Gardening with Foliage First: Book Review and Giveaway

I'd love to go plant shopping with Karen Chapman and Christina Salwitz! In the introduction to their latest book, Gardening with Foliage First, here's how they describe their plant hunting expeditions:

"What do you get when you let two designers loose in a nursery? A car filled to overflowing with a wild assortment of trees, shrubs, perennials and more. It is a given that you will not be able to see out the rear window, and you should expect to have plants on the seats, on the floor and in the cup holders. It is only when the plants are precariously balanced on the dashboard that we think we have enough."

It might be tricky finding additional room in the car for yet another shopper, but somehow I think I would fit right in with these two plant enthusiasts! In real life, Karen and Christina are friends who encourage and challenge one another, which brings out the best in both ot them. Readers certainly stand to benefit from their passion for plants in general, and their love of foliage in particular.

Karen and Christina advise you to head to your local nursery or garden centre with a plan in mind. Without a wish list, you're much more likely to end up with a shopping cart full of pretty blooms. Once those flowers fade, you'll find that you have spent all your money on a bit of short-term glory.

I'd also add that most gardeners shop in the early spring. If you head home with a car load of spring bloomers, your garden is going to be pretty lack-lustre later in the summer and fall.

Focusing on foliage rather than flowers is a more novel approach to creating plant combinations. When you stop to really consider them, you'll find that leaves often have very attractive colors, textures, veining and variegation. In their latest collaboration, Karen and Christina show us how to use these unique features and create combinations that accentuate them.

From Gardening with Foliage First by Karen Chapman and Christina Salwitz. © 2017 Published by Timber Press. Excerpted with permission of the publisher.

Gardening with Foliage First has two main sections: Spring & Summer and Fall &Winter. Within those main sections there are subsections for both sun and shade. As well as year round interest, the plant mixes cover a wide range of projects– everything from small patio containers to large borders.

The plant combinations are really well organized. A quick glance at the top of the page will tell you light and soil requirements, zone and seasons of interest. Each suggested combination includes a large glamour shot that shows the mix of plants to best advantage. Below the picture is a detailed explanation of how the elements work together. This takes some of the mystery out of the design process and gives the reader the confidence they will need to start to build plant parings of their own. "How the Design Grows" explains how each plant in a design changes through the seasons. Along with the overall shot of the full combination, there is an additional image of each individual plant and general information on what that plant needs to grow well.

From Gardening with Foliage First by Karen Chapman and Christina Salwitz. © 2017 Published by Timber Press. Excerpted with permission of the publisher.

Shown above is a container planting that the authors have named "Dinosaur Soup" after the Dinosaur Kale, Brassica oleracea 'Lacinato' which is standout feature at the back of the arrangement. 

Most of the plants used in this container are not only evergreen, they change color through the seasons. Among the plants are: Heuchera 'Blondie', with pale ginger flowers and foliage that has shades of gold and brown; an Autumn Fern, Dryopteris erythrosora, which has lovely coppery accents in the late summer and fall; and a Rheingold arborvitae, Thuja occidentalis that has golden foliage that turns orange in winter.

From Gardening with Foliage First by Karen Chapman and Christina Salwitz. © 2017 Published by Timber Press. Excerpted with permission of the publisher.

Above is the low-maintenance combination called "A Queen and her Court". At the heart of this grouping is Heuchera 'Electra' with its golden foliage veined with red. The mix also includes a Golden Sedge, Carex oshimensis, a Primrose, Primula x polyantha 'Sweetheart' and a dark Heuchera 'Obsidian'.

Both authors hope their book will be appeal to gardeners with varying levels of experience. Certainly novice gardeners will find the book inspiring, but I think those who stand to benefit the most are intermediate to experienced gardeners. This book will help them add a greater degree of sophistication and finesse to their plantings.

It makes perfect sense to think longterm and put foliage first, but it's a mindset that requires practice. Gardening has such a long history of focusing on flowers! Gardeners almost need to reeducated themselves and that's where Gardening with Foliage First comes in.

With their new book Karen and Christina hope to give you the confidence to try new ideas, and in doing so, discover a fresh approach to creating plant combinations.

