In our garden, planted near a silver maple that lets very few plants grow, this plant has not only allowed us to garden in the spirit of ...Read Morea cottage garden without much sun in that spot, but also, in concert with certain other companions, has afforded one of those sections of our garden that pretty much takes care of itself.
For us, the color is more of a deep, rosey pink which is set off beautifully by a sweep of the "silvery" Japanese painted fern (Athyrium pictum), and its airy, candelabra shape of bloom contrasts well with a nearby clump of an unnamed giant, blue, pleated hosta. A dark-purple leaved plum (Prunus cistena) gave depth to this combination for many years before it expired, but the same leaf color lingers in self-sown streams of Viola labradorica.
The leaves appear late in the spring, so this plant is a natural for underplanting spring bulbs.
Once established, we have seldom had to water this spot, but note that I double-trenched the area myself with lots of humusy, organic matter dug in before I planted. The area was mulched once a year for a while, but now is naturally mulched by autumn leaf-fall.
In our garden, planted near a silver maple that lets very few plants grow, this plant has not only allowed us to garden in the spirit of ...Read More