2022 Perennial Plant Of the Year – Little Bluestem The Perennial Plant Association (PPA) has named its 2022 Perennial of the Year — Little Bluestem (Schizachrium scoparum) (USDA hardiness zones 3-9). This ornamental grass was chosen because it is suitable for a wide range of growing climates, is low maintenance, and offers multiple-season interest. This North […]
Archive for the ‘Summer heat tolerant’ Category
After The Holidays Poinsettia Care
The gift of a poinsettia means you should enjoy the beauty over the next three months or more. Your poinsettia should be warmly wrapped to protect from chilling outdoor temperatures from the garden shop to your home or apartment. If applicable, carefully unwrap the protective sleeve around your poinsettia to prevent injury to leaves and […]
Empress Tree (Paulownia)
Empress tree (Paulownia tomentosa) is a fast-growing shade tree, in some years adding 4-5 feet of new growth, eventually to reach heights of 40-50 feet and width of 20-30 feet in less than 20 years. In the first 3-4 years, juvenile trees develop enormous size leaves. Once trees start producing flowers (adult stage), leaves are […]
2020 Evaluation of Russian Sages By CBG
Russian sage (Perovskia spp.) is a popular garden and landscape plant valued for its lavender-blue flowers and long bloom period. Leaves are silvery green leaves. Long cultivated as an herbaceous perennial, Russian sage is technically a subshrub, a plant with a woody base that produces herbaceous stems. Perovskia spp. has recently renamed Salvia yangii and is a member […]
Hawthorn Trees In The Landscape
The world of hawthorns (Crataegus spp.) includes several outstanding landscape trees that exhibit four-season ornamental interest: 1. spring flowering, 2. disease-free summer foliage, 3. variable fall leaf color, and 4. colorful fruits for wildlife in the fall and winter months. World-wide, hawthorns are native to temperate regions of North America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, […]
Forms of Western Arborvitae
Here is a partial listing of cultivars of Western arborvitae (Thuja plicata), as found in the U.S. nursery industry. Several are good choices for dwarf conifer collectors, in rock gardens, and in large containers. Winter hardiness of some cultivars is variable. Note: some are dwarf forms of ‘Green Giant’ arborvitae (Thuja standishii x plicata) which […]
Coral honeysuckle
Coral honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens), aka trumpet honeysuckle, is a vigorous twining flowering vine that is primarily native to the southeastern U.S. (USDA hardiness zones 4 -8). Cultivars are available in shades of red, orange. and yellow. The colorful flowers appear in spring and summer, and colorful berries decorate in late summer and autumn. Invite hummingbirds […]
Bald Cypress For A Small Landscape
Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum) is well-known as a deciduous conifer native to the southeastern U.S. (USDA hardiness zones 5-9). Pyramidal in form, bald cypress towers over 70 feet tall with a spread up to 50 feet. Bald cypress is naturally found in southeast U.S. swamps, marshlands, lakes, ponds, and other wetlands. On marshy ground, you […]
Fuzzy Bolivian Sage
The large and bright fuzzy blossoms of Bolivian Spearhead Sage (Salvia oxyphora), aka Fuzzy Bolivian Sage, should catch your eye in late summer and early autumn. Equally attractive is the plant’s lush tropical-like glossy green foliage. This sage inhabits the edges of moist forests in the foothills of the Andes. It is grown as an annual in full sun in Northern […]