Heritage Perennials® are grown by Valleybrook Gardens, an innovative and leading producer of over 1500 varieties of perennials, hardy ferns and ornamental grasses. Our distinctive blue pots of HERITAGE PERENNIALS® are available from independent retailers and dealers in many parts of Canada and the USA. We're passionate about perennials! We hope this newsletter helps you to enjoy your perennial gardening even more.

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Our best-selling book, the Perennial Gardening Guide is a handy reference used by gardeners across North America — written by our own Horticulturist, John Valleau. Released March/2003 in a brand new 4th edition!

During cocktail party conversation, to be able to mumble that you had to go out and deadhead the pansies or roses in January, or cut the grass on Christmas Day (I've always wanted to do that!) is 100 bonus points in the game of my-garden-is-better-than-yours. And even if boasting is not your style, it's a very special thing to stroll about and glimpse those amazingly tough tissue-thin blooms still hanging on through below-freezing temperatures.

One plant in particular amazes me in my garden. Winter Jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum) is mainly a spring bloomer here, but if just the right cool late-fall conditions are followed by a mild December, the thing suddenly begins to flower. This year it had a dozen of more tiny yellow flowers that appeared about December the 15th. The little 1/2-inch wide blooms aren't fragrant; in fact you can hardly even see them from ten feet away. The plant grows as sprawling, leafless green stems that turn a sickly olive tone during the winter. The thing is in permanent bondage, tied to a pole, always thrusting out stems that block the adjacent path and threaten to poke out an eye. It's straggly and never especially attractive. So why do I keep the thing?

Most years this is the last plant to flower in winter and first one to bloom in the spring. It's the sole flower that offers that first glimpse of things to come, a confirmation that spring is on its way. Even today, under 6 inches of fresh snow and after a week of hideous freezing temperatures, I know those flowers are still there somewhere.

Most of us gardeners justify growing at least one plant that any impartial judge would immediately yank out and send on a one-way trip to the compost pile. See our January contest below. We'd like to know about any special plants that you can't bear to remove. Call it sentimental justification...

"One sure way to keep the garden withdrawal symptoms at bay is to not stop gardening at all. I spend the winter months nurturing approximately 200 cuttings and assorted houseplants under sets of grow lights and on various window sills. I also grow most of my annuals from seed, including tuberous begonias, geraniums, and double impatiens as well as a host of other unusual types that are hard to find in garden centres. Some of these plants are destined for my own garden, but many find their way into the local Horticultural Society's plant sale in the spring. Which brings me to another super way to keep the gardening spirit alive through the winter months; active participation in a Horticultural Society. Learning, working, and having fun with like-minded people has gotten me through many a dreary winter day. Cheers and happy gardening to all." Helen -- Ancaster, Ontario

"My favorite winter gardening project is serving as mentor to the middle and high school kids preparing projects for the science fairs. This time of year they are really searching for projects, and we can usually find a good match in the perennial plant arena. It's pretty frozen here, so they depend on bringing plants indoors and stimulating them to begin their spring burst. Some research on vernalization has been done by one of the big horticulture schools, and it is available on the net [The University of Vermont is one such site]. Another idea is to start perennials from seed under unusual conditions, like on the surface of a 33rpm phonograph, to see if you can overcome the effects of gravity. There are thousands of possibilities, and the pleasure of introducing another human to the joys of perennials is always rewarding." David -- Juneau, Alaska

"In the winter I take good care of my indoor plants which often are neglected over the summer. I have mostly tropicals now, having over-watered and killed my African Violets! I also work on scrapbooking. Our Garden Club has an album with pictures of various events, speakers, etc. and I put it together. Working on it reminds me of all the beauty in our community." Beth -- Brackendale, British Columbia

"Living in Alberta, we are subject to many lovely Chinooks, and during these warm spells I sit on my deck and try to imagine what my plans are for the next year. My garden is only three years old and because I have such a huge yard, I must have a very active imagination! I use the snow for pacing out where the next bed or retaining wall will be. I try to picture the arbour that will be built in the spring to replace one that was blown over this year and is a necessity for a most beautiful Clematis. On extremely cold days I read my garden journal and make plans on what I will do differently next spring." Maggie -- Calgary, Alberta

"In winter when I get a little time, I like to relax by making garden-related items and making more hypertufa troughs [excellent instructions for this may be found at Fine Gardening]. Every year I focus on different projects. This year it is taking old recycled wooden window frames which I turn into interesting stained glass windows. I place the windows outside in locations where the sun can shine through the glass. It makes an interesting, colorful form of art to compliment my gardens." Judy -- Perth, Ontario [Thanks to Judy for sending in photos of her handiwork, seen to the right and above. Beautiful!]

