Black tupelo, blackgum, or sourgum tree (Nyssa sylvatica), its three common regional names, is native to Eastern North America from the New England states, down south into Florida, and as far west as Eastern Texas (USDA hardiness zones 4-9). Mature blackgums reach heights of 60 feet and taller and 20 – 25 feet width that […]
Archive for the ‘Spring flowering’ Category
Blackgum (Tupelo) – Fall Leaf Color And Fruit Attract Birds And Other Wildlife
Choices Of Inkberry Hollies
Inkberry holly (Ilex glabra), also called gallberry, is a slow-growing broadleaf evergreen shrub (USDA hardiness zones 4-9). Inkberry grows 5 to 8 feet tall. In the wild, it spreads in the ground via root suckers to form colonies. The species is native from coastal Canada to Florida, west to Louisiana at home in sandy woodlands and […]
Favorite Native Shrub Pollinators
These eight (8) shrubs amaze me by the numbers of bees and other pollinators that their flowers attract when blooming. Virginia sweetspire (Itea virginica) is an erect, rounded, broad-spreading, deciduous shrub with arching branches. Itea grows 3-4 feet (less frequently to 5 feet) tall with similar spread. Fragrant, tiny white flowers borne in cylindrical, drooping racemes […]
Beebalm (Monarda) Varieties Attract Hummingbirds, Butterflies And Moths
In 2016 Mt. Cuba Center in Greenville DE enlisted a team of trained volunteers to monitor the visitation of hummingbirds, moths, and butterflies in the 40 cultivar beebalm (Monarda) trial. Their goal was to systematically observe and note the cultivars that were most frequently visited by these pollinators. Below is a listing of the five […]
Indian Pinks Generate Garden Fireworks
Indian Pinks Generate Garden Fireworks Indian pink (Spigelia marilandica) is a strikingly beautiful native wildflower native to the Southern Appalachian region. However, this perennial grows well in most parts of the country (Zones (5b)6-9). Plants emerge quite late in the spring. Sometime in June, depending on locality, their bright red tubular flowers flare open, crowned […]
Six Easy Perennials To Grow
Rozanne (‘Gerwalt’) Cranesbill (Geranium X ‘Rozanne’) – low growing flowering groundcover that forms a 20 inch tall by 24 inch wide mound; blooms almost non-stop from mid-spring to early fall. For a cranesbill, its 5-petaled, violet-blue flowers are huge (2.5 inches wide) with off-white centers; in bloom from late spring to early summer. (Zones 5-8). […]
Calibrachoas (Million Bells*)
Gardeners have discovered Million Bells* (Calibrachoa x hybrida), a small flowering cousin of the petunia. Million Bells are prolific bloomers and produce one-inch mini-blossoms. They were first marketed to home gardeners in the 1990’s. They’re native to Peru, Brazil, and Chile, and are commonly grown as annuals in the U.S. Over the past twenty years […]