Hamamelis x intermedia 'Jelena'
Fern Hill Nursery and Botanical Sanctuary
Edible, medicinal, and native plants for the Pacific Northwest
We spent 13 years building an abundant fruit forest, annual veggie beds, perennial medicinal herbs, and a healthy mixed hardwood-coniferous forest and now we've sold our property to the next stewards so that we can begin a new homesteading project in Vermont closer to our best friends and their kids.
Don't worry - we plan to keep this website up and running so that our customers can reference what we've written about our plants!
We'll let you know once we re-start a farm in Vermont!
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Rosa rugosa 'alba'
Rugosa rose is a suckering shrub native to asia. It has large and beautiful blooms and the largest rose hips of any rose we know. The rose hips are high in vitamin C and can be eaten fresh or... more->
Cistus x purpureus 'Pink'
This variety of rock rose has narrow, resinous leaves and stunning, crinkly pink flowers with four central maroon spots. more->
Myrica californica
Pacific waxmyrtle is an evergeen shrub/small tree native to the west coast of North America. It can grow 5-30 feet tall and has sticky leaves and a waxy wrinkled purple berry. It is a great... more->
Hibiscus syriacus 'Blue Bird'
'Blue Bird' has bright blue flowers, and is a bit smaller and less vigorous than other varieties. more->
Ribes aureum
'Golden' currant is larger than the european currants that we grow. It is vigorous and can grow in a variety of soil types and habitats, up to 9 feet tall. It has beautiful clusters of yellow... more->
Ribes x 'Waldo'
Waldo is a purple gooseberry originally brought to us by Rick Valley, a wise local Permaculture landscaper. It was the result of hybridizations from Dr. George Waldo. It has sweet purple fruits... more->
Morus x 'Illinois Everbearing'
Because the fruits on 'Illinois Everbearing' ripen over a period of a few months, not all at once, its is nice to have a shorter plants for harvesting them often. The fruit is dark purple and has... more->
Viburnum opulus
Cramp bark is a deciduous shrub that can grow over 10 feet tall. It has showy white flower clusters and bright red-orange berries that birds love. The bark is used medicinally to reduce smooth... more->
Rubus x 'Napache'
Tired of thorns ripping through your clothes and poking through your gloves as you harvest sweet blackberries in summer? This cultivar released from the University of Arkansas yields large, sweet... more->
Ficus carica 'Desert King'
'Desert King' is a very good choice for the Northwest. It is early to ripen, productive, and has excellent flavor. Sweet and delicious fruits with green skin and pink pulp ripen in late July or... more->
Ribes nigrum 'Blackdown'
'Blackdown' produces large, jet-black berries that are juicy and flavorful with a distinctive musky taste. They are excellent in jams, jellies and juice. The plant is vigorous and has upright... more->
Vitex agnus-castus 'Pink'
Chaste tree, also known as vitex, is a beautiful deciduous shrub that has spikes of flowers in late summer here in Oregon. It can grow up to ten feet tall but can be kept shorter with annual... more->
Ribes rubrum 'Jonkheer Van Tets'
Red currants produce bright red clusters of fruit which are are striking in the garden and they enhance any dish to which they are added. Red currant fruit is high in vitamin C and potassium and... more->
Calycanthus floridus
Also known as Carolina allspice, this fragrant deciduous shrub, native to the Southeastern U.S., grows 3 to 8 feet tall and up to ten feet wide. Essentail oil is distilled from the flowers, and... more->
Ribes nigrum 'Minaj Smyriou'
'Minaj Smyriou' has excellent European black currant flavorand can be eaten fresh or used to make jam and juice.
European black currants have a very distinct musky flavor which is prized by... more->
Hibiscus syriacus 'Red Heart'
'Red Heart' has a white bloom with a red center and grows very vigorously in our climate. I've seen shrubs over 6 feet tall. more->
Ribes rubrum 'Cascade'
'Cascade' is easy to grow and a consistent producer here in the Wilamette Valley. Provides large crops of delicious red fruit. It is very winter hardy.
Red currants produce bright red... more->
Rosmarinus officinalis 'Tuscan Blue'
One of the most popular upright rosemary varieties, Tuscan Blue has a blue-green hint to its foliage, and blue-purple flowers.
The Latin name Rosmarinus refers to the dew (ros) of the sea (... more->
Thymus vulgaris 'French'
French thyme has very small, pointy leaves. It is the most drought tolerant and has the most spicy flavor of the thyme varieties we grow. more->
Salvia apiana
The dried leaf of white sage is well known for its aroma and is excellent for smudging.
