STEPHEN'S BLOG
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BROWSE CATEGORIES
Brachyglottis repanda
I have a great love of this evergreen shrub from New Zealand for several reasons. Firstly it is a first rate foliage plant with huge soft green leaves with a felty white reverse. secondly it is fairly cold tolerant but looks tropical, Thirdly it grows well in semi-shade and is comparatively drought tolerant and lastly
Stephen Ryan
Cornus kousa ‘Miss Satomi’
I love Dogwoods and in fact hold the national collection for ‘Plant Trust’ so they must be good! This salmon pink form of the Chinese dogwood is a stunning form with flat branches showing off the bracted flowers to perfection in the late spring after the early nonsense is over. It also has lovely berries in
Stephen Ryan
Juncus effusus ‘Spiralis’
If you are looking for a plant that will be a talking point and entertain children of all ages this could be the one for you! It is a clump forming evergreen rush that is grown for its stems which corkscrew in a most endearing way, each with a different amount of twirl so as
Stephen Ryan
Clematis napaulensis
This has to be about the strangest but none the less useful and pretty species in the Genus. It produces its pale green bells with purple stamens in the midst of winter and they are nectar rich bird feeders, so this alone should get you planting. Afterwards it has huge flufly seed heads in spring
Stephen Ryan
Tecophilaea cyanocrocus
One of the worlds most desirable bulbs and until recently thought extinct in the wilds of Chile its native home. It is a small bulb with possibly the worlds bluest flowers with its crocus like flowers in spring. It also has a form with a white centred flower called variety Leichtlinii both of which are
Stephen Ryan
Macropiper excelsum
The New Zealand Pepper Bush is rarely grown in Australia but should be seen more. It has lovely heart shaped glossy green leaves on a dense bush to 3m tall and although the flowers aren’t particularly showy the green bullet shaped flower heads are interesting and add to the overall effect. the fact that it
Stephen Ryan
Lindera obtusiloba
This has to be one of the best large shrubs for autumn colour with its large leaves that can be entire with a heart shape, have one lobe looking like a mitten or a lobe on both sides. So it is a great conversation piece as well as a great plant. It comes from Asia
Stephen Ryan
Narcissus cyclamineus
This has to be one of the most beautiful species daffodils and rarely offered for sale in Australia. It is exceptionally slow to multiply and so is best raised from seed which needs to be hand pollinated to set. It usually takes at the least 3 years to reach flowering size and unlike other daffodils
Stephen Ryan
Persicaria virginiana filiformis ‘Painter’s Palette’
If you don’t like variegation don’t read on! This herbaceous perennial has to have some not the most over the top leaf colour of any cold hardy plant and I for one love it! It grows to about 60cms. or so and builds into a substantial clump in a fairly short time. The large leaves
Stephen Ryan
Tulipa acuminata?
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
Stephen Ryan