"Chores imply work that must be attended to with some regularity and considerable urgency. Instead, I offer some of the transient 'activities' I have enjoyed: Examining tree buds and fancying that they are just a big fatter than last week. Walking the dogs in the back field and discovering evergreens planted long ago. Admiring cranberries against the cedars and birches. Observing that ornamental grasses are a fine adornment to winter. Reminding myself to put more grasses in the landscape next year. Meandering through catalogues. Making over-the-top lists of must-have trees and perennials. Visiting greenhouses the first weekend in February to defeat the mid-winter blaahs. Reading new gardening books and rereading old ones. Marveling at the resilience of old foes such as chickweed." Lynn -- somewhere in Canada

Each year the members of the Perennial Plant Association vote to determine which plant meets their criteria for the best perennial. When you look at the selections over the years it may not be easy to see what unites this group of plants. What could a 'Palace Purple' Heuchera have in common with a 'Butterfly Blue' Scabiosa?

The criteria for Perennial Plant of the Year have to do with performance and production. The plant must be easy to care for, able to thrive across a wide range of conditions, be simple to produce from seeds or cuttings and have seasonal interest. The Japanese Painted Fern surpasses the criteria and makes a wonderful addition to any shade garden.

The main display feature for 'Pictum' is the showy fronds, which have an almost electric sheen of silver-grey with subtle undertones of red and steel blue. The stems are also tinted with burgundy. She grows 12 to 18 inches (30 to 45 cm) high and will multiply to form a clump 18 to 24" wide (45 to 60 cm). This needs to be planted in partial to full shade and although rated to Zone 4 has performed successfully in Zone 3 under protected conditions with winter mulch. In colder, dryer climates one must provide adequate moisture although good drainage is a necessity. If you have only one fern in your garden, this would be the one to have.

It is curious how consumers will plant a shrub and wait years for it to mature but with perennials they demand that the plant perform in its first year. The Japanese Painted Fern may or may not be pretty grown in a small pot so don’t expect too much! However, hands down, it is the most spectacular fern in the landscape or an established container planting.

With its brilliant colour and texture, 'Pictum' makes an excellent companion for a plethora of other shade-tolerant or shade-loving plants. With their similar metallic foliage, selections of Brunnera like 'Jack Frost' or Lamium 'Pink Pewter' would meld nicely with this fern. The fern's finely-serrated fronds stand out uniquely against the contrasting foliage of the big leaved Brunnera, or the low groundcover growth of the Lamium.

The amount of research put into this hefty volume is truly astounding. Marjorie has dug up trivia from all ends of the earth to provide exactly the kind of read that I adore. Descriptive, detailed writing from a botanical and historical point of view without all of the dry stuff. She's provided accurate descriptions for hundreds of plants without bogging us down in scientific details of stamen length or specifics of leaf-bud scars.

This is Botany for the layman, for the addicted gardener, and backed up with hundreds of beautiful color photos. But what Harris has done so especially well is to distill the thousands of native plants of our continent down to those that have had the biggest impact on mankind. She starts with the plants of the Eastern part of the continent and works out, so one almost has the sense that they are looking through the bewildered eyes of a pilgrim, attempting to make sense of a strange new world. The ethnobotanical references are superb -- telling the story of how mankind has made use of native plants for every imaginable purpose from timber to medicine, food, dyestuff, fiber, fuel and fodder.

This is going to go down as a very important reference work for those doing historical garden and botanical research, but it also tells "the story" of so many of our common garden plants, no matter where you happen to live. The flavor is refreshingly non-Eurocentric, with a distinct tone of sadness at times for an entire continent of flora and fauna now irretrievably conquered.

My only complaint is the weight of this book, enough to cause carpal tunnel or a concussion if hurled. One almost requires a music stand to hold the book up. I won't recommend this book to those with only a faint interest in plants or gardens. But for those who are passionate readers, watchers of television nature shows, hikers, campers, gardeners or naturalists, this book will keep you intrigued for many hours and it's one we will all keep coming back to again and again.