New plants for 2022

Yes, I am ordering online again, long before local nurseries will open. It's possible I'll discover I would have been able to buy some of these locally, but I am not going to wait and see. I've ordered very few perennials; concentrating instead on ferns and Carexes that will be happy in my mostly shady garden and some shrubs that will help me cut down on maintenance. 

Here are a few of the plants I've ordered, though I know that ordering things early doesn't always mean you will get them. Fingers crossed.

. . .

Asplenium-scolopendrium-Furcata, a hart's tongue fern with lots of fascinating splits. I've had mixed luck with these but plan to add this to the two that have been in my garden a long time.

PLANT DELIGHTS NURSERY

I have had excellent luck with Dryopteris ferns and am always interested in adding more. Dryopteris-cambrensis, aka log fern, can supposedly deal with more heat and humidity than many ferns. It gets 30" x 3' which should be quite a sight eventually. 

PLANT DELIGHTS NURSERY

I've been successful with autumn ferns, making it sensible to try this one: Dryopteris erythrosora var. prolifica (prolific lacy autumn fern). PDN says it's drought tolerant and that the fronds emerge cinnamon red. 

PLANT DELIGHTS NURSERY

This drama queen looks too good to pass up, so I ordered three. Dryopteris wallichiana 'Jurassic Gold' hails from the Jurassic coast of England. Will it really look like this? I'll let you know. 

WHITE FLOWER FARM

I also ordered three of Dryopteris affinis crispa 'Congesta', a dwarf crisped golden-scaled male fern. I tend to have more large ferns and don't find many small ones that appeal to me. 

KEEPING IT GREEN NURSERY

I've had a lone Osmunda claytoniana, Interrupted fern, growing in the front garden for years. I decided it was time to give it some company, so I'm adding two more. It's a Wisconsin native. 

PRAIRIE NURSERY

I ordered five Carex exurbina, Ivory sedge, to put around the big tree off the deck. At 6"-1' x 1' they will be small enough that I can slip a shrublet in between, but big enough to make a statement. 

PRAIRIE NURSERY

I planted one Carex morrowii 'Silk Tassel' last summer and like it so much I'm adding five more this summer. At 1' x 2' they will make a lovely contrast on the Tea House berm with evergreen shrubs, blue Hostas and Hakonechloa grass. 

PLANT DELIGHTS NURSERY

I have been lusting for a ruby muhly grass for years and finally found one listed for Zone 5, Muhlenbergia reverchonii 'Undaunted'. Really looking forward to giving this a try.

WHITE FLOWER FARM

Before I ordered anything I determined where the plant would go. Then I made my usual id cards for each plant and noted its exact location on the back side of the card. At first I grouped the cards by the nursery where I ordered them.

Later I decided it made more sense to group them by the location where they would be planted. That way I can mentally go through what is already growing, what I'm adding and whether I need anything else.

Comments

[Kris P]

I wish I was half as organized as you are with your approach to mail order plant purchases. I just placed another bulb order with only half-formed ideas as to where they'll go when they arrive in March or April. I love all the ferns you've chosen, especially Dryopteris 'Jurassic Gold'. If ferns had greater chances of survival here, I'd buy many more but I've only got a few that have lived beyond their first summer, which makes them a poor investment.

[Linda Brazill]

KRIS P. — I find bulbs difficult because I am always having to put them in between flourishing plants. So any sense of a plan gets lost and confused instantly. I am waiting for spring to see how last autumn's planting turns out. ​

[Elizabeth]

All those ferns are so pretty, but I know better than to try them here in SoCal -- they would be crunchier than corn flakes in a heartbeat. I'm loving the gentle transformation of your garden. You make it look deceptively easy to accomplish. What a beautiful peaceful place it is!

[danger garden]

Wow, you are very organized! I still haven't managed to complete the addition of my 2020 or 2021 purchases onto the list I keep on my blog.

Excellent purchases by the way!

[Linda Brazill]

DANGER — When I order something I make an index id card immediately. When I purchase something in person, I try to make the card out before I plant what I've bought. It works pretty well these days. But there are a few trees or shrubs that I have no cards for; thus no idea of their age.

[Linda Brazill]

ELIZABETH — Of course, I am always lusting after all those SoCal plants I can't grow! Thanks for the kind words about the garden.

[Beth@PlantPostings]

Exciting purchases! The ferns are beautiful. I'll have to look into that Muhly Grass...I didn't know any of them were hardy to zone 5. We have Purple Love Grass (Eragrostis spectabilis) up at our cottage, and it has a similar look, en masse. Happy garden dreaming. :)

[Linda Brazill]

BETH — I just discovered purple love grass on a recent online talk. I will try that if I see it locally to buy. Probably a smarter purchase than the muly. ​