This plant figured in an earlier post of June 2 I believe. It is of course Alstromeria “Indian Summer” and it’s not looking like stopping anytime soon, having been a joy for just a few days shy of 3 months, but probably even longer. What a star!
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A previous post here dated July 19 spoke of these Heliotrope arborescens just reaching peak flowering. Well, it’s now August 27, and they are looking just as good, if not better. Will definitely be growing these again next year. The bees (look closely) have been identified by an apiarist friend as honey bees, so that’s another plus.
Although this is a member of the Geraniaceae family, this is a genus separate from the more common Geraniums. It is an Erodium manescavii, or Manescau stork’s bill. It has been flowering since early June, and is a hardy perennial. Manescau refers to a small region in the foothills of the French Pyrenees.
This rather unusual plant, a tender annual grown from seed, is Asclepias curassavica “Apollo Orange” , originating from the Caribbean island Curacao. Recent research on my part reveals it to be a highly toxic plant, especially the latex substance exuded when cut or damaged. A fascinating fact is that the glorious Monarch butterflies depend on the. Plant for food for their larvae which are immune to the toxin. However, it does have the advantage of making the butterflies toxic to would-be predators. Nature is always amazing.
This rather rare plant is Nicandra physalodes, common name Apple of Peru. It is a tender annual, and like most others it comes to flowering in late summer/early autumn. It spreads quite widely by seed once established in the garden, but isn’t really invasive. It grows very quickly to reach a metre or more in height and sends out arching branches with a string of large purplish blue flowers, followed by lantern shaped seed pods similar to the Physalis or chinese lanterns. Hence the species name. The seedlings are easily spotted and pulled out in late spring, having serrated leaves covered in minute black spots. Quite a nice thing to have in the herbaceous border as it flowers late when many perennials have finished. If more wanted, pot up seedlings and place them on bricks between taller plants to start with, planting in the soil as they get tall enough. First frost kills.
Almost everyone has Anemone japonica in their garden, and it is praised for its abundant flowering late in the summer. There are drawbacks, however, as some species or cultivars can be very invasive especially in light sandy soils, spreading by rhizomes. The plants can also often be very unruly, easily growing up beyond their ability to support themselves. This cultivar, however, A. japonica ‘Whirlwind’, seems to avoid these pitfalls.
Just showing its first few blooms with September just around the corner, this hero of late season shade is a precious hardy perennial plant which deserves a more frequent appearance in domestic gardens. It is Kirengeshoma palmata, but there are other good or even better versions such as K. koreana. Common name is yellow wax bells.
Eupatorium maculatum ‘Riesenschirm’ is a majestic hardy perennial, easily reaching over 2 metres in height and sporting these huge pink inflorescences. It disappears completely over winter, but grows very fast to these great heights. It is a cultivar of the wild hemp agrimony, and as the picture shows is attractive to insects, especially bees and butterflies, the latter now abandoning the fading flowers of the Buddleia in favour of this huge food source.
This woody, slow growing shrub has flowers reminiscent of Hydrangeas, which isn’t surprising as it resides in the family Hydrangeaceae. It threatenens to flower for about a month (August), after which the fluffy little flowers emerge. It seems to grow slowly, but I’m still hoping to train it up the fence. Its name is Pileostegia viburnoides.
This willing and cheery little plant livens up the rockery at a time when a lot of plants have finished. It goes with the rather odd name Bidens. Has been flowering for weeks. The dead flowers fade away and even if you fail to do the dead-heading it doesn’t seem to hold it back. Sadly, won’t survive frost.
This is shady corner, where a clutch of lovely things that like, or at least, tolerate the shade can have their place. From bottom left Brunnera macrophylla, Persicaria “Purple Fantasy”, with a flower spike of Boykinia aconitifolia. Above, Roscoea purpurea, a bit more Boykinia and Viburnum davidii. Top left, the ghostly fern Athyrium niponicum pictum, Roscoea “Kew Beauty” and Sambucus nigra “Black Lace”.
The narrow grey green leaves and little spherical flowers make this unmistakably an Anaphalis. Not too sure of the species, but I tend towards it being A. nepalensis. This very hardy perennial grows each year into a shapely and tidy clump. In the foreground is another late flowering plant, Ceratostigma willmottianum ‘Forest Blue’, named after the extraordinary horticulturalist Ellen Willmott.
This rather unusual Phlox is characterised by its variegated leaves and pinkish white flowers. It is P. paniculata ‘Norah Leigh’. In the foreground are some pink flower spikes of Chelone obliqua, while in the background are the willing spikes of Lythrum salicaria. The Chelone is always a late starter, but none the worse for that as it should flower into September.
This rather wonderful plant is Silphium perfoliatum. It is a tough, very hardy perennial (H7) which disappears totally over the winter and spreads by rhizomes. This is one plant which will never need a supporting stake as its inch diameter stems are constructed like a box girder.. Another oddity is the fine sandpaper feel to the stems. Its large daisy flowers are prolific and long lasting from August through to October. No wonder it gets an RHS AGM cup.
Another picture of Sidalcea ‘Party Girl’ making a great show. Lovely tall erect plants (though have been a bit pattered by yesterday’s visit from Storm Floris). Grown from seed this year, so I’m wondering if it will flower earlier next year, though everything flowering in August and September is doubly welcome.