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 | 2002 Top 10 |
Welcome to our Heritage Perennials 2002 Top 10 List!
Our plants are chosen from over 1500 varieties we grow and from the many hundreds of new varieties introduced, discovered, or sometimes rediscovered every year! Some of these plants are time-proven classics which have a place in every garden. Some are exciting new varieties we think will become classics in the future. Others are simply interesting or cool plants we just got excited about and want to share with our many gardening friends.
Wherever you garden in North America, you should be successful with some or most of these varieties! You can still look for these Top 10 plants at your local independent Heritage Perennial dealer this spring, and happy gardening!
| 2002 Top 10 Heritage Perennials |
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| #1 |
Zones 4 - 9 |
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Athyrium niponicum 'Pictum'
(Japanese Painted Fern)
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This is an easy and colourful shade perennial. Mint-green fronds are
strongly overlaid with markings of silvery-pewter, the picture completed by
contrasting wine-red stems. Plants form a neat and tidy mound that lasts in
the garden for years with a minimal amount of maintenance. They combine
beautifully with other shade-loving plants, for instance, Hostas or
Solomon's-Seal.
When given a rich soil and even moisture all season long this fern remains
attractive from late spring through late fall. Clumps are an ideal size for
edging walkways in the woodland garden, never getting taller than a foot or
two. Unlike some other types of ferns it does not have a spreading or
invasive habit. We've heard rave reviews from people over a wide range of
climates -- all of them agreeing on how easy and reliable this plant is to
grow, and how beautiful it looks. Even some gardeners in Zone 3 have had
great results growing Japanese Painted Fern with a thick winter mulch.
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| #2 |
Zones 4 - 9 |
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Coreopsis rosea 'Sweet Dreams'
(Sweet Dreams Pink Coreopsis)
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Quite new on the scene, 'Sweet Dreams' burst into the gardening world about
two years ago. Like many other Coreopsis, this has an exceptionally long
season of bloom, from early summer well into late autumn. Plants form a
mound of soft, feathery looking green leaves, usually growing between one
and two feet tall. The flowers are small daisies that begin creamy-white
with a contrasting red eye, aging to a rich pink, the colour of raspberry
sorbet. What they lack in size they more than make up for in quantity!
This is one of those long-flowering perennials that has a myriad of garden
uses -- from edging or massing to containers and window boxes. It loves a
moist, sunny site. Clumps are spreading, so plan to divide these every two
years in the spring. 'Sweet Dreams' fits well into soft, pastel border
schemes. It's soft texture also contrasts well with bolder-leaved plants
like Canna Lilies or one of our Top 10 picks from last year, Sedum
'Matrona'.
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| #3 |
Zones 3 - 9 |
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Echinacea purpurea Ruby Star ('Rubinstern')
(Ruby Star Coneflower)
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A great new selection of this popular classic, Ruby Star will make a bright
splash of colour in your sunny border from midsummer on. Strong, upright
stems produce big, flat heads of magenta-red daisies, the stiff petals
surrounding a bristly brown central cone. These are irresistible to
butterflies!
Coneflowers will continue to flower for months on end so long as the dead
flowers are removed every week or two. Consider letting the stems and seed
heads remain for the winter -- they not only look great against the snow,
but also supply food for finches and other hungry birds. A good companion
would be another of our Top 10, Phlox paniculata 'David'. Both of these are
also outstanding cut flowers.
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| #4 |
Zones 2 - 9 |
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Hemerocallis 'Pardon Me'
(Daylily)
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Repeat-blooming Daylilies have been around for a number of years, but this
one promises to become even more popular than the old classic 'Stella de
Oro'. Plants first form a sturdy mound of grassy-looking green leaves, then
burst forth with a summer-long display of small trumpet-shaped
cranberry-red flowers, each with a contrasting yellow throat. The fragrant
blooms only last a day or two, but they continue to open in succession for
weeks on end.
Daylilies prefer a sunny exposure and average to moist conditions, but
these are tough and forgiving plants, adapting to nearly anything except
heavy shade. 'Pardon Me' seldom gets taller than eighteen inches so it's a
perfect size for the border front, for mass planting as a groundcover, or
in mixed containers. Good companions might be white-flowered Gaura or
Gypsophila, or perhaps something with bright golden-orange flowers like
Rudbeckia fulgida 'Goldsturm'.
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| #5 |
Zones 2 - 9 |
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Hosta 'Sum and Substance'
(Hosta, Plantain Lily)
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Here is an astonishing selection that will grow to truly mammoth
proportions! Ranked as among the biggest of them all, 'Sum and Substance'
produces huge, rounded leaves in a glowing chartreuse-yellow shade. The
thick texture and waxy finish help to make the leaves more resistant to
damage by slugs than many of the more common selections of Hosta. In time,
clumps can easily reach six feet across.