Thomas Allen & Sons has kindly given me a copy of Gardening with Foliage First to give away. Because this book will go to a winner through the mail, I will have to limit entry to readers in Canada and the USA. 

Please leave a comment below, if you would like to be included in the book draw. The draw will remain open for the until Sunday, June 25th. If you are not a blogger, you can enter by leaving a comment on the Three Dogs in a Garden Facebook page (there is an additional link to the Facebook page at the bottom of the blog). You are also welcome to enter by sending me an email (jenc_art@hotmail.com).

About the Authors:

Karen Chapman has her own container and landscape design company, Le Jardinet.  She writes gardening articles for online and print publications and is a popular public speaker. Visit Karen's website: Le Jardinet.

Christina Salwitz operates The Personal Garden Coach, a Seattle-area based business that helps gardeners of all skill levels achieve their gardening dreams. Her blog is THE Personal Garden Coach.

Perfect Partners for Hosta inspired by the plantings at Gardens Plus

Hosta 'Sun Power' and a Ligularia 'Bottle Rocket'

Hosta 'Sun Power' is a golden-colored hosta that seems to glow in the shade. It also holds its color nicely in sun. This hosta has an upright, vase-like shape and lavender flowers in summer. Height: 55 cm (22 inches), Spread: 55 cm (32 inches). USDA zones: 3-9.

Ligularia 'Bottle Rocket' has serrated, dark green leaves and mustard flowers on chocolate-colored spikes. 'Bottle Rocket' prefers moist conditions and clay soil. Divide in spring every 3 or 4 years. Slugs can be an issue for this plant. Full sun (with moist soil) or light shade. Height: 70-85 cm (27-33 inches), Spread: 60-70 (23-27 inches). USDA zones: 4-9.

Gardeners dealing with shady conditions quickly come to value and appreciate hostas. Not only do hostas thrive where other plants often fail, they come in an amazing array of shapes, sizes, colors and textures. Hostas are resilient plants that tolerate a variety of light, soil and moisture conditions.  Though their leaves sometimes fall prey to slugs and other critters that like to nibble, hostas can look attractive from spring well into the fall.

The wide range of hosta cultivars alone can make for some terrific combinations, but in today's post, I thought I would highlight other perennial partners that, when mixed in with hosta, really add an extra level of sophistication to any shade garden planting.

Take the plant combination in the opening image for example. Both the similarity of colors, and the opposite– the contrast of colors, work to make for an interesting mix of plants. The yellowness of the leaves of the hosta 'Sun Power' are reinforced by the dark spikes of yellow Ligularia flowers in front of it. At the same time, the bright colored leaves of the hosta contrast nicely with the darker green leaves of the Ligularia. 

Even shape and size contribute to the success of this paring. The small, sharply serrated leaves of the Ligularia make the large, corrugated leaves of the 'SunPower' hosta seem even more striking in comparison.

The inspiration for this post came from a visit I paid to Gardens Plus nursery last July. I was in the market for a new pink or peach daylily, and being fussy about flower color– especially pink, I wanted to make my choice from dayliles that were in bloom. 

So one weekend, when it was too hot to do anything else, we packed a lunch and drove to Donwood, Ontario (near Peterborough). Gardens Plus is a mail order company and nursery that has a large display garden. After I picked out a daylily, which ironically turned out to be neither pink nor peach, I wandered around the display garden.

While I had come for the daylilies, it was the plantings of hosta that particularly caught my eye. They looked so beautiful and healthy despite last summer's heat and drought. Not only did I find myself admiring the different hosta cultivars, I thought that the perennials I found mixed in with the hostas really added to something appealing to the shady area of the display garden.

Let's look at some of those plant combinations and a few of the handsome hostas that caught my eye:

Hosta 'August Moon' and  Hosta 'Pizzazz'  at the bottom of the picture

First, I thought these two hostas made a handsome couple:

Hosta 'August Moon' has large, deeply crinkled chartreuse leaves. White flowers. Height: 50 cm (20 inches), Spread : 76cm (30 inches). USDA zones: 3-9.

