Your guide to top plants

My Reine des Violettes old-world rose has collapsed under the weight of abundant blooms and smothered the little wooden bench below. I never expected this rose to produce such an avalanche of flowers, particularly after the hard winter we had this year, but it has bounced back with renewed vigor. Reine des Violettes is a once-flowering, old-world Hybrid Perpetual with an...

Hadspen Blue Francee Patriot June Sum and Substance I love hostas. They look fantastic in the garden. But they also look terrific in containers. I grow too many of them. Scattered all over the garden. But I love seeing them displayed on their own as single specimens in a nice container. Blues are my favourite. I love Hadspen Blue and Halcyon, Krossa Regal and...

One of the new plants I have added to my garden this year is Euonymus japonica ‘Paloma Blanca’ which sometime goes by the name White Candles. I have used it to create a short, formal hedge behind which I grow a variety of taller shrubs including purple nine bark, calycanthus and Korean lilac. The euonymus replaces a drift of Carex...

There are dozens of excellent trees for the average sized home garden, but forced to choose just one tree, I would pick this one - the Japanese snowbell tree (Styrax japonicus). It's the perfect tree for any home garden. My snowbell tree is at its peak right now in front of my house and is literally covered with beautiful, delicate,...

Here’s a quick look at six of the best vines to plant in your garden this spring. These will get visitors to look up. Raising their head will give them a positive feeling and you'll also be giving them something beautiful to look up at. This list, of course, is just a start. There are many other vines worth...

Want to do a special planting for Canada Day this year? Here are a couple of plants that are being marketed this spring specifically to appeal to those gardeners who want to show their patriotism when it comes to celebrating Canada’s 150th birthday on July 1. Dahlia 'Canadian Celebration' is a striking white dahlia with red stripes that is expected to...

People don't care anymore when they buy a clematis if it dies at the end of summer. They just want to have good flower impact on their patio, balcony or deck for a few months. After, they don't care what happens to the vine. This according to Rob Wein, one of the owners of Clearview Horticultural, the biggest grower of clematis...

Styrax japonicus (Japanese snowbell tree) Looking for a superb, moderate-growing, small tree for your garden, you can do no better than to pick the graceful snowbell tree. This exceptionally handsome deciduous tree is an excellent pick for a small- or medium-sized garden. It is relatively slow-growing, reaching only 25 to 30 feet (7.5 to 9 m) with a loosely rounded...

Buddleia davidii ‘Black Knight’ (butterfly bush) Walk into any garden and most of the plants you see come from other parts of the world. Buddleia, the butterfly bush, originates from the Sichuan and Hubei areas of China. It gets its name because it has the uncanny knack of attracting butterflies. ‘Black Knight’ is one of the most beautiful and reliable...

Alchemilla mollis Alchemilla mollis (Lady’s mantle) All the great cottage gardens of England have this old-fashioned favorite. It is loved for the way it displays raindrops like diamonds on its rough, hairy leaves. It is also valued for the lime green color and frothy texture of its effervescent sprays of flowers, which first appear in June and last for several weeks....

Do hostas look better with or without their flowers? Many people don't like the flowers and cut them off the moment they appear on their long stalks. Other love the flowers and would never think of cutting them when they are their peak. It really comes down to a matter of taste. But the conflict of whether to cut or not to...

There’s a reason bride’s love to have peonies in their bouquets and at wedding celebrations. Next to roses, peonies are one of the most romantic flowers, unashamedly soft and delicate and extraordinarily pretty. Pink and white peonies with their dense explosion of petals are without doubt a sensational sight in a vase or bouquet. Now, the question is which kinds should you grow in...

Looking for some new plants to add to your garden this spring? Here are some new varieties being offered by Heritage Perennials, of Abbotsford, one of the prime suppliers of top notch perennials to garden centres across Canada. New varieties of Itoh peony. Paeonia - This new breed of peonies, offering the hardiness of garden types plus the exotic flower colour of...

Some friends brought us a huge bouquet of gladioli the other day - four bunches containing red, purple, orange and peach ones. They were barely in flower when they arrived, but they have since started to open up and we have placed them in two tall vases and they actually look very good. In fact, the more the flowers open,...