Prized for their tall, willowy beauty, thalictrums are the supermodels of the garden border, the airy transparency of their slender stems and frothy flowers creating a see-through veil of delicate height and structure. This is a diverse genus, however, and beyond these statuesque border stalwarts there are diminutive alpines and compact cultivars that are perfect for container growing.
There are more than 120 species of thalictrum, including three that grow wild in Britain: Thalictrum flavum, which grows in stream margins, fens and water meadows; Thalictrum minus, found on limestone soil in parts of Cumbria and the Yorkshire Dales; and Thalictrum alpinum, which grows on Scottish mountainsides.
Commonly known as meadow rue, thalictrums are part of the buttercup family,. They bear
