If you have a meadow-style planting scheme, a border in dappled shade or a container space in a cool corner of the patio, Camassia leichtlinii ‘Semiplena’ is a beautiful and useful choice for providing height, structure and movement. Flowering in late spring with upright spires of starry double flowers, this incredibly elegant and simple variety is versatile, long-lasting and wonderfully rewarding, returning each year for a spectacular spring display!

I’ll never forget the first time I saw a mass of Camassia in bloom. It was true-blue love at first sight. I went all starry-eyed. Then acquisitiveness kicked in: “I’ve got to have this!” Nowadays, they’re a gardening staple as far as I’m concerned. Camassias start flowering just as your tulips are giving the last of their best. But it’s not just their habit of blooming in April or May when your garden’s about to take a breather between spring and summer that makes them so popular. If they flowered in the hectic, colour-filled days of early spring, I’d still make room in my garden for them. I’m guessing you would too. Camassias are still something of a niche for...