Confessions Of A Plant Geek

New zone map unveiled

2012-01-30T11:46:00.001-06:00

The USDA has unveiled it's new hardiness zone map, and it's now interactive! No more staring at a tiny map and guessing, especially when you are near the border between 2 zones. Enter your zip-code and voila! You can also zoom in. Nice and handy. And based on 30 year data the trend is slightly warmer zones, which I agree with.

Fargesia

2012-01-14T10:12:00.000-06:00

Fargesia nitida in January

People are always amazed that we can grow bamboo in Wisconsin. The gardeners who know we can grow bamboo often seem amazed that we can grow some that don't have plans for world domination. The various species of Fargesia are well behaved, unlike so many other hardy bamboos that are readily available.

In general Fargesia prefer partial shade and organic rich well drained soils. They are slow growing, taking quite some time to reach mature sizes. In cold areas they will not likely reach their full size, 1/2 to 3/4 size is likely. With proper siting many will over-winter in zone 5 with few problems. Keeping them out of strong winter wind is important. I've grown 2 species of Fargesia so far.

I planted Fargesia nitida in 2003. It started as a 1 gallon pot and has since grown into a 7' tall x 4' wide specimen. Typically bamboo are semi-evergreen, but in colder climates they commonly drop their leaves in all but the mildest of winters. They will usually leaf out again from the old culms, but it may take some time so be patient. Mine has leafed out as late as mid-June, but usually is green by the end of May. If it doesn't leaf out by mid-June, you may need to cut it back to the ground. This happened in 2007 to all of the Fargesia that I'm aware of in the area. For some reason I couldn't figure out they died back to ground level. The winter wasn't terribly cold or windy and we had adequate snow cover. After being cut back, they resumed regular growth and were 30" by the end of the summer. Fargesia nitida is hardy to zone 4a, and can grow to 12' tall with a spread that is slightly less, probably 8'.

Fargesia dracocephala 'Rufa' has become quite common in the nursery industry, and is somewhat similar to F. nitida. As a young plant it appears stocky, full and cascading; a habit it maintains into maturity although it does become more upright as it ages. It will be smaller in stature than F. nitida at only 8' or so, but will be more full to the base and seems like it will be wider. 'Rufa' has also been more difficult to grow for me, though there are definitely differences in soil and exposure. Mine has struggled, dwindling for a couple of years but seems like it is making a comeback. This one is slightly less hardy, probably to zone 5.

Currently on my list of must haves: F. dracocephala 'White Dragon' - a variegated clumping bamboo! Now to find a spot for it...

Happy Holidays!

2011-12-23T11:24:00.000-06:00

Happy Holidays from the garden!

Death of a plantsman...

2011-12-20T23:17:00.003-06:00

I am a subscriber of the Plant Delights Nursery newsletter, and love Tony Avent's writing. He often includes news of goings-on in the horticulture field, including stories of those who have recently passed. This months newsletter gave me the sad news that Bob Stewart of Arrowhead Alpines passed away from his battle with colon cancer. I had fully intended to make a trip to MI to see the nursery and meet Bob and Brigitta this past September, but we really didn't have the extra money to make the trip. And certainly not the huge sum I would need to load the car with plants. Seriously, they have one of the largest selections of perennials and other odd plants anywhere and I'm thankful that Brigitta will be keeping the nursery in business. The catalog was always an enjoyable read, and I've learned a lot about plants that I've seen available nowhere else.

December has seen the passing of other well known plantsman, including Wolfgang Oehme, Dr. John AA Thompson (inventor of SuperThrive) and Kim Jong Il. Ummm what? Yes, Kim Jong Il. From the PDN newsletter:

