Plants for the Week of May 21st 2019

The Blizzard Mockorange blooms lots of fragrant white flowers in late spring. It reaches about 4 to 6 feet tall and wide. It works well with summer blooming perennials to lengthen out seasonal interest. You can also plant it near areas where the breeze can waft the fragrance to nice sitting spots. Some light pruning keeps it’s shape after it blooms. Every couple of years a hard pruning is a good idea of taking out older stems to keep the plant fuller and blooming lots.

Amber Jubilee Ninebark reaches about 5 to 6 feet tall and wide. It’s greatest attribute is the multi colored foliage. The new growth is orange red and matures to the yellow you see in the photo. It does bloom white flowers like other Ninebarks that attract butterflies in May. Put this in front of green conifers like arborvitae for a great contrast. Can be used as a colorful hedge too. Easy to maintain with a light annual pruning.

Both of these plants do well in full sun!

Plants for the Week of May 7th 2019

Blazing Glory Bidens are an annual that will give lots of color for flower pots that are in hot sunny spots! The compact, mounding habit pairs well in front of Spikes or Purple Fountain Grass with it yellow to orange blooms. You can also mix it with petunias or calibrachoas for contrast. This type of bindens do not need trimming to keep blooming, it’s free flowering! Grows up to 10 to 12 inches tall and spreads 14 inches wide. Handles full sun conditions and prefers to be on the drier side or in well drained soils.

Lemon Meringue False Indigo is a perennial for sunny hot spots. It flowers lemon yellow blooms in late spring to early summer. False Indigo do best in well drained soils and play nicely with black eyed susans, purple coneflowers, russian sage, blanket flower and lavender. A combination of several of these would give a dry, hot, flower bed some nice rotating seasonal interest. Lemon Meringue grows to about 3 feet tall and wide.

Plants of the Week for April 30th

Lavender Twist Redbud is a small weeping tree that can handle full sun to part shade.  These trees flower pink in April along their branches.  They grow to about 8 feet tall and wide, but can be kept smaller with trimming.  After they flower green, heart shaped leaves emerge to cover the tree.  Lavender Twist Redbud works well where Japanese Maples don’t like to grow as a focal point surrounded by perennials and small shrubs.

Purple Fountain Grass is great for height in flower pots as well as in the garden.  Though it doesn’t last through our winters; the show is worth it to replant every year.  They rapidly grow to about 3 feet tall and 2 feet wide.  Purple Fountain Grass prefers full sun and plays well with millionbells, petunias, allysums or bidens for flower pots.

Plants for the Week of April 23rd

The Pink Flowering Almond is an old time spring bloomer. Simple cherry blossom-like flowers in April cover the branches. They grow to 5 to 6 feet tall and wide. They enjoy full sun to partial shade. I would use this as a backdrop plant because after it blooms it’s a plain green shrub and pairs well summer bloomers like daylilies, spirea, salvia, barberry or panicle hydrangeas.

Diana Clare Lungwort is a afternoon shade loving perennial that can brighten up shady areas with it’s frosted green leaves. It’s doesn’t grow very tall about 1 foot. This allows it to go in front of Japanese Maples, Hydrangeas or Hinoki Cypress. In spring it blooms a rich blue blooms adding another level of interest.

Plants of the Week of April 16th

This week the nursery is starting to come alive with foliage and flower color!

Evening Star Superbells is a mounding type of Million Bells that has a wonderful color combo of purple and yellow. I have been very impressed by the “Punch” series of Superbells that I think the “Star” series will do just as well. This annual is great for spilling out of pots with blooms all summer long. You also don’t have to trim them unless you have a water oops. Just remember to water and fertilize regularly. Great for planters in all day sunny spots.

The Scarlet Storm Quince aka Double Take Scarlet is a thornless, fruitless quince that in April gives you these wonderfully deep red blooms. They grow to about 4 to 5 feet tall and wide. Quince due well in as little as 4 hours of sun to all day sun. The red covers the branches of last year growth, so don’t prune them until after the annual show to maintain size.

Plants for the Week of April 9th

This week I feature two Magnolia trees that bloom in April with great color! Magnolias in our area prefer full sun but some wind protection. Neighboring mature trees, houses, or other buildings work great to shield them from hot summer wind from the south to west. Magnolia are not drought tolerant, they prefer to be watered regularly. They also prefer to be fed regularly with a fertilizer for acid loving plants like a Rhododendron fertilizer.

Black Tulip grows to 15 to 20 feet tall and 6 to 10 feet wide. It has large dark burgundy, tulip shaped flowers that begin in early spring before the leaves. It’s smaller habit works well in smaller yards that need some spring impact!

Felix Jury Magnolia grows to 16 to 22 feet tall and 5 to 7 feet wide. It boasts 12 inch wide blooms of hot pink. Another tree that would work well small spaces that need lots of spring color!

Plants of Week for April 1st 2019

This week’s featured plants shine bright all winter long providing color when there is not. Both of these handle full hot sun!

