Echinacea purpurea 'White Swan'
coneflower
- Position: full sun
- Soil: most soils, except very dry or boggy
- Rate of growth: average
- Flowering period: June to September
- Hardiness: fully hardy
Bold, white, daisy-like flowers with drooping petals that reveal burnished, orange-brown centres appear of stiff stems from June to September. This white coneflower is shorter than many other varieties, making it a valuable addition to the middle of a border. It is a tough plant, and, like other coneflowers, is long-flowering and will cope well with adverse weather conditions, except drought. Try it dotted through the middle of a sunny, mixed border or in bold drifts among grasses where it will extend the season of interest. It is attractive to bees and butterflies, and birds will flock to the seedheads. - Garden care: Lift and divide congested colonies in autumn or spring. In autumn cut back all dead flower stems to the ground. Coneflowers benefit from a spring or autumn mulch with well-rotted compost.
Pennisetum alopecuroides 'Hameln'
fountain grass
A pretty, compact grass for small gardens
Sedum 'Matrona'
orpine
Looks good with ornamental grasses
Anemanthele lessoniana
pheasant's tail grass (syn. Stipa arundinacea )
Versatile and colourful
Agastache 'Blue Fortune'
Mexican giant hyssop
Spires of lilac flowers and aromatic leaves
Eryngium planum 'Blauer Zwerg'
sea holly (syn. Blue Dwarf)
Dwarf variety with deep blue flowers
Deschampsia cespitosa 'Goldtau'
tufted hair grass (syn. Golden Dew)
Feathery grass for sun or shade
Geranium 'Brookside'
cranesbill
Deep blue flowers and long flowering seasons
Perovskia 'Blue Spire'
Russian sage
Violet-blue flowers and silvery foliage. Great planted en masse
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Cool, precision-made white daisies, with golden glimmering central cones that pick up the colour of ephemeral silver and gold miscanthus awns to perfection in sharp autumn light
Val Bourne - Garden Writer