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What's That Plant?

AndrewR

By AndrewR

10 comments


One question I get asked a lot when I open my garden is:
“Can you tell me what that plant is?”

Usually it’s about things that are in flower, but there are also one or two ‘favourites’ that have a presence at all times. And sometimes, it’s something that takes me entirely by surprise. Here are the most asked-after plants when I opened this year – how many can you identify?

Potentilla alba. There was a large mat of this in full flower, enjoying the sunshine

Rubus spectabilis ‘Olympic Double’. Many guessed it was an old-fashioned rose of some kind

Malus floribunda is a flowering crab apple, just coming up to its peak

Rhododendron ‘Everred’ had everybody stumped

Another favourite was anemone nemerosa ‘Robinsoniana’. I now seem to have three clumps, having started with one, so it must come true from seed

Clematis x jackmanii ‘Moonbeam’ is just coming into flower near the front gate, so always attracts attention, either in bud or when in bloom

Leucojum’s were one of the surprises this year, ‘big snowdrops’ being somebody’s guess

Then were the perennial favourites.
Luma appiculata for its bark

Drimys lanceolata for its shape, evergreen leaves and red stems. This time it was in flower as well

And pseudopanax ferox – what on earth is THAT?

One foliage shrub that attracted interest this time was pittosporum tenuifolium ‘Tom Thumb’

This year’s surprise plant was rhodiola rosea, looking like some sort of sedum before it flowers

But the ‘star’ plant this year that got the most questions was cornus alternifolia ‘Argentea’

Maureen was well chuffed!

More blog posts by AndrewR

Previous post: Maureen's Third Blog - What A Lot Of People!

Next post: Devonia at the end of May



Comments

 

Lots of interesting plants there :o)))

8 May, 2013

 

I wish I could get to go round some of these lovely gardens.
the plants are lovely Andrewr

8 May, 2013

 

Andrew I`m so glad your on this site as its to far to come to your open day and I just love looking at your unusual plants and seeing your good information. Hope you had a good day and that the weather was good for you and all your visitors.

8 May, 2013

 

What a lot of fascinating plants, no wonder you had so many visitors Andrew. I agree with Stroller, I'm so glad you're on this site so I can see your plants, with you being too far away to visit!

8 May, 2013

 

Glad to hear it went well, Andrew.

8 May, 2013

 

I am sure I'd be no different! I could only have had a guess at the Ribes and Pittosporum.
I grow that Cornus in my garden but it's only a fraction of the size.

8 May, 2013

 

I must admit the Rubus had me fooled! such fantastic flowers, and the colour!! we have the Myrtus Luma, and the bark is amazing, is your Glanleam Gold? how old is yours now?
I want to buy the Ferox but OH hates it, and it is not the kind of plant that you can sneak in is it? lol

12 May, 2013

 

DD - that's the ordinary luma. It's about twenty years old now, and I had the top taken out in January, but it hasn't started to regrow yet.
I have 'Glanleam Gold' elsewhere in the garden, tucked in a sheltered spot, but that has only made about seven feet in 15 years.
The rubus is a good plant, but it now suckers badly, despite being on heavy clay.
Perhaps you need to use the ferox to support a climber? Imagine clematis x cartmanii 'Joe' dripping from the sawtooth leaves

12 May, 2013

 

Yes I can imagine it Andrew all I like, might have to get someone to buy it for my birthday!

12 May, 2013

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