Planting: A New Perspective

Occasionally also a period of attractive berries is indicated. The flowering season for grasses also includes the period of seedhead interest.

Structural interest


L	Low, less than 0.3 meters
S	Short, 0.3–0.8 meters
M	Medium, 0.8–1.4 meters
T	Tall, 1.4–2.0 meters
VT	Very tall, greater than 2.0 meters


<0.25	Less than 0.25 meters
0.25-0.5	Between 0.25 and 0.5 meters
0.5-1.0	Between 0.5 and 1.0 meters
>1.0	More than 1.0 meter


E	Evergreen
S/E	Semi-evergreen
Au	Good autumn color


Li	Linear leaves, virtually all basal
BB	Broad basal leaves
Em	Emergent
LM	Leafy mound
Up	Upright
SM	Stem mound
Br	Branching
In addition:
Pro	Procumbent
For grasses, with reference to page 127, the following descriptions are used:
cespitose
clump or mat


Sp	Spring
Su	Summer
Au	Autumn
Wi	Winter
E	Early
M	Mid
L	Late


9 mths	More than 9 months, implies good seedheads
3-9 mths	3 to 9 months, flowers and seedheads
short	Filler plants or only a short season of structural interest

Long-term performance


<5 yrs	Less than 5 years
<10 yrs	Less than 10 years
Per	True perennial
LL	Notably long-lived

Spreading ability through vegetative growth, not seeding, and distinct from foliage spread – see ‘Spread’ on previous page. See pages 186–87.


None	Non-clonal, not spreading
Lim	Very limited
Slo	Slow
Mod	Moderate
Rap	Rapid

Persistence: lower numbers indicate plants die back in center and new growth is further away from original planting position. See pages 188–91.


V lo	Very low
Lo	Low
Med	Medium
Hi	High

Self-sowing/seeding. See pages 191–92. Note this is notoriously difficult to predict and this is a rough guide only.

Garden habitat

Zone


Lo	Low, often minimal
Mod	Moderate
Hi	High, occasionally problematic


LIGHT:
Su	Sun
HSh	Half-shade
Sh	Shade-tolerant
SOIL:
All plants will flourish in average soil conditions, with average levels of fertility and moisture.
We	Some tolerance of wet – in other words, waterlogged soil
Mo	Moist (but not wet) soil preferred, drought not tolerated well
Dr	Drought tolerant, but growth is usually better in conditions of average moisture
Hi	Appreciates highly fertile soils
Lo	Tolerant of poor fertility, but growth is usually better in conditions of average fertility, although lifespan may be shorter

This is a good guide to winter hardiness for Continental climates, less so for maritime-influenced climates like north-west Europe. Zones describe geographical regions where winter minimum temperatures are the chief limiting factor for the cultivation of particular plant species. For example, a zone 5 plant will potentially tolerate temperatures down to minus 28°C or minus 20°F.

1. Acanthus spinosus
2. Amorpha canescens
3. Amsonia orientalis
4. Anaphalis margaritacea
5. Artimisia ludoviciana

1. Aruncus ‘Horatio’
2. Aster cordifolius ‘Little Carlow’
3. Aster lateriflorus ‘Horizontalis’
4. Aster tartaricus ‘Jindai’
5. Aster ×herveyi ‘Twilight’

1. Baptisia alba (B. leucantha)
2. Brunnera macrophylla
3. Chaerophyllum hirsutum ‘Roseum’
4. Clematis heracleifolia
5. Clematis integrifolia