Snow Fountains® (Prunus x ‘Snofozam’) is a slow-growing, weeping ornamental cherry that grows compact. It develops into a 8 to 15 feet tall and 5 to 12 feet wide tree. This cultivar is also listed as ‘White Fountains’ in some nursery catalogs. The cascading branches flow downward or may take on a green mound form. […]
Archive for the ‘winter hardiness’ Category
Cool Blooming Osteospermums
Osteospermums (Osteospermum x hybrida ) are members of the daisy (Asteraceae) family, commonly called African Daisy, Blue-eyed Daisy, or Cape Daisy. Osteos are cool season annuals that excel in northern and less so in southern U.S. gardens. Osteos bloom more profusely in full sun, but want some cooling relief during the summers. Osteos have always […]
U.S. Native Pagoda Dogwood Wonderful Woodsy Tree
Pagoda dogwood (Cornus alternifolia), aka alternate leaf dogwood, is a small deciduous tree or large multi-stemmed shrub. It typically grows 15-25 feet tall and spreads slightly wider than tall. It exhibits a very distinctive layered horizontal branching. Small creamy white non-bracted flowers appear as flattened cymes in mid to late spring, about 3-4 weeks after […]
Hardy or Not– Grow Agapanthus
Lily-of-the-Nile (Agapanthus praecox orientalis) is native to South Africa (USDA Zones 8–11), and is not reliably hardy in the Southern Appalachian region (USDA zone 6 and 7). However, many gardeners are successfully growing it as a “tender perennial”. Agapanthus grows in an outdoor flower bed or in a container. The ball shaped light blue or white […]
‘Appalachian Spring’ Dogwood Highly Disease Resistant
This may be old news, but definitely worth repeating. Twenty five years ago a dreaded dogwood disease threatened to eliminate our beautiful spring flowering tree from our gardens. Appalachian Spring flowering dogwood (Cornus florida ‘Appalachian Spring’) was found at the Camp David Presidential Retreat atop Catoctin Mountain in Maryland. Currently, Appalachian Spring is the only dogwood cultivar […]
Shredded Umbrella Plant Handles Dry Shade
Shredded umbrella plant (Syneilesis aconitifolia) is a non-aggressive woodland ground cover which is native to dry hillsides in China, Japan, and Korea (USDA hardiness zones 4 thru 8). It has a medium green lacy foliage which you will treasure in the shade garden. While its flowers may be tiny and inconspicuous, the circular umbrella foliage […]
Fall Color Calendar For Red Maple
Red maple (Acer rubrum) is commonly planted as a 40-60 feet tall street or shade tree (USDA hardiness zones 3-9). Tiny red flowers burst open early, often in early March throughout the Southern Appalachian region (USDA hardiness zones 6 and 7). Flowers give way to reddish double winged samaras. Its glossy dark green 3-5 lobed […]
Little Girl Magnolias Avoid Early Spring Frosts
The early flowering deciduous magnolias, namely star (Magnolia stellata) and tulip (M. soulangeana) magnolias, are often susceptible to late winter-early spring frosts. In the 1980’s the U.S. National Arboretum released the series of 8 shrub-type cultivars called the “Little Girl Magnolias”. They were crosses between M. liliiflora and M. stellata. Over ten years these deciduous […]
Early Blooming Cornelian Cherry In The March Garden
Cornelian cherry (Cornus mas) is a multi-stemmed, low-branched dogwood tree or shrub. It typically grows 20-25 feet tall and slightly less in overall width (USDA hardiness zones 4-7). Tiny, golden yellow flowers appear in late winter, around March 1st in my east Tennessee garden, and remain in bloom through most of the month despite cold […]

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