Archive for the ‘Heat Tolerance’ Category

Celebrate Three New Summerific® Hibiscus Varieties

Summerific® is a trademarked series of Rose Mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos) from Walters Gardens Inc. in Zeeland, Michigan. It is a native perennial hibiscus that emerges from the soil in late spring and grows rapidly. Both their huge flowers and foliage are natural focal points in the summer garden. This long-lived perennial can be utilized as […]

Mimosa Tree – A Different Option

Over the hot spring and summer months, weedy Mimosa trees (Albizia julibrissin) stand beautiful along U.S roadsides. During the rest of the year, people pay very little attention to this arboreal Asian beauty that inhabit a vast area from Iran to China (USDA hardiness zones 6-9). YES, this tree can be invasive. Read on. From […]

Perennial Salvias Getting Better

Perennial salvias (Salvia × sylvestris) represent a number of hybrid crosses between S. nemorosa and S. pratensis but may include S. × alpestris, S. × asperula, S. × collina, and S. × superba. Most cultivars are branched, upright, clump-forming, perennials with opposite, oblong to lanceolate, medium green leaves and showy spikes of tiny, tubular, two-lipped flowers (each to 1/2” long). Flower color choices range from blue to lavender to purple, depending […]

Indian Pinks

Indian Pinks (Spigelia marilandica) is a strikingly beautiful native wildflower throughout central and southeastern U.S. It is sometimes called “woodland pinkroot”. This perennial grows well in many parts of the U.S. (Zones (5b-9). Plants emerge in mid-spring. Sometime in June, depending on locality, their bright red tubular flowers flare open, crowned by five sharply pointed […]

Successful Gaura Growing Tips

Gaura (Oenothera lindheimeri) is a low-maintenance perennial native to the southern U.S. (Zones 5-9) and is a durable plant for gardeners. Its waving wands are dotted with dozens of whitish to pinkish flowers don’t stop blooming until summer temps climb above the 90°F range. Gaura is often called “whirling butterflies” because the flowers appear to […]

New USDA Hardiness Zone Map

The USDA Plant Zone Hardiness Zone Map is an important garden reference to anyone who gardens in the continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii or Puerto Rico. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today released a new version of its Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM), updating this valuable tool for gardeners and researchers for the first […]

Three Salvias To Try

Back in early spring you may have planted several kinds of salvias (sages). The arrival of the cool autumn weather turns up the flower power of sages. They’re members of the mint family and the leaves emit a mild anise scent when crushed. Looking ahead to summer of 2024, here are three salvias that you […]

Native Catalpa Trees

Catalpa Tree Northern catalpa or cigartree (Catalpa speciosa) overpowers most private landscapes by their enormous presence (USDA hardiness zones 4-8). This 40-60 feet large native tree commonly grows along roadsides, particularly on bottomlands from Illinois and Missouri south thru Arkansas and Tennessee. Catalpa is not a tree seen planted in most residential neighborhoods because of […]

Western Sunflower

Western sunflower (Helianthus occidentalis) is actually native to eastern and central North America, not western North America (USDA hardiness zones 4-8). It is one of the shortest of the many sunflowers found in the U.S. You have seen this Midwest native growing in glades, prairies, dry meadows, fields and rocky open woodlands. It grows equally […]

Chinese Fringe Flower

Chinese fringe flower, aka Loropetalum (Loropetalum chinense) is related to witchhazels (Hamamelis spp) and is native to China, Japan, and the Himalayas (USDA 7-10). In the southern U.S., fringe flower is usually evergreen or semi-evergreen, and is deciduous in 6b-7a. For those who garden in areas that occasionally are hit cold winter snaps, plant them […]