Add height and elegance with graceful perennials
Perennials that carry flowers on spires and spikes fit into any garden
Perennials carry their flowers in many ways; in open sprays, fluffy clouds and tight clusters, but the most graceful are those that produce tall, slender spires and spikes. However tall they are, these plants add contrast to wilder-growing plants and, being slender, they’re less likely to hide the neighbours that grow behind them. The most elegant of the tall varieties is
veronicastrum (Culver’s root) with slim spikes of tiny flowers that can be white, pink or lilac. These form candelabra-like spires above rings of long leaves that look like scaffolding. A ramrod straight plant, veronicastrum blooms from July to September and grows on a soil that doesn’t dry out. If you have a dry soil then Verbena hastata rosea is a good substitute. Less bulky than veronicastrum, although just as tall, the little, pink flowers are carried in slim spires. These seed liberally around the garden, as do the seeds of many verbascum (mullein), which tend to be short lived. Despite this, the sturdy stems are packed with flat, white or yellow flowers that add colourful impact to a border. Digitalis (foxgloves) will do the same job as the taller plants and, being slightly shorter, can be planted in the midst of other perennials without dominating the whole scene. Our native Digitalis
purpurea and the various forms are biennial, which means they flower in the second year of growth, before the whole plant dies. Digitalis lutea, with spires of small, soft yellow, tubular flowers, and D. ferruginea, with brown flowers, live for longer and, like many short-lived plants, will seed freely.
There are a number of perennials that fill the ‘mid-range’ spot in a border. Lythrum (purple loosestrife), a native plant that can be found growing along river banks, has spires of little pink or purple flowers that create a neat clump and thrives in any moist soil. Sidalcea (false mallow) reaches around the same height (60-90cm/2-3ft). The pink or white, saucer-shaped flowers are showier and sit happily among cottage-type garden plants, a style of plant that’s still as popular as ever. Campanula (bellflowers) come in many shapes, but those that carry the blooms in spires will mingle happily towards the front of a flower bed and include
Campanula latiloba and C. persicifolia types. These refined plants carry the big, blue, bell-shaped flowers on slender stems that unless totally battered by wind, will stay upright. Perhaps one of the most intriguing perennials is physostegia,
which is also called obedient plant because the spires of tubular flowers turn as the sun moves.
The shorter forms of veronica (speedwell) are ideal for the very front of the border, including Veronica
gentianoides with sky blue flowers that bloom in early spring. Later on
Veronica spicata ‘Rotfuchs’, with reddish-pink flowers, will extend the flowering period of these charming plants. There are many varieties of
heuchera that can be incorporated with these. They’re a must not only for the misty spires of tiny flowers but also for the mounds of vine-shaped leaves.