Archive for the ‘Trees & Shrubs’ Category

Why My Tree Turns Yellow in Summer

Leaves of some landscape trees turn yellowish- green color in the summer. The common cause for this malady is a lack of minor nutrients (“micronutrients”) that are essential for plant growth. These nutrients are available in the soil in very small quantities. Nutrient deficiencies are not common, except in the high pH soils, particularly the […]

Four Gold Leaf Landscape Trees

Deciduous trees that flaunt gold foliage in the spring and summer months are a rare sight in U.S. landscapes. Listed below are four tree species/cultivars that possess bright gold foliage, particularly when sited in full sun. Under partial shade, leaf color may eventually turn lime green to chartreuse.  All four species are winter hardy in […]

Mini Reblooming Smooth Hydrangeas

Smooth hydrangeas (Hydrangea arborescens) generally grow 6 -7 feet high, and some wild forms upwards of 10 feet (USDA hardiness zones 3-9). The exceedingly popular Invincibelle® series grow 5-6 feet high. Three recently introduced mini-types (listed below) are perfect for a small garden or in a large container. Shrubs in the series reach full size in […]

Mimosa Tree – Love It Or Not

Over the hot spring and summer months, weedy Mimosa trees (Albizia julibrissin) stand beautiful along U.S roadsides. During the rest of the year, people pay very little attention to this arboreal Asian beauty that inhabit a vast area from Iran to China (USDA hardiness zones 6-9). From late spring through summer, mimosa struts an attractive […]

Rose of Sharon – A Summer Delight

Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus), aka althea, is a vigorous, upright, vase-shaped, multi-stemmed, deciduous shrub that typically grows 8-12 feet tall with some exceptions. Altheas may also be trained as small trees or espalier. Showy 5-petaled flowers appear over a long summer period and sometimes into early fall. The center of each flower has prominent […]

A Late Season Blooming Tree

Seven Son Flower (Heptacodium miconioides) is a large, multi-stemmed, deciduous shrub that grows 15-20 feet tall and 10-12 feet wide at maturity. This rare unique specimen is catching on in the U.S. because of its year-round appeal (USDA hardiness zones 5-9). It is an excellent choice for a lawn specimen or plant several in a […]

Ten Native Flowering Vines

Trees and shrubs are not the only woody landscape plants to invite into your landscape. Check out these ten native vines. But first do some homework. Some of these vines grow aggressively which can mean more maintenance work for you. Vines are a part of the vertical landscaping trend. They are also space-savers. Native flowering […]

Summer Blooming Golden Raintree

Golden raintree (Koelreuteria paniculata)is a medium sized deciduous tree that grows 30 to 45 feet tall and 25-35 feet wide, a horizontally branched tree Zones 5-9). This tree has a medium to fast growth rate, blooms at an early age with upright twigs with yellow flowers, a rare color among flowering trees whenever the time […]

Cinnamon Clethra

Japanese clethra (Clethra barbinervis) is a large, upright, deciduous shrub or small tree (USDA 5-8). As a small tree it generally grows 10-20 feet tall and features horizontally drooping, terminal racemes (4-6 inches long); the white flowers are pleasantly fragrant. Its bloom period continues over several weeks from mid to late summer. In autumn, its […]

Adding Compact Summer Flowering Shrubs

Yes, to reduce annual garden maintenance some gardeners are switching to space-saving flowering shrubs. Patio gardeners are popping compact shrubs into containers such as spireas, hydrangeas, crape myrtles, chaste tree, weigelias, and buddleias. They’re looking to add color and reduce their maintenance workload.   Numerous new [rose] varieties have been created that are relatively resistant to the […]