GardenWeek Virtual Visits August 9, 1999
Editor's Journal

Unlike the main part of the Flower Garden with its narrow and nearly covered grass paths, the view from the deck of the house to the Black Garden is that of a more traditional herbaceous garden--a wide lawn with the flowering borders on each side. Moving down the lawn away from the deck, there are some dark leaved plants mixed in with the green leaved plants in the first half of the border, then, beyond the Cornus Bed on the left and the Birch Bed on the right, we enter the Black Garden with its collection of dark leaved plants--some of which we saw on July 5. Continue.
Click any image to see it larger, then close that window to continue.

Standing on the deck and looking at the left bed we find a wonderful assortment of textures and colors--with the dark leaves of Perilla frutescens hinting at what is to come in the Black Garden beyond.
From the Deck to the Left
From the Deck to the Right
 Standing on the deck and looking at the right bed with a dark leaved Canna in the back and the dark leaves of the bushy annual native to the mountains of India and China, Perilla frutescens, in the front.
Dark leaved Cannas, the very shiny and tropical looking leaves of Alocasia macrorrhiza--native to Ceylon and the East Indies and known as Taro or Giant Elephant's Ear--and the low dark leaved Eupatorium rugosum 'Chocolate' on the right.
Dark and Tropical
Dark and Tropical
 The tropical leaves of Alocasia macrorrhiza, this time behind the dark leaves of Perilla frutescens.
Dark leaved Cannas in the back right, Atriplex hortensis 'Rubra' in the front left and a Ginger native to India and Burma--Hedychium coccineum var. angustifolium--on the right.
Canna, Atriplex, and Hedychium
Perilla frutescens
 A close-up of Perilla frutescens.
Dark leaved Oxalis triangularis. The genus is from the word "oxys" meaning acid from the taste of the sap--and perhaps the species is from the shape of the leaves which is sort of triangular?
Oxalis triangularis
Canna and Ginger
 Another Ginger-- Hedychium coronarium-- in front of another dark leaved Canna caught with the sun light shining through the leaves.
Not in the Black Garden--but it could be--the light pink flowers of Echinacea purpurea 'Magnus' are a wonderful complement to the Perilla frutescens seen several times above.
Echinacea and Perilla
Echinacea, Perilla, and Artemisia
 Echinacea purpurea 'Magnus' and Perilla frutescens joined by Artemisia absinthium in the back left.
Stonecrop--The Flower Garden Paths

Stonecrop--The Flower Garden Part 1

Stonecrop--The Flower Garden Part 2

Stonecrop--Gunneras and Friends

Stonecrop--In and Around the Woodlands

Stonecrop May 31

Stonecrop July 5

Last Week's Editor's Journal

Editor's Journal Archive

Staff @ GardenWeek