PLANT ENCYCLOPEDIA

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38,238 plants

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moss cypress

Crassula muscosa

A spreading, perennial succulent to 30cm high, forming a dense bush of branching stems with tightly overlapping green leaves. Bears tiny, tubular yellow-green flowers along the stems in spring.

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jade plant 'Gollum'

Crassula ovata 'Gollum'

A sturdy, evergreen succulent, tree-like in shape, growing slowly to 1.2m. The fleshy leaves are tubular, bright green, often with red tips. Small white or pinkish, star-shaped flowers may be produced in late summer

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Hobbit Jade

Crassula ovata 'Hobbit'

Crassula ovata 'Hobbit' is a compact, slow-growing succulent with distinctive tubular leaves that curl inward, resembling small green trumpets or Hobbit ears. The leaf tips often blush red in bright light, adding ornamental interest. It develops a thick, woody stem over time, forming a small tree-like structure ideal for containers or indoor displays. Its star-shaped white or pale pink flowers appear in clusters during late winter to spring under optimal conditions.

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earth star 'Pink Starlite'

Cryptanthus bivittatus 'Pink Starlite'

Pink Starlight' is an evergreen perennial forming rosettes to 30cm across, composed of strap-shaped olive green leaves, striped with creamy-white and strongly suffused with deep pink

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never-never plant

Ctenanthe oppenheimiana 'Tricolor'

A bushy evergreen perennial with lance-shaped leaves heavily variegated with cream and silvery-green, light red beneath

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autumn pumpkin

Cucurbita pepo

This is the original parent plant, from which many cultivars of courgette, summer and winter squash, pumpkins and gourds have been bred. The tender annual plants can be trailing or bushy. They have yellow flowers and both male and female flowers are born on the same plant, the female flowers have a small immature fruit behind the flower. Fruit can be green like courgettes, cream, yellow or orange like pumpkins

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false heather

Cuphea hyssopifolia

A compact, bushy spreading evergreen shrub to 45cm in height, with small, lance-shaped dark green leaves and small clusters of light purple, pink or white flowers 1cm across

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Hidden Ginger

Curcuma petiolata

Curcuma petiolata, commonly called hidden ginger, is a clump-forming, rhizomatous herbaceous perennial with large, lance-shaped, mid-green leaves. In summer to early autumn, short inflorescences emerge at ground level, bearing pink to purple bracts and small yellow flowers, often partly hidden by the foliage. It brings a lush, tropical look to containers, conservatories, and indoor plantings. It is deciduous, dying back to dormant rhizomes after the growing season.

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Variegated String of Pearls

Curio rowleyanus variegata

Curio rowleyanus variegata is a tender, trailing succulent with long, thread-like stems that are densely strung with fleshy, spherical leaves. The variegated form shows creamy-white and pale-green sectors on the ‘pearls’, giving the plant a fresh, distinctive appearance. In late spring to summer it produces small, rounded clusters of tiny white flowers with a sweet, spicy scent. The bead-like leaves store water, making it a drought-tolerant houseplant, and the cascading stems are especially suited to hanging baskets.

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Persian cyclamen

Cyclamen persicum

A winter or spring-flowering tuber, growing to 10-20cm in height. Heart-shaped, dark-green leaves have silver markings. Fragrant white or pink flowers with petals swept upwards have carmine mouths

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quince

Cydonia oblonga

A large shrub or small tree with crowded branches bearing broadly oval, mid-green leaves with grey, downy undersides. Solitary, pale pink to white flowers are produced in late spring, followed by edible, aromatic, golden-yellow, pear-shaped fruit. A number of cultivated varieties of quince have been developed from this species.

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lemon grass

Cymbopogon citratus

A densely-tufted, clump-forming, evergreen grass with hollow, cane-like stems and erect to arching, narrow, strongly lemon-scented, pale blue-green leaves up to 90cm long. Flowers are green and pinkish brown, in loose, branched sprays in late summer and autumn, but rarely appear under glass

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common broom

Cytisus scoparius

Upright, deciduous shrub about 1.5m tall, with slender green shoots bearing small bright green leaves composed of 3 leaflets, and clusters of pea-like bright butter-yellow flowers, appearing from the leaf axils, in late spring

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Dahlia

Dahlia pinnata

Dahlia pinnata is a tuberous-rooted perennial with erect stems and pinnate leaves. It produces showy flower heads in a wide range of colours, from white and yellow to pink and purple, often with multiple petals. Blooms appear from mid-summer until the first frosts. It is highly valued for its long flowering season and ornamental value.

