On the 7th of February, all eight hundred chairs in the Rainier Room of the Washington State Convention Center were taken. Even more people, who attended the Northwest Flower and Garden Show, were standing along the walls. Dan Hinkley used two big screens to show his favorite plants. Well, some of his favorite plants. How would you select just a couple of dozen if there were thousands of plants to choose from? Nevertheless, here they are, several of the many plants which are beautiful, reliable and suitable for the Pacific Northwest. In addition to these qualities, many of them were chosen by Dan for the memories he has for certain people, places and circumstances.
We are very grateful to Dan Hinkley for sharing with us, in his own words,
'25 (or so) plants I will always have in my garden'.
Actually, there were 39 of them which he described with professionalism and passion!
I allowed myself to include some pictures, links and videos.
Natives
1. Erythronium revolutum Glacier Lily
2. Camassia leitchlinii Quamash
3. Arctostaphylos densiflorus HE McMinn Manzanita
4. Arbutus menziesii Pacific Madrone
From China
5. Davidia involucrata, Dove Tree
6. Magnolia wilsonii, deciduous and fragrant
7. Sassafras tzumu Chinese Sassafras
8. Stachyurus salicifolia 'Sparkler' Winter Spike
9. Hamamelis mollis Chinese Witch Hazel
10. Hydrangea aspera Plum Passion
11. Hydrangea angustipetala Golden Crane, fragrant
12. Mahonia Lionel Fortescue
13. Helwingia japonica and Helwingia chinensis ( berries form on leaf blade )
herbaceous perennials
14.Beesia deltophylla, purple new growth, clumping, evergreen, for shade only (See video):
15. Disporum longistylum Green Giant, bamboo like effect to 5' in height, non spreading
16. Cypripedium formosanum, the best terrestrial orchid for use in the PNW
17. Mukdenia rossii Crimson Fans, for moist soils, brilliant red foliage color as summer progresses
18. Corydalis solida George Baker ( brick red flowers, late winter, spring ephemeral)
19. Cyclamen hederifolilum, autumn flowers, winter foliage
From Vietnam
20. Magnolia insignis, evergreen, large pink goblets for a long period in early spring
21. Schefflera alpinia, Hardy Schefflera
(Schefflera taiwaniana from Taiwan )
22. Edgeworthia chrysantha, deciduous 'daphne' used for paper production
In the upper picture is Edgeworthia papyrifera.
Edgeworthia chrysantha is much more winter hardy, below 0 degree F.
Additional information on Edgeworthia is Here
vines
23. Holboellia coriacea 'Cathedral Gem'
24. Holboellia brachandra, white flowers, large edible fruit
25. Aristolochia kaempferi ( clever pollination strategy of 'collecting' living gnats inside flower )
From Australia
26. Grevillea victoriae, winter flowers, hummingbird attracting, orange/red flowers
27. Acacia pravissima, evergreen tender, late winter soft yellow flowers, quick to establish ( see video):
28. Leptospermum scoparium, evergreen, lovely bark, summer flowers of white
From New Zealand
29. Olearia cheesmanii, white flowers fragrant of coconut oil, self cleansing, evegreen (see video):
30. Pseudopanax crassifolius and P. ferox, lancewoods with long narrow foliage with clever protective strategy from predation by Moas
From Chile
31. Embothrium coccineum, Chilean Fire Tree
Drimys winteri 'Pewter Pillar'
32. Gunnera chilensis, Giant Prickly Rhubard ( herbaceous perennials with enormous foliage )
Gunnera in Far Reaches Farm, WA
33. Lobelia tupa, Red flowers on tall stems, highly attractive to hummingbirds
Good post on Lobelia tupa is in Linda Cochran's Garden blog.
From South Africa
34. Eucomis pole-evansii, giant pineapple lilly
35. Melianthus major 'Antanow's Blue', Giant Honey Bush
36. Agapanthus species and cultivars, Lily of the Nile with late summer flowers of rich blue
Agapanthus that came to my garden from Windcliff
37. Dierama pulcherrimum, Wand Flower
38. Rhodocoma capensis, a hardy 'Restio' grass relative with graceful arching stems of evergreen foliage to 5' (photo Here)
From Burma
From Burma
39. Cymbidium iridioides
Additional information Here
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I certainly will look to add some of these plants to my existing collection.
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I certainly will look to add some of these plants to my existing collection.
I so wanted to attend this lecture (and all of the NWFGS) but the snow and ice here in Portland kept me at home. Thank you for the fabulous recap!
ReplyDeleteHi Loree! We got a lot of snow on the 8th and 9th, but it's melting and, I guess it's nothing in comparison with what you got!
DeleteAnd thank you for sharing this wonderful list with us!
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteIt should be an absorbing lecture if someone talk about it with solid professionalism and passion...!
ReplyDeleteEven my non-gardening DH loved it!
DeleteThank you for posting this! glad to see the names of several plants from my own garden.
ReplyDeleteThank you Steve!
DeleteI let another year roll around without making it to Seattle for the Flower and Garden Show. Thank you so much for sharing with us. I can see you put a lot of time and effort in this and am looking forward to seeing all of the videos and websites you have included along with the photos of your own garden. I've heard Dan speak before and enjoyed it very much.
ReplyDeleteHi Karen! I do appreciate your note! Hope to see you at the NWFGS next year!
DeleteWow, there are so many plants here that I've never heard of. Some would grow in my garden, but many would not. Still, I want to learn more about them just because I'm curious. Thanks! I remember being fascinated with Gunnera when I saw it at Kew Gardens in London.
ReplyDeleteThank you Beth! I'm wondering if my brand new Gunnera will survive after our recent cold temperatures.
DeleteI wonder how these plant explorers remember all these name? I could not even pronounce many of these names. So much information out there and so many different plants. I took down some notes while watching those video.
ReplyDeleteKL, thanks! Some names are tricky... Practice, practice, practice...
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