"Finally, the strangest of the plantsmen to pass away this month has to be North Korea’s Kim Jong Il...yes, you heard me right. The story goes back several years, when the late Dutch plant breeder Kees Sahin, who was friend of Kim’s dad, was visiting North Korea with Japanese plant breeder Motoderu Kamo. Kamo gave the elder Kim one his begonia hybrids, which was subsequently named Begonia ‘Kimjongilia’ for Kim Jong Il’s 46th birthday. Kim was so taken with the begonia, that he declared begonias the National Flower of North Korea. After supplying Kim with more begonia genetics, Kim Jong Il began what would become the largest begonia breeding project in the world. According to Kees, Kim would fly over his begonia fields in his helicopter and make his final selections from the air. At the time of Kim Jung Il’s death, there were sprawling greenhouse complexes all across North Korea, all for the purpose of housing Kim’s massive begonia collection. For international begonia shows, Kim would fly his prize begonia hybrids to the show with one person holding each begonia in the back of a cargo plane, to keep from damaging the plants. Also, according to Kees, Kim’s head begonia breeder became so renowned internationally, that Kim had him killed for upstaging the Dear Leader. As Dave Barry liked to say...I am not making this up!"

So... anyone know where I can buy one?

Happy Holidays everyone!

Botanophilia spring catalog is online!

2011-12-08T15:05:00.000-06:00

The online catalog has been updated with new plants for spring 2012. The downloadable catalog will be finished soon. We've also updated and lowered our shipping charges. Shipping is now $12 for up to 3 plants, $4 per plant for more than 3 plants. We've also added in-store pick up options which will not charge you shipping but will charge you sales tax. Please note: if you select in-store pick up let us know in the comments what date and time you would like to stop by so we can have your order ready!

Lastly- FREE SHIPPING on orders of $100 or more until March 1st!

Hanging Hostas of Hampshire

2011-11-30T05:19:00.001-06:00

I thought I'd share this video from youtube. Thanks to Hostaholic1 for uploading!

The Hanging Hosta Garden in Lindford, Hampshire is the creation of June Colley and her partner John. The collection of over 1300 hosta cultivars is diplayed in several garden settings including an English Garden, a Waterfall and Stream Garden and an Islamic Garden. Many of the hostas are displayed at eye level to give a wonderful tapestry of foliage and colour. The garden is open to the public by appointment and in July under the National Garden Scheme.

See the website www.ngs.org.uk

Fall Color In The Garden

2011-10-28T14:48:00.001-05:00

Fall color is peaking in my garden now, even if all of the trees are pretty much bare already. Here are some of my favorites.

Abelia mosanenssis is developing nice yellow fall color. Not the gorgeous orange tones every nursery is claiming, but still very nice. I LOVE THIS SHRUB!

Acer palmatum 'Aureum' developing beautiful yellow-orange tones. This has been a fantastic Japanese maple here in WI, regardless of the lack of care it's gotten. Hard to find, and underused as most people seem to not care for maples with green leaves. Hardiness, fall color, and green stems make this maple one that should be much more widely used.

Amelanchier 'Autumn Brilliance', Cornus sericea gold leaf, and Panicum virgatum 'Northwind' all looking fantastic. The cornus looks like it will be coloring up late this year, which is not a bad thing.

Aronia melanocarpa not quite peaking yet. This is one of my favorite shrubs for year long interest. White flowers in spring, dark green glossy foliage in summer, red fall color, and black berries in winter. What more can you ask for? This one is a large variety, they were 9' tall before I cut them to the ground last year. They're reaching up to 3' only a year later. 'Iroquois Beauty' is a great compact variety to about 4' x 4'.

I love witch hazels, and Hamemelis xintermedia 'Jelena' is looking absolutely fantastic, even though she's dropped most of her leaves. Lots of buds promise a late winter show, disappointingly this is one of the few non-fragrant witch hazels, but I won't argue with orange flowers in March.

Not the best fall color of the bunch, but my still-potted Orixa japonica is showing a brownish-yellow color that looks quite nice as the leaves are still glossy.

Gaillardia 'Frenzy' still blooming its fool head off.

One of my favorite peonies, P. ITOH Going Bananas looks GREAT spring through fall.

Another great peony, 'Little Medicine Man' showing some nice orange undertones masked by burgundy.

Aster oblongifolius 'October Skies'

2011-10-07T14:28:00.001-05:00

I'm a big fan of Asters. There are a heck of a lot of them and they provide a wide range of beautiful fall colors. One of my favorites is A. oblongifolius 'October Skies'. I've had this variety in my garden for 4 years now and in typical perennial fasion every year is better. It grows about 24-30" tall and is easily 36" wide. This is one of the latest blooming Asters, and is in peak bloom as everything else is slowing down for the season. You can see in the October picture that it will be blooming for sometime as there are still buds to open. The only real drawback is it does need a little support so it doesn't sprawl all over the place. I use a large grow-through hoop for this and it works great. The hoop isn't easy to see to begin with and the plants in front of the aster make the support invisible. There are other great varieties of this species, including a newer light pink called 'Dream of Beauty' which I'm planting this fall.

