THE PLANTS OF MANUAL Langley, April 2020 Welcome to Free Spirit’s Manual, 5th edition. This new edition of our manual came about sooner than we expected: we simply ran out of the last one in a hurry! We have taken this opportunity to incorporate the latest additions and changes. As always, we strive to bring you an assortment of performers that with a reasonable amount of knowledge and care, will thrive for you for years to come. Although a few trickier ones have snuck in, they are included with instructions. We hope that this manual will be a source of inspiration and help you to grow these plants even better than we do. The best way to see, touch and experience the plants is to visit the nursery in person. We look forward to seeing you. Lambert and Marjanne Vrijmoed Copyright © 2020 by Free Spirit Nursery Inc. Front and back cover photography and design by Dante Baies © 2020 FSN CONTENTS: CLARIFICATION OF NAMES AND SYMBOLS PAGE - 2, 3 - PERENNIALS PAGE - 3 - ORNAMENTAL GRASSES, SEDGES, RUSHES PAGE - 147 - FERNS PAGE - 158 - VINES PAGE - 164 - COMPANION SHRUBS PAGE - 170 - QUICK REFERENCE LISTS, Solutions for trouble spots PAGE - 187 - PLANTS BRED/INTRODUCED BY FREE SPIRIT NURSERY PAGE - 188 - GUARANTEE AND HARDINESS, MAIL ORDER, PAYMENT, GIFT CERTIFICATES, GROUP VISITS PAGE - 188 - RECOMMENDED READS, WEB SITES PAGE - 189 - CONVERSION TABLE (CENTIMETERS TO INCHES) PAGE - 190 - OPENING TIMES, HOURS PAGE - 190 - FOR PICTURES: Google the complete botanical name and add the word “image”. -1- Clarification of names and symbols: ARUNCUS (Rosaceae) goats beard N. Hemisphere Genus Family common name species distribution dioicus species (specific epithet) — ‘Kneiffii’ Z3 white 90 cm x 80 cm ❍ ◗ ● June-July sp. variety or cultivar hardiness colour height x spread (3yrs) exposure flowering time other symbols and abbreviations: ~ = groundcover, ∼ (single) = gentle spreader, ∼∼ (double) = medium spreader, ∼∼∼ (triple) = vigorous spreader, frt. = fruit Thank you to Rundlewood Gardens for indicating which plants not only survived but also increased in size in their zone 3 garden in Calgary. Plants are indicated with (3) behind the zone. Additional hardiness notes were provided by Cheri Sydor who has grown our plants in her and client’s gardens for up to 20 years. Her hardiness experience is indicated with (3b) or (4), unless planted in “unsuitable soil” where the plants will perish. Cheri: “Unsuitable soil in Calgary is often way too manured, over-watered and mulched with wet wood chips”. Thank you Cheri! Exposure: This is always a complex issue and exposure will vary across the diverse regions of our beautiful country. A knowledge of soil condition, precipitation, hot and cold spots, air movement (wind, drafts or the absence of air movement), humidity, altitude and latitude are all critical to ensuring the well being of your plants. All of the information we have shared here is based upon our experiences here in Langley, gardening in zone 6 on a gravelly soil that is amended with organic matter and top-dressed with a composted bark to preserve moisture, reduce weeds and improve the backdrop for the plants (all of those rocks can look pretty messy). Full sun [ ❍ ] Plants should receive at least 7 hours of direct sunlight per day, including the hot afternoon sun between noon and 4:00 pm. This typically occurs in an open meadow or on the south side of a building. Full sun to part sun [ ❍ ◗ ] Plants will tolerate hot afternoon sun, as well as some shade, but in the Pacific Northwest plants perform best with at least 3 hours of direct sunlight during the hottest part of the day. Part sun to bright shade [ ◗ ● ] Plants will tolerate direct sunlight for part of the day but are happiest when out of the hot afternoon sun. Deciduous shade, dappled light or filtered light is ideal for these plants. Most woodland plants fall into this category. Shade [ ● ] Plants should receive no direct sunlight for most of the growing season. The areas to grow these plants include the north side of a structure, like a wall or a fence and beneath the canopy of a tree (deciduous or evergreen). Some early morning (until 9:00 am in the summer) or late afternoon sun (after 8:00 pm) can be tolerated but is not required. You will find that most of these plants will show their best under brighter conditions. A distinction should be made between dense, dark shade and bright, open shade. For example, all shade plants will grow fine on the north side of a home or along a tree belt without neighbouring structures or trees, where it is bright but there is no direct sunlight. But if, at this same north side, there were evergreen trees creating a high overhead canopy, so that you could barely see sky when you looked up, only certain plants would be able to grow well there. Similarly, your