Archive for the ‘watering evergreens’ Category

Hardy Dwarf Deodara Cedars

Over the past ten years, deodara cedar (Cedrus deodara) has carved its niche into Southern Appalachian gardens (USDA zones 6 and 7). Three zone 6 hardy dwarf cultivars, ‘Glacier Blue’, ‘Devinely Blue’, and ‘Feelin Blue’, fit  today’s smaller garden space better than most tree forms of deodara cedar that typically reach 70-80 feet in height. […]

Brighten Up a Drab Corner in Your Garden

Crippsii falsecypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Crippsii’) is one tall 20-25 foot high evergreen shrub (or small tree). Its lacy golden evergreen foliage  catches your attention almost any season of the year. Unfortunately, Crippsii is rarely seen in landscapes because few landscape architects and designers know it or can not find it in the nursery trade. Ten years ago a credit union near my home […]

Thermotropism in Plants

How cold is it outside this morning? Look out the window….perhaps your rhododendron is telling you. On very cold winter mornings some broadleaf evergreen shrubs, like rhododendron and daphniphyllum in my landscape, droop down and/or curl up. (see photo). This is a specific response by some plants to sub-freezing temperatures, called “thermotropism”.Scientists do not fully […]