The Mixed Herbaceous Border for Public Spaces
“A good garden is a mixture of elements: good underlying design, good soil, paths, benches and many different kinds of plants well-combined for continuing pleasure throughout the seasons. The most important ingredient for successful long-lasting public plantings is good soil.
"What follows is a list of some of the plants I use most often to produce public gardens in New York City. The shrubs are the year-round backbone of the garden while the perennials add beautiful flowers and foliage and annuals and bulbs give splashes of color." -- Lynden B. Miller
Shrubs
Berberis 'Rosy Glo'; B. 'Crimson Pygmy'
Buxus ‘Winter Gem’; B. ‘Green Velvet’
Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Mops’
Cornus alba ‘Elegantissima’
Hydrangea quercifolia; H. macrophylla ‘Variegata’, H. m. ‘Nikko Blue’
Hibiscus syriacus ‘Blue Bird’; H. ‘Diana’; H. ‘Aphrodite’
Ilex crenata ‘Microphylla’ and other cultivars
Ilex ‘Blue Princess’; I. ‘Blue Prince’; I. Nellie R. Stevens
Jasminum nudiflorum
Juniperus squamata ‘Blue Star’
Lespedeza thunbergii 'Pink Fountain'
Picea pungens 'Glauca Globosa’
Pieris ‘Dorothy Wycoff’
Prunus x. cistena
Prunus laurocerasus 'Otto Luyken'
Rosa rubrifolia; R. ‘Betty Prior’; R. ‘Carefree Wonder’
Sarcococca hookerana
Skimmia japonica
Spirea thunbergii ‘Ogon’
Taxus baccata ‘Repandens’; T. x media ‘Densiformis’
Thuja occidentalis ‘Emerald’
Yucca filamentosa ‘Gold Sword’
Ornamental Grasses
Carex elata 'Aurea'
Hakonechloa macra ‘All Gold’
Miscanthus sinensis ‘Gracillimus’; M. s. ‘Variegata’; M. s. ’Morning Light’; Miscanthus purpurescens
Pennisetum alopecuroides
Perennials and Ground Covers
Achillea ‘Moonshine’
Alchemilla mollis
Amsonia hubrichtii
Anemone x hybrida ‘Honorine Jobert’; A. tomentosa ‘Robustissima’
Astilbe chinensis var. taquetii ‘Superba’
Bergenia cordifolia ‘Bressingham Ruby’
Brunnera macrophylla
Echinacea purpurea
Euonymus fortunei ‘Emerald Gaiety’; E. f. ‘Coloratus’
Eupatorium maculatum ‘Gateway’
Euphorbia amygdaloides var. robbiae
Geranium ‘Rozanne’; G. macrorrhizum
Heliopsis ‘Summer Sun’
Helleborus foetidus; H. orientalis; H. x hybridus
Heuchera ‘Plum Pudding’
Hibiscus moscheutos ‘Lord Baltimore’; H. m. ‘Lady Baltimore’
Hosta plantaginea ‘Aphrodite’; H. sieboldiana; H. ‘Sum and Substance’
Liriope muscari ‘Big Blue’; L. ‘Silvery Sunproof’
Nepeta x faassenii ‘Six Hills Giant’, N. subsesillis
Penstemon digitalis ‘Husker’s Red’
Perovskia atriplicifolia
Persicaria amplexicaule ‘Firetail’
Phlox paniculata ‘Bright Eyes’; P. ‘David’
Rudbeckia maxima; R. nitida ‘Herbstsonne’
Salvia nemerosa ‘Blue Hill’
Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’; S. cauticola ‘Lidakense’
Solidago 'Fireworks'
Annuals
Abelmoschus manihot
Agastache pink species
Ageratum x. ‘Blue Horizon’
Alternanthera dentata ‘Rubiginosa’
Bouvardia ternifolia
Browallia americana
Centaurea gymnocarpa
Coleus ‘Compact Red’
Ipomea batatas ‘Marguerite’ and ‘Blackie’
Lantana 'Pink Caprice’
Melampodium 'Lemon Delight'
Nicotiana alata; N. langsdorfii, N. ‘Daylight Sensation’
Petunias, especially Supertunias
Plectranthus argentatus
Salvia guaranitica and S. ‘Indigo Spires’
Scaevola
Verbena bonariensis
Zinnia linearis ‘White Star’; Z. ‘Profusion’ Series
Bulbs
Alliums: christophii, sphaerocephalum, karavatense, tuberosum, bulgaricum
Anemone blanda ‘Blue Star’
Frittilaria meleagris in damp spots
Leucojum, especially with purple leaved shrubs and perennials
Scilla siberica mixed with blue Chionodoxa under shrubs
Tulipa species: chrysantha, clusiana and tarda