Not native to our area, it does best grown in a pot with half sand half potting soil, or planted in... more->
Salvia officinalis 'Garden Grey'
This variety of culinary sage bears extra large pink flowers on taller stalks than the common seed-grown sage. Although some ornamental sages have been bred so that they are no longer flavorful,... more->
Thymus × citriodorus 'Silver Queen'
This is a lemon thyme that is variegated with slivery grey-green foliage. It makes a very nice contract interplanted with lemon variegated thyme. more->
Rosmarinus officinalis 'Goriza'
Rosmarinus officinalis 'Huntington carpet'
Ribes oxyacanthoides 'Jahn's Prairie'
A favorite gooseberry here at Fern Hill, 'Jahn's Prairie' produces hearty yields of large dessert quality red-pink fruit in midsummer. This shrub grows more upright than some gooseberry varietes.... more->
Ribes uva-crispa 'Hinnomaki Gold'
'Hinnomaki Gold' also known as 'Hinnomaki Yellow" is a very hardy variety, and bushes produce a heavy crop of medium sized, greenish yellow fruits. Some say this variety has a delicious aromatic... more->
Aloysia triphylla
Lemon verbena is one of our favorite tea plants. Fast growing in warm weather, aromatic leaves have a strong lemon flavor. We steep it fresh or dry it to enjoy all winter. It prefers full sun... more->
Eleagnus multiflora 'Sweet Scarlet'
Goumi plants are well known in the Northwest permaculture community for being great nitrogen fixing shrubs with a much lower chance for spreading by birds. These shrubs can grow up to 12 feet or... more->
Oenothera biennis
Evening primrose is a great edition to a pollinator garden because it blooms at night and attract the nighttime pollinators. Every summer evening at dusk, you can watch each pale yellow flower... more->
Salvia sclarea
With the sweet and spicy aroma of grapefruit and pine, clary sage brightens our day with its scent as well as with its spikes of white and purple flowers. This biennial starts out the first year... more->
Artemisia vulgaris
This is the official mugwort native to temperate Europe, Asia, and north Africa often referenced in witches spells and potions. It is a very strong cooling bitter that I like to use in apple... more->
Hierocloe odorata
Sweetgrass is native to northern North America and Eurasia. It is a very hardy spreading perennial grass that his a history of multiple uses by native Americans and Europeans. We reccomend that... more->
Phlomis fruticosa
A showy evergreen shrub, Jerusalem Sage is an easy to grow plant for a sunny location. Deer tolerant and drought tolerant, it grows quickly but never gets more than a few feet high when blooming... more->
Urtica dioica ssp. gracilis
Stinging nettle is an herbaceous plant that grows in wet soil, often along river beds and stream sides. It spreads below ground by rhizomes but will not spread where it gets dry. Nettles are an... more->
Berberis aquifolium
Tall Oregon grape is a woody perennial shrub in the barberry family that is tough enough to survive in many conditions and yet provides edible and medicinal yields. It grows 2-7 feet tall in well... more->
Lomatium californicum
Native to dry, brushy and forested hill slopes in northern California and southern Oregon, this is the largest species of biscuitroot that we grow. I've seen it up to 4 feet tall and several feet... more->
Rosa nutkana var. nutkana
This native rose shrub has the largest pink flowers of the Oregon species. They perfume the woods when they bloom in May! more->
Althea officinalis
This perennial herb has soft leaves, beautiful hibiscus-like white and pink flowers, and provides a healing herbal medicine. Marshmallow roots are the original source of the slimy mucilage used... more->
Eriophyllum lanatum
A beauty for a native wildflower garden, Oregon sunshine lives up to its name, bearing profuse quantities of deep yellow blooms. Gray green foliage is ornamental. This plant blooms no taller than... more->
Opuntia ficus-indica
This is a compact variety of prickly pear cactus that has edible green pads with no thick spines and small clusters of tiny hair-like prickles. Unlike prickly pear shrubs, this variety stays... more->
Satureja douglasii
A native perennial in the mint family, yerba buena likes dappled shade and handles a wide variety of soil from deep rich organic matter to nutrient poor clay. Once established, it can handle... more->
Asarum caudatum
A beautiful native forest ground cover, wild ginger likes to grow in moist soil in shady areas. You will find it wild near creeks and on wet hillsides in the shade. Glossy heart-shaped leaves... more->
Humulus lupus 'Nugget'
"Nugget" is popular for brewing because of its strong bitterness and fruity aroma. It's often added late in the process to impart its unique flavor.
Hops are a wonderful choice for summer... more->
Vaccinium ovatum
Evergreen Huckleberry is a great northwest native evergreen shrub. It has delicate white and pink flowers, evergreen leaves and glossy, black berries. In the WiIlamette Valley, shrubs grow to 4... more->
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