Re: Lunaria


Hi Duncan and Janette

I love this plant.  In fact, I couldn't be in a garden
without it, but that's because of sentimental reasons.  When
I was very little, my grandmother gave me a packet of seeds
of this.  She died more than 30 years ago, but the
descendants of those plants are still going strong in my
mother's garden.

On the normal Honesty (Lunaria) the flowers in Spring are a
pale, wishy-washy purple (not as pale as mauve though).
However, last year I started to grow Lunaria annua 'Munstead
Purple'.  This is a larger flower, very rosy purple, a much
deeper colour.  It was originally raised by Gertrude Jekyll
in the early years of this century.  I bought the seed from
Chiltern Seeds, (the seed is described as rare), their email
address is chilternseeds@compuserve.com.   Although I
planted my seedlings out at the same time last Autumn, some
of the plants flowered in April and some of them have been
flowering continuously since then - there are still two
plants flowering now!

Chiltern Seeds also do a perennial Lunaria (L. Rediviva)
which I'm quite tempted by.  This is a native of Europe,
from damp woodland on chalk.  The flowers are described as
fragrant and purplish, and the seed pods in the Autumn as
mother of pearl coloured, elliptical in shape and tapered to
a point.  I might just try those next year.

Louise, southern England

>Hello,
>I have been looking for information on the Lunaria Plant.
It is
>otherwise called Silver
>Dollar, Moonwort, Honesty, or Penny Flower.
>
>Please send me information on this amazing plant. When
dried, the leaves
>
>will separate into three layers and there are seeds between
the layers.
>The middle layer is usually used in dried floral
arrangements and is
>silvery in appearance.
>
>I saw this plant growing at the side of my sister-in-law's
house when I
>visited
>Toronto, in June this year. I heard that it grows in the
wild in
>Louisiana.
>
>In the mean time I will continue to search for more
information. I did
>find some information on your web site.
>
>Thank you.
>
>Janette Chin


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