Grow-through hoop

October - Full Bloom!

September - Just starting to bloom

The Plant Geek is looking for work

2011-10-02T21:14:00.001-05:00

Due to the economic situation, my department (and my position) are being downsized. The garden center will still be open, and there should still be some cool plants available but I will no longer be part of the staff. I'll be officially unemployed on Oct. 14th. If anyone is looking for a slightly used plant geek, let me know!

Whatizit?

2011-09-18T14:36:00.000-05:00

This month's myster plant. The only hint besides pictures- it's incredibly fast growing. It was planted from seed in April 2010 and is now in a #15 squat pot.

"Your gardens must be beautiful!"

2011-08-26T10:01:00.006-05:00

This is the comment I get most often while talking to customers at work. They don't believe me when I tell them that they actually look pretty terrible. Working in horticulture, I don't have time to weed in spring or early summer. I also have a dog that is keeping me from planting or spraying in one area. So, here is photographic proof that my gardens are nasty looking.

First is the driveway garden. A crazy mess at the moment, but I'm slowly getting it under control. My dog tramples anything near the house in this garden, and everything used as foundation planting along the house. Quackgrass is taking this garden over quickly... wish I could spray it since pulling it just makes it angry.

Here is the foundation planting where this is no longer a dog to trample everything. This is newly planted, and will hopefully start to look better if I can keep it weeded.

Around the corner from the previous picture. Just need time to clean it up and it will be ok.

And now for the shot that redeems all this ugliness. My butterfly garden is pretty good. In the process of some editing, and still needs lots of weeding but I enjoy it and the critters it brings. No Monarch caterpillars this year though, despite having 3 species of Asclepias for them to munch on.

This garden is also nice, although not very colorful. Unfortunately we haven't had the time the last 2 years to grow the huge variety of food we had been. Despite the fact that this garden didn't get planted until the last week of June and the Tomatoes and Peppers are bearing late, it looks awesome and everything is healthy.

Eggplant 'Thai White Ribbed'

Tomato 'OSU Purple'

Pepper 'New Ace'

Chard 'Bright Lights'

Mystery Plant

2011-08-18T11:16:00.000-05:00

Here is another mystery plant. Do you know it?

Summer Color

2011-08-18T10:53:00.000-05:00

I have plenty of summer color right now, so I thought I'd share some of it with you.

Anaphalis margaritacea is native to most of the US and is an overlooked garden plant that is a great host for American Lady caterpillars.

Chrysanthemum 'Mammoth Lavender'

Garden shot

Geranium psilostemon - Blooming since June 30" tall and no flopping!

One of my seedlings Hemerocallis ('Golden Zebra' x 'Peppermint Ice')

Hemerocallis 'Johnny Cash'

Hemerocallis 'Regency Heights'

Hemerocallis 'Siloam Show Girl'

Sedum 'Mr. Goodbud'

Silene regia 'Prairie Fire'

One of my introductions Silphium perfoliatum 'Lemonade Stand'

Critters are color too! Black Swallowtail on fennel

Asclepias 'Silky Red' - Annual for us and one of my favorites.

Chocolate cosmos that overwintered in my garden

Petunia 'Black Velvet'

Verbena bonariensis

Eupatorium 'Phantom'

Agastache 'Black Adder', Eryngium yuccifolium, and Fennel

Coreopsis

2011-07-19T13:34:00.000-05:00

I have 2 newer Coreopsis varieties in my garden.

'Route 66' has been a great performer so far, it went in last year from a quart pot and is now quite large. Other varieties I've tried with red coloration in the flower have been far less vigorous than this one. 'Route 66' also has finer foliage than other varieties, revealing a strong verticillata parentage which is probably a good reason for its hardiness.

