Rare & Unusual Plants
Go beyond the ordinary garden with unusual species, tropical treasures, carnivorous plants, botanical oddities and plants worth growing simply because they make you stop and look twice.
Rare and unusual plants are at the heart of Exotic Gardening. I have always been fascinated by plants that do something unexpected—strange flowers, unusual seed behavior, dramatic foliage, tropical species grown far outside their native climate, heirlooms with a story and plants most gardeners have simply never tried.
This growing center is where those plant adventures come together. It begins with the strongest live resources already on Exotic Gardening and will become much deeper as the historical archives, old plant records, photographs and experiments are restored.
Start Where Your Curiosity Takes You
1. Discover
Meet plants that are unusual because of their form, history, flowers, behavior or rarity in ordinary gardens.
Discover unusual plants →2. Learn How to Grow Them
Rare does not always mean impossible. Learn the germination, container, climate and care techniques that make unusual plants achievable.
Explore growing guides →3. Experiment
Try something gardeners around you are not growing and learn from what happens. Experimentation has always been part of Exotic Gardening.
Start an experiment →This Is Where Exotic Gardening Gets Truly Exotic
Pitcher plants trap insects. Cacao can be grown in Indiana with the right protection. Brugmansia produces enormous trumpet-shaped flowers. Arisaema and unusual peonies can reward patient seed growers. The point is not rarity for rarity's sake—it is discovering how astonishing the plant world really is.
Meet Unusual Plants
Some plants earn a place here because they are uncommon in home gardens. Others have extraordinary flowers, growth habits or adaptations. These are plants that invite questions and usually lead to another gardening experiment.
Grow Rare Plants From Seed
Starting unusual plants from seed is one of the most rewarding—and sometimes maddening—parts of plant collecting. Some species need patience, special temperatures or treatments that ordinary garden seeds do not.
Grow the Unexpected in an Ordinary Climate
One of my favorite parts of gardening is finding out what can be grown when the obvious answer is "not here." Containers, greenhouses, indoor growing, overwintering and season extension can dramatically expand the plants available to a temperate-climate gardener.
Collector Plants & Botanical Oddities
This growing center uses a deliberately narrow definition of rare and unusual. A plant does not belong here simply because it is native, wild, edible or unfamiliar to a beginner. This is the home for genuinely collectible cultivars, scarce or extraordinary species, unusual crosses and plants with botanical traits that make them exceptional.
Rare Tropical Plants
Collector tropicals form an important bridge between this growing center and Houseplants & Indoor Tropicals. The difference is intent: ordinary tropical houseplant care belongs primarily in the indoor-growing ecosystem, while genuinely rare, collectible or botanically extraordinary tropical plants belong here as well.
Rare tropical plants are also part of my speaking and teaching history. As those resources are organized, this section will connect the plant guides with the relevant presentations and archive material.
Unusual Edibles Have Their Own Home
Unusual colors, uncommon vegetables, tropical food crops, native edible plants and wild foods may be fascinating, but that alone does not make them rare plants. Those resources are primarily organized through the Edible Gardening growing center so this page can remain focused on true collector plants and botanical oddities.
From Plant Collector to Garden Experiment
Sometimes the story begins with finding a plant rather than searching for a growing guide. Nursery discoveries, old collections and plants acquired simply because they are irresistible are part of the history of Exotic Gardening too.
The Rare Plant Archive Is Growing
This is one of the areas where the historical Exotic Gardening restoration should become especially valuable. Old plant lists, photographs, seed-germination records and species-specific material are being excavated now. As those resources are identified and verified, they will be connected here rather than disappearing back into an archive.
Resources for Plant Collectors & Experimenters
Keeping records becomes especially useful when you are experimenting with unfamiliar plants. My Mercantile has gardening journals, plant trackers and a Foraging Journal that can help document plant names, observations, locations, growing conditions and what you learn over time.
More of My Plant Books
My gardening catalog includes specialized titles such as Flower Gardening, Houseplants, Cacti and Tropical Plants, Growing Plants in What You Have, From Seed to Harvest and 101 Secret Gardening Tips. Availability and formats vary.
Amazon Associate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Speaking & Workshops
Rare plants, tropical growing and unusual gardening experiments have also been part of my teaching work. Browse my current and past presentation topics for programs related to plants, gardening and growing beyond the ordinary.
Why Rare & Unusual Plants Belong at the Center of Exotic Gardening
Exotic Gardening has been online since 1998, and the name was never meant to describe a garden full of ordinary plants. The site grew from curiosity about unusual species, propagation, tropical plants, seeds and the challenge of growing plants outside the conditions people normally expect them to tolerate.
This growing center will keep that curiosity visible while the historical site is rebuilt—connecting today's growing guides with the experiments, plant records and discoveries that helped shape Exotic Gardening in the first place.
