Archive for the ‘Propagation (Cuttings)’ Category

Three Native Flowering Shrubs For Your Summer Landscape

                Virginia sweetspire (Itea virginica) flowers in late spring with dark green, pest-free summer foliage that turns brilliant red in fall (USDA hardiness zones 5-9). It thrives in full sun to partial shade, and in moist mildly acidic soils. It is also highly drought tolerant once established. Fertilize […]

Japanese Crape Myrtle Flaunts Stunning Bark

Most crape myrtle cultivars marketed through garden centers are hybrids that combine the large colorful flowers of Common Crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica) with the mildew-resistant foliage and cold hardiness of Japanese Crapemyrtle (L. faurei). Japanese Crape myrtle are cold hardy (USDA hardiness zones 6-b to 9) and are heat tolerant. They are rated hardy to winter minus 10 […]

Hold In Confinement

Some plants are incredibly aggressive. Herbicides like Roundup™ won’t phase them. They often escape and take over other areas of your garden or neighborhood. Four notorious examples are ditch lilies (Hemerocallus fulva), swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), Mexican petunia (Ruellia brittoniana), and pink evening primrose (Oenothera speciosa). You can grow these four weedy offenders in confinement. All will survive […]

Reviving A Severely Damaged Crape Myrtle In The Spring

                  Crape myrtles (Lagerstroemia indica and hybrid cultivars) are rated as hardy perennials and semi-hardy shrubs or trees in USDA zone 6 and parts of zone 7. Since the year 2000, an average of 1 out of 3 winters has killed some crape myrtles to the ground. By […]

‘Palibin’ Lilac A Good Choice For Small Landscapes

  Dwarf Korean lilac (Syringa x meyeri ‘Palibin’) forms a dense multi-stemmed deciduous shrub, 4 to 5 feet high and 5 to 6 feet wide, with rounded top or canopy (USDA hardiness zones 3-7). It branches low to the ground. Flower buds form which are distinctively violet in color. In mid-spring this diminutive lilac is covered by billowy panicles of fragrant purple […]

Summer Blooming ‘Little Lemon’ Goldenrod

  Goldenrods are members of the aster family (Asteraceae); approximately 100 species of goldenrods are native to North America. Across most of the Eastern and Midwestern U.S., goldenrods are frequently spotted growing in moist soils in open farm fields, in ditches, and along edges of streams. The golden yellow blooms attract countless bees, butterflies and other […]

What To Know About Flowering Vines

For some gardeners planting vines is not for the faint of heart. Vines need space, support, training, and for some – lots of pruning. Some vines don’t demand lots of room while others chew up lots of space. Small vines like clematis or annual morning glories (Ipomoea) may be grown in a large patio container for many years […]

Growing Trilliums

                Trilliums (Trillium spp.) are the beloved native wildflower around the world. Many species are native to the U.S. Five popular U.S. species are great white trillium (T. grandiflorum), yellow trillium (T. luteum), prairie trillium (T. recurvatum), drooping trillium (T. flexipes), and sweet Betsy trillium (T. cuneatum). For 8 months and more, trilliums are […]

Slender Deutzia Is Versatile Landscape Shrub

                Most gardeners have never heard of deutzias (Deutzia spp.) which is very unfortunate. There are many species of deutzias. They bloom in spring and grow into many shapes and sizes. Slender Deutzia (Deutzia gracilis) is a small densely branched deciduous shrub with upright to slightly arching branching (USDA zones 5-8). […]

Angel Trumpet Blooms All Summer Long

Angel trumpet (Brugmansia) is tropical plant native from Venezuela to Peru (USDA hardiness zones 7-b to 10). Plants have shown to be surprising hardy outdoors in zone 6-b in a protected area. This beautiful shrub, sometimes grown in a tree form, reaches heights of 6-10 feet. It is a member of the Solanaceae family (tomato, potato, petunia, nicotiana […]