Winter honeysuckle, aka fragrant honeysuckle (Lonicera fragrantissima) is a treasured old-fashioned shrub (USDA hardiness zones 4 to 8). It can still be found growing in older urban neighborhoods and parks. Winter blooming fragrant honeysuckles are a harbinger of spring. Budded branches may be cut and forced indoors. This vigorous durable shrub grows 6 -10 feet in […]
Archive for the ‘winter hardiness’ Category
Winter Honeysuckle Totally Ignored In The landscape
Posted by Hugh on January 21st, 2018
Posted in acidic soil, Aggressive grower, alkaline soil, Aphids, Bees and other pollinators, Disease prone, Drought tolerant, Environmental issues, Fertilizing plants, Flower Arranging, Honeysuckle (Lonicera), Insect (Pest) Problems, Invasive plant, Landscape ideas, Large shrub, mulching, Planting tips, Powdery mildew, Propagation (Cuttings), Pruning, Purchasing Plants, Scale, Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Spring flowering, Summer heat tolerant, Trees & Shrubs, watering tips, Winter flowering, winter hardiness 
Comments Off on Winter Honeysuckle Totally Ignored In The landscapeSmall Landscape Tree – Try Chinese Pistache
Posted by Hugh on January 17th, 2018
Chinese pistache tree (Pistachia chinensis) is an underplanted small 30-35 foot landscape tree native to China, Taiwan and the Philippines (USDA hardiness zones 6b-9). It is related to the edible nut pistache tree (Pistachia vera). Foliage consists of pinnate compound, dark green leaves (to 10 inches long), each leaf typically having 10-12 lanceolate leaflets (to 4 inches […]
Posted in Attracting birds, Chinese pistache (Pistacia), Disease resistant, Drought tolerant, Fertilizing plants, Landscape ideas, mulching, Ornamental fruit, Planting tips, Propagation (Cuttings), Pruning, Purchasing Plants, Small landscape tree, Soil drainage, Spring flowering, Summer heat tolerant, Trees & Shrubs, watering tips, Wildlife attractant, winter hardiness Comments Off on Small Landscape Tree – Try Chinese PistacheFour Top Rated Coreopsis You May Not Know
Posted by Hugh on January 14th, 2018
In 2016, Mt. Cuba Center in Greenville, Delaware reported the garden performance of 13 different perennial coreopsis (tickseed) species, hybrids, and related cultivars native to the eastern U.S. Over a period of three years, plants were assessed for their habit, floral display, disease resistance, and longevity. In the trial many popular tickseed cultivars performed poorly […]
Posted in acidic soil, Attracting birds, Attracting Butterflies, Bee Favorite, Bees and other pollinators, Butterflies, Container garden, Coreopsis, Coreopsis 'Flower Tower', Coreopsis 'Gold Standard, Coreopsis 'Last Dance', Disease resistant, Landscape ideas, mulching, Native Plant, Perennials, Planting tips, Propagation (Cuttings), Propagation (dividing), Pruning, Purchasing Plants, Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Spring flowering, Summer flowering, Summer heat tolerant, winter hardiness Comments Off on Four Top Rated Coreopsis You May Not KnowKey Landscaping Tips
Posted by Hugh on January 11th, 2018
To develop a successful landscape plan, first do a walk-a-round before you start digging and planting. Record your landscape’s sun patterns, soil types, wind and water movement. This information will help you select the kinds of plants that will prosper under existing conditions. Sun exposure shifts daily and seasonally. Observe the garden at different times to gain […]
Posted in acidic soil, alkaline soil, Attracting birds, Bulb Crops, Camellia, Container garden, Daphne odora, Deciduous, Deer resistant, Environmental Conservation, Evergreens, Fertilizing, Green Privacy Screen, Landscape ideas, mulching trees, Native Plant, Pieris japonica, Planting tips, Purchasing Plants, Rabbit/deer Protection, Rhododendrons, Shade Gardening, Soil drainage, Soil pH, Soil Testing, Summer heat tolerant, Trees & Shrubs, watering tips, Wildlife attractant, Wind protection, winter hardiness, Winter Protection Comments Off on Key Landscaping TipsCrypts (Cryptanthus) Are The Easiest Bromeliads To Grow
Posted by Hugh on January 7th, 2018
Crypts (Cryptanthus spp.), members of the bromeliad family, are an ideal low care choice for house plant collectors. Currently, there are over 1200 varieties of Cryptanthus species and hybrids available today. Compare to other bromeliads, which grow in trees or rock outcropping, crypts grow in soil or rock ground. Plants prefer an airy, porous, moist soilless media favored by most […]
Posted in acidic soil, Bromeliads, Cryptanthus, Disease resistant, Fertilizing plants, Flowering house plant, Interior (house) Plants, Landscape ideas, Planting tips, Potting Mix, Propagation (dividing), Purchasing Plants, Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer heat tolerant, Tropical Plants (non-hardy), watering tips, winter hardiness, Winter Protection Comments Off on Crypts (Cryptanthus) Are The Easiest Bromeliads To GrowSteps To Making Gardening Easier
Posted by Hugh on December 30th, 2017
