My uncle lives around hundred mile house, zone three (he says) and wants to start a rock garden using plants with blue and red flowers. I looked through my books, and had a hard time finding plants suitable for this area. Any suggestions?
Well, zone 3 isn't really the barren wasteland that one might think, LOL! Okay, I assume to start that "rock garden" doesn't really mean alpine species, in this case - would that be right? (By the way, if it is does mean an alpine garden, then that's a whole different subject... but no shortage of hardy plants either.) Red-flowering perennials (not veering off too far into pinks): Various peonies, especially species Various hardy roses, e.g. 'Champlain', 'The Hunter' Echium russicum Various dianthus Knautia macedonica Various daylilies Yarrow selections, e.g. 'Paprika', 'Walter Funke' Various Phlox paniculata and groundcover species Various tulips Various Heucheras such as 'Firefly', 'Bressingham Hybrids'; are also many with red foliage. Lychnis x arwrightii 'Vesuvius', L. x haageana, and various species, mostly tending toward vermilion; also L. chalcedonica Penstemon pinifolius, P. barbatus coccineus Gaillardia 'Burgundy' Various asiatic lily hybrids; certain martagon lily selections Potentilla atrosanguinea and various hybrids Oriental poppies (basic color leans toward orange) Blue-flowering perennials (not veering off too far into purples): Penstemon nitidus, P. procerus, P. cyananthus and various other amazingly blue species! Brunnera macrophylla Phlox divaricata 'Blue Perfume' Allium azureum Forget-me-nots Campanula barbata Lupinus argenteus blue-eyed grass (Sisyrinchium sp.) Delphinium chinensis; D. elatum - various selections blue flax (Linum sp.) Chionodoxa, grape hyacinth, Iris reticulata, Scilla siberica Various dragonhead species, esp. Dracocephalum ruyschianum Various gentians Anyway, there's a few for starters... all hardy here in zone 3.
I wasn't sure and went and re-read his message... I think he means more like an alpine garden... he wants "plants that will grow between the rocks in blue and red" Sorry to not have been more specific. I will send him suggestions for larger perennials too.
What most people mean by a "rock garden" is a garden bed with regular soil for their area, with a few rocks chunked in here and there... all of those listed will grow in such a setting, between rocks, no problem, LOL! What is meant by "alpine gardens" tends to be a very specific and specialized type of gardening, that usually features plants that require sharp drainage (e.g. scree, gravel, sand) to prosper - the plants tend to be (though are not necessarily) tiny, bun-shaped and mat-forming species, often from high-altitude situations in nature. Anyway...
You might want to suggest that your uncle take a trip to Edmonton's Devonian Botanic Garden to see a similarly-zoned alpine garden.
