| Where the garden meets the wild | ||||
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THALICTRUM MEADOW RUE Ranunculaceae (Buttercup family) |
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| Thalictrum leaves (from left): aquilegiifolium, occidentale, rochebrunianum, isopyroides. They are all in the same scale. The leaf of Thalictrum aquilegiifolium is 19 cm (7.5") long while that of T. isopyroides is 5 cm (2") long. Scanned montage © Paige Woodward | ||||
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Meadowrues delight us with their feathery heads and dissected leaves. They thrive in full sun, given grasses and herbs to cool their roots; and they do even better in high shade. Put them in the middle storey of your woodland. Interplant them with ferns in a bed where spring bulbs need camouflage as their leaves die down. Make them the carefree backdrop of a border. Tall ones can also be treated as a specimen or the focal point at the end of a path. We even have a couple of very short meadowrues, one suited to the rock garden, the other a ground cover for shade. |
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Photograph © Paige Woodward
Photograph © Pat Woodward |
Thalictrum aquilegiifolium var.
sibiricum Linnaeus. Tang song cao (Chinese). This
majestic plant crowns itself with tight purple buds that burst into masses
of feathery white flowers in June-July. As the name suggests, its leaves
resemble those of the columbine. It does not require staking. Native to
northeastern China, Japan, Korea, Mongolia, and Siberia in Russia. Our
plants are from garden seed. Height to 1.5 m (5'). Zone 6. Pot (10 cm / 4"). In Canada, C$5.00; elsewhere US$4.25. |
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Photograph © Pat Woodward
Photograph © Paige Woodward |
Thalictrum
isopyroides C.A. Meyer. Zi jin ye tang song cao (Chinese).
Small and choice. The flowers are inconspicuous. The beautiful glaucous turquoise-blue-green cast
of the leaves is real. It doesn't show up
in the scanned comparison at the top of this page because it depends on the angle of
illumination. Native to rocky, meagre sites in a wide swathe of
mountainous Central Asia. Our plants are from garden seed. Height 40 cm
(15"). Zone 5, perhaps colder.
Pot (10 cm / 4"). In Canada, C$5.00; elsewhere US$4.25. |
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Photograph © Pat Woodward |
Thalictrum occidentale
A. Gray. Western meadowrue. Male and female flowers occur on separate
plants in this clump-forming species, which blooms in May-July. Our picture shows the dangling tassles of the male plant. The female
has less showy but still beautiful greenish-white asterisks. We don't
separate the sexes; if you want both, please order several plants to
increase the odds you'll get them. Native from British Columbia and Alberta
south to northern California and west to Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and
Utah. Our plants are from wild seeds
collected on Vancouver Island. Height to 100 cm (40"). Zone 5.
Pot (10 cm / 4"). In Canada, C$4.50; elsewhere US$3.75. |
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Photographs © Paige Woodward |
Thalictrum rochebrunianum
Franchet & Savat pink form. Clouds of pendulous pink stars
with thick golden stamens bloom in July-August. They dance on purple stalks
well above the glaucous, blue-green, ternate foliage. Native to Japan and
the Korean Peninsula. Named for the French botanist Alphonse Trémeau de
Rochebrune (1834-1912). The ordinary lavendar-flowered version of this plant
is widely available. We offer stunning pink-flowered plants raised from seed
sent to us by the Vaevankallion Arboretum in Finland. Height about 2 m (6'),
often less but occasionally more! Zone 6, perhaps colder.
Pot (10 cm / 4"). In Canada, C$8.00; elsewhere US$7.25. |
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Photograph © Susan Farmer |
Thalictrum thalictroides (Linnaeus)
A.J. Eames & B. Boivin. Rue-anemone, Windflower. Also known as
Anemonella thalictroides. White stars with a burst of
gold in the centre rise from a small cluster of tubers to bloom in May above grey-green
ternately compound leaves. The only Thalictrum with Anemone-like
sepals, this beauty spreads happily in damp duff or loam, given dappled shade.
Native to deciduous woods and moist banks in central Canada (far-southern Ontario and Quebec)
and most of the eastern United States. Our plants descend from Tennessee stock.
Height to 30 cm (12"). Zone 5.
Tuber cluster (Fall shipping only). In Canada, C$4.50; elsewhere US$3.75. |
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