Piet Oudolf's Top 100 plants

The list which was compliled for Gardens Illustrated is helpfully divided into short-season and filler plants, medium-length season plants, long-season plants and bulbs.

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.

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.

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 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