One of the more compact and stout members of the cordyline family, this rare and unusual member has multiple branches of wide, strappy leaves diverging from the trunk. The large panicles of flowers, followed by white seed capsules, are held stiffly erect above the foliage unlike other species which are pendulous. In New Zealand, it is quite common on the main islands of the Three Kings which are now protected as Nature Reserves. It is very localised and possibly at some risk on Norfolk Island, and is less common south of there, but still rather widespread, especially on remote Murimotu and the ... Learn More

This rare and striking smallish species bears deep green rosettes of leaves on branching stems. Very large spikes of spectacular, fragrant purple flowers, white inside, open in mid summer, creating a dazzlingly dramatic effect. The amazing display is followed by heavy clusters of large berries containing hard black seeds. This smallish Cordyline lives in the wild in moist, temperate forests in southern Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia at altitudes of up to 2200m (7200 ft.). It is a tough plant that prefers cool climates and can take windy conditions and considerable freezes. So ... Learn More

This rare deciduous sub-shrub, originating from E Nepal, is notable for its striking fruit and foliage. Red arching stems bear opposite pairs of pinnately arranged fern-like leaves, and terminal cylindrical spikes of red-tipped flowers which are later followed by very unusual, succulent, spherical, lobed, translucent, amber-yellow, flower-like fruits in summer and through autumn. It grows with a semi-prostrate habit quite low to the ground. ... Learn More

This outstanding shrub or small tree bears long-lived "flowerheads" of enormous, impressive, buttercup-shaped flowers, consisting of waxy, creamy butter-coloured bracts, followed by red, strawberry-like fruits. This is certainly the best of all the cornus species growable from seed and seed is already stratified. ... Learn More

This extremely attractive, erect, bushy shrub bears branching, woody stems covered with small grey green leathery leaves. In summer it produces clusters of beautiful starry yellow flowers followed by yellow berry fruits. It is perfect for for coastal and windy and exposed gardens and is quite incredibly hardy, coming from high elevations in New Zealand, and accordingly makes an impressive hedging shrub. ... Learn More

Hazel nuts are an essential addition to Christmas time and are slightly smaller than cobnuts. Used in pralines, Nutella, sweets and cooking. they are also an excellent wildlife plant, giving both shelter and food to pheasants, squirrels, woodpeckers and all of the various rodents who struggle in a hard winter. The catkins are ever-popular for cutting along with daffodils in the spring. These seeds/nuts were collected from our hedgerows surrounding Plant World, and being easy-to-grow, they often sprout up where squirrels have buried them. They do on the lawns at Plant World anyway. They also pr ... Learn More

These rarely seen sweet nuts, a larger-fruited form of the much larger more common Hazelnut, have been in cultivation for centuries, and make a tasty addition to any orchard or large garden. They are native to south eastern Europe and south western Asia, from the Balkans to Ordu in Turkey, and will grow in almost any soil, cropping heavily, with little maintenance, for many years. ... Learn More

After many years this astonishing specimen makes a massive gray trunk reaching to 30 m (100 ft.) tall, with an enormous crown, up to 6m or 20 feet wide formed by enormous dark green leaves that can be 3 m (10 ft.) in diameter. The terminal inflorescence, which is formed after 50 to 80 years of vegetative growth, holds the record for being the world's largest flowering structure and produces literally millions of flowers. This tree is monocarpic which means it will die after flowering, but you will be growing them for your grandchildren, so grow several! In nature it grows from northeastern In ... Learn More

A lovely Chinese native bearing long, slender arching branches, upon which open attractive clusters of fragrant pink flowers much loved by bees, and which are heavily crowded with scarlet berries in autumn, when it is one of the most effective of Cotoneasters. The branches are initially clad in attractive, thick, deeply-corrugated, white-felted leaves, but these later give brilliant autumn colours. ... Learn More

This shrub is almost flawless with something to offer in every season. Long leading horizontal branches sweep out gracefully in a strict herring-bone pattern. In late spring hundreds of pink-tinged white flowers appear, a honey pot for bees. The berries soon ripen to a rich red in late summer and punctuate the length of each herring-bone branch but do not become an important food source for birds until mid-winter. When the leaves colour in November, they gradually attain the same brightness as the berries, but in different, clashing shades of red and pink. ... Learn More

This lovely variant of the hawthorn flowers in May, and produces its unusually attractive fruit from September to October. Unlike the common Hawthorn, dense clumps of these striking berries are deepest maroon to purple-black. ... Learn More

One of the most distinctive features of the English countryside in spring is this sweet-smelling tree or shrub which is smothered with blossom in May, hence one of its more common names. In Autumn, the bushes are heavily laden with bright red fleshy berries, much loved by birds. And for the obsessively curious it is also known as: Ske (Old Irish), Porn (Old Norse), Hag (Old English), Hagthorn, Azzy Tree, Holy Innocents' May, Quickthorn, May-Tree, Whitethorn, White-May, Thorn-bush, Quick, Mother-die, Awes, Asogs, Azzies, Aglets, Agags, Arzy-garzies, Boojuns. ... Learn More

The "Chilean Lantern Tree" is truly one of the world's most attractive plants you can ever grow. Garden visitors seeing the heavy bunches of attractive, crimson, waxy urn-shaped pendent flowers in early summer just cannot wait to rush into our plant nursery to buy one for themselves, and we can rarely grow enough to supply demand! Finally, large, attractive seed pods holding large seeds appear in August and September. ... Learn More

A close but much rarer relative of the "Chilean Lantern Tree" from the cold region of Patagonia in South America. Pretty sprays of fragrant, frilly white bell-shaped flowers appear in late summer followed by red, locket-like seed-pods, which persist into late autumn. ... Learn More

This attractive plant is short-stemmed, with a swollen trunk , forming a uniquely 'pot-bellied' base, and an attractive crown in cultivation. In cooler climates it is one of the few deciduous cycads, losing its leaves every winter, although fresh ones sprout reliably at the end of every winter. It is similar in character to Cycas circinalis in some respects, but darker in colour, with leaves more upright in growth, and it also appears to be a more rapid grower! ... Learn More