Hosta 'Pizzazz' has thick, corrugated, heart-shaped leaves with a creamy-white edging that waves softly. This hosta has dense clusters of white flowers. Height: 45 cm (18 inches), Spread : 120 cm (48 inches). USDA zones: 3-9.

1. Epimedium 2. Sweet Woodruff  3. Hosta 'August Moon' 4. Hosta 'Pizzazz' 

The supporting cast of perennials planted in among 'August Moon' and 'Pizzazz' add a nice contrast of scale. 

The small, spear-shaped leaves of the Epimedium (1) and the tiny, daisy-like leaves of the Sweet Woodruff (2) made the foliage of the larger hostas seem even more impressive and imposing.

Epimedium do have flowers of varying colors, but I think the spear-shaped foliage is the more valuable plant characteristic. I am not sure of the particular variety of Epimedium in the display area at Gardens Plus, so I will give you a profile for an Epimedium I have in my own garden:

Roseum Barrenwort, Epimedium x youngianum 'Roseum' is a woodland plant that has dainty lavender-pink flowers with green foliage. The leaves are red-tinged in spring and have burgundy overtones in the fall. Epimediums do take a few years to reach a mature size, but they are long lived. Prune old leaves to the ground in late winter for best leaf color in spring. Drought tolerant once established. Part-shade to full shade. Height: 20-30 cm (8-12 inches), Spread :30-45 cm (12-18 inches). USDA zones: 3-9. 

Sweet Woodruff, Galium odoratum is a great groundcover for shady areas, if you have ample space for it to spread (and spread it does to the point that it is often considered invasive, so choose your spot very carefully). Sweet Woodruff also makes a wonderful understory for late spring bulbs. Part shade to full shade. Average to moist growing conditions. Smells like fresh cut hay. Height: 10-20 cm ( 4-6 inches) USDA Zones: 2-9.

Hosta 'Teeny-Weeny Bikini'(left) and Hosta 'Sun Mouse' (right)

Another really effective way to create this same contrast of scale is to use a few miniature hostas in with a group of large-leafed varieties. Pictured above, and with plant details below, are just two of the many varieties of miniatures available:

Hosta 'Teeny-Weeny Bikini' is a miniature hosta that has long, yellow leaves framed by a green margin that streaks into the centre. Deep purple flowers. Height: 10 cm (4 inches), Spread : 20 cm (8 inches). USDA zones: 3-9.

Hosta 'Sun Mouse' is part of the miniature 'Mouse' series and has rounded gold foliage. It is a bit shorter and wider than 'Blue Mouse Ears'. For best foliage color, plant this hosta in dappled shade or morning sun. Lavender flowers. Height: 15 cm (6 inches), Spread : 45 cm (18 inches). USDA zones: 3-9. 

A couple more hosta that begged to have their picture taken:

Hosta 'Allegan Fog'

Hosta 'Allegan Fog' has shiny leaves with green margins and cream centres are streaked with green. This is a compact mound-shaped hosta with pale lavender flowers in summer. Height: 35 cm (14 inches), Spread : 45 cm (18 inches). USDA zones: 3-9.

Hosta 'Victory' was "Hosta of the Year in 2015"

Hosta 'Victory' has shiny, curvaceous green leaves with a margin of chartreuse that ages into a creamy-white as the gardening season progresses. Good slug resistance. Height: 90 cm (36 inches), Spread : 160 cm (64 inches). USDA zones: 3-9.

Hosta 'Dancing Queen'

Hosta 'Dancing Queen' has yellow-green leaves that have a rippled edge. Lavender flowers. Height: 45 cm (18 inches), Spread : 60cm (24 inches). USDA zones: 3-9.

1. Hosta 'August Moon' 2. 'Hosta 'Pizzazz' 3. Hosta 'Halcon' 4. Birtchwood Parky's Gold 

5. Sweet Woodruff

I thought that this was a really attractive grouping of hosta. I also have to point out what a nice job Sweet Woodruff does in filling in the gaps between the larger plants.

