Chinese (Kousa) dogwood (Cornus kousa) rates four stars (out of four) as a beautiful small flowering landscape tree. Since the 1970’s, a deadly anthracnose (Discula spp.) fungus disease has threatened to eradicate our native flowering dogwood (C. florida). Kousa dogwood rates as a highly disease resistant alternative. Its Achilees’ heel is its less than stellar foliar heat […]
Archive for the ‘watering tips’ Category
Kousa Dogwood Not Summer Heat Tolerant
Posted by Hugh on August 23rd, 2011
Posted in Chinese (kousa) dogwood, Disease resistant, Heat Tolerance, Southern Appalachian Region, Spring flowering, Summer heat tolerant, Trees & Shrubs, watering tips 
Comments Off on Kousa Dogwood Not Summer Heat Tolerant‘Gateway’ Joe-Pye Fits Most Gardens
Posted by Hugh on August 22nd, 2011
On hot clammy August days, towering 6-8 feet in height, there is Joe-Pye* weed (Eupatorium purpureum) to enjoy. It is visually hard to miss when driving along rural roads in the Southern Appalachian region (USDA zones 6 and 7). Joe-Pye’s flowering sends me a timely message that autumn is only six weeks away. For gardens the cultivar […]
Posted in Aggressive grower, Bee Favorite, Butterflies, Disease resistant, Eupatorium 'Gateway', Fertilizing plants, Native Plant, Perennials, Root suckering, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer flowering, Summer heat tolerant, watering tips Comments Off on ‘Gateway’ Joe-Pye Fits Most GardensSummer Leaf Drop From Trees
Posted by Hugh on August 20th, 2011
It’s late summer in the Southern Appalachian region (USDA zones 6 and 7). Outdoor temperatures continue to hit 90°F almost daily, and weekly precipitation is low. Over the past 3-4 weeks leaves have been dropping prematurely from landscape trees. Tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), river birch (Betula nigra), willow (Salix spp.), sycamore (Platanus x acerifolia), […]
Posted in Birch (Betula spp.), Elms (Ulmus), Garden Problems, Hackberry (Celtis), Large Shade trees, Premature leaf drop, Redbud, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer heat tolerant, Sycamore (Platanus), Trees & Shrubs, watering tips, Willows (Salix) Comments Off on Summer Leaf Drop From TreesThe Challenge and Reward of Harlequin Glorybower
Posted by Hugh on August 17th, 2011
Harlequin Glorybower (Clerodendron trichotomum) is a rambling 15 foot tall shrub, and can be easily shaped into a multi-stemmed 10-12 foot small tree. Glorybower shines in the late summer and early fall landscape. Its sweetly scented, very showy flowers attract the attention of gardeners as well as hummingbirds and butterflies. Glorybower reaches its northern- most hardiness limit here […]
A Canna Lily Revival
Posted by Hugh on July 30th, 2011
Depending on where you garden, Canna lily (Canna spp.) is a tropical-looking, herbaceous annual or perennial. Its colorful foliage and long blooming time leaves a huge visual impact. Canna is not reliably winter hardy in the Southern Appalachian region (USDA hardiness zones 6 and 7). […]
Posted in Canna lily, Canna lily, Fertilizing plants, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer flowering, Uncategorized, Virus diseases, water garden maintenance, watering tips, winter hardiness, winter injury Comments Off on A Canna Lily RevivalMove Over AJ, Here Comes T-Rex
Posted by Hugh on July 26th, 2011
For nearly half a century, ‘Autumn Joy’ has been the leading “stonecrop” or “live forever” sedum cultivar planted. More than once I’ve heard this saying: “if Autumn Joy won’t grow in your garden, you should try another hobby. ‘T-Rex’ is a terrific new hybrid and ‘Autumn Joy’ is one of its parents. ‘T Rex’ has […]
Torch Lily Has Long Bloom Life
Posted by Hugh on July 23rd, 2011
Torch lily (Kniphofia spp.), aka “red hot poker”, is an easy to grow long-lived perennial from South Africa. Its colorful floral spike (and a little imagination) resembles a fiery torch or sizzling poker, visited often by hummingbirds, bees and butterflies. New cultivars are mostly hybrids and vary in plant height and flower color. Starting in […]
Posted in Attracting birds, Bee Favorite, Butterflies, deadheading, Disease resistant, Hummingbird, Perennials, Pruning, Southern Appalachian Region, Spring flowering, Summer flowering, Summer heat tolerant, Torch lily (red hot poker), Uncategorized, watering tips, winter hardiness Comments Off on Torch Lily Has Long Bloom LifeInvite Sonata Cosmos Into Flower Beds
Posted by Hugh on July 7th, 2011
Over the past few years a flower bed containing cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus) has become a rare sight across the Southern Appalachian region (USDA zones 6 and 7). Not so, at the recently visited BuGa National Gardening Show 2011 in Koblenz, Germany. Called by some “Mexican asters”, cosmos produces big 3- inch wide red, white, pink […]
Posted in Disease resistant, Flowers, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer flowering, Summer heat tolerant, watering tips Comments Off on Invite Sonata Cosmos Into Flower BedsTough And Reliable Chinese Astilbes
Posted by Hugh on July 4th, 2011
Astilbes (also called “false spireas”) are favorite late spring flowering perennials. The Astilbe x arendsii hybrids from Germany are most popular and available at local garden centers. Astilbes are very hardy in the Southern Appalachian region (USDA zones 6 and 7). If low maintenance is your goal, try Chinese astilbe (Astilbe chinensis var tacquetii). Their […]
Posted in Astilbe (false spirea), Flowers, Perennials, Southern Appalachian Region, Spring flowering, Summer flowering, watering tips Comments Off on Tough And Reliable Chinese AstilbesFlaming ‘Fireball’ Hibiscus Quite A Summer Show
Posted by Hugh on June 18th, 2011
‘Fireball’ hibiscus (Hibiscus x moscheutos ‘Fireball’) is a vigorous hardy perennial with burgundy tinted cutleaf foliage and huge 10-12 inch clear red flowers from mid-summer to late summer. Plant height is 4 – 5 feet and 2 – 3 feet in width. A strikingly beautiful plant, ‘Fireball’ thrives on heat and humidity. It wants full […]
Posted in compost, Flowers, Hardy hibiscus, Hibiscus moscheutos, Perennials, plant nutrition, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer flowering, watering tips Comments Off on Flaming ‘Fireball’ Hibiscus Quite A Summer Show