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King Alfred's Cake

Daldinia concentrica

Daldinia concentrica is a saprobic ascomycete fungus, not a vascular plant. It forms hard, black, roughly hemispherical stromata on dead wood, especially ash, with a smooth surface and concentric silvery-grey to black zones inside when cut. The fruiting bodies are perennial and persist year-round, releasing spores mainly during wet periods. It is valued in natural history and woodland ecology rather than as a garden ornamental, and it has historically been used as tinder.

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flamboyant

Delonix regia

A tropical, evergreen tree to 10m tall and wide in its native Madagascar. It bears elegant, fern-like leaves and clusters of exotic-looking, bright red flowers. In frost-prone areas grow in a temperate greenhouse as foliage plants, since they rarely flower in a container

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Larkspur

Delphinium consolida

Delphinium consolida, commonly known as larkspur, is an erect annual with deeply divided, feathery dark green leaves. In summer, it produces tall spikes of spurred, single or double flowers in shades of blue, pink, purple, or white. The flowers are borne on slender stems and are excellent for cutting. This plant has a graceful, airy habit and adds vertical interest to borders.

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Dendrobium lindleyi

A small-sized, evergreen, epiphytic orchid. Upright, clump-forming stems (pseudobulbs) are spindle-shaped, up to 10cm long and bears one leathery, dark-green, 7-8cm long leaf. Pendant flowering stems 15-20cm long emerge from the nodes of leafed or leafless stems and carry 5 to 15, well-spaced, fragrant flowers. Each flower is 2.5-5cm large, bright yellow, usually with darker yellow or orange centre.

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Tick-trefoil

Desmodium triflorum

Desmodium triflorum is a low-growing, mat-forming perennial herb with trifoliate leaves and small, pink to purple flowers that appear in summer. The stems root at the nodes, allowing it to spread rapidly and form a dense, carpet-like ground cover. It is valued for its ability to suppress weeds and its delicate, pea-like blooms.

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sweet william

Dianthus barbatus

A biennial or short-lived perennial with prostrate rosettes of wide, lanceolate green leaves and stiff, erect stems, thickened at the nodes, to 40-60cm tall, bearing many-flowered, terminal, flattened heads. Flowers come in many colours from white to darkest red, often in bicolour combinations, with the darker eyes and toothed petals characteristic of pinks and carnations. Many named selections exist

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border carnation

Dianthus caryophyllus

A perennial that will develop a woody base with age. Many old and modern carnations have been bred from this species. Single flowers are clove-scented and are variable in colour, appearing in various shades of pink and purple, held above grey-green foliage

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common foxglove

Digitalis purpurea

A biennial or short-lived perennial, freely self-sowing, with a rosette of softly hairy, oval leaves and tall, one-sided spires of pendant, tubular, bright rosy-purple flowers 6cm long, spotted within, in summer

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Buttonweed

Diodia virginiana

Diodia virginiana is a low-growing, mat-forming perennial with slender stems that root at the nodes. The opposite, narrowly elliptic to lance-shaped leaves are bright green with entire margins. Small white, funnel-shaped flowers appear in the leaf axils from summer to autumn, followed by small button-like capsules. It forms dense carpets in moist, open places and is often a weed of wet lawns.

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String of Nickels

Dischidia nummularia

Dischidia nummularia, commonly known as String of Nickels or Nickel Vine, is a creeping, epiphytic succulent with small, round, fleshy leaves resembling coins. The leaves are bright green and densely arranged along thin, wiry stems that trail or climb over surfaces. Tiny, inconspicuous yellow flowers occasionally appear in summer but the plant is primarily grown for its unique, bead-like foliage. It forms a dense mat when allowed to spread, making it an excellent choice for hanging baskets or as a ground cover in tropical terrariums.

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