Get to know 20 plants selected from Turkey. Discover their scientific names, identifying features and growing needs.
Phaseolus vulgaris
The wild common bean from which a vast number of edible beans have been bred, including all the 'French' beans. They are annual, twining climbers with green tri-foliate leaves, though many selected varieties are dwarf. The flowers are mostl
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Schlumbergera truncata
A cactus with erect stems that then become pendent-forming as a bushy, trailing plant with flattened and toothed, oblong stem segments. Flowers produced at the stem tips in autumn and winter are usually in shades of purple, pink or red
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Schefflera arboricola
Schefflera arboricola, commonly known as the Dwarf Umbrella Tree, is an evergreen shrub native to Taiwan. It features palmate compound leaves typically composed of 7-9 leaflets, glossy and leathery. The plant has a compact, bushy habit with
Learn more →Codiaeum variegatum
Codiaeum variegatum, commonly known as croton, is a striking evergreen shrub grown primarily for its bold, leathery leaves. The leaves come in a dazzling array of colors including green, yellow, orange, red, and purple, often with variegate
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Spathiphyllum wallisii
S. wallisii is an evergreen perennial with erect, lance-shaped, glossy dark green leaves, and ovate white flowering spathes to 15cm in length, each with a slender cream spadix within
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Aloe vera
An evergreen perennial to 0.6m, forming rosettes of fleshy, narrow, dull green leaves with spiny margins, with long racemes of tubular greenish-yellow flowers 3cm in length in racemes to 90cm in length
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Medicago sativa
Also known as 'alfalfa'or 'purple medic' this herbaceous perennial legume with a deep tap-root and clover-like green foliage produces small purple flowers in the summer followed by flat pea-like fruits. Used in many countries as animal foo
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Nerium oleander
N. oleander is an evergreen shrub with narrowly lance-shaped grey-green leaves and terminal clusters of salver-shaped, pink, white or red flowers 3-4cm across, in summer
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Begonia rex
R. rex is an evergreen perennial to 30cm, with large, obliquely ovate leaves which are metallic green with a silvery zone on the upper surface, reddish beneath; panicles of small pink flowers in winter
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Castanea sativa
A large vigorous deciduous tree with rugged, grooved bark and glossy, serrate, oblong-lanceolate leaves to 20cm in length. Male catkins to 15cm in length, yellowish, followed by spiny fruits containing edible nuts
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Vitex agnus-castus
A deciduous shrub, reaching up to 2.5m, with pleasingly aromatic foliage. This is a distinctive shape with 5-7 splayed leaflets. Upright panicles of fragrant, lavender flowers are borne in autumn
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Kalanchoe blossfeldiana
K. blossfeldiana is a bushy evergreen succulent perennial to 40cm, with fleshy, ovate leaves, and terminal panicles of tubular red flowers spreading lobes in early spring
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Bougainvillea glabra
A virgorous climber with semi-glossy leaves to 13cm long. In summer it bears flowers formed of papery, petal-like magenta bracts. It requires the protection of a temperate glasshouse or conservatory, although potted plants can be moved outs
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Tradescantia zebrina
A trailing evergreen perennial to 15cm, with lance-shaped, deep bronze-green leaves with two longitudinal silvery bands above, purple beneath; rosy-purple flowers in small terminal clusters appear sporadically throughout the year
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Lantana camara
L. camara is an evergreen shrub with sometimes prickly stems bearing wrinkled, ovate leaves and terminal clusters of salver-shaped flowers 1cm across, opening yellow and ageing to red, from late spring to autumn
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Ficus elastica
Large, tropical evergreen tree, often grown as a houseplant. Large, broadly oval-shaped, glossy dark green leaves, occasionally red-flushed, with bronze-coloured undersides are 30-45cm long. Yellow figs are produced in clusters on mature tr
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Capsicum annuum
This is the wild plant from which many of our cultivated sweet peppers and chillies have been bred. It shows a wide range of fruit shapes, colours, sizes and degree of capsaicin production - from where the heat may or may not be felt. It ha
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Oxalis articulata
A rhizomatous, clump-forming, deciduous perennial up to 45cm tall in flower, with green, clover-like, three-lobed leaves on long stalks and masses of bright pink flowers in umbels on long flower stems, through the summer
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Cicer arietinum
More commonly known as the Chickpea, this annual legume has small, green feathery leaves either side of the stem and produces fat green seedpods containing two or three peas to each pod in spring or early summer. Crops are usually ready fo
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Ocimum basilicum
An aromatic tender annual or short-lived perennial, 30-60cm tall and 30cm wide, with bright green, elliptic leaves approximately 5cm long and 2-3cm wide. Many different cultivars available, varying in size and colour. Small, tubular white o
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