Category Archives: Collector Plants

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  Tulipa acuminata?

  Posted on May 5, 2017 by stephenryan in bulbs, Collector Plants, Good for cutting

  This has to be about the weirdest and most confusing yet appealing tulip going. Depending on your reference it is a synonym of T.gesneriana and yet no one seems to give it a cultivar or forma name unless it is T. ‘Cornuta’ as I have seen it listed. It is however most often listed as T. acuminata  even though it […]

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  Disterigma alaternoides

  Posted on May 4, 2017 by stephenryan in berries, Collector Plants, Edible, evergreen, Foliage plants, Good Pot Plant, shade tolerant, Shrubs, winter interest

  I have only met this plant recently as a struck cutting I bought at the AGM auction of Plant Trust an important organisation that registers plant collections. I have only had it a couple of years and it has been a winner in every respect as far as I am concerned. It is a neotropical […]

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  Araucaria angustifolia

  Posted on April 24, 2017 by stephenryan in Collector Plants, conifer, Edible, evergreen, Foliage plants, Good Pot Plant, Trees, Uncategorized, winter interest

  This amazing evergreen conifer is native to Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay and is rarely offered in Australia. It is commonly called the Candelabra Tree or Parana Pine.It will grow quite quickly in an open sunny site and you only have to look at the picture I have included of the tree planted in the Melbourne […]

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  Danae racemosa

  Posted on April 17, 2017 by stephenryan in Collector Plants, drought tolerant, evergreen, Foliage plants, Good for cutting, Ground cover, Perennials, shade tolerant, winter interest

  This slow growing evergreen plant from South West Asia to Iran has long been on my want list and over the last few years it has come my way as it should come yours! It is called Poet’s Laurel or Alexandrian Laurel and is in fact the plant used to make the wreaths that crowned […]

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  Viburnum plicatum ‘Grandiflorum’

  Posted on April 7, 2017 by stephenryan in autumn colour, Collector Plants, Deciduous, Good for cutting, shade tolerant, Shrubs

  An oldie but a goodie! Over the years more and more cultivars of this species have hit the market and many are great plants in their own right. However I don’t think any are an improvement on this the Japanese Snowball. This is a deciduous shrub to 2metres with branches in flat layers that alway […]

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  Cydonia sinensis

  Posted on April 6, 2017 by stephenryan in autumn colour, beautiful bark, Collector Plants, Deciduous, drought tolerant, Edible, Foliage plants, shade trees, Trees, winter interest

  The  Chinese Quince that was until recently called Pseudocydonia has to be one of the best small trees you could have! It has attractive deep pink flowers in mid spring followed by large oblong yellow fruit in summer that is by the way edible, then the foliage turns stunning colours in autumn and as if that wasn’t […]

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  Oxalis melanosticta

  Posted on March 31, 2017 by stephenryan in autumn colour, bulbs, Collector Plants, drought tolerant, Foliage plants, Ground cover, winter interest

  I love the autumn because the winter growing Oxalis suddenly start to erupt out of the ground and yes I know that includes the weedy ones but with so many species in the Genus (some hundreds apparently) they can’t all be weeds obviously. One of the early ones is this lovely yellow flowered African species […]

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  Halimium ocymoides

  Posted on March 29, 2017 by stephenryan in Collector Plants, evergreen, Ground cover, Shrubs

  A very useful evergrey ground cover shrub to about 60cms. tall by 1.5metres wide for a sunny well drained aspect. It comes from the Mediterranean area and so is ideally suited for our climate in southern Australia. In spring it is covered with bright yellow Cistus type flowers (it may well end up being a […]

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  Euhttp://stephenryan.com.au/wp-admin/update-core.phponymus fortunei radicans

  Posted on March 22, 2017 by stephenryan in Collector Plants, drought tolerant, evergreen, Foliage plants, Good Pot Plant, Ground cover, shade tolerant

  Euonymus fortunei from Asia is a remarkably hardy and incredibly diverse species including trailing ground covers, climbers and even quite large shrubs. In the case of variety radicans it is a bit of a trailing ground cover that will also climb up any suitable surface and in both instances it is a light open plant […]

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  Atropa belladonna

  Posted on December 17, 2016 by stephenryan in Collector Plants, Perennials, self seeds, shade tolerant, Woodlanders

  Yes this is the feared deadly nightshade but you have to eat it!!!!! If we only knew how many poisonous plants we have in the garden and let it worry us we would probably stop gardening. If the kiddies are a worry then train them to eat things that come in punnets. This plant is […]

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