| Where the garden meets the wild | |||
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SOLDANELLA SOLDANELLA, SNOWBELL Primulaceae (Primula family) |
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Soldanella carpatica. Photograph © Paige Woodward |
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| There are many species of Soldanella in the mountains of Europe, all choice and spring-flowering. They are not always well identified and on top of that, they seem rather willing to cross. For now, we offer only two soldanellas we're pretty sure of. According to Stearn, the name Soldanella describes the plants' rounded, leathery, Asarum-like leaves. It comes from solda, Italian for a small coin. | |||
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Photograph © Paige Woodward |
Soldanella
carpatica Vierhapper. This dainty, deciduous Soldanella is
native to the Carpathian Mountains. It is slow to make offsets. But
so fetching. No doubt it's ideal for a trough or a pot, but we like to divide
it gently, helping it to spread in the damp garden, in part shade, among Primula
and Hepatica spp. Zone 5.
Blooming-size clump. $8.00 |
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Photograph © Paige Woodward |
Soldanella
villosa Darracq
is sometimes considered a synonym of S. montana. Visitors stop and
demand this plant. It is at least twice as large as the previous one, with
bigger, more plentiful eyelashes. It is a good choice for a groundcover
since its rounded leaves are evergreen and it spreads by both seeds and
offsets. In autumn, if we remember
to do so, we roughly divide the denser clumps to form an ever-widening carpet. Zone
6, perhaps colder.
Blooming-size clump. $8.00 |
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| This page was updated March 24, 2008. | |||
