Perennials
The term perennial essentially means that the plant is expected to live for more than two years.
There are evergreen perennials and deciduous perennials.
Herbaceous plants do not have a woody structure like a shrub or a tree.
Deciduous plants lose their leaves during a particular season (usually winter).
Herbaceous Deciduous Perennials are often referred to simply as 'Herbaceous Perennials'.
This means they usually die back to the ground during autumn / winter.
They regrow from their roots again for you to see shoots again in the spring.
They are popular for adding interest in the way of texture & colour.
The Arum Lily (botanical name Zantedeschia aethiopica)
The Arum Lily is looking lovely at the moment in the garden, I appreciate the simplicity of the funnel-shaped white spathes of this clump-forming herbaceous perennial. (Spathes are formed from a single petal-like bract and are the scrolled, trumpet or chalice shaped flowers that Zantedeschias produce).
It can be semi-evergreen in some parts but my coastal northern garden means it does die back over winter, before the erect, long-stalked, dark glossy green, arrow-shaped leaves begin to emerge again in spring.
The tiny yellow true flowers that form on the dense spike-like spadices attract many pollinators both during the day and at night. The whites spathes acting as night lanterns to attract the night visitors. Later, in autumn, there is further interest when those pollinated flowers develop into pointed orange berry-like fruits.
As with many of my plants, there are multiple plantings in different positions in my garden: of this there is one in the pond and one in a large tub in a gravelled tropical area; the tub has few drilled holes as it does prefer damp or poorly drained conditions.
Although I’ve only ever heard this referred to as an Arum Lily in my small ‘corner’ of the world, it does have many other common names: African lily, Egyptian lily, lily of the Nile, altar lily, calla lily, richardia & trumpet lily; all easier to pronounce than it’s botanical name, & one I always use the common name of as I feel it is fitting with the aesthetic simplicity of this beautiful plant.
Spotty Dotty (Podophyllum Versipelle)
I’m dotty about my Spotty Dotty! Not sure if it’s the spots that remind me of the incessant taunting regarding my freckles I had during my school years when the sun came out, & I liken that to why Spotty Dotty prefers the shade or if it resonates with me because I first heard Adam Frost talk about his love for them on TV & like me Adam is a Fibromyalgia Warrior who finds peace in the garden…or if it simply my love for the intricate patterns & blotches of brown towards the centre moving towards bronze at the outer of the large umbrella shaped leaves which have pointed lobes held upright by a central stem. The umbrellas can vary in shape from hexagonal to almost starburst with age as the points become more prominent.
The Spotty Dotty is a rhizomatous perennial, which has been on my wish for a while, & I only bought it at the beginning of May this year to go in a tropical area I am developing. It’s classed as semi-evergreen so with the climate changes & dependent on the protection it has where it is planted, I’ll be interested to see who how long the foliage lasts. I’m not sure if I’ll be lucky enough for it flower & fruit this first year as I think it needs to mature. The flowers are red, bell shaped & under the leaves. I wouldn’t be crouching down to smell one though if you’re sensitive to smells, all I’m saying is they’re pollinated by flies so think of a Voodoo Lily or if you’ve had a bad experience with a cordyline flower lol. (I really thought about whether to type the words carrion or decaying flesh or not on such a hot day.) If pollinated, they may be followed by red or yellow fruit which is why Spotty Dotty is sometimes referred to as a Mayapple. However, as a word of caution, do not eat it, it’s harmful if ingested! It’s toxic to dogs & cats, but not to birds. My tropical area is mainly potted on gravel & my dogs aren’t allowed on the gravelled area.
This Spotty Dotty is taking its shade from a Tetrapanax Papyrifer Rex, it seems to be a happy underplant combination as they both like moist but well drained soil, but the Rex can cope with more light. I bought them both from Sunk Island Garden Centre they are based in East Yorkshire but are online too @sunkislandexotics
Spotty Dotty is a special addition to my garden that probably most would not notice… but it sits faithfully beside my chair as I write this blog in the shade. That’s it you see, isn’t it? Gardening serves on so many levels, everybody is important, so show kindness out there, gardening is such a leveller of people. Hope you all are having a lovely day.