This deserves a special spot in the garden where it will become a focal
point. Plants develop their best colour with some morning sun, plenty of
moisture and a rich soil. Consider surrounding it with a low groundcover,
such as Lamium 'White Nancy' or deep purple Ajuga. Pale lavender flowers
are produced in July.
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| #6 |
Zone 2 - 9 |
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Paeonia lactiflora 'Bowl of Beauty'
(Garden Peony)
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Without a doubt, the Peony remains among the most popular of flowering
perennials for the early summer border. 'Bowl of Beauty' is a stunning
Japanese-style selection with medium to soft-pink petals surrounding a
showy central tuft of creamy-yellow stamens, also known as petaloids. The
flower form is simple and uncluttered, considered by many to be more
attractive than the common double types. These make exceptionally good cut
flowers, with a strong and pleasing fragrance.
Although the blooming season for peonies is brief, plants have sturdy and
attractive foliage throughout the season. Choose a sunny spot with rich
soil where the plants may remain undisturbed for ten years or more. The
bushy habit contrasts well with finer-textured perennials like Threadleaf
Coreopsis. For a gorgeous early summer combination try growing 'Bowl of
Beauty' next to the deep-purple Siberian Iris 'Ruffled Velvet'.
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| #7 |
Zone 3 - 9 |
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Phlox paniculata 'David'
(Summer Phlox)
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Although the flowers of Summer Phlox are beloved for their soft and blousy
appearance and wonderful fragrance, gardeners often are disappointed when
their plants become marred by the appearance of a common fungal infection
known as powdery mildew. 'David' is one of a small handful of newer Phlox
that show excellent resistance to mildew infections.
The habit is upright and bushy, stems sometimes reaching over four feet in
height, making this ideal for a border background. Flower heads are large,
with petals of clear snowy white that may even attract butterflies to your
garden. Like most perennials with white flowers, 'David' will effectively
compliment neighbouring plants in virtually any other colour. A few to
consider -- the steely blue balls of Globe Thistle (Echinops);
golden-orange daisies of False Sunflower (Heliopsis); Beebalm (Monarda),
with its shaggy heads in various rich jewel tones. Phlox paniculata 'David'
has been selected as the 2002 Perennial Plant of the Year by the Perennial
Plant Association.
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| #8 |
Zone 5 - 9 |
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Verbascum 'Summer Sorbet'
(Hybrid Mullein)
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With its candelabra spikes that appear for weeks on end, this new Mullein
deserves a prime spot in the sunny border, -- or even better, as a feature
plant in container combinations. Flowers are bright magenta-purple, each
with a darker violet eye. Blooming begins when summer weather arrives and
continues well into the fall if spent flowers are regularly removed. All
Mulleins appreciate excellent drainage, adapting well to hot sunny sites.
Let the spikes tower above neighbouring plants to show them off! Silver
foliaged companions like Artemisia work beautifully next to 'Summer
Sorbet', as do others with chartreuse, gold or purple leaves, such as
Golden Oregano or black-leaved Sweet Potato Vine. Hybrid Mulleins usually
last 2 - 3 seasons before they need to be carefully divided in spring, or
increased by root cuttings.
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| #9 |
Zone 2 - 9 |
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Veronica spicata 'Royal Candles'
(Dwarf Spike Speedwell)
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This new compact form of the Spike Speedwell is proving to be a terrific
front-of-the-border subject, giving a burst of true blue colour in early to
midsummer. Plants have a mounding habit in spring, developing loads of
tapering spikes filled with tiny flowers of deep blue. Growing to just
twelve inches tall, this is versatile and useful in the border, rock garden
or in mixed containers.
Like most Speedwells, 'Royal Candles' is hardy and reliable over a wide
range of climates. A light clipping with shears after blooming will keep
plants fresh looking for the whole season, and possibly encourage some
repeat flowers during late summer or fall. Other low mounding plants make
great companions, especially soft-yellow Coreopsis 'Moonbeam' or another of
our Top 10, Coreopsis rosea 'Sweet Dreams'. Back these with the bright
silvery foliage of Artemisia 'Valerie Finnis' for a stunning contrast!
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| #10 |
Zone 4 - 9 |
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Vinca minor 'Illumination'
(Variegated Periwinkle)
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It's not very often that an amazing new groundcover comes along, but this
is surely one that will impress. Plain green Periwinkle is an old favourite
which can nearly always be relied upon to stay evergreen and to cover
quickly in difficult shady areas. Other variegated selections abound, but
'Illumination' is one of the few with excellent vigour. The leaves are
bright golden-yellow with contrasting deep-green edging, forming a
beautiful low backdrop to a cheery display of blue flowers through the
spring.
The name suggests using 'Illumination' to create a bright splash of colour
in any shady corner. Plants adapt readily to growing beneath trees and
shrubs, tolerating dry shade once established for a season or two. This
would look superb growing with another of our Top 10, the silvery Japanese
Painted Fern. The spreading habit lends itself well to dramatic effects,
spilling perfectly over walls, or out of window boxes and mixed containers.
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