'Star Cluster' is a new variety in the big bang series from hybridizer Darrel Probst. This series as a whole is performing well here in WI. I will try to re-shoot this picture soon, as it is overexposed despite being shot on an overcast day and looking great on the camera screen. 'Star Cluster' has red coloration in the center of the flower, which will extend throughout the petals in cool weather. This one is extremely tall and sturdy, almost 30" tall in my garden and standing straight. I really like this variety, and so far it is performing well.

Spring Color

2011-05-25T11:09:00.002-05:00

I've finally had a chance to get out and take some pictures of the spring color in my gardens over the last week or so. Everything is definitely behind this year, due to our very cold temps. We've had a few warm days now and the plants are responding to warmth very quickly, doubling in size in a a matter of days.

Cornus sericea unnamed gold mutation

First up is a neat shrub I found a number of years ago. It's a red twig dogwood that provides a bright spot of gold in the spring then changes green through the season. All other traits seem normal, growth has been fast I will guess it will hit 8' tall and wide. There are other gold-leaf selections out there that are similar, I don't know that I'll name it or introduce it for sale. I am growing some seed from it in hopes for a variety that stays gold all season.

Arabis sturrii

Arabis sturrii is a great spring bloomer that forms low cushions. White flowers in May followed by green glossy foliage the rest of the season. It's a good nectar plant for early season butterflies and moths.

Corydalis 'Blackberry Wine'

Corydalis are in bloom now. C. cheilanthifolia is now finished and 'Blackberry Wine' is getting started. These are great plants for spring color and seasonal texture. They like partial shade and good drainage. 'Blackberry Wine' will bloom sporadically through the season.

Epimedium 'Fire Dragon'

Epimediums are in full bloom for me now. They've been gaining in popularity in the past few years. One of my favorites is 'Fire Dragon' which has fairly large (for an Epimedium) flowers that last much longer than others in my garden. 'Amber Queen' is fairly similar, I'm not sure how long the blooms will last. 'Lilafee' is a nice purple flowering variety is petite. 'Niveum' is a great white variety. These are all easy to grow in shade to partial shade and are tolerant of dry soil.

Epimedium 'Niveum'

Epimedium 'Lilafee'

Hepatica acutiloba is an underused woodland plant that does great in a shade garden. Flowers range in color and can be white, pink, or blue. They put on a good show of small flowers in spring, then the glossy foliage looks great all season.

The various Heuchera, xHeucherella, and Tiarella are looking great now, 'Southern Comfort' and 'Fire Chief' are looking great. All of the new ones I planted have returned beautifully. Tiarella 'Cascade Creeper' is coming up well, this is one of my new favorites. There are some great new varieties this year that I can't wait to get planted: Heuchera: 'Apple Crisp', 'Pear Crisp', & 'Electric Lime'. xHeucherella 'Redstone Falls', 'Yellowstone Falls', & 'Solar Eclipse'.

Iris lutescens var. campelli is a diminutive species of bearded iris with light purple standards and slightly darker falls. I've struggled with this one for awhile, but I've finally found a spot where it seems happy. I have other dwarf bearded hybrids in bloom as well, and they are always among my favorite spring bloomers. If you don't have any dwarf iris, pick some up.

Mertensia virginica alba. I picked up a white form of Virginia bluebells last year, and it's in bloom now. I probably should move it to a spot more suitable to its spreading nature.

Hostas are an obsession of mine (I have over 300 varieties) and the gold varieties are always my favorite as they come up. 'Dawn's Early Light' and 'Nancy' are especially bright. Both look great all season as well. 'Dawn's Early Light' changes to bright green/chartreuse but has pebbled round leaves and a great mound habit. 'Nancy' stays a fairly bright chartreuse and has a good form.

'Dawn's Early Light'

'Nancy'

spring mystery plant

2011-05-18T12:41:00.001-05:00

I've been away from blogging for awhile, but I'm back with a spring mystery plant quiz! Can you name this cute spring bloomer from my garden?

New and Improved!

2011-03-26T09:36:00.001-05:00

2011 promises to be another year of great new varieties. We've got a bunch of great new ones for you to drool over, here are some highlights.

