Plant of the Day

Monday 3 June 2024

In a tropical glasshouse of the David Welch Winter Gardens at Duthie Park, Aberdeen, a collection of bromeliads were thriving in the warm, humid growing conditions. As epiphytes, plants that grow on other plants, bromeliads have a 'well' in the centre of the rosette that fills with water.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Sunday 2 June 2024

Thriving in the bright but not direct sun on my kitchen table is Tradescantia albiflora 'Nanouk' (fantasy Venice, Moses in the cradle, pink spiderwort plant, wandering dude). The purple underside of the foliage is dramatic when backlit. Been busy taking cutting for friends so the stems are not as long now!

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Saturday 1 June 2024

In the cool glasshouse of the David Welch Winter Gardens at Duthie Park, Aberdeen, Arthropodium cirratum 'Matapouri Bay' (rock lily) was flowering. This is a clump-forming, evergreen perennial tolerant of dry sites once established but is not reliably hardy.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Friday 31 May 2024

A useful groundcover plant for drier conditions is Bergenia 'Sunningdale' (elephant's ears) which has deep-pink, flowers in spring and evergreen leaves that turn red in the autumn.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Thursday 30 May 2024

The perennial Myrrhis odorata (sweet cicely, anise, garden myrrh, great chervil, sweet bracken, sweet fern, sweet Mary) is distinguished by the white marks on the leaves. The foliage and stems are aniseed-scented, and the white umbel flowers are followed by dark spindle-shaped fruits.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Wednesday 29 May 2024

In this front garden the evergreen shrub Berberis darwinii (Darwin's barberry) has been allowed to grow much taller than usual as it is often prune into a hedge. It has been crown lifted and become a small tree and so the bark can be admired. This species was named after the naturalist Charles Darwin, who discovered it in 1835 during his voyage to South America. 

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Tuesday 28 May 2024

An early display plant for an herbaceous border is Lunaria rediviva (perennial honesty) which thrives in a fertile, moist but well-drained soil in full sun or partial shade. This Lunaria species has fragrant, lilac-white flowers followed by elliptical seedheads which catch the light.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Monday 27 May 2024

A plant that found a space for itself on the street; this Lunaria annua (honesty, grandpa's specs, money in both pockets, moon seed, satin pod, silver plate, silver dollar) will have seeded into the edge of the path. As a hardy annual or biennial the plants are always moving around producing purple flowers in late spring which are followed by flat, round, silvery seed pods.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Sunday 26 May 2024

In my friend’s lovely garden she has created an informal hedge with Libertia grandiflora (New Zealand satin flower). Strong-growing, evergreen clumps of leaves line the entrance and now are covered with white, bowl-shaped flowers. In the autumn the flowers are followed by round seed pods which turn black when they mature.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Saturday 25 May 2024

Treated to lunch recently at the Kirk Cafe, Orkney, the sweet arrived decorated with a flower from a cultivar of Viola tricolor (heart's ease, cat's faces, come-and-cuddle-me , constancy, Cupid's flower, flower of thought, garden gate, hearts in ease, Johnny-jump-up-and-kiss-me, kiss-me-at-the-garden-gate, Kitty-come, Kitty-run, lady's delight, little faces, live-in-idleness, pansy, pretty face, thinking flower, tricolor pansy, bird's eye, none-so-pretty). This plant can be grown as an annual, biennial or short-lived, evergreen perennial. It has so many lovely common names.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Friday 24 May 2024

A display of Erythronium californium 'White Beauty' (fawn lily) flowers made a great addition to this small meadow. This herbaceous perennial has creamy-white flowers in late spring above slightly mottled, green leaves.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Thursday 23 May 2024

Under these trees the Dryopteris filix-mas (male fern, basket fern, shield fern) were unfurling their fronds. This is a vigorous, deciduous fern which forms a shuttlecock of fronds about 1.2m in height.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Wednesday 22 May 2024

In a shady border under some deciduous trees the Anemone nemorosa 'Robinsoniana' (wood anemone, windflower) was thriving. This rhizomatous herbaceous perennial has beautiful light lavender-blue flowers with silvery backs to the petals. It thrives in a moist but well drained soil.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Tuesday 21 May 2024

In my developing meadow Tulipa 'Go Go Red' (tulip) provides a splash of colour. This cultivar has narrow petals that remind me of the elegant Tulipa acuminata which is much more challenging to grow and achieve repeating flowering.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Monday 20 May 2024

In this garden clumps of Anemone nemorosa ‘Vestal’ (wood anemone) were flowering and brightening the woodland floor before the canopy of leaves unfurl above and remove the light. These plants die down in summer to a rhizome and thrive in dappled shade.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Sunday 19 May 2024

In a small front garden Lamprocapnos spectabilis (bleeding hearts, dicentra, Dutchman's breeches, lady in the bath, locks and keys, lyre flower, seal flower) was producing arching succulent stems hung with heart-shaped flowers. This clump-forming perennial grows in moist, fertile, humus-rich soil in partial shade.

Jill Raggett

Plant of the Day

Saturday 18 May 2024

In my Polycrub warm weather has encourage a Paeonia 'Bartzella' (peony) to flower. This plant is an intersectional hybrid between a tree peony and a herbaceous peony forming a plant about 80cm high with a woody base. The large, semi-double lemon-yellow flowers are scented.

Jill Raggett