Scabiosa caucasica “Perfecta Blue” – Pincushion Flower
Pincushion-shaped buds, borne on erect stems, open to lavender flower heads above a clump of finely divided leaves.
This plant has been popular in western gardens for 150 years, due to its reliability, long flowering period and use as a cut flower. There are a number in Coastal Tasman, though there are also instances of the species which an inferior plant in many ways..
Click here to go to the Scabiosa caucasica page in Karin’s Garden.
Zantedescghia Aethiopica – Calla Lily
Robust, evergreen, erect to 1.5 m high, with leathery leaves in close-set tufts from a tuberous rootstock of white fleshy roots. Clump forming plant with large arrowhead shaped leaves and large, pure white flowers.
This is a justly popular plant in Karin’s Garden – Striking, reliable, and robust. I also provides dramatic cut flowers – Having pulled [not cut] the flowers, do trim the ends to assist water uptake.
Click here to go to the Zantedeshia aethiopica page in Karin’s Garden.
This forms a dense, evergreen mat just 10cm tall. Carpet of long lasting white flowers in late spring and summer.
This is wonderful plant that is seen far too little in Motueka. A white carpet in late spring, this robust and very low maintenance plant can be used in borders, rockeries and around paving. Apart from our garden, I know of only the one in Woodlands Avenue; where ours came from.
Click here to go to the Arenaria montana page in Karin’s Garden.
Paulownia tomentosa – Foxglove Tree
Covered in large trusses of fragrant, lilac flowers in early spring.
There are a number of P. tomentosa around Tasman. Possibly the most striking in Motueka was on Whakarewa Street, until it was cut down a few years ago – an act that will probably remain beyond my understanding for life. In full flower these trees are absolutely stunning.
Click here to go to the Paulownia tomentosa page in Karin’s Garden.
Red, orange or yellow trumpet shaped flowers rise above dark green strap-like leaves. Clivia miniata is a cluj p forming perennial which grows from fleshy underground stems.
This is a slightly tricky plant to grow, as it requires a shady spot that is not too dark and which does not dry out too much in summer. Also it may be damaged even by the gentle frosts in Karin’s Garden. And it spreads only slowly, so it takes a while to recover from any setback. However in those gardens where it has found a good spot it is an eye-catching star in its moment. Rather oddly, people tend to admire either the red form or the yellow form but not both.
Click here to view the Clivia miniata page in Karin’s Garden.
This is a large shrub, growing up to 3.0M. Striking large red inflorescences in springtime. Each flowerhead is an absolute joy.
There are two of these striking plants on High Street in Motueka. Possibly a casual driver by might presume they had just passed a Rhododendron, but this is much more special than that. It is well worth stopping to admire. And, curiously for such a wonderful and unusual plant, they are not hard to come by. Ours came from Mitre 10 at a perfectly reasonable price.
Click here to view the Teleopea speciosissima page in Karin’s Garden.
This grows to be a small, spreading, multi-stemmed tree, up to 8M tall with an open growth habit. Racemes of bright yellow flowers cover this plant in spring.
This is just a little large for most gardens, and smaller species are available. Sophora howinsula “Tui’s Gold” is one good example, even if the species comes from Australia, specifically Lord Howe Island in the Tasman Sea, despite the name of the variety.
Click here to view the Sophora microphylla page in Karin’s Garden.
This is a large multi-stemmed bush or small tree, up to 3M tall, with an open growth habit. More than a dozen 5cm long finger-like petals in each flower, covering this large bush before the leaves open.
There are many Magnolia stellatas in Karin’s Garden, ranging in colour from white through to pink. They are easily the most small garden friendly Magnolia and require no maintenance once established. Also, we just don’t get the kind of frosts that can wipe out the year’s blossom overnight. If you can plant yours so that the ground under the plant is in shade during the heat of a summer day, then that will help greatly in the long run.
Click here to view the Magnolia stellata “Jane Platt” page in Karin’s Garden.
This one of the tallest Aloes, reaching up to 3M. Tall spikes of bright red flower buds in spring. This is a very striking plant, even when not in flower.
This is not a common plant in Karin’s Garden, possibly because it does grow into a large plant. The one in our personal garden has grown to about 2½M, as you can see in the picture below. And the long, succulent leaves are edged with sharp spines which do tend to snag a passer-by.
Click here to view the Aloe speciosa page in Karin’s Garden.
This is a hardy, spring flowering bulb growing to 30cm, and working as ground-cover once established. Nodding yellow, pink or white flowers over marbled foliage in early spring.
There are few Erythroniums in Karin’s Garden, though I am not sure why. They flower in Late August / Early September and provide a wonderful continuation from Snowdrops and Crocus. They are not easy to find, so get them whenever you can. And the nomenclature may be uncertain – if you see a yellow variety named as E. revolutum that is unlikely to be right. But it honestly does not matter, they are all charming.
Click here to view the Erythronium page in Karin’s Garden.