Smaller versions …
Many growers have been busy producing plants that are petite versions of old favorites. As our gardening spaces shrink in size, these plants fit the bill! Everything from Petite Astilbe to Dwarf Joe Pye Weed, will add a lot of punch without sacrificing variety due of lack of space.
Alchemilla erythropoda, a petite version of Lady's Mantle
Because of it's smaller size, you can use it in containers, but it fits nicely into small spaces and makes a beautiful edging. The foliage is smaller and colors range from lime–green to blue–green. The leaf margins are serrated, looking like they were cut with tiny pinking shears. Blooms from late spring thru early summer with sprays of tiny, yellow-green flowers. Don't be afraid to cut as they are long-lasting flowers and can be dried for future use… deadheading promotes reblooming too.
Alchemilla likes partial shade and average moisture, it may burn in full sun and doesn´t tolerate the heat of the south; it prefers the cool, moist summers of the north. Attracts butterflies, and is Rabbit Resistant. USDA Hardiness Zones 3-7
Astilbe chinensis Pumila
A colorful ground cover for the shade! Extend the Astilbe season with this petite and colorful Pumila! The most versatile Astilbe we know. This petite, rosy-pink variety grows just 8 to 15 inches high and wide in the shade and doesn't start blooming until mid to late summer, when most others have stopped!
Pumila is a neat, very easy-to-grow plant, more tolerant of dry soils than other Astilbes and just packed with rosy-pink color! Perfect as a ground cover, a container plant or a shinning gem for the front of the shade garden. Pumila is a trouble-free joy. Best in shade. USDA Hardiness Zones 4-7.
Deutzia, ´Nikko´
Best in full sun, ordinary soil and regular watering. Slender deutzia gracilis ´Nikko´ is considered one of the best deutzia cultivars and is a dwarf form (2-3 ft). This deciduous shrub has light green leaves on arching stems, but differs from 'Slender Deutzia' because the foliage turns deep burgundy in fall. Spikes of starry white flowers bloom in profusion for 2 weeks in May. A beautiful selection for rock gardens, ground cover, massing or foundation planting. Slow growing… as it will spread to only 5 feet wide in 10 years if left unpruned.
Eupatorium dubium, ´Little Joe´ Coastal Plain Joe Pye Weed…
It´s not so little, but the average size is only 4 ft. tall and wide, compared to the full size version of Joe Pye Weed which normally grows to 10 or 12 ft high. So if you've been longing for this herbaceous as a specimen or a wonderful backdrop to your perennial border, this might be the answer. Dome–shaped heads of small mauve flowers cover the top of the plant above deep green leaves and attract butterflies. It blooms midsummer, cold hardy in zones 4-8 and heat tolerant zones 3-10, likes full to partial sun.
<Photo courtesy of: plantdelights.com>
Follow a regular watering schedule during the first growing season (when top 3 in. of soil is dry) to establish a deep, extensive root system. Divide clumps every 2–3 years in early spring.
Ferns
The Deer fern (Blechnum spicant), resembles a miniature Sword fern but smaller with rounded fronds. Deer ferns are native to Europe, Northeast Asia and Western North America. They are now considered threatened in many parts of Europe. Deer ferns are distinctive because they have two different types of fronds, the fertile fronds grow taller of the two (up to 36"), and grow out of the center of each clump and dry out by autumn. The sterile fronds are shorter (18") and thicker, surround the fertile ones, and remain evergreen. The plant spread is about 36" and are perfect for the average garden. They are a very durable and a low maintainance plant which can be used in difficult situations such as under cedars or in deep shade.
Photo was taken by Jennifer Rehm for Wallace W Hansen, Native Plants of the Northwest
They are drought tolerate but do best if kept damp. They should be planted in a rich humus acid (pH 5.0-6.5) soil and prefer full shade but will grow in most light conditions except full sun. Deer ferns are cold hardy in zones 5-8)
The Pterophyta are the second largest division of the plant kingdom. There are 20,000 species of ferns compared to about 250,000 flowering plants alive today, so why not try a few in the shady part of your garden? Most ferns are herbaceous plants, grow well in composted moist soil, are not usually invasive.
Other small ferns to consider are: MAIDENHAIR FERN - Adiantum macrophyllum, JAPANESE PAINTED FERN - athyrium nipponicum "pictum", and the EASTERN WOOD FERN - pryopteris marginalis.
Hosta
Hostas are available in Dwarf or Small sizes, just right to use as borders, fit into small spaces, or even containers… garden centers are carrying more of these pint sized varieties in light shade areas of your garden.
Mack the Knife (Dishon) is pictured here, or look for Cream Cheese Hosta (Lachman), Lakeside Cupcake (Chastain), Amethyst Gem Hosta (Kridler/Zumbar) or ask your local garden center what varieties of dwarf hostas they carry, to size down your gardenscape.
Weigela
Cold-hardy in USDA zones 5-8 Weigela florida: a dwarf flowering shrub, cultivar: Elvera. MIDNIGHT WINE® is ideal for the perennial bed. I´ve always loved plants with dark burgundy-purple leaves and this one can be used as an accent plant or a dramatic mass planting. Consider using it instead of Crimson Pygmy Barberry. Midnight Wine® doesn´t have any thorns and it blooms off and on all summer with rich pink trumpet–like flowers. Compact and dwarf, it allows the freedom to plant in small gardens and in front of foundation plants.
MIDNIGHT WINE® is maintenance free and needs no pruning because its habit is perfect the way it is, and because it's size stays at a compact 2' by 2'. Just give it sun and water and you´ll have intense color from spring to fall.