Winter Sun Pine is a type of mugo that reaches 6 feet tall and 4 feet wide. In the warmer months it’s a standard pine green but come winter it’s an electric yellow. It’s very cold hardy and tough to handle our hot summers. Winter Sun Pine works well for along a fence or house corner for a winter focal point. This would work well with redtwig dogwoods, or blue spruces for winter interest.

Golden Sword Yucca are great for hot sunny spots. They get 3 to 4 feet tall and 5 feet wide. White bell shaped flowers appear in the late spring. The yellow variegated blades pair well with russian sage, lavender, ornamental grasses, red barberry or mugo pines.

Featured Plants for the Week of March 25th

The snow is gone and here somethings that are in bloom! Helebores prefer afternoon shade (12 to 5) to all day shade. They enjoy alkaline soils making our area very welcoming to them. These perennials flower from January to March, this year of course it was March to April. Helebores are great for in front of Hostas Hydrangeas, Hinoki Cypresses and Rhodies. They also contrast Hostas and Coral bells well too with their dark green foliage. Maintenance for them is easy. Simply fertilize, cut out spent blooms and remove older leaves.

Camelot is pink one that reaches 12 to 15 inches tall and 20 inches wide. It starts with pink buds and opens to pink cream.

Double Fantasy is a double white that grow to 8 to 12 inches and 16 inches wide. The clean white is striking.

Here is a video from Garden Answers going over Helebores.

Plants of the Week for March 18th

The Lil’ Kim Rose of Sharon is a dwarf version of the high blooming plant reaching only 3 to 4 tall! Like other Rose of Sharon they need lots of heat grow and bloom so full sun spots are great. They flower from July to September. This would be great as a foundation plant under windows or to add color to boxwood hedges in a nice pattern.

The Contorted Filbert is a non fruit bearing Filbert that is most know for it’s twisted branches in the winter. They grow 8 to 10 feet tall and wide. They can handle full to part sun. I like to use the Contorted Filbert as a backdrop for perennials and smaller flowering shrubs. Once fall happens it’s time for the Contorted Filbert to take the stage. You can also trim the branches to use for craft or floral projects.

Plants of the Week for March 11th 2019

It’s hard to believe it is March 11th with all the snow on the ground and Feb like temps. Usually, we would be unpacking the nursery from winter but right now we are working on signage and organizing things before spring hits. Once spring hits, we will be working quickly to welcome it! Here is some flower color to help push spring along.

The Supertunia Vista Fuchsia Petunia is like it's hot pink cousin Bubblegum, featured a couple of weeks ago. The only difference is the deeper pink color. Like Bubblegum you feed it, water it, and you will be rewarded with continuous blooms as well no need for deadheading. Vista Fuchsia is a mounding petunia that grows to about 12 inches tall and up to 3 feet wide. Vista Fuchsia grows well in the ground or in pots. It loves sun and our heat too! You can plant this with Bubblegum and enjoy a wonderful show all summer long.

Saint Patrick Rose is green to light yellow rose that seemed fitting to mention for St. Patrick’s Day! It is a long stem rose (Hybrid Tea) that flowers through summer with a deadheading every couple of weeks. It grows to about 4 to 5 feet tall and prefers at least six of hours of sunlight. Being a light yellow in the heat of summer they can fade to white quickly but the color holds well in temps below 90 degrees. This color plays well with purple or dark pink flowering plants like lavender, salvias, garden phlox or spirea for a nice contrast.

Plants of the Week for March 4th 2019

The Golden Ruby Barberry is a dwarf barberry with coral orange foliage. It gets two feet tall and wide without trying to be rangy like it’s fellow cousins. Golden Ruby can handle being in sun or shade spots but it’s color is best when it gets at least 6 hours of sun. I like to use it for a border plant to contrast perennials and larger shrubs. It also fits in tight spots that are now wider than 3 feet.

Gold Finger Potentilla is an old favorite for places that have lots of heat, sun and not the best soils. Gold Finger keeps to about 3 feet tall and wide. Flowers in summer with deep yellow blooms. Though it can get rangy over time, these plants can handle a lot of and are easy to care for. I like to use these in desert landscapes or less formal design that needs something colorful and tough. To keep them from getting rangy I like to prune them hard every three years to encourage new branching in late Feb/March. Potentillas play nice with perennial salvia and lavenders.

This Weeks Featured Plants for February 25th 2019

I wanted to share the two most popular plants that we took to Regional Home and Garden Show.

The Pink Dawn Viburnum is one of the best “Welcome Spring” plants there are on the market. For it is a tough plant that can take full sun to part shade, handle wind and our cold temperatures. Pink Dawn Viburnum grows to 8 to 10 feet tall and 6 to 8 feet wide. In late winter to early spring it flowers fragrant soft pink blooms. They almost remind one of lilacs. In fall, their green leaves turn to a rusty red. I like to use this plant as a height and surrounded by summer flowering perennials. You can also use it for privacy screening by a patio to take advantage of the fragrance.

The Blue Short Needle Japanese White Pine attracted people at the Home Show because of it’s blue-green foliage and irregular shape. It grows to 20 feet tall and 15 feet wide. It doesn’t grow fast which allows it to be used in smaller spots that can’t have full size pine growing there. They enjoy full sun to part shade conditions and enjoy well drained soils. It would work great to serve as a backdrop to perennials and shrubs while providing year round interest.

