Helenium flexuosum ‘Tiny Dancer’ sometimes, called purple-headed sneezeweed, features small purple-brown spherical cones surrounded by bright yellow reflexed petals. Some say they look like hundreds of yellow skirted dancers in motion. The movement comes from leggy stems that blow easily in the wind. You’ll find this beauty in the West Island Garden. 

Mirabilis jalapa have a habit of opening  right around 4 p.m., so you can see why folks call them Four O’Clocks. You can practically tell time by them! The blooms, sometimes striped or mottled as in this photo, stay open until the next morning. The fragrant tubular flowers come in yellow, magenta, white and are a favorite of hummingbirds.  You can find this sprawling plant in Rob’s Garden, a section of Flagler Garden near Grace Arents Garden.

Lobelia cardinalis is  a tall plant topped with deep red tubular flowers on spikes. They are so bright they really pop out, even when closely planted with Joe Pye weed and rose mallow. You’ll find cardinal flower on the floating island on Lake Sydnor and in West Island Garden, where it one of best places to spot hummingbirds at the Garden!

Hybrid Tea Rose, Rosa ‘Flight 93’ is a tall plant with rich red fragrant flowers. It was named to honor 9/11 Shanksville, PA terrorist attack victims. You’ll find it along the main garden path at the top of the Rose Garden.

Eupatorium fistulosum ‘Selection’ buds open to clusters of flat mauve flowers on sturdy stems.This native perennial attracts all sorts of pollinators, especially butterflies, as you can see. Joe Pye weed likes to keep its feet wet, which makes West Island Garden, the perfect place for it. Blooms last until early fall, and seed heads provide winter interest in the garden.

Gardenia augusta ‘Chinese Single’ has amazing fragrance. Delicate white flowers with yellow center and starfish-like spokes.   Our gardenias just barely survived the cold last winter, but here they are giving us flowers again this summer.  You’ll find them in the Central Garden.

This very special crepe myrtle is called Lagerstroemia ‘Gamad I’ Cherry Dazzle. Why is it special? Because the blooms are right at your feet. This little plant is only about a foot off the ground. Perfect for viewing those delicate pink and yellow blooms up close. You’ll find it in the triangle bed just before the Lotus Bridge.

Hibiscus moscheutos is also called rose mallow, swamp rose-mallow, or sometimes Eastern rose mallow. Can you tell these beauties are related to okra, and cotton? The blooms look very similar, but are larger, about 4-5 inches across.  You’ll find rose mallow in the West Island Garden, along Lake Sydnor and on the Floating Island, where they help draw excess nutrients out of the water.

Hydrangea paniculata ‘Dvppinky’ PINKY-WINKY is an upright shrub with oval dark green leaves and lime green panicles that turn pink as they age. Flowers at the base of the panicles vary from white to pink.  You’ll find a several of these beauties adjacent to the Children’s Garden along the Cherry Tree Walk near Lake Sydnor.

Allium senescens subsp. montanum features purple clusters of flowers atop grassy chive-like foliage. Long-lasting blooms are just one of the reasons we love this plant. You’ll find German garlic in the Children’s Garden just to the left as you enter.

You might have seen this perennial, Liatris spicata ‘Floristan Weiss,’ in a cut flower arrangement, but here at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden we use it to add texture and height to our flower beds. Butterflies like it and so do the visitors in our Children’s Garden.  It has a whimsical form and bright green foliage.