Hosta 'August Moon' has large, deeply crinkled gold leaves. White flowers. Height: 50 cm (20 inches), Spread : 76cm (30 inches). USDA zones: 3-9.

Hosta 'Pizzazz' has thick, corrugated, heart-shaped leaves with a creamy-white edging. This hosta has dense clusters of white flowers. Height: 45 cm (18 inches), Spread : 120 cm (48 inches). USDA zones: 3-9.

Hosta 'Halcyon' has blue, heart-shaped leaves. White flowers. Height: 40 cm (16 inches), Spread : 70cm (28 inches). USDA zones: 3-9.

Hosta 'Birtchwood Parky's Gold' (see blow)

Hosta 'Birchwood Parky's Gold' has ruffled, chartreuse leaves and lavender flowers. Height: 40 cm (16 inches), Spread : 75cm (30 inches). USDA zones: 3-9.

Brunnera 'Jack Frost', a perennial which has silver-green patterning on its foliage, is nice foil for the larger, solid green leaves of the hosta behind it.

Brunnera macrophylla 'Jack Frost' has heart-shaped, silver colored leaves that are veined in a bright green. Sprays of blue flowers, which closely resemble forget-me-nots, appear in mid-spring. 'Jack Frost' can take more sun that many other types of Brunnera, but it prefers afternoon shade particularly in hotter gardening zones. Average garden soil is fine, but 'Jack Frost' likes moist conditions. Height: 30-40 cm (12-16 inches), Spread: 30-45 cm ( 12-18 inches). USDA Zones: 2-9.

Another complex mix of hosta with other plants:

1. Hosta 'Deja Blu'

2. Hosta 'Solar Flare'

3. Hosta 'Moonstruck'

4. Ligularia 'Cafe Noir'

5. Hosta 'Abiqua Drinking Gourd'

6. Berry Bladder Fern

7. Hosta 'Brother Stephan'

8. Lily of the Valley 'Hardwick Hall' (warning Lily of the Valley is invasive)

I have never liked Ligularia flowers– I think their a bit homely to be honest, but I am becoming a huge fan of their foliage. I liked the Ligularia you see here so much, I had to buy a plant.

Ligularia 'Cafe Noir' is a unique Canadian cultivar that has jagged green leaves and reddish stems. In spring the emerging leaves are black-purple. Then the foliage ages to a more bronzed shade of green. Mid-summer 'Cafe Noir' produces yellow flower spikes. One drawback– this Ligularia is prone to slug damage. Average to moist soil is preferred. Part-shade. Height: 50-60 cm (20-23 inches), Spread: 45-60cm (18-23 inches). USDA Zones: 4-9.

Ferns can provide a soft or delicate element to any grouping of hosta plants. On the outer edge of this group of hosta, a Berry Bladder Fern, Cystopteris bulbifera is as delicate as a lace cuff on a silk blouse.

Berry Bladder Fern, Cystopteris bulbifera is also called the "Bulbet Fern" or "Fragile Fern''. It has bright-green lacy fronds. It likes to live among boulders, in cracks and crevices in dolomitic limestone and in alkaline soils. In spring, light green fronds emerge with bright red petioles. The mature fronds develop bulbils underneath. These drop to the ground producing new plants. Dappled light or part shade. Height: 20cm (8-12 inches), Spread: 30 cm (12-24 inches). USDA Zones: 3-7.

 The newly emerged "fiddleheads" of an Ostrich Fern are edible.

Japanese 'Ghost Fern'(left) and Ostrich Fern, Matteuccia struthiopteris (right)

A pale 'Ghost Fern' would look terrific pared with a chartreuse or blue-grey hosta. Taller Ostrich Ferns, Matteuccia struthiopteris can make a really nice backdrop to a mix of hosta.

Japanese 'Ghost Fern' has that has upright, silvery-grey-green foliage.  It forms a slow spreading clump and likes soil that is rich in organic matter.  The 'Ghost Fern' is more tolerant of soil dryness than other types of Japanese ferns, but it prefers soil that has medium to average moisture. Height: 90-120 cm (36-48 inches), Spread: 30-45 cm (12-18 inches). USDA Zones: 4-9.

