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Piet Oudolf's Top 100 plants

Piet Oudolf is a world-famous garden designer, nurseryman and writer. In 2013, he singled out the 100 plants he won't do without and we have them all listed for you here in Shoot.

Piet Oudolf's Top 100 plants

The list is helpfully divided into short-season and filler plants, medium-length season plants, long-season plants and bulbs.

Piet Oudolf's Top 100 plants

The list of short-season and filler plants includes such plants as Briza media (Quaking grass) and Lathyrus vernus (Spring pea). All the these plants are useful for fillings gaps earlier in the year. These plants have interest for less than three months, or good foliage but no real structure. Some look untidy after flowering.

Piet Oudolf's Top 100 plants

Some of Piet's top medium-length season plants includes Acanthus spinosus (Spiny bear's breeches) and Rudbeckia subtomentosa (Sweet coneflower). These retain their interest for at least three months because of their foliage and flowers, structure and seedheads. All of the plants listed below retain interest for at least 3 months because of their foliage, structure and seedheads as well as flowers.

Piet Oudolf's Top 100 plants

Perennials, grasses and ferns with interest for at least nine months because of good foliage structure and seedheads. Long-season plants includes perennials, grasses and ferns, offering interest for at least nine months, such as Digitalis ferruginea (Rusty foxglove) and Helenium 'Moerheim Beauty' (Sneezeweed 'Moerheim Beauty').

Piet Oudolf's Top 100 plants

Piet also lists out the bulbs he likes most. Bulbs are useful as they create interest during the spring months before most perennials emerge and are in active growth. Nectaroscordum siculum (Sicilian honey garlic) and Tulipa 'Lady Jane' (Tulip 'Lady Jane') both made the list for bulbs.

Piet's top short-season and filler plants

Papaver orientale 'Karine'
Geranium psilostemon
Lathyrus vernus
Epimedium grandiflorum
Tricyrtis formosana
Gaura lindheimeri 'Whirling Butterflies'
Delphinium Blue Fountains Group
Geranium nodosum
Briza media
Salvia azurea var. grandiflora
Mertensia virginica
Iris chrysographes
Geranium wallichianum 'Syabru'
Phlox divaricata 'Blue Perfume'
Aconitum carmichaelii (Wilsonii Group) 'Kelmscott'
Maianthemum racemosum subsp. amplexicaule 'Emily Moody'
Heuchera villosa 'Autumn Bride'

 

Medium-length season plants

Acanthus spinosus
Crambe cordifolia
Anemone x hybrida 'Honorine Jobert'
Gentiana asclepiadea
Kirengeshoma palmata
Calamagrostis brachytrich
Thalictrum delavayi
Artemisia lactiflora
Miscanthus sinensis 'Malepartus'
Adiantum pedatum
Eragrostis spectabilis
Selinum wallichianum
Filipendula rubra 'Venusta'
Salvia x sylvestris 'Dear Anja'
Panicum virgatum 'Shenandoah'
Datisca cannabina
Scutellaria incana
Clematis heracleifolia
Molinia caerulea subsp. caerulea 'Moorhexe'
Hakonechloa macra
Thalictrum 'Elin'
Amsonia tabernaemontana var. salicifolia
Lysimachia ephemerum
Aster umbellatus
Thalictrum rochebruneanum
Rudbeckia subtomentosa
Salvia pratensis 'Pink Delight'
Achillea filipendulina 'Parker's Variety'
Amorpha canescens
Asclepias incarnata
Aster oblongifolius 'October Skies'
Echinops bannaticus
Astrantia major subsp. involucrata
Euphorbia griffithii
Helleborus multifidus subsp. hercegovinus
Paeonia 'Early Windflower'
Persicaria amplexicaulis
Sanguisorba tenuifolia 'Purpurea'
Ruellia humilis
Spodiopogon sibiricus
Vernonia noveboracensis
Aster tataricus 'Jindai'

 

Long-season plants

Digitalis ferruginea
Baptisia australis
Osmunda regalis
Darmera peltata
Polystichum setiferum
Sedum 'Matrona'
Helenium 'Moerheim Beauty'
Gillenia trifoliata
Limonium platyphyllum
Phlomis tuberosa
Festuca mairei
Iris 'Perry's Blue'
Sporobolus heterolepis
Stachys officinalis 'Hummelo'
Veronicastrum virginicum f. roseum
Actaea simplex (Atropurpurea Group) 'James Compton'
Sesleria autumnalis
Eryngium bourgatii
Aster x herveyi
Amsonia orientalis
Serratula seoanei
Monarda bradburiana
Echinacea purpurea 'Virgin'
Veratrum nigrum
Baptisia alba
Eupatorium maculatum
Calamintha nepeta subsp. nepeta
Inula magnifica 'Sonnenstrahl'
Lychnis chalcedonica 'Rosea'
Macleaya x kewensis
Pycnanthemum muticum
Rodgersia 'Die Anmutige'
Sedum telephium 'Sunkissed'

 

Bulbs

Eranthis hyemalis
Crocus tommasinianus
Eremurus robustus
Nectaroscordum siculum
Tulipa 'Lady Jane'
Allium lusitanicum
Narcissus poeticus
Camassia leichtlinii subsp. leichtlinii

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