(Endive, Green Curled Ruffec Endive)

An heirloom variety grown since about 1860, endive ‘Green Curled Ruffec’ is noted for its tolerance to cold, wet conditions. The leaves are much divided and curled or frisée, dark green with a creamy center and have thick tender ribs. This variety is a good choice for salads as wells as cooked, either steamed or boiled. Harvest this selection about 90 days after planting.

This leafy vegetable is surprisingly a member of the daisy family along with radicchio and chicory and easily grown in the...

(Endive)

Big gorgeous heads with tender blanched hearts make escarole ‘Natacha’ a favorite of commercial and home gardeners. The plants are resistant to tipburn, bolting and bottom rot. Natacha is ready fro harvest 48 to 60 days from planting. This selection is great in salads or cooked.

This leafy vegetable is surprisingly a member of the daisy family along with radicchio and chicory and easily grown in the home garden. Thought to be native to India and possible Asia, endive is naturalized in Europe,...

(Radicchio, Wild Chicory)

Native to Europe and the Mediterranean and naturalized worldwide, wild chicory is a clumping perennial grown for its long, lobed, edible leaves and for its stout taproot, which is used as a coffee substitute. It also has medicinal uses, and is sometimes cultivated in ornamental gardens for its flowers.

"Leaf chicories" come in several types. The bitter, dandelion-like leaves of loose-leaf chicories are good in salads (when young) or in cooked dishes. Witloof or Belgian endive bears erect heads...

(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...

(Camphortree, Hardy Cinnamon Tree)

While the most famous cinnamon and camphor trees are best suited to subtropical and tropical climes, the hardy cinnamon is a species perfect for warm temperate climates, too. A broadleaf evergreen tree, it's native to China. As it ages, it develops a dense canopy of foliage on an upright pyramidal frame.

Hardy cinnamon's leaves are elongated, pointy ovals with three obvious parallel veins. As new leaves emerge in spring, they blush a rich rosy copper color with lighter green veins. These highly...

(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...

(Arizona Grape Ivy, Ivy Treebine, Possum Grape, Sorrel Vine)

Very fast-growing and displaying attractive teethed green leaves that fall away in winter, sorrel vine is a versatile vine or groundcover. Native to the southern United States and adjacent parts of northern Mexico, it bears tendrils opposite the leaves that will clasp onto any surface that isn't glass-smooth.

The leathery, succulent green leaves are variable in shape. Usually they're three-lobed but occasional deltoid-shaped blades occur with or without lobes, but always with coarse teeth. Tiny...