 Ostrich Fern, Matteuccia struthiopteris is a clump-forming, upright deciduous fern. 'Fiddlehead' shaped shoots emerges at the base of the clump in spring and unfurl into broad green fronds. The foliage does depreciate over the summer and can look a bit tattered by fall. This fern is easily grown in medium to wet average garden soil. It will colonize an area with favourable conditions over time. Intolerant of hot, humid summers, so it is not a good choice for more southern gardens. Part-shade to full shade.  Height: 90-120 cm (36-48 inches), Spread: 60-90 cm (24-36 inches). USDA Zones: 3-7.

1. Hosta 'Orange Marmalade' 2. Jack-in-the-Pulpit 3. Hosta 'Hanky Panky' 

4. Variegated Solomon Seal 5. Lamium 

Here are profiles for the plants that make up this complex mix of leaf shapes, sizes and colors:

Hosta 'Hanky Panky' has green leaf with a green centre and a creamy thread in between. In late summer the edge turns creamy-white with an unusual green overlay. Lavender flowers. Height: 35 cm (14 inches), Spread : 60 cm (24 inches). USDA zones: 3-9.

Japanese Cobra Lily, Arisaema Sikokianum

I am not sure of the particular variety of Jack-in-the-Pulpit in the display area at Gardens Plus, but here is one example:

Japanese Cobra Lily, Arisaema Sikokianum has a brownish-black hooded flower and two leaves splashed with silver. One leaf has three lobes and the other has five. The dark hood has a pure white lining with a rounded spadix at its centre. This plant will sometimes produce seed heads that will ripen to a bright red-orange in the fall. Arisaema can be slow to sprout in the spring and may not sprout until summer, especially if the tuber is newly planted. This plant likes rich, well-drained somewhat sandy soil.  Water regularly in summer. Part-shade. Height:15- 30 cm (6-12 inches), Spread: 15- 30 cm (6-12 inches). USDA zones 4-9.

If you would like to learn more about Solomon Seal, check out this post.

There are a number of cultivars of Solomon Seal, including the variegated one at Gardens Plus. Solomon Seal are elegant, statuesque plants that look terrific as a backdrop for any group of hosta.

Many varieties of Lamium form a great groundcover that works beautifully at the front of any shade planting. They are not invasive (although they do self-seed).  Read more about different varieties of Lamium here including one I wouldn't recommend you don't plant.

This ends our tour. I hope you have found the inspiration you need to create a few shade plant combinations of your own this spring.

Gardens Plus is a mail order company and nursery located in Donwood, Ontario (near Peterborough). They ship plants Canada-wide. The nursery offers a selection of over 1200 perennials including hosta, daylilies, hellebores, coneflowers and coral bells. As well as the nursery, there is a display garden that is open to visitors and large groups alike. Visit the Gardens Pus website.

Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post. I do not stand to benefit in any way from plants you may order or purchase from Gardens Plus.

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The Perennial Matchmaker: Book Review and Giveaway

Magic happens when perennials are beautifully combined. Some gardeners just seem to have the creative knack for mixing plants to create pretty combinations, but the vast majority of us need a little help and that's where Nancy J. Ondra's latest book The Perennial Matchmaker comes in. 

This is a book whose practical tips and methods for creating plant pairings move beyond replicating pretty pictures. Drool-worthy pictures of plant combinations are all well and good, but if the plants pictured don't grow well in your garden, or aren't readily available to you, the inspiration is somewhat useless. 

The matchmaking process begins with a plant that is successful for you and builds out from there. Before you can begin to find the perfect partner for a plant, Nan suggests you need to identify a key feature you want to play up. It could be the color of the flower, the color of the foliage or any other attribute that you want to accentuate.

A combination from the book The Perennial Matchmaker: Allium Globemaster with Geranium macrorrhizum. (c) 2016 Nancy J. Ondra. Used with the permission of the publisher Rodale Books.

The Perennial Matchmaker showcases 80 popular perennials. There is a basic profile of each plant  

focusing on its key characteristics with notes on suggested partnerships based on color, shape and texture, and seasonal features. 

