Achillea and Heuchera
In the early days the Hen-House Gardens were open and sunny, and I filled them up with rugosa roses and perennials like Achillea and Heuchera. My early photographs look rather lovely, she said wistfully. But that was way back in the day, before the Oak trees grew big and tall.
achillea feuerland
When you look at the flowers of Achillea Feuerland close-up you'll see that the overall colour effect comes from small separate colours, red and yellow. I bought this stunning Achillea by mail order - actually I was typically impatient and bought three plants. When the rugosa rose border by the Hen House was dug out to its limit, this Achillea was one of the prime summer perennials. The photograph below was taken in the summer of 1998.
achillea in the border - summer 1998
I like the fact that it looks like a burnt orange terracotta colour mix (from a distance). Unfortunately as this border matured the neighbouring lavender got a bit pushy - by summer 2004 there was only a small, sad patch of Achillea left, which disappeared, un-noticed by me.
heuchera
This close-up shows the incredible design and markings on the Heuchera leaves at the edge of the Hen House Garden. They make excellent edging plants. They sit well on the stones I use, and their leaf colour makes a great contrast with a freshly mown green lawn. They are one of the perfect foliage plants to grow.
The photograph below was taken early in the Hen House Garden's history in the summer of 1999.
edge of the border in 1999