fine form simply fans the flames of our ardor.  Here in March, the exotic pink flowers stand proud over the evergreen rosettes of leaves. We view the recent merging into Helonias with skepticism.

Chinese Bald Cypress. Another one of those monotypic genera we love! This deciduous conifer is the only species in the genus and highly threatened by habitat loss in the wild. This will get to be a big tree which your yet unborn child's children can sit under. In their boat. Fairly slow - ours is in our bog garden pond.

The "Giant Form" we got in the UK and it is rather large. Quite. Ours are in full sun in lean infertile mineral soil and watered just three times since our last dab of rain on June 14.  It is now August 28.  Given this tough love, leaves up to 40" long and flower stems to 5' tall.  Likely bigger with kindness and bees love it.

A collection by Shayne Chandler from the Five Fingers mountain range in Vietnam.  This zone 8 hardy shrubby gesneriad was first introduced by Steve Hootman over 20 years ago from China and it is good to have another collection from a new area.  Tubular red-orange flowers and boxwood-like leaves.

Tender South American shrubby succulent making a 3'x4' mound of thin stems with small fleshy leaves  Flowers unknown and we are perfectly willing to accept that this might well be a different genus entirely!  Pairs well with cactus, bromeliads and xeric shrubs.  Let us know what it looks like when it flowers!