2007-2008 Natureworks Catalog

Gentiana GENTIAN
andrewsii This is the closed or "bottle" gentian that I seek out
when walking in moist woods in the fall. Brilliant cobalt blue
flowers form upright buds that never fully open, 1-2’ tall.
August and September blooming. A native wildflower. See p.
203 of Ken Druse’s The Natural Shade Garden for a picture
illustrating this plant’s true blue beauty.
dahurica One of the absolute easiest to grow. Acidic soil lover,
tubular purple/blue flowers on 10" leafy stems in August. Best
in partial shade.
‘Nikita’ A late May/early June bloomer that is very vigorous
(for a gentian). From basal foliage emerge 16" long stems with
whorls of showy blue, upfacing flowers along every leaf node.
A good cut flower.
gracilipes Spring blooming gentian with deep solid blue
flowers; grows 6" tall.
makinoi ‘Royal Blue’ An excellent variety to use as a cut
flower. Rich cobalt blue flowers in clusters atop 18-24" stems.
August through late September blooming. I am in love with this
plant and added a mass of it to my new border. I combined it
with Coreopsis integrifolia; they bloom at exactly the same time.
septemfida 8" tall mounds of foliage with soft blue flowers in
mid-summer.
var. lagodechiana An unusual fall bloomer, intense true blue
flowers, prostrate, good for rockeries, sun to part shade,
blooms August and September, unusual and rare.
triflora var. japonica Late summer and early fall beauty with
brilliant blue flowers atop 24-30" upright stems. Native to Japan;
grows best in acidic, lime-free soil in full sun to partial shade.
verna It is impossible to describe the pure blue color of this
European alpine. Intense clear blue flowers only 3-4" tall for sun
or dappled shade. An ideal candidate for a trough garden, sure
to draw raves. Blooms in late spring/earlyl summer. Must have
good drainage.
var. angulosa New! An easy to grow spring blooming gentian.
Deep blue star flowers in April/May on 3-4" compact plants.
Foliage is very tidy, glossy green. Ideal in sun or partialy
shaded rockeries or troughs.
Summer Blooming Cranesbills
In the olden days (a couple of years ago),
cranesbill geraniums were primarily late
May/June bloomers. Cutting back and feeding G.
sanguineum would cause re-bloom, but nothing
to write home about. NOW, there are fabulous
summer and fall blooming cranesbills:
‘Rozanne’
‘Anne Folkard’
‘Jolly Bee’
psilostemon
wlassovianum
Geranium CRANESBILL GERANIUM
Cranesbill Geraniums tolerate sun (in rich soil) or partial shade. There
are now many exciting varieties that bloom well into the summer and
fall. Now you can choose cranesbills to extend your season of bloom in
sun or in the partial shade garden.
‘Anne Folkard’ Brilliant golden foliage with vivid magenta
flowers. This weaves through the garden and blooms from May
until mid-late summer. 7' tall, can spread 84"wide! Interweave
this with burgundy Heucheras---use your imagination! It will
add sunshine to any shade garden.
‘Brookside’ The true blue color is clear and rich, the center is a
paler color and stands out. More vigorous, less floppy, better
color, and longer-blooming than older ‘Johnson’s Blue’.
cantabrigiense ‘Biokova’ 12" ground-cover form, white flowers
tinged pale pink in June/July; good foliage, very deer-resistant.
This is one of the best landscape plants, easy to grow, always
looks good, tidy mounding habit. Fabulous red fall color.
‘St. Ola’ Pure white flowers on 8-12" plants in late May and
June. Foliage is aromatic, evergreen. Excellent ground cover,
very drought tolerant.
clarkei ‘Kashmir Purple’ This variety turns my head. Flowers
are a really bright purple and the leaves are deeply-incised and
quite attractive all summer. Late May/June blooming.
‘Jolly Bee’ Similar to the wonderful, long blooming ‘Rozanne’,
this jolly variety has masses of clear blue flowers with white eyes
from early June through September. Each individual flower is
huge (for a cranesbill), almost 3" in diameter. Allow a 3’
diameter circle for a mature plant. Grows 24" tall.
macrorrhizum Bigroot geranium is the best for deep, dry shade.
Good foliage all summer smells of oil of geranium when
crushed. Flowers are really true magenta in June and July,
spreads quickly, easy to grow.
‘Album’ Hmmm... White flowers, tolerates deep shade and
root competition, glows in the darkness under a maple tree,
could we ask for anything more?
‘Bevans Variety’ Hybrid form with deeply-cut foliage, large
magenta flowers.
‘Ingwersens Variety’ Soft pale pink flowers brightens the
shade, same tolerance for growing under trees, softer color.
‘Spessart’ This color of the bigroot geranium is very useful--soft
pink, almost white flowers brighten the shade. Same
excellent semi-evergreen, aromatic foliage.
‘Variegatum’ Green and cream variegated foliage with the
same magenta/pink flowers. Not as vigorous, but a good
foliage accent for dry shade.
maculatum ‘Espresso’ The maculatum geraniums are our native
woodland wildflowers with rather coarse foliage and magenta
flowers. This hybrid is a fabulous breakthrough. The foliage is
mahogany-colored, contrasting nicely with the soft pink flowers.
8" tall. Forms a tidy mounded plant, not rangy. Sun brings out
more of the color, so do the cool temperatures of spring and fall.
‘Helen Gallagher’ A pure white form of our native woodland
cranesbill. Great choice for difficult, dark woodland areas.
‘Orion’ Dutch hybrid, similar to 'Brookside'. Intense blue
flowers cover compact, non-floppy bushes 20-30" tall from late
May through June. Tolerates heat without get ratty looking.
phaeum ‘Sambor’ The foliage is outstanding. Deep green leaves
with large chocolate blotches adds great color and structure to
the garden. The flowers are a deep wine purple, almost black.
Color deepens as weather cools. Self sows.
pratense ‘Dark Reiter’ This variety is the most vigorous of the
purple-leaved forms. Plum foliage is streaked with green, lilac
Page 26 “It's all about the plants...”
Natureworks 2007-2008 Catalog