your 12 best hardy exotic/tropical plants?

[Dim]

If you were to landscape a new garden in the UK from scratch, and assuming that you were only allowed to plant 12 types .... which 12 hardy exotic tropical plants/shrubs/creepers/trees etc would you have no hesitation in planting that would be hardy in the greater part of the UK (i.e zone 8 )? ....

those that don't need much winter protection?

[Yorkshire Kris]

Trachycarpus
Phyllostachys
Fargesia
Arundo Donax
Gunnera
Eucalyptus
Fig
Native Ferns
Chusquea
Pauwlonia
Lobelia Cardinalis
Dahlias

[Trudytropics]

Heres mine:-

Yuccas Gloriosa
Fatsia Any type
Trachycarpus Fortuneii and Waggy
Phormiums (Yellow wave & Cream delight)
Hakonechloa
Melianthus Major
Gunnera Manicata
Euphorbia Martinii
Bamboos (Phyllo Nigra & phyllo aureosulcata spectablis)
Silk Tree
T Rex
Chamaerops Humilis

Some of these I have, some I would like to have, apologies for lack of flowers, not much experience in blooms dept

[Conifers]

Native Ferns

They are, by definition, not exotic, nor tropical

My selections (all exotic, admittedly not all tropical):
Pinus ayacahuite
Pinus pinceana
Pinus nelsonii
Pinus culminicola
Pinus engelmannii
Pinus sabiniana
Picea breweriana
Pseudolarix amabilis
Abies spectabilis
Sequoia sempervirens
Cupressus macnabiana
Sciadopitys verticillata
Nageia nagi (doubtfully hardy)
Dacrydium cupressinum
Lagarostrobus franklinii
Podocarpus salignus

All conifers

[simon]

They are, by definition, not exotic, nor tropical

My selections (all exotic, admittedly not all tropical):

But there are more than 12.

[Trudytropics]

Simon I noticed Conifers had more than his share , bet he sneaks into the check out Q for 10 items or less with 13 items .

Very nice selection though I am sure

[Conifers]

Conifers are so good, it's impossible to select only 12

[MikeC]

Trachycarpus wagnerianus
Butia capitata
Chamaerops humilis
Jubaea chilensis
Eucalyptus (various)
Cordyline australis (vanilla and some shocking hybrids!)
Daphniphyllum macropodum
Magnolia (large glossy leaved evergreen varieties)
Rhododendron (various)
Yucca gloriosa
Beschorneria yuccoides
Callistemon (various)

I could add another 12 and still be happy.

[Essex Ross]

In no particular order:-

Trachycarpus Fortunei
Phyllostachys Nigra
Yucca Gloriosa
Magnolia Grandiflora
Matteuccia Struthiopteris
Hibiscus Syriacus
Fatsia Japonica
Aucuba Japonica
Prunus Amanogawa
Araucaria Araucana
Arundo Donax
Phormium Tenax

Could also add Cordyline Australis to this list providing we get a better winter. Everything here should be reliably hardy (bar Phormium Tenax in very bad winters).

[Yorkshire Kris]

Native Ferns

They are, by definition, not exotic, nor tropical

My selections (all exotic, admittedly not all tropical):
Pinus ayacahuite
Pinus pinceana
Pinus nelsonii
Pinus culminicola
Pinus engelmannii
Pinus sabiniana
Picea breweriana
Pseudolarix amabilis
Abies spectabilis
Sequoia sempervirens
Cupressus macnabiana
Sciadopitys verticillata
Nageia nagi (doubtfully hardy)
Dacrydium cupressinum
Lagarostrobus franklinii
Podocarpus salignus

All conifers

Well neither of us have stuck to the brief!!!

I'll swap Native ferns for T Rex then!

[Yorkshire Kris]

Trachycarpus wagnerianus
Butia capitata
Chamaerops humilis
Jubaea chilensis
Eucalyptus (various)
Cordyline australis (vanilla and some shocking hybrids!)
Daphniphyllum macropodum
Magnolia (large glossy leaved evergreen varieties)
Rhododendron (various)
Yucca gloriosa
Beschorneria yuccoides
Callistemon (various)

I could add another 12 and still be happy.

These are not all completely hardy without some kind of protection in winters like 210/11

[Conifers]

Well neither of us have stuck to the brief!!!

True!

But if we really stuck to the brief (hardy: to say -15° or -20°C; exotic: not native to Britain; tropical: originating between 23°26′16″ N and S latitude), there'd be very few we could add! Pinus ayacahuite would be almost the only one.

[stephenprudence]

hmm this is going to difficult.. I might just be naming everything in my garden!

Crassula sarcocaulis
Trachycarpus fortunei (although not particularly good this year)
Yucca gloriosa
Yucca gloriosa variegata
Yucca aloifolia
Delosperma sutherlandii
Delosperma cooperii
Echeveria glauca
Impatiens omeiana
Callistemon rigidus
Crinodendron hookerianum
Euphorbia mellifera

[Yorkshire Kris]

Echeveria glauca

Are you sure of this one Stephen? Is it really hardy - around minus 10/15?

[MikeC]

Trachycarpus wagnerianus
Butia capitata
Chamaerops humilis
Jubaea chilensis
Eucalyptus (various)
Cordyline australis (vanilla and some shocking hybrids!)
Daphniphyllum macropodum
Magnolia (large glossy leaved evergreen varieties)
Rhododendron (various)
Yucca gloriosa
Beschorneria yuccoides
Callistemon (various)

I could add another 12 and still be happy.

These are not all completely hardy without some kind of protection in winters like 210/11

If you count winters like 2010, there are no zone 8 regions in the UK bar a few south coast locations.

If we get winters like that most years, there's almost no point, so I'm assuming these winters are one in a 50 year event.