Achillea Seduction series. I'm not a big fan of Yarrow. They flop, self-seed like crazy, or just look plain ugly after blooming. The Seduction series fixes all of those things. They are sturdy, stay in a fairly well behaved clump, and rebloom very well with dead-heading. They aren't exactly new, we've been carrying Strawberry Seduction for 3 years now and I love it. We're adding Peachy Seduction this year, and should also have Sunny Seduction.

Actaea pachypoda 'Misty Blue' I am a big fan of native plants. This selection of white baneberry features bluish foliage as well as white flowers followed by white berries. Great for the shaded or woodland garden, this selection will get 2-3' tall and wide and makes a terrific background for hostas, ferns, and grasses.

Agastache 'Summer Sunset' Another great hyssop from Terra Nova. Pretty much all of their Agastache are being sold as zone 6 hardy, and I've found with good drainage they've all survived here quite well. This beautiful orange flowered variety should be no exception.

Dicentra spectablis 'Valentine' Everyone has wanted a red-flowered bleeding heart for a long time now. It is finally here. This is the reddest to date, and it is fantastic.

The number of Echinacea varieties continues to expand exponentially. This year we have: 'Aloha' - a new soft yellow single, 'Cranberry Cupcake' - a shorter bright pink double, 'Daydream' - a strong yellow single, 'Irresistable' - a great double coral, 'Jupiter' - another addition to the big sky series this one is soft coral peach, 'Mama Mia' - a salmon orange fading to coral single, 'Marmalade'- a double orange beauty, 'Phoenix' - a single yellow with orange tones, 'Pow Wow Wildberry' and 'Pow Wow White' - 2 new dwarf singles with fantastic habits and loads of blooms, 'Snowcone' - A white counterpart to 'Pixie Meadowbrite', 'Secret Pride' - a new double white, 'Secret Joy' - a very soft double yellow, 'Secret Lust' - a new orange double.

Geum is and underused group of plants, with some fantastic new cultivars coming out. 'Totally Tangerine' is a great tangerine-orange beauty to 30" tall. This one is incredibly floriferous as well. 'Alabama Slammer' is an orange and yellow blend to 14" tall.

I saw Helleborus 'Pink Frost' at some winter trade shows and was blown away by the clarity of color, upward facing flowers, and fantastic foliage. This one is a MUST for the shade garden.

xHuecherella Falls series Terra Nova has come up with yet another breakthrough in breeding- creeping xHeucherellas. These beauties look fantastic in hanging baskets and combo planters as well as creeping across the ground in the partially shaded garden. 'Redstone Falls' has bronze toned leaves with darker marks in the center and 'Yellowstone Falls' is bright yellow with burgundy splashes in the center of the leaf. (very similar to xH. 'Solar Power')

We have a ton of other new varieties as well. Be sure to stop in and check them out this spring! I'll try to add pictures to this post as I get them.

Kudos to Teleflora

2011-02-07T10:14:00.001-06:00

Now that the superbowl is over, it's time for everybody to talk about the commercials. I'm not a football fan so I usually don't watch them (I live in WI- am I a heretic?) but I did catch half of the game this year. I give kudos to Teleflora for having one of the best commercials of the superbowl. I don't have to tell anyone involved in the industry that the last number of years have been a struggle. With the economic troubles, fresh flowers haven't exactly been the go-to gift. For those who missed it, here it is:

Heuchera With Yellow and Orange Tones

2011-02-07T09:13:00.002-06:00

I'm finally getting around to finishing up the Heuchera posts. (for now) We finally get to the plants that started Heuchera's rise to stardom. It all started back in 2002ish with a sport of 'Whirlwind' called 'Amber Waves'. (I don't remember the first year it was available- The Heims/Ware book gives it the year 2000 but that seems early to me- the patent was granted in 2002) This amber colored beauty with ruffled and lobed foliage and nice pink flowers wasn't an immediate sellout the first year, but as word spread it moved well. The second year, it sold out quite quickly. The 3rd year it continued with strong sales, but there were complaints about it not being hardy. I of course had planted one the first year. It was perfectly hardy, however there indeed were problems. For one it frost-heaved out of the ground every winter for 3 years regardless of how well I winter mulched. It didn't bulk up in my garden well, staying only about 8" across the whole time it was planted. I pulled it out, literally- I grabbed the plant and it popped out roots and all, in 2006 (long after we dropped this from our lineup). I think the foliage texture is unmatched by any other amber Heuchera, but its poor garden performance really knocks this one down on the desirability scale. Micrantha and americana are in the background, and as this is the source of all other amber and chartreuse varieties, they also have them in the background.

