STEPHEN'S BLOG
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BROWSE CATEGORIES
Beesia calthifolia
This stunning Asian woodlander is only just making its presence felt in Australia. It was first named in 1915 after Bees Nursery in England but didn’t make it into cultivation in any real way until Bleddyn Wynn-Jones and Dan Hinkley reintroduced it into Western horticulture in 1996 and am I glad they did. It has
Stephen Ryan
Hydrangea seemannii
How many self clinging evergreen cold hardy flowering climbers do you know? There aren’t that many but this Hydrangea has all of those features and is obviously something that we should all considering for our gardens, particularly as it will grow to the height of its support and more or less stop there. If you
Stephen Ryan
Chelidonium majus ‘Flore Plena’
The double flowered form of Greater Celandine is an easy going short lived perennial that will lightly self seed in any sun or semi-shaded spot with enough moisture so once you have it you will probably always have it and like me I doubt that you will be upset. Excess plants are easily pulled out.
Stephen Ryan
Calamagrostis brachytricha
Korean Feather Reed Grass is rarely seen in Australia and I have at last a small batch to sell. It is a summer growing species to 1metre or so tall with a neat clump of foliage which turns yellow before dying down in the autumn. It is how ever the fluffy flower plumes that will
Stephen Ryan
Acer Palmatum ‘Bloodgood’
The japanese maples are looking splendid this spring, so fresh and vibrant and one of my many favourites is this one. Its rich burgundy foliage keeps its colour till autumn far better than almost any other that I have met and then it turns scarlet as the picture shows. It also gets masses of red
Stephen Ryan
Pterocephalus perennis
This charming little ground hugging plant from Greece has been gracing my rock garden for many years and although I love it i have forgotten to propagate it so as to share it with others. Well I’ve done it now. It will grow about 1 metre wide in time and its grey-green foliage is attractive
Stephen Ryan
Oxalis tetraphylla ‘Iron Cross’
Yes I know that the Oxalis word is like offering someone bubonic plague but this is a truly lovely summer flowering species that i promise will make neat clumps and unless you spread the bulbs around it won’t become a problem. It grows throughout the summer and I would grow it for its bright green
Stephen Ryan
Melanoselinum decipiens
This truly stunning plant has a long history as a garden plant at Mt. Macedon where I live. Nearly all the large gardens have colonies of it and it has certainly been grown here for decades before I was born. It has always been known by local gardeners as Tree Angelica and I only got
Stephen Ryan
Uvularia sessilifolia ‘Cobblewood Gold’
This tiny little North American woodlander is so small and petite that I usually only sell it when I point it out to people so hopefully this post might encourage some of you to actually ask for it and its relative U. s.‘Variegata’ which has white edged leaves. My selection only grows to about 15cms. tall
Stephen Ryan
Schizophragma integrifolium var. fauriei
The self clinging climbers in the Hydrangea family are unique and indispensable as garden plants. What other self clinging shade tolerant showily flowering climbers that are cold tolerant are there? If you know of any let me know as I’ll won’t to grow them as well. The Genus Schizophragma only differes from true Hydrangeas in
Stephen Ryan