Plants of the Week for February 17th 2019

These two featured plants are summer bloomers that don’t show well in winter; but I’m tired of the snow and wanted to share some color.

The Supertunia Vista Bubblegum is an annual that is very easy to care for. Feed it, water it, and you will be rewarded with continuous hot pink blooms. One plant fills a big pot all by itself. I was impressed with how well this plant did in my own planters. I didn’t have to deadhead spent blooms or trim it. Vista Bubblegum is a mounding petunia, so it is more ideal for grand filler statements. It gets about 12 inches tall and up to 3 feet wide. It loves sun and our heat too!

Neil Diamond is a striped Hybrid Tea, one bloom per stem. The pink/red with white stripes pattern varies from bloom to bloom. It reaches 5 ft tall and resists disease very well. Like other roses it starts flowering in May and goes until it gets cold like October/November. Roses are easy care for if you: give them space, plant them in sunny spots, feed them and then don’t water them on a nightly basis. It’s really that simple with roses in our area or at least that’s what my roses get. If you prune out spent blooms on Hybrid Teas at least monthly, it promotes more blooms.

Plant of the Week for February 10th

The Ivory Halo Dogwood is a great plant for winter interest whether it’s snowy or not; with it’s bright red stems. They grow to about 6 feet tall and wide. You can keep them in check with shearing if the space doesn't allow for it. Ivory Halo works well in full sun, as long as it gets plenty of water. The leaves during the growing season are medium green with white edges. This allows it to contrast plants like roses, pines, ninebarks and weigela. It can handle a wide range of soil conditions from being on a drip system to being on a river bank with saturated soil. Ivory Halo is great for parts of the yard that are always wet. Ivory Halo would be glad to take up the water.

Plants of the Week for February 2nd 2019

It’s so fuzzy! The Tiger Eyes Sumac is a yard friendly cutleaf sumac that looks like antlers in the winter; including having the velvet. It reaches 6 feet tall and wide. Tiger eyes leafs out in the spring with yellow to chartreuse green leaves. It's shape and texture resembles a Japanese Maples; but Tiger Eyes enjoys our hot summers. The only complaint that is tries to colonize but if you pull up the suckers keeps it in check. Enjoy the fall colors of oranges and red for a grand finale to the growing season.

Yellow Trumpet Vine is great for when you need yellow summer flowers that attract pollinators. The Trumpet Vine is aggressive so it does need to be kept in check with frequent trimming. Yet, if you need a narrow privacy screen this one works for it provides a thick foliage screen. It enjoys full sun and likes water. Don’t give it too much nitrogen to help keep it in check. Otherwise enjoy the flowers in the summer time.

Plants of Week for January 25th

The Green Spiral Fir is a small weeping tree, it provides a rich green color to the landscape with great texture. It gives the appearance that the needles spiral out of the trunk. It can handle full sun but needs to have consistently moist soil. Green Spiral reaches 25 feet tall and 15 feet wide with a mounding habit. Use this plant as a focal point and mix with dwarf Hydrangeas, daylilies or bee balm.

Hot and Cold Hot Poker is a hot and dry loving plant. It enjoys full sun and doesn’t mind being in hot gravel. The orange to cream torch flowers appear throughout the summer with deadheading. The flowers also attract pollinators really well. Hot and Cold reaches to 2 to 3 feet tall and wide with the torch flowers rising above grass like foliage. Red Hot Pokers play well with lavenders, yarrows, sumacs and junipers.

Plants of the Week for January 18th 2019

This week features plants that show well on cloudy winter days! We even took these photos on a cloudy day to show off their glow.

Goshiki False Holly is a medium shrub for afternoon shade spots. It grows 3 to 5 feet tall and wide. The leaves emerge pink, then tune green with splashes of yellow. Goshiki prefers well drained soils so it will go well with azaleas, rhododendrons and astilbes. It works great in small areas and can be trimmed easily to keep in check.

Chollipo Euonymus is a sun loving yellow variegated plant that grows to 12 feet tall and 6 feet wide. It can be used where you need a vertical height and for darker spaces. Chollipo can handle part shade to full sun spots. Like the Goshiki it prefers well drained soil, to be regularly watered and fertilized. Also trim to keep it in bounds if needed.

Plants of the Week of January 11th 2019

The Black Hills spruce is a smaller growing, tough spruce that doesn’t have as sharp of needles as the Colorado Spruce. It’s green color makes a nice specimen for Christmas lights. They grow to 35 to 40 feet tall and 15 to 20 feet wide. It handles all of our area’s landscaping quirk of sun, heat, cold and soil pH.

The Midnight Rose Coral Bells is a dark purple variety with flecks of hot pink that stand out in shade gardens. Coral bells prefer afternoon shade in our area (noon to 5) and would prefer to have well drained soil. In spring it flowers white. Midnight Rose Coral Bells with their dark foliage contrasts well against bright green foliage to yellow foliage plants like hostas, hydrangeas, or astilbes.