Plants to Crave in 2011 - Fresh Variegation Brightens the Day

It's pouring rain in Langley and the wind is wuthering around the house - the garden is about as sodden as it ever gets. But the thought of new plants for spring is a sure spirit-raiser, so here's a couple of fragrant beauties, just coming on the market, to lighten up your day.

Forget that my Daphne odora 'Aureomarginata' is mostly defoliated from hard freezes - hope springs anew with a colorful sport discovered in England called 'Rebecca'. It has the same sweetly scented pink flowers flowers in March, but the leaves are more vividly variegated than the original.  The stripes are wider and more buttery yellow, and perhaps the flowers are a softer shell pink. As you can see, it's a gorgeous little shrub, but the true excitement will lie in finding out if 'Rebecca' is as fragrant and how it holds up to winter weather...

I love wallflowers for their sturdy, old-fashioned little flowers, sweet scent, long bloom time, and for how well they hold up in the garden and in the vase. New Erysimum 'Fragrant Star' is boldly variegated, with bright lemon yellow flowers. It's more compact than the familiar 'Fragrant Sunshine', and it blooms from April to at least July, and may well continue into autumn if you give it lean soil and good drainage. The chocolate/purple buds contrast well with the pale foliage, and the bright flowers will cheer up our gardens just as I hope their photo lifts January gloom for a few mintues, anyway...

 

 

Comments

[Denise]

That wallflower is a powerful gloom buster. I'll be keeping an eye out for sources.

[Ali]

Where can I get these flowers?
Do deers, rabbits, or slugs have appetite on these? If so how can I prevent them from eating?

[valerie Easton]

Hi Ali,
Both the daphne and wallflower will be in nurseries later this spring. They're both being marketed by PlantHaven - you can check out their website to see which nurseries they supply that are near to you. But I wouldn't expect to see either plant available before March, and probably later into April and May...
Val

[barbarat05@yahoo.com]

I saw this last year and purchase it for the first time, problem is -it looks dead? Should it be green always? I live in Nevada zone 5 some say 7 but it is complely brown twigs? I kept thinking it was going to get some leaves on it soon but reading it should be flowering about now. So sadly I think i lost it.