Take an inventory of your gardening time, talley up of costs, and develop a plan how to make your garden space more beautiful with less work and cost to you. Plant Smarter Simplify! For example, in my zone 6 garden, bigleaf hydrangeas disappoint tow out of three years and they’re water hogs in the summer. Smooth (AG) hydrangeas (like […]
Posted in Annuals, Attracting birds, Attracting Butterflies, Autumn flowering, Bee Favorite, Bees and other pollinators, Bulb Crops, compost, Container garden, Crop rotation, Deer resistant, Fertilizing plants, Flowers, Garden Maintenance, Garden Tools, Globe amaranth (Gomphrena), Landscape Construction, Landscape ideas, mulching, mulching trees, Native Plant, Perennials, Planting tips, Pruning, Purchasing Plants, Raised bed Gardening, Scaevola, Southern Appalachian Region, Spring flowering, Summer flowering, Trees & Shrubs, Uncategorized, watering tips, Winter flowering, winter hardiness Comments Off on Steps To Making Gardening EasierFive Evergreens For Small Garden Spaces
Posted by Hugh on December 21st, 2017
The following five evergreen shrubs are smaller versions of the larger growing species. They make a better fit in smaller urban gardens. Gyokuryu Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica ‘Gyokuryu’) is a fast-growing, broadly conical selection with coarse bluish-green evergreen foliage. The needles are highly ornamental and remain bluish-green through most of the winter in zone 6 and […]
Posted in acidic soil, acidify soil, Arborvitae (Thuja spp.), Bagworms, Bald cypress (Taxodium), Chamaecyparis, compact shrub, compact tree, compost, Container growing, container shrub, Cryptomeria (Japanese cedar), Dawn redwood (Metasequoia), Deciduous conifer, Deer resistant, Disease resistant, Drought tolerant, Evergreen, Evergreens, Heat Tolerance, Landscape ideas, Mites, mulching, Native Plant, Nootkatensis cedar, Planting tips, Propagation (Cuttings), Propagation(grafting), Pruning, Purchasing Plants, Small landscape tree, Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer heat tolerant, Trees & Shrubs, winter hardiness Comments Off on Five Evergreens For Small Garden SpacesProtect New Trees From Winter Sunscald
Posted by Hugh on December 13th, 2017
Across the northern U.S. and Canada, cold temperatures can damage many plants. Wide fluctuations in temperature can be particularly detrimental to newly planted landscape and fruit trees from late fall to early spring. Street trees are particularly susceptible. Sun scald is described by elongated, sunken, dried, or cracked areas of dead bark, usually on the […]
Posted in apple orchard, Apple tree, Asian Pears, Cherries, Cold tolerance, Crabapple, Environmental issues, Garden Problems, Honeylocust (Gleditsia), Landscape ideas, Linden (Tilia), Maples (Acer), Mountain ash (Sorbus), Peach, Pear (Pyrus spp.), Plum, Purchasing Plants, Southern Appalachian Region, Street tree, Sun scald, Trees & Shrubs, Wind protection, Winter bark, winter hardiness, Winter Protection Comments Off on Protect New Trees From Winter SunscaldNew: The Bushel and Berry Collection Of Patio Fruits
Posted by Hugh on December 4th, 2017
Back in late 2016 Star® Roses and Plants* purchased the company formerly known as BrazelBerries®. In 2017 they have rebranded the plant offerings into the new Bushel and Berry™ Collection. Beside the old favorites, a new collection of edible berry plants are available at participating garden centers nationwide. I have successfully grown two varieties on the sunny portion of […]
Posted in acidic soil, Aphids, Attracting birds, Attracting Butterflies, Bees and other pollinators, Blueberries, Cold tolerance, Container garden, Disease resistant, Downy mildew, Fertilizing plants, Fruits & Vegetables, Insect (Pest) Problems, Landscape ideas, Mites, Planting tips, Powdery mildew, Propagation (Cuttings), Pruning, Purchasing Plants, Rabbit/deer Protection, Raspberries, Repotting plants, Sanitation, Soil drainage, Soil pH, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer heat tolerant, watering tips, Wildlife attractant, winter hardiness, Winter Protection Comments Off on New: The Bushel and Berry Collection Of Patio FruitsEuonymus ‘Moonshadow’ – A Ground Cover For All Seasons
Posted by Hugh on November 24th, 2017
Many so-called shade perennials such as hostas, astilbes, brunneras, and coralbells (Heuchera spp.) actually excel in areas that are bathe mostly morning sunlight. In these areas ‘Moonshadow’ euonymus (Euonymus fortunei ‘Moonshadow’) makes a great companion shrub with these perennials (USDA hardiness zones 4-8). Moonshadow has become a favorite ground cover euonymus of mine. ‘Moonshadow’ euonymus is […]
Posted in acidic soil, alkaline soil, compact shrub, Container garden, Container growing, container shrub, Disease resistant, Drought tolerant, Euonymus (Ground Cover), Evergreen, Fertilizing plants, Ground cover, Landscape ideas, mulching, Planting tips, Propagation (Cuttings), Pruning, Purchasing Plants, Scale, Shade Gardening, Soil drainage, Southern Appalachian Region, Summer heat tolerant, Trees & Shrubs, watering tips, Winter Garden Interest, winter hardiness Comments Off on Euonymus ‘Moonshadow’ – A Ground Cover For All Seasons
