(Bugbane)

Native to Russia and a large part of eastern Asia, autumn snakeroot is a tall perennial with leafed flowerstalks topped by arching racemes of white flowers in autumn. These are borne above clumps of bright green or purplish green foliage with toothed leaflets.

Autumn snakeroot prefers fertile, humus-based, well-drained soil and a partially shaded, evenly moist location. A graceful plant, it may need staking to best show off its stately form. Use it as an accent plant in a woodland garden or...

(Black Bugbane, Black Negligee Bugbane)

Black Negligee autumn snakeroot is a tall, striking perennial with very attractive dark foliage from eastern Asia. Its leafed purple flowerstalks are topped by arching racemes of clear white flowers in autumn. These are borne above clumps of ashy dark purple foliage with toothed leaflets.

'Black Negligee' prefers fertile, well-drained soil with humus and a partially shaded, evenly moist location. A graceful plant, it may need staking to best show off its form, especially in windier locales when...

(Brunette Bugbane, Bugbane)

Brunette autumn snakeroot is a tall, striking perennial with rich, exquisite foliage from eastern Asia. Its leafed purple flowerstalks are topped by arching racemes of creamy, purple-tinged flowers in autumn. These are borne above clumps of deep brownish-purple foliage with toothed leaflets.

'Brunette' prefers fertile, well-drained soil with humus and a partially shaded, evenly moist location. A graceful plant, it may need staking to best show off its form, especially in windier locales when flowering...

(Bugbane, Hillside Black Beauty Bugbane)

Hillside Black Beauty autumn snakeroot is a tall, striking perennial with rich, black foliage from eastern Asia. Its leafed purple flowerstalks are topped by arching racemes of white or light pink flowers in autumn. These are borne above clumps of lustrous dark purple to black foliage with toothed leaflets. The fragrant flowers will attract butterflies.

'Hillside Black Beauty' prefers fertile, well-drained soil with humus and a partially shaded, evenly moist location. A graceful plant, it may...

(Canada Thistle)

Canada thistle is a fierce and aggressive weed foe. Impossibly extensive, deep root systems make this one of the toughest weeds to eradicate from garden spaces. It's small, purplish, brush-like flower heads produce loads of puffy airborne seeds that float away to colonize new space, and its prickly foliage is painful to the touch. Despite the common name, Canada thistle, this species was introduced to North America from Eurasia. Its remarkable tolerance to many growing conditions means it can be...

(Alionushka Clematis, Clematis, Integrifolia Clematis)

This unique, floriferous clematis displays numerous rose-pink, nodding, bell-shaped flowers from late spring to frost. Developed in the Ukraine in 1969, ‘Alionushka’ resulted from a cross between the climbing hybrid ‘Nezhdannyi’ and the bushy species Clematis integrifolia. Its habit is intermediate between that of its parents, and it is at its best when planted among shrubs and perennials in the mixed border, where its tumbling stems can weave themselves among the other plants of the garden.

The...

(Addison Brown's Clematis, Addison's Leather Flower, Clematis)

Although a rare American wildflower, Addison's leather flower adapts well to garden culture and proves to be easy to grow. Its crowning glory are the lavender-purple and creamy white flowers that occur in spring's warmth. This herbaceous perennial is native only to four counties in west-central Virginia, in the dry woodlands on non-acidic soils.

The plant forms a clump with multiple erect to sprawling stems. In some cases the stems twine around nearby plants to reach upward to the light. In mid-spring...

(Clematis, Curlyheads)

Just like blooming Virginia bluebells, curlyheads are a sign of spring's return. The nodding, urn- to bell-shaped flowers are the "curlyheads" of fame, but the ensuing seed head is an ornamental spectacle. This clump-forming herbaceous perennial is a rare native of the dry woodlands from southern New Jersey to northern Georgia. It often pops up over limestone rocks in sunny woodland openings.

The stems grow erect or partially flop; this is not a vining clematis species whatsoever. The hairy stems...

(Clematis, Durand's Clematis)

A hybrid between the deciduous vine Clematis x jackmanii and the herbaceous perennial C. integrifolia, this tall, sprawling, shrubby perennial produces masses of distinctive deep indigo, saucer-shaped flowers with yellow eyes in summer. Seedheads with ornamental silvery plumes follow the flowers. The undivided, oval leaves are dark green.

This plant does best in sun or light shade and humus-rich, well drained soil. Cut the stems back to a hand's breadth from the ground in early spring to promote...

(Asiatic Dayflower)

Sprawling in habit, Asiatic dayflower bears bright blue and white flowers from summer to frost - two upper petals are blue while the lower white petal is tiny and makes the blossom look like a face. An herbaceous perennial that spreads by seed and roots at nodes on its horizontal stems, it is native to Asia. Its tolerance for moist soils often finds it growing as a weed in ditches, lawns or waste areas.

The partially upright but often crawling stems are green to sienna in color, and have long...