Garden Surprises: Hen-and-Chicks Blooms and the Hunt for White Caladiums

I'll never forget the shock of spotting a pink blossom nestled among my verbenas. Rushing over, I discovered my "hen and chickens" (Sempervivum) in full bloom—something I never knew it did. The stalk stood ten inches tall, bearing flowers at each tip that resembled snapdragons. As it grew taller, more blooms appeared. I'm curious if it will flower again and when; it would pair beautifully with our solar landscape lights.

Another mystery plant is blooming in the same bed. Its pink flowers look like snapdragons too, but the stalk is pointed with blooms all the way up, and the leaves are long and pointed. It's a perennial, but its name escapes me.

My caladiums have been spectacular this year—I've counted twenty-six distinct leaf patterns. Yet not a single white variety among them. If anyone has a white-leaved caladium bulb to sell, I'd gladly buy it, or I'll trade a pink variegated leaf for a white one.

The columbine has long been a favorite, but I was astonished to see a transformed version resembling clematis. I ordered it immediately. The flowers come in soft shades, abundant and open, without spurs or corolla—truly unlike any other flower, a remarkable horticultural achievement. I tip my hat to plant breeders; left to me, we'd still be gathering the same blooms our ancestors admired.

Even the columbine waited ages for improvement. I remember picking it in the woodlands around home as a child.