Dawn Golloher/Gardens Plus
Whatever the size of a garden, the fantastic foliage of a Ligularia will enhance anything that is already planted. A useful foliage plant that never disappoints, it's tough as nails and as close to carefree as possible.
Ligularia 'Osiris Café Noir' looks like it's going to be a marvellous plant, notable for the dulcet purple-black tones of its sensuous foliage. It's a great plant for the shade and, once established, is pretty much drought tolerant. This does not mean that you never have to bother about watering it; Ligularia as a genus needs moist soil, and drought tolerant means only that if you miss a couple of watering sessions when things get hot and steamy, it's likely to survive. They are great indicator plants. If the leaves start folding in on themselves to preserve moisture, then you know you must water the whole garden deeply.
Ligularia is supposed to be a deer-resistant plant and grows well from Zone 3 right up to the warmth of Zone 9 (where it would have to be in the shade and kept well-watered). If you've got a large enough container (at least 45 cm wide), this plant would fill it nicely; then put it out in the garden with a large enough hole to make sure it will over-winter safely.
The height is close to 60 cm so it fits in well with other perennials such as Hellebores. In late July and into August, daisy-like blooms rise 30 cm over the main clump. Many people adore them and love to use them in a vase – butterflies are attracted to them, too. To me, the blooms are merely an added bonus. I'm crazy about the plant because of its volume and the compelling foliage colour, which starts out deep purple, moves into bronze and ends up at blooming time a softer green. With one mature plant, you can get a magnificent sweep of colour.
Ligularia 'Osiris Café Noir' retails for $12.95 at Gardens Plus in Peterborough, Ont. (www.gardensplus.ca). For more plant information, go to www.marjorieharris.com.