Foliage & Fillers

These native wildflowers have clustered flower heads of tiny white flowers that from a distance look like little patches of snow resting on the grass. This famous herb is terrific as a wildflower clump in a blooming meadow, they are also a favourite for cut and dried flower arrangements.

This ever-popular annual is perhaps more versatile than you might imagine – good in the border, most effective as a cut flower in arrangements, a good pot-plant and, not often appreciated – if carefully dried, the colour of the spikes remains unchanged for a considerable time.

Amaranthus caudatus viridis is the green form of the popular drooping amaranthus. The lime green flowers, which slowly fade to cream as they age, form dramatic tassel-like panicles which can grow to 60cm long and seem to drip from the branches in profusion throughout summer and early autumn.

‘Mariska’ is a little known but hardy and compact variety of Dill. With starry bright yellow flower heads, abundant foliage and growing to only 60cm, this well behaved smaller dill is an excellent variety for use as a cut flower filler and is a great variety for the kitchen garden, windowsill or container.

Angelica archangelica is a majestic plant that deserves a prominent position at the back of a border or in a wild part of the garden. All parts of the aromatic plant have culinary or medicinal uses, but it is best known for its candied stems, used as a cake decoration.

With a range of interesting colours, heights and textures, annual ornamental grasses are very easy to grow. Many have graceful, pendant, nodding flowers which are extremely useful in the garden and are a dream for flower arrangers.

Prized for its beautiful silvery foliage, the fine grey-white stems of Artemisia ludoviciana bear silvery-white leaves that are fragrant, fuzzy and soft. This finely textured plant adds a different element to the garden, the texture and leaf form setting them apart from those other garden plants with rather less refined foliage.

Artemisia stelleriana 'Mori's Strain' is a superior, dense, mat-forming selection. Uniquely shaped silver-white felted leaves with deeply divided, rounded lobes, it forms very attractive low mounds, giving an attractive ground-hugging carpet. Its foliage makes a wonderful foil for more colourful flowering plants.

Ornamental Grass Briza maxima has blue green leaves and flower heads that hang like scaly little heart shaped lockets that are tinged with pink from late spring to mid summer. They make a wonderful cut flower and flowering in 10 to 12 weeks from spring sowing, they are very easy to grow to perfection.

Briza media 'The Quaking Grass' has graceful, pendant, large quaking seed heads which erupt over the foliage in summer. They gradually take on golden shades as summer progresses and become almost animated when touched by a gentle summer breeze. An easily-grown plant that prefers richer soil than most grasses and will tolerate semi shade well. Very easy to grow to perfection.

This wonderfully intriguing annual makes a great companion plant for showier flowers in the garden or the vase, the blooms of chartreuse green bring out the colours of other flowers, especially bright ones. Easily grown from seed, it is a particularly unique dried or cut flower.

Amazon Mist is a graceful ornamental grass with arching silver white evergreen foliage, each ending with a slight curl. The flowing mounds of fine textured are lovely spilling over slopes and walls. It adds colour and texture to both summer and autumn displays.

Carex Prairie Fire is an outstanding specimen plant. A very ornamental grass, in full sun the fine leaved foliage erupts into colour like burning embers. In late summer, panicles of rosy flowers appear just above the foliage. For glorious colour, plant in full sun to partial shade.

Cyperus alternifolius is a very popular both as a house plant and pond plant. The bracts are symmetrically arranged in an umbrella formation and held atop elegant stems that sway with the breeze, giving a tropical touch to the garden. They are also excellent when used in fresh or dried floral arrangements.

Daucus carota 'Purple Kisses' is a large flowered chocolate coloured Queen Anne’s Lace. Delicate, lacy, flat-topped clusters in shades of old rose-pink, through burgundy to chocolate, and bloom for most of the summer from just one planting. They look great en masse and the plant pairs well with almost anything in the garden or in the vase.

Our native Queen Anne's Lace is at home in informal settings and a natural addition to a wildflower meadow. With delicate, lacy clusters of flowers, some with a solitary dark, purple flower in the centre, they make good cut flowers and are a lovely filler with other flowers.

Deschampsia cespitosa is a lovely variety of ornamental grass especially valued for it’s tall flower plumes. The sprays of airy delicate flowers, eventually changing to bronze add texture and colour to the winter garden and deliver a knock-out punch to cut-flower arrangements.

'Pixie Fountain' is a dwarf variety of Deschampsia cespitosa, just as pretty as its larger cousin. The flower stems growing to a height of 60cm. Perfect for many situations, adding dimension, texture, and a breezy quality to the garden.

Didiscus caerulea, known as the Blue Lace Flower for its unusual sky-blue flower colour. With delicate lacy umbel shaped flowers, each flower head is composed of tiny, star-shaped, sweetly fragrant flowers. Perfect for the cutting garden and suitable for country cottage style or contemporary arrangements.

Didiscus caerulea 'Pink Lace Flower' is the pink form of this delicate flower. The plants grow to a height of around 60 to 70cm tall and the graceful large flower heads grow to around 8cm across. Easy to grow from seed in any rich soil in full sun, they mix easily with others in the garden or the bouquet.