These are spectacular architectural plants, great for cool, shady, damp places. In spring they send up their stems from spreading clumps, from which leaves, often bronze at first, unfurl in a range of interesting shapes - pinnate or palmate in the case of rodgersias, a single large round leaf in the closely related Astilboides. The flowers are tiny, massed on tall plumes, rather like those of the related astilbes, white or pink. And then, for good measure, the leaves in most cases go a rich bronze colour again in autumn.

Rodgersia pinnata 'Superba' has superb plumes of flowers, bright pink, appearing from deep red buds. The foliage changes from rusty brown in the spring to mid green in the summer. This is a great autumn interest plant and wonderfully architectural.