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*                Plants with nectar- and/or pollen-rich flowers for insects.

(S)             Plants of which seed is either currently available or expected in 2008 (@ £2.70/pack)

Click on plant names in green for photos.  All photos are the copyright of Rosemary Castle. 

Prices include first class postage and packing within the UK as at 1 January 2008.

URTICA   NETTLES

Urtica dioica.  Stinging Nettle.  The stinging nettle is a invaluable plants for wildlife, supporting either directly or indirectly many insect species and other invertebrates. It is the caterpillar foodplant of four butterflies in this country - the small Tortoiseshell, the Peacock, the Comma and the Red Admiral - as well as an even greater number of moths, including the Burnished Brass, the Spectacle, the Mother-of-Pearl and the Snout (don't moths have wonderful names?)  No other plant on this list seems to attract such an abundance of life and I never have to look very hard to find something interesting on a nettle.  Most of the ornamental and unusual nettle cultivars below benefit from having their stems cut back around midsummer (check for caterpillars first) to encourage fresh new leaves.  As plants are either male or female, cutting back will also prevent unwanted self-seeding in the case of female plants.  Plant them in good soil in a sunny spot for best results.

Urtica dioica ‘Bradfield Purpler’ 

This is not a purple leaved stinging nettle, but it does have a purple flush to the leaves at certain times of year, especially spring.  Purple stems.  From Martin Cragg-Barber. £5.00

Urtica dioica 'Brightstone Bitch'

Found by Jill Butcher, this smartly variegated nettle boasts leaves that are splashed and streaked with creamy white. Pull out any green shoots.  Vicious. £5.00

Urtica dioica 'Danae Johnston'

Lovely form of stinging nettle with the new leaves densely mottled and flecked with cream in spring and early summer. £5.00

Urtica dioica 'Dayglo Delight' - NEW

The leaves of this stinging nettle become washed with yellow in the manner of U. dioica ‘Worn Gilding’, but the yellow is much brighter.  If the stems are cut down, the colour shows again on the new growth. £5.00  

Urtica dioica 'Dusting'

A stinging nettle with the leaves developing a finely speckled variegation which may take the form of fine green spotting on a yellow ground fading to cream (reminiscent of tartare sauce) or a similar spotting in yellow fading to cream on a green ground (giving the younger leaves a gold-dusted appearance).  The variegation can be in sectors and can revert (pull out green shoots).  Otherwise the variegation repeats well on the new foliage if the stems are cut back mid-season.  £5.00

Urtica dioica ‘Fearnvale Tigertooth’  

A seasonally variegated nettle from Gordon Fearn’s Derbyshire garden.  Around midsummer the leaves begin to fade to a parchment colour around the edge, their centres remaining (or is it becoming?) bright green. The variegation affects the foliage all the way up the stems and can be very dramatic, especially when suffused with shades of pink and purple, as my happen late in the season. £5.00

Urtica dioica 'Good as Gold'

My favourite stinging nettle and a good one for butterflies: its golden foliage is enhanced by red-tinted stems, especially in spring.  Viewed close-up, many of the leaves are found to be very subtly variegated in green or cream.  Pull out the odd green shoot.  Can be cut back for fresh golden leaves or left to flower, when it is very elegant.  Well named by Kevin Swales (who discovered it) as it seems to stay as a clump in my garden. £5.00  

Urtica dioica var. inermis

From Denmark via Ulrike Paradine comes this relatively friendly form of stinging nettle with non-stinging leaves (for part of the season, at least). There may be stinging hairs on the stem, though.  £5.00.   

Urtica dioica 'OGG Mutant'

This curious form of stinging nettle, named by Martin Cragg-Barber, came from the Oxford Genetic Garden and has curled, congested foliage on thickish stems with short internodes.  Slower growing than usual and strongly reminiscent of the elder cultivar Sambucus nigra ‘Pyramidalis’. See £5.00

Urtica dioica 'Spring Fever'

In spring the leaves of this stinging nettle become suffused with a rich and dazzling yellow, gradually turning green in summer. Very dramatic in season and sometimes showing the effect on new growth in autumn. £5.00

Urtica dioica ‘Worn Gilding’ 

The leaves of this stinging nettle become washed with soft yellow, an effect reminiscent of worn gilding.  The dusty pink-tinted flowers in midsummer accentuate the eighteenth century feel. If the stems are cut down, the colouring is repeated on the new growth. £5.00