Even though it’s great to have a good-looking garden with nice visuals all-year through, there are more purposes to plants. How wonderful would it be to have plants that aren’t just good-looking, but that also provide a wonderful scent, attract butterflies or remove weeds? 

 

Pretty wonderful - right?  We’ve listed a few of our favourite dual-purpose plants! 

 

1.  Skimmia Miracle
To start our list with the recently introduced newbie: the Skimmia Miracle. Not only does this skimmia have an incredibly strong root system, it also spreads a lovely hyacinth fragrance during the summer months. This flowering evergreen shrub does her name credit: in contrast to her more disease-prone family members, the Skimmia Miracle is incredibly healthy and disease resistant! And as if that’s not enough, she makes for an extraordinary cut flower too.

Another great plant to add some lovely scents to your garden is the Perovskia Silvery Blue. 

 

2.  Prunus Titan 

The Prunus Titan is a medium-sized and broad shaped shrub. His compact habitat makes him very well suited for low or medium-sized hedges. He’ll show off his beautiful colours around springtime, but stays green and full all year through. So if you’re looking for a great shrub that doesn’t grow too big: the Prunus Titan is your guy!

Other small to medium-sized shrubs that are suited for screening or low hedges are the Spiraea Goldfire and Thuja Totem Smaragd. 

 

3.  Taxus Rising Star
Are you looking for a taller-growing evergreen for your hedging- or screening project? The Taxus Rising Star has a columnar habitat with sharply ascending branches. He’s ready for some heavy pruning and makes for a great foundation for plantings and topiary landscapes. He can even be left unpruned for more natural-looking landscapes. Did you know that once matured, he even has the ability to re-grow from old wood?

Another large-sized evergreen that is perfectly suited for a hedging- or screening project is the Prunus Goris Gold.

 

4.    Cordyline Superstar
Ever heard of a weed-killing plant? Neither did we. But, the Cordyline Superstar cuts it pretty close in the weed-killing department. You won’t find any weeds wherever you plant this superstar. Not only does this hero amongst gardeners minimize the amount of weed-cutting you have to do: it looks stunning. A great cordyline for the laid-back gardener who’d like to add some popping colours to his landscape.

5.  Magnolia Alta
We’ve recently had the honour to introduce the magnificent Magnolia Emperor: a tall-growing Magnolia tree with Emperor size (20 to 30 cm!) blooms. But the Magnolia Alta is just as impressive in her function as a small tree. Her columnar form remains upright and tight year after year, and her white, cup-shaped flowers spread a lovely fragrance all summer long.

6.  Diervilla Honey Surprise
The darling Diervilla Honey Surprise is an absolute butterfly- and bee magnet. With her strikingly coloured foliage and yellow flowers she truly is a sight for sore eyes. A nice, compact and bushy shrub that requires little maintenance and fills your garden with life all summer long!

Other fantastic pollinator-friendly plants are the Skimmia Miracle, Echinacea Tweety, Lavandula Blue Jeans & Phenomenal, Aster Starshine, Veronica Bubblegum Candles, Neptuna Neptune and Sedum Sunsparkler.