Improvements happen, and in the world of Heuchera they can happen quickly. 2004 brought 'Marmalade', a more vigorous plant slightly darker amber foliage than 'Amber Waves'. This one was a much better grower, though I still had problems with it losing vigor after a couple of years. Still, with the right site and soil conditions this one can prosper.

2004 also brought the first chartreuse Heuchera to market- 'Lime Rickey'. This plant had nice vigor and small leaves on a dense clump. This thing looks like a head of lettuce (in a good way). Bright chartreuse foliage in spring turning to lime green in summer. White flowers are nice enough, but not exciting. I had fewer vigor issues with this one.

2005 brought 'Creme Brulee' to the Proven Winners line, and this one was (to me) the best so far. It had good texture and a compact form. The flowers weren't very exciting, but who's looking at them anyway at this point- we still haven't recovered from seeing an orange heuchera! Another breakthrough was that this one tolerated sun. Lots of it if it didn't dry out. We included this in our full sun butterfly garden. Still after a few years of growing it, we found that it has the same loss of vigor issues as 'Amber Waves' and 'Marmalade'.

I had been growing H. villosa 'Autumn Bride' for a few years at this point, and it was turning out to be a great performer in heavy soils and hot humid temperatures. Many people growing this plant realized the breakthrough that was Heuchera 'Caramel' when it hit the market in 2005. This H. villosa hybrid (probably with 'Amber Waves' as the other parent) came to us from France. Finally an amber Heuchera that would perform! My clump is now somewhere between 24 and 30 inches wide. This one is also tolerant of full sun, and needs at least some sun to show its best color. In shade it is a sickly yellowish color. This has become my biggest selling variety to date, far exceeding 'Palace Purple'. Bad economy or not we still sell nearly 100 of these every year.

'Caramel'

2006 brought even more- 'Peach Flambe', which is one of the best non-villosa hybrids. Bright foliage on a strong clump with H. sanguinea background. 'Peach Melba' is another Proven Winners plant, this one with a silverish veil over the amber foliage. 'Key Lime Pie' is also from PW, and features chartreuse-lime foliage and nice pink flowers.

From 2007 on I've lost track as so many have now come out. Here's a list of more, years included where possible:

'Citronelle' hit in 2007ish and is a chartreuse mutation of 'Caramel'. It isn't as strong a grower, but it still performs well. 'Georgia Peach' is a unique color of amber tones with some red and a silver overlay. Villosa hybrid that grows well but isn't as dense as other varieties.

'Christa' I haven't grown, but is another villosa hybrid similar to 'Caramel'. Looks to have somewhat better color.

'Ginger Ale' 2008ish. A nice ginger color to the foliage with a silver overlay and yellowish flowers. Micrantha, americana, and cylindrica are in the background of this one. Has performed fairly well.

'Ginger Peach' I haven't grown. Out of 'Marmalade' breeding, 2010 intro.

'Lime Marmalade' is a chartreuse sport of 'Marmalade'.

'Kassandra' is another amber villosa hybrid from France that I have not grown. Foliage is more lobed and less rounded than 'Caramel.

'Tiramisu' & 'Miracle' showed a lot of promise for having chartreuse foliage with red veins. Plants don't always meet the expectations of the hype and pictures however. The red viens were only present in cool weather, so most of the summer they were chartreuse. Muddy chartreuse in the case of 'Miracle'. 'Tiramisu' was a poor grower for me, and is currently the only villosa hybrid I've killed. 'Miracle' grew well enough, but I don't like the color and removed it.

'Electra' came out in late 2009 and was widely available in 2010. This one lived up to the promise of pictures and hype and is everything that 'Tiramisu' wasn't. Red veins are present year round, with the exception of maybe spring as the new foliage fills out, at which point mine was eye-hurtingly bright chartreuse. Villosa hybrid.

'Electra' in spring before the veins turn red.

'Electic Lime' is a chartreuse villosa hybrid that also came out in 2009. This one is a villosa hybrid similar to 'Citronelle' but I believe it will be bigger in all aspects.

