4/00-14 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For more information contact: Christine Kelleher, 800-232-9557, Ext. 512 or Gary Doerr, 916-716-1889

When Graham Stuart Thomas was asked to diagnose the problem with a garden its owner found less than satisfying, he is reported to have said: "Madam, your problem is very simple, your leaves are all the same size."

Varying leaf shape and size is one of the most important ways to create visual interest in the garden, and gardens are much more likely to have too many plants with small, fiddly leaves, than too many plants with big, bold ones. Hostas help with the "little leaf problem" as do Arums, Canna Lilies, and even vegetables with bold leaves like rhubarb and horseradish.

But the premier plant for gardens in need of a big leaf fix is Ligularia. Ligularia dentata (also known as Bigleaf Goldenray) and Ligularia stenocephala 'The Rocket' are both fine perennials valued as much for their salad-plate-sized leaves as for their flowers. Of the two, 'The Rocket' has the more attractive flowers (spikes of bright yellow flowers on 4- to 6-foot stems), but even they are less prized than 'The Rocket's' leaves. Depending on the species, the shapes of Ligularia leaves can vary from heart-shaped or almost round to palmately lobed and shaggy, but among the most effective of these leaves, in terms of creating clumps of green quiet in otherwise busy gardens are Ligularia dentata and Ligularia 'The Rocket.' Ligularia dentata has leathery textured, almost-round leaves and 'The Rocket' has boldly toothed, heart-shaped-to-triangular leaves. These perennials form large clumps after several years and the 8-to 12-inch leaves are stunning. Unlike the leaves of so many other large-leaved plants, they seem to be unpalatable to deer.

So what's the rub? Why doesn't everyone grow Ligularia? Moisture is the limiting factor. "Ligularia has only two growing conditions - in water and dead," Virginia nurseryman Bill Childers once proclaimed, and while that is an exaggeration, it's worth keeping in mind when siting these plants. They do love boggy areas, wet open spots, streamsides and ditches, but don't give up on Ligularia if you have no such site. Consider planting near downspouts or under the eaves of the house, where water comes off the roof. Because these plants die back to the ground in winter, you don't have to worry about snow careening off the roof and damaging them. Amending your soil with plenty of moisture-retentive organic matter will also make your garden more agreeable to Ligularia. To create optimal conditions, you might even consider building yourself an artificial bog by lining a depression with perforated plastic and backfilling it with a rich soil and peat moss mix. These plants are worth going to that much trouble.

Ligularia likes sun but because its leaves wilt in hot, midday sun, it is usually planted in filtered shade or "semi-sun." It does surprisingly well on the north side of the house where it gets little or no direct sunlight but the soil tends to stay moist. If Ligularia doesn't like the first place you plant it, move it until you find it a more congenial location, because few are the borders that wouldn't benefit from a clump of its fine, large leaves.