Seneca Hill Perennials

Paradisea liliastrum

St. Bruno's Lily is found in subalpine meadows across southern and southeastern Europe. In the wild, it forms small clumps; the graceful snowy white flowers, up to 5cm/2in long, are borne up to 10 per stem. We offer husky previously-bloomed plants.

Pelargonium luridum

Who could resist a name like this? I encountered this species in several places in the Eastern Cape, and managed to collect some seed, and here you see the result. It's a fun plant, with a few large, deeply lobed leaves basal leaves and a tall bare stem bearing a solitary inflorescence of 5-60 flowers (so says Elsa Pooley; I doubt I ever saw one with more than 20). Pooley also says the color can vary from white to pink, but all the specimens I saw had pale flesh-pink flowers.

Penstemon cobaea var. purpureus

This is an uncommon variety of Showy Beardtongue, restricted in the wild to limestone glades along the White River and its tributaries in the southern Missouri Ozarks, with consistently rose-purple to violet-purple flowers (the species can vary from white through pink to purple). Ours in the garden form stocky clumps, with relatively compact blooming stems that stand up well. The large, vertically compressed flowers are outstanding. We have grown this central US native here for several years, an experience which has left us scratching our heads and wondering why it isn't in gardens everywhere. Give it a hot, sunny well-drained position in neutral to alkaline soil.

Penstemon murrayanus

A striking species from the southern US (Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas), Scarlet Beardtongue bears spikes of brilliant red flowers above evergeen basal rosettes of thick blue-green leaves. Ours are descended from Lousiana collections that overwintered successfully in Kansas, staying evergreen at temperatures as low as -8F.

Penstemon tubaeflorus

Native to the central states (Indiana to Wisconsin and Nebraska, southward to Mississippi and Texas), this prairie species has wonderful showy congested spikes of short-tubed, widely flared white flowers.  Photo copyright Aaron Floden, used with permission.

Phlox paniculata 'Jeana'

From Jeana Prewitt of Nashville, Tennessee, who found it years ago, growing mildew-free among ìmany thousandsî of mildew-covered wild plants. The tiny pink flowers (1.2cm/.5in) crowd into tight heads; the apical head is somewhat smaller than a tennis ball, and the numerous subapical heads stand well away from each other and the central stem, giving a tiered effect. Nearly self-sterile, and so different from the typical wild P. paniculata that it may be a hybrid.

Phlox pilosa subsp. sangamonensis

A rare subspecies of Prairie Phlox, occuring naturally in Illinois' Sangamon River basin. A relatively short clump-former that blooms with masses of bright pink flowers atop stems clad in narrow leaves, this plox is outstanding and easy in the garden.

Phlox stolonifera, variegated

A really handsome creeping phlox with grey-green leaves edged in cream and flowers of a vivid but pleasing pink (not magenta). Watch for and excise the occasional reversion to green foliage. Like other P. stolonifera, this forms a carpet and makes an excellent ground cover in light shade.

Phytolacca americana 'Melody'

This is a lovely seed strain of the American pokeweed, with creamy leaves heavily flecked, dusted and spotted green. Like most variegates, it's slower-growing than the typical green form; like all pokeweeds that we've transplanted, it resents handling and may be slow to settle in. As long as you give it a deep, rich soil, though, it should take hold and take off. We wish people would overcome their resistance to pokeweeds, because they're lovely and long-lived, and if these variegated ones self-sow you'll have no trouble finding and pulling unwanted seedlings - they'll all be variegated too. Think of this as a native plant rather than a weed, and you'll be proud to grow it.

Pinellia x 'Polly Spout'

A marvelous sterile hybrid between Pinellia pedatisecta and P. tripartita 'Atropurpurea', discovered as a chance seedling by Richard Weaver, founder of We-Du Nursery. It is substantially larger than either parent, and puts up a succession of inflorescences for most of the summer. The flowers resemble the P. pedatisecta parent's in form, but are larger and more open, and have a distinct purplish flush inside the spathe. Its only drawback is that it produces very few offsets - therefore, by extension, we have only a few to sell. Dormant tubers, 1"-2" in diameter.

Podophyllum hexandrum

The Himalayan Mayapple, a lovely and variable species wherein dappled emerging leaves unfold to be followed by large, upward-facing pink or white flowers, which in turn are followed by hen’s-egg-sized coral-red fruits. Easy, adaptable, and long-lived; always a pleasure in the shady garden.

Podophyllum pleianthum

A gorgeous Chinese mayapple with glossy, toothed pointed-lobed paired leaves and cluster of deep red pendant flowers in late spring. Our parent plants, obtained from Northwest Garden Nursery in Eugene, OR, are surprisingly hardy, enduring hard frosts after emergence with no sign of damage.

Polygonatum odoratum coll. Sichuan

Aaron Floden has done some sleuthing and sorted out for us what this handsome polygonatum is: a form of P. odoratum collected in Cheng Du, Sichuan, by Dr. James Waddick. It's a handsome clump-former whose leaves are roughly 7.5cm/3in long, broad in the beam and acute at the tip. The comparatively large greenish-white pendant flowers are followed by plump blue-black fruits. Previously sold as "species unknown" and "possibly P. hirtum". Shows why you should keep good records.

Porteranthus trifoliatus (Gillenia trifoliata)

An herbaceous shrub-like US native, Bowman's Root makes a lovely textural contrast to larger-leaved plants in the semishady garden, first with its delicate toothed leaves, in summer with its masses of airy pinkish-white flowers, and lastly with its surprisingly good fall color (shades of orange and red). We regret that we didn't get a decent photo of it this year.