Of course when choosing the perfect partner not all the considerations are purely aesthetic. Some benefits are more practical. For instance, with alliums like the ones pictured above, Nan suggests that low mounded plants can help to disguise the yellowing foliage of alliums whose flowers have faded. 

Each perennial chapter also includes a handy list of potential "Bloom Buddies" that are likely to flower at the same time. 

Nancy's book offers the novice gardener ready-to-go ideas in of photographs of perennial partners and Nan's "Top 10 Perennial Pairings." For the more experienced gardener, there are chapters on how to find inspiration, tips for working with color, ideas for to adding seasonal interest and even ways of extending plant combinations beyond simply mixing perennials.

I must confess that my views on this book are not entirely unbiased. I, along with many other photographers and bloggers, contributed images to the book. It may surprise you to know that the photographs are my one minor disappointment with the book. There is some gorgeous photography in The Perennial Matchmaker, but most of the images are small. 

I have a feeling that the small photographs are intensional. I think Nan does not want readers limited to copying combinations they see in pictures. She wants to arm her readers with the tools and ideas necessary to create their own magical combinations.

I have a copy of The Perennial Matchmaker that I am going to give away in a draw. If you would like to enter, please leave a comment below. For this draw, I will have to limit a winner to North America. The draw will remain open for the next seven days.

More Information and Links:

About the author: Nancy J. Ondra is the author of more than a dozen books on gardening. As well as more than thirty years of gardening experience, she has owned and operated a rare plant nursery. Nan writes about Hayefield, her four acre property County Pennsylvania, on the blog hayefield.com. As well as The Perennial Matchmaker, Nan has a second book, Container Theme Gardens, that is newly released this spring.

Pretty Views of Ellen Carr's Garden

When photographing a garden I usually take a very documentary approach in an effort to give a true sense of what a garden is really like. Generally, I like to mix wide views with closeups that show-off a plant or flower's best features. 

In this case however, I was off-duty having fun at the Garden Blogger's Fling. I wandered around Ellen Carr's garden like a tourist taking random shots as the mood struck me. So I apologize, it is going to be hard for you to get a full sense of Ellen's garden, but I think that some of my snapshots showing plant combinations are worth sharing.

Here is a general description of the garden:

This property is a large suburban lot. At the front of the house, there are a number of big flowerbeds and the largest thyme lawn I have ever seen. The back of the house overlooks a ravine. All of my photographs of the backyard focus on the patio and terrace right at the back of the house.

Let's take a look around, shall we?

This is a planting from one of the front gardens. Isn't this a stunning combination? I would never have thought to put these colors together, but it really works. 

The Siberian Iris is an unknown cultivar. I am going to make an educated guess that the Alliums in the background are Allium 'Purple Sensation'.

It's this Ligularia in the middle-background that adds the drama to this plant grouping.

Ligularia 'Britt Marie Crawford' is a plant you grow for the foliage and not the flowers. This Ligularia forms a large clump of mahogany leaves with golden-orange flowers in mid-summer. Slugs can be an issue. Part shade to full shade in warm regions. Moist soil is essential. Height: 90-120 cm (35-47 inches), Spread: 80-90 cm ( 31-35 inches). USDA Zones:3-9.

You can see the thyme lawn just behind this gorgeous peach iris.

Bearded Iris 'Beverly Sills' is one of the most popular peachy-pink tall bearded irises. It has a reputation for being a vigorous grower that blooms heavily mid-season. Full sun. Height: 60-90 cm (24-36 inches), Spread: 90-120 cm (36-48 inches).

Here we have moved to the backyard and the terrace overlooking the ravine.

Sara Katz, a landscape designer who works alongside Ellen in the garden, helped me correctly identify the yellow-green shrub:

Elderberry, Sambucus racemosa 'Lemony Lace' is a deciduous shrub with cutleaf yellow-green foliage. It has white flowers that are followed by red fruit in the fall. It blooms on old wood, so keep that in mind when doing any pruning. Prune it after the shrub flowers. Full sun in northern climates, and light shade, if you live in the southern States. Sambucus racemosa 'Lemony Lace' shrub has the bonus of being deer resistant. Height: 36-60 inches, Spread: 36-72 inches. USDA Zones 3a-7b

Sara also gave me a little background on the role in the garden:

"I am a landscape designer who is more than happy to get her hands dirty working in clients gardens.  I have been working with Ellen in her garden- and she does work alongside me and my crew- for four years."