choice of plants would be limited beneath the canopy of an evergreen tree with draping, wide-spreading branches. Add to that a dense system of tree roots and the choices become slim. -2- A number of plants have earned one or more of the following accolades: AGM: Award of Garden Merit, administered by the RHS Wisley in the U.K. recommending outstanding plants for garden use. GPP: Chosen a Great Plant Pick by a selection committee organized and administered by the Elisabeth C. Miller Botanical Garden in Seattle, recommending outstanding plants for the Pacific Northwest. PPA (1992): Perennial Plant Association, “Perennial Plant of the Year” with the year listed between brackets. PERENNIALS ACHILLEA (Asteraceae) yarrow Achilleas prefer a freely draining soil and a sunny location in the garden to insure longevity. Make sure that the sunlight can penetrate to the leaves at ground level by keeping neighbouring plants in check. If plant vigour declines, lift them out of the ground in early spring, divide and replant only the outside parts of the clumps, composting the centers. We find yarrow invaluable for its horizontal flower shape and long season of interest, which extends through winter. We have enjoyed all of the following selections for a number of years, with a minimum of fuss. ‘Credo’ Z3 yellow 120 cm x 50 cm ❍ June-Sept Sulphur-coloured flowers. Good winter silhouette, strong stems. filipendulina —‘Parker’s Variety’ Z4 yellow 100 cm x 50 cm ❍ July Golden yellow plates on tall stems. Excellent for cutting. Grey-green foliage in low clumps. Long lived. ‘Moonshine’ Z3 sulphur 60 cm x 50 cm ❍ June-Sept A hybrid raised by Alan Bloom in 1954 and still going strong! Pretty silvery grey foliage combines perfectly with the sulphuric yellow flowers. A great cut flower and a reliable repeat bloomer if clipped back right after its first show. GPP ‘Red Velvet’ Z3 red 80 cm x 50 cm ❍ June-Sept Stands out as the darkest red achillea we have ever grown. A beautiful vibrant colour. ‘Walther Funcke’ Z3 or-red 70 cm x 50 cm ❍ June-Sept Like all of the above cultivars, a non-invasive yarrow. This is basically a shorter version of A. ‛Feuerland’, adding hot flavour to the border. The gray-green foliage combines nicely with the flowers. ACHLYS (Berberidaceae) vanilla leaf W. N. America triphylla Z5 (3) white 35 cm x ∼∼ ◗ ● April-May BC native. Slowly colonizes in even the darkest shade. The wonderful tender-looking, three-parted, bright green leaves are a great textural addition to the shade garden. The flowers appear in dense short spikes above the leaves. Vanilla leaf loves to move its stolons through duff in the shade of deciduous or evergreen trees. Established plants seem to be unaffected by slugs and will continue to delight throughout the growing season. Deciduous. ACONITUM (Ranunculaceae) monkshood x cammarum — ‘Bicolor’ Z4 blue-white 140 cm x 50 cm ❍ ◗ June-July Requiring some mild staking on our (sandy) soil but lovely, like they are hand-painted, blue and white hoods. All parts of any monkshood are poisonous. AGM and GPP carmichaelii — ‘Barker’s Variety’ Z4 blue 140 cm x 40 cm ❍ ◗ Sept-Oct A highlight of our late fall borders. Long flower stems and just plain cool looking in the late summer sun. Excellent for cutting as well. GPP -3- napellus — ‘Bergfürst’ Z4 (3) blue 120 cm x 50 cm ❍ ◗ June-July Dark, purple-blue flowers in long, loose spikes appear on stiff, upright stems in early summer. The stems are cloaked with glossy, dark green leaves, divided into narrow, linear lobes. Dies back by late summer, so it is best placed in the middle or back of a border. — ‘Grandiflorum Album’ Z4 (3)white 130 cm x 60 cm ❍ ◗ June-July Our original plants came back with us from Piet and Anja Oudolf’s nursery many moons ago. It is a pretty and upright form showing green buds and pure white blossoms. seoulense Z5 blue 150 cm x 50 cm ❍ ◗ August-Sept A surprising appearance in early spring with the orange-red emerging shoots. Upright in habit and displaying its striking blue blossoms in August. Staking might be required. septentrionale — ‘Ivorine’ Z4 (3) white 50 cm x 40 cm ❍ ◗ May This short and compact monkshood carries ivory-white flowers on sturdy stalks. The plants die back shortly after flowering, allowing later blooming plants to take its place. In our garden these later performing neighbours are Corydalis elata and Euphorbia corollata. ACORUS (Araceae) dwarf sweet flag gramineus Japan, E. Asia — ‘Variegatus’ Z6 25 cm x 30 cm ❍ ◗ Forms low, evergreen, dwarf iris-like clumps. Nice with woodland anemones and epimediums. Prefers a moisture-retentive soil but is equally happy in sun as in more shady conditions. — ‘Minimus’ Z6 10 cm x 20 cm ◗ ● Same growing conditions as the species but with bright green foliage in dense, low spreading clumps.