If you give your gardening sweetie a Bleeding Heart for Valentine’s Day this year, you should make it gold.

That’s the recommendation of the Great Plant Picks folks, a group of Pacific Northwest based horticulturists and nursery owners who give the nod each year to select trees, conifers, shrubs, vines, perennials and vines that are hardy in USDA zones 7 and 8, are long lived and reasonably disease and pest resistant. Moreover, the plants should be “vigorous and easy to grow by a gardener of average means and experience,” be of good constitution and low in maintenance and not be invasive or overly vigorous.

The staff of the Elizabeth C. Miller Botanical Garden in Seattle administers the program, which announces its winners each year about this time.

Below are most of this year’s picks. In most cases, when GPP recommends multiple varieties (marked with an asterisk), I have limited the suggestions to one or two to save space. You can view the entire list on the Web site, www.greatplantpicks.org, or contact the Great Plant Picks program for the full list by writing P.O. Box 77377, Seattle, WA 98177 or calling (425) 788-4307. The Web site has very helpful care sheets and photographs.

Trees and Conifers Acer Pacific Sunset® (syn. Acer truncatum x A. platanoides ‘Warrenred’) (Pacific Sunset maple)

Acer palmatum ‘Emperor I’ (Emperor I Japanese maple)*

Azara microphylla (boxleaf azara; chinchin)

Betula albosinensis var. septentrionalis (Chinese red birch)

Betula utilis var. jacquemontii (Himalayan white birch)

Calocedrus decurrens (incense cedar)

Cercidiphyllum japonicum (katsura)*

Clerodendrum trichotomum (harlequin glorybower)

Cornus controversa ‘June Snow’ (June Snow giant dogwood)

Cryptomeria japonica Elegans Group (plume Japanese cedar)*

Davidia involucrata ‘Sonoma’ (Sonoma dove tree; Sonoma handkerchief tree)

Ginkgo biloba ‘Autumn Gold’ (Autumn Gold maidenhair tree)

Larix kaempferi ‘Diane’ (Diane Japanese larch)

Magnolia denudata (Yulan magnolia)*

Malus ‘Adirondack’ (Adirondack crabapple)*

Metasequoia glyptostroboides (dawn redwood)

Parrotia persica (Persian ironwood)

Picea orientalis (Oriental spruce)

Pinus leucodermis (Bosnian pine)

Prunus x yedoensis ‘Akebono’ (Akebono Yoshino cherry)

Pyrus salicifolia ‘Pendula’ (weeping willowleaf pear)

Sequoiadendron giganteum ‘Glaucum’ (blue-needled giant sequoia)*

Styrax japonicus ‘Emerald Pagoda’ (Emerald Pagoda snowbell)*

Trachycarpus fortunei (windmill palm)

Trochodendron aralioides (wheel tree)

Tsuga canadensis ‘Pendula’ (Sargent’s weeping hemlock)*

Shrubs and Vines Actinidia kolomikta (male form) (variegated kiwi vine)

Berberis darwinii (Darwin’s barberry)

Clematis ‘Duchess of Albany’ (Duchess of Albany clematis)

Clematis x durandii (Durand’s clematis)

Clematis ‘Madam Julia Correvon’ (Madam Julia Correvon clematis)

Cotinus ‘Grace’ (Grace smoke tree)

Daphne x burkwoodii ‘Carol Mackie’ (Carol Mackie daphne)

Daphne odora ‘ Aureomarginata’ (variegated winter daphne)

Elaeagnus pungens ‘Maculata’ (golden elaeagnus)

Fatsia japonica (Japanese fatsia)

Ilex aquifolium ‘Ferox Argentea’ (hedgehog holly)*

Kalmia latifolia ‘Minuet’ (Minuet mountain laurel)

Mahonia nervosa (Cascade Oregon grape)*

Myrica californica (California wax myrtle)

Osmanthus delavayi (Delavay’s osmanthus)

Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Diablo’ (purpleleaf ninebark)

Rhododendron ‘The Hon. Jean Marie de Montague’ (The Hon. Jean Marie de Montague rhododendron)

Rhododendron ‘Snowbird’ (Snowbird azalea)

Rubus pentalobus (formerly sold as R. calycinoides) (creeping Taiwan bramble)

Stachyurus praecox

Viburnum x bodnantense ‘Dawn’ (Dawn viburnum)*

Vitis vinifera ‘Purpurea’ (purpleleaf grape vine)

Perennials and Bulbs Anemone nemorosa (all cultivars) (wood anemone)

Campanula garganica ‘Dickson’ s Gold’ (goldleaf Adriatic bellflower)

Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ (Lucifer montbretia)

Dicentra spectabilis ‘Gold Heart’ (Gold Heart bleeding heart)

Eucomis comosa ‘Sparkling Burgundy’ (Sparkling Burgundy pineapple lily)

Hosta ‘Sum and Substance’ (Sum and Substance hosta)

Iris foetidissima ‘Variegata’ (variegated Gladwyn iris)

Lathyrus vernus (spring vetching; spring bush pea)

Penstemon ‘Blackbird’ (Blackbird penstemon)

Polygonatum odoratum var. pluriflorum ‘Variegatum’ (variegated Solomon’s seal)

Polystichum polyblepharum (Japanese tassel fern)

Primula ‘Guinevere’ (Guinevere primrose)

Veronica peduncularis ‘Georgia Blue’ (Georgia Blue speedwell)

Cathy Peterson belongs to the Clatsop County Master Gardener Association. “In the Garden” runs weekly in Coast Weekend. Please send comments and gardening news to “In the Garden,” The Daily Astorian, P.O. Box 210, Astoria, OR 97103 or online to peterson@pacifier.com

Open garden celebrates helleboresKINGSTON, Wash. – Heronswood Nursery celebrates the enchantment of hellebores at its annual Hellebore Garden Open Saturday, Feb. 15.

The day is a benefit for the Elizabeth C. Miller Library at the Center for Urban Horticulture in Seattle. The entrance fee of $7.50 is donated in its entirety to the Miller Library that was destroyed by fire in the spring of 2001.

The winter gardens at Heronswood will be open for strolling to observe these ever-evolving qualities as well as the consideration of companion plants for your hellebore purchases, with docents and staff on hand to answer questions. Lectures on the genus Helleborus and associated subjects by Dan Hinkley will be offered through the day and light refreshments will be available. The hours are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

For more information, call (360) 297-4172, or e-mail: heronswood@silverlink.net