'Southern Comfort' hit the market in 2009 and is villosa hybrid similar to 'Caramel' but has bigger leaves and will get taller. It also has better color in the shade. Turns burgundy in fall and winter.

'Tara' is a very lobed villosa hybrid with chartreuse foliage and some red tones in the center. I have not grown this one, but like the looks of it.

'Midas Touch' was a 2010 release. I saw it at some trade shows and like the look of it. New growth is bright peach and matures to gold and finally the same ginger color as 'Ginger Ale'.

'Havana' excited me quite a bit as being the first chartreuse Heuchera with rose-red flowers. The foliage has some silver overlay and can get some red veining in fall. It was however quite a slow mover. Also a bit of a slow grower and took quite a long time to bloom. We'll see how it performs in the garden. A 2010 introduction with micrantha, americana, sanguinea, and cylindrica in the background.

My sad 'Havana' in November. I will be moving it to a better site in spring.

'Peach Crisp' is a 2010 intro with ruffled and lobed amber foliage. Looks very good, full sun for best color.

'Pear Crisp' is new for 2011 and is the chartreuse counterpart to 'Peach Crisp'. Like all chartreuse variaties, will probably scorch with too much sun.

I didn't get a lot of pictures for this post. 2 great online resources for images:
http://www.lucsperennialworld.com/heuchera/index.html
http://www.terranovanurseries.com/gardeners/heuchera-c-82_23.html

Botanophilia goes live!

2011-02-03T13:03:00.000-06:00

In the past, I've posted about getting a mail-order nursery set up. The time has come for the reveal. The website is now live, hopefully everything works correctly. I will still be doing some page editing, but the products are all enabled and credit card processing should be working. Take a look and let me know what you think!

www.botanophilia.com

What's that smell?

2011-02-02T09:06:00.002-06:00

We woke up this morning trying to figure out why it smelled like we had a sewer leak. Checked all over the house, no problems. I walked into the kitchen (where the plant stand is) and had a "duh" moment. In the night Sauromatum venosum opened. Not super strong smelling, but enough to notice throughout the house. Moving it to take pics didn't help any. Unfortunately the spathe has already fallen and I had to hold it up for a full shot. I was storing the bulb in my basement until I could plant it in the greenhouse in March. It had other ideas and sprouted a few days ago.

If it was nice enough outside (it's currently incredibly windy and we have 6' snowdrifts outsie) I would go for hand pollination. This is one cool (but horrid smelling) aroid. Anyone with experience overwintering it in zone 5? I have a small offset I will try in the garden.

January Mystery Plant

2011-01-28T12:05:00.002-06:00

This month's mystery plant is taken from my trip to the Chicago Botanic Garden. I very much want to add one of these to my collection some day. Can you guess what it is? By the way, I've enabled anonymous comments, so anyone can guess.

A winter trip to Chicago Botanic Garden

2011-01-28T11:58:00.000-06:00

On Jan 19th, we were scheduled to attend the MidAm trade show. Being that I didn't want to get up at 4am to make it to the show site by 8:30, we decided to go on Tuesday the 18th and stay overnight. So what to do during the day? Go to Chicago Botanic Garden of course! Although the temperature wasn't too bad, the wind was cold and made it hard to stay outside for very long. I did brave the cold for some shots of the dwarf conifer garden, but mostly these are greenhouse pictures. Enjoy the photo tour!

First stop: Dwarf Conifers! I have a great love of dwarf conifers, but I haven't concentrated on gardening with them very much. Mainly because I know my "disease" will make me spend way more than I should on them! Here are some that I thought were nice and may add to my gardens some day. Some of them aren't dwarf at all, but they are nice specimens.

Larix decidua 'Cherry Valley' and Abies concolor 'Compacta'

The tag was buried for the weeping larch, not sure which one it is. Also didn't see a tag for this cute little spruce.

Picea engelmannii 'Bush's Lace' is a great spruce with pendulus branch tips. Very elegant and worthy of garden space. Xanthocyparis (Chamaecyparis) nootkatensis 'Pendula' does great in the midwest. I don't know why gardeners are afraid of this plant.

I didn't get a tag for this one either, but it appears to be Picea orientalis.

The garden has