From low clumps of bright green grass sprout tall, erect stems carrying solid bunny-tail seed heads which persist right into winter. This lovely hardy plant from the cold reaches of the Crimea is a new, attractive, and most desirable introduction to cultivation. ... Learn More

"Porcupine Bush" This rare relic plant exists in the wild only in the South Island and a few loci of the North Island of New Zealand. Bone hardy and long-lived, it produces, amongst small, weather-resistant leathery leaves masses of tiny, pendulous cream flowers in Spring followed by relatively sizeable , blue-splashed white berries. People have remarked that it resembles a dwarf cotoneaster at first sight! ... Learn More

"New Zealand Shrubby Violet". Yes, a member of the violet family! A dwarf evergreen shrub, with small oval leaves, resembling a box bush. Tiny clusters of perfumed yellow-green flowers slowly turn to white and purple berries. A slow growing treasure. ... Learn More

The stature and dividing branches of this lovely plant qualify it as the biggest clover plant in the world, a veritable tree clover! It opens its heavy load of white flowers in July and August when it is a major source of nectar for bees in apiaries, and indeed, its botanical name means "honey-scented white lotus". Its characteristic sweet odour, intensified by drying, is derived from the coumarins it produces. ... Learn More

This pretty mint relative is also called "Lemon Balm". Aromatic, spikes of small white flowers, loved by bees, arise above lemon scented foliage. Plant it where you can brush against it and enjoy the perfume, or pick it to make lemon tea or add to soups, sauces or salad-dressings. The large, lemon scented green leaves are also excellent for flavouring salads, summer drinks, stuffings, poultry and fish. Well known for its medicinal value, the leaves can be infused with honey and water to energise, revive and calm the nerves. It really is quite a useful plant overall! ... Learn More

This tough and long-lived plant is better used as an ornamental herb rather than a culinary one. Grown for its long, fragrant, nectar-rich purple flowers, it is also very attractive to butterflies and bees, whilst its long green-grey leaves have a delicious minty scent. ... Learn More

M. spicata is a vigorous rhizomatous perennial forming an extensive colony of erect stems bearing spearmint-scented, lance-shaped leaves, and small light purple flowers in interrupted terminal spikes. Aka herb spearmint. ... Learn More

In late winter and earliest spring the curious corms of these little beauties send up crowds of inch-wide, pale-pink star-flowers, making them ideal candidates for an alpine trough or sand bed, where they will self-seed readily and spread by underground runners. They are found in the wild from eastern Europe through Russia into Iran where they grow in grasslands in moist, sandy soil, often up to an altitude of 1400 meters. ... Learn More

An easy to grow dwarf annual bedding flower which produces bright, colourful, daisy-like blooms throughout the summer. 'Harlequin' can tolerate dry conditions and sandy soil and its free flowering habit makes it an ideal plant for ground cover or to brighten up rock gardens, walls and paths. ... Learn More

Numerous curious, lantern-like buds open into a huge candelabra of branching stems holding fantastic, pure white, passion-flower-like blooms, beginning in early summer and continuing until August if dead-headed. One of the world's most astonishing and spectacular flowers, this arrestingly beautiful plant is actually easy to grow either as a biennial or as a short-lived perennial. An unusual member of the Campanula family, it is native to Lebanon and Israel, the genus Michauxia beings named after King Louis XVI of France’s royal botanist, Andreas Michaux, who travelled to America during the la ... Learn More

A rare and stunningly beautiful plant coveted by all who see it. Numerous waxy, pendent buds open to pure white, madonna lily-like flowers with reflexed strap-like petals, opening over a long period. But oh dear, what do you say when friends ask its name? ... Learn More

An evergreen tree native to the Himalayas, Myanmar, Tibet and Yunnan. Fragrant, milky white flowers emerge in the spring, which are about 6" in diameter when fully open. The bark is dark grey, which also holds fragrance, and the wood is well known for building homes and furniture in certain parts of the world. It prefers full sun to light shade, does not tolerate wind and must not dry out. ... Learn More

The best golden grass growable from seed has dazzlingly bright, canary-yellow leaves. Of its best in spring and especially in a shady spot. In commerce "Bowles' Golden Grass" is often the most expensive grass seed in the world! ... Learn More

This uncommon plant resembles none of the common mimulus, or "monkey flowers". It is an erect woody-stemmed plant, which produces bright tomato-red pinched snapdragons from June onwards amongst downy foliage on tall woody stems. ... Learn More

"Monkey Flower". This lovely Chilean flower produces a succession of red-spotted bright yellow "snapdragon" flowers from earliest spring. It will grow in moist soil or will grow equally well with its feet in water, when it spreads with gay abandon, making a glorious floating carpet of flowers all summer long. ... Learn More