Blooms are great, they are the driving force behind gardens and often the reason we purchase a plant. But as experienced gardeners we know that a successful garden also relies on great foliage, movement and texture. I have found that it’s often the plants with the best textures that draw the most attention. Here are three plants with great texture to consider for your garden.  

Rattlesnake Master

Seriously, there’s nothing better than this for the full sun, pollinator garden. It is so unique, with its multiple spiky flowers that don’t really look like flowers until you get up real close. The foliage is a lot like a yucca’s, but with little serrations. Rattlesnake master’s gray-green foliage has a cooling effect in a garden dominated by dark green foliage.

Another way to add a different color and texture to the garden is large leaf lamb’s ear. We prefer the large leaf variety for it doesn’t bloom much: we find the blooms of lamb’s ears to be quite unattractive. Plus, with all the other blooming plants, we have plenty to offer pollinators without having to rely on lamb’s ears flowers. The large leaf variety also spreads in a orderly manner, not willy-nilly in a weedy manner like the smaller leaf variety is apt to do.

Little Bluestem is still on the top of our favorite native grasses list and for many reasons.  It was very easy to start from plugs, making it an ideal lawn alternative option. It is very tidy, making it easy to design with and to maintain. And it looks great from early spring through winter. This little grass ticks off everything on our wish list!