Easy things to grow:

Easy things to grow

Could we start with one thing being offered by Mark Brown a true fun delight. Eomecon Chionantha - China. Snow poppy. 10cm rounded somewhat succulent leaves on 30cm stems. 5cm white flowers with yellow centres on 40cm stems. Eomecon is a Papaveraceae. Just the one species, herbaceous perennial with staining orange sap.

This species is well suited to the large rock garden or container, or even to a large open garden. The creeping rhizomes on this will cover a very wide space, quickly. This blighter needs to be contained, for it can quickly cover a couple of square metres.

This said, it makes a charming picture and given humus rich soil and partial shade, then this plant will always be there for you; with the added bonus of each spring, you can dig up some of the rhizomes and share them with friends.

Another good little doer is: Hormium pyrenaicum - with it's Ramonda like leaves rosettes and short spikes of blue flowers. This comes from the Alps and Pyrenees and adapts well to all gardens; even at sea level. This is suited both to the rock garden and the open garden where it will often self seed when happy. If you don't have a rock garden, plant this where you have bulbs requiring good drainage and some partial sun protection.

Hormium pyrenaicum likes slightly alkaline soils. Propagation is by seed in Spring, if you wish to share them around with family and friends. Otherwise, just let it self sow of it's own accord; random flowers of this looks the best. But then, I tend to like an unstructured garden that looks as though Nature is at work, rather than a regimented formal layout. Even the foliage of this is a delight, with it's small clump forming rosettes coarsely crenate, deep green and heavily wrinkled. The violet blue flowers appear in mid to late summer. En masse these flowers take one's breath away, lifting the spirits.

Remember, partial shade, good drainage and a little on the alkaline side and you will have the joy of this with you for the rest of your life.

some real easy Colchicums to grow.