"In that time we have made many changes to the garden. The last two winters were brutal here and we lost several trees, shrubs and perennials. We lost an Ash to the dreaded Emerald Ash Borer as well."

Sara went on to tell me that the garden presents the challenge of dealing with deer and rabbits:

"I have to wrap young trees in chicken wire for the winter to keep the deer from breaking the trunks while rubbing their antlers on the trees. So our plant choices are restricted to those that deer don't like. Zephyr, the resident Sheltie helps to keep the rabbit population manageable. We also use Plantskyd liberally and find that it is effective (but horribly stinky!)."

This is a closeup look at the Salvia you can see in the previous picture.

Salvia x sylvestris 'May Night' has spiky indigo blue flowers in early summer. Like all Salvias, it is attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds. This cultivar will tolerate a range of moisture conditions and soil types. Full sun. Drought tolerant once established. Remove faded flowers to encourage a second flush of flowers. Height: 45-60 cm (18-23 inches) Spread: 45-60 cm (18-23 inches) . USDA Zones: 3-9.

Red Campion or Red Catchfly, Silene dioica (unknown variety) has rosy-red flowers and soft, hairy leaves and stems. The flowers are attractive to bees and butterflies. Full sun. It can be grown in a range of soils, but prefers somewhat moist conditions. Height: 20-60 cm (8-25 inches). Spread: 20-60 cm (8-25 inches). USDA Zones: 4-9.

Meadow Rue, Thalictrum aquilegiifolium is another plant I'd like to point out.  

I have Meadow Rue in my own garden and always look forward to its display of pink fireworks in June. (Note: There is also a white cultivar, which I don't have yet.) 

It's a tall plant, but the flower stems are pretty sturdy. I have never had to stake Meadow Rue in my own garden. One particularly nice feature is this plant will flower in part-shade as well as full sun.

Meadow Rue, Thalictrum aquilegiifolium has lacy blue-green foliage and clouds of mauve-pink or white flower mid-spring. Full sun to part shade. This plant is happy in average or clay soil. It likes growing conditions to be on the moist side. Height: 60-90 cm (23-35 inches), Spread: 45-60 cm (18-23 inches). USDA Zones: 3-9.

A flagstone pathway leads you through the plantings in the terraced area of the garden. 

On one side of the path is Blue Catmint, Nepeta racemosa 'Walker's Low', and on the other side with pink flowers is Lamium a versatile sun, part-shade or full shade groundcover .

Blue Catmint, Nepeta racemosa 'Walker's Low' is a long blooming perennial (if regularly deadheaded) that has a mounded, bushy habit. It has grey-green foliage and blue flowers. Full sun. Height: 60-90 cm (23-35 inches), Spread: 75-90 cm ( 29-35 inches). USDA Zones: 3-9.

One final combination:Yellow False Indigo, Baptisia 'Carolina Moonlight' with Salvia x sylvestris 'May Night' in the background. 

Yellow False Indigo, Baptisia 'Carolina Moonlight' is a recent introduction. It forms a vase-shaped mound of blue-green foliage with canary-yellow flowers mid-spring. Normal, sandy and clay soils all work for this plant. It will also tolerate everything from dry to moist growing conditions. Divide in early spring. Full sun. Height: 120-135 cm (47-53 inches), Spread: 80-90 cm (31-35 inches). USDA Zones: 4-9.

Many thanks to Sara for confirming the plant details.

Have a great weekend!

More Information and Links: 

Sara Katz of Wild at Heart Design is a landscape designer, garden coach and garden writer. She is also available for garden club or horticultural society workshops and presentations. 

If you are interested, this year's Garden Blogger's Fling will take place in Minneapolis. The dates are July 14-17th. Find out more.