Key plants in the St James's Piccadilly: Imagine the World to be Different garden

A rounded deciduous shrub or small tree with broadly elliptic leaves greyish beneath, and large grey catkins in spring.

A deciduous tree to 25m, conical when young, becoming more irregular with age. Leaves to 12cm in width, fan-shaped and often bilobed, turning clear yellow in autumn.

This is the one species of palm that can be grown widely in the UK, though the leaves may be damaged by high winds in cold, northerly, exposed sites. It is tolerant of heavier clay soils and some shade. 

A short-lived herbaceous perennial growing to 20cm tall with narrow, lobed green leaves. Upright stems bear several nodding, bell-shaped flowers lacking spurs in shades of pink and purple in early summer.

A woody-based perennial, sometimes grown as a biennial, with grey-green leaves and dense clusters of crimson, pink or white, slightly fragrant flowers from late spring to autumn.

A graceful, low-growing fern with slender, dark green fronds, which are held by shiny, near-black stems. A semi-evergreen plant, it will keep its fronds throughout the winter if the temperatures do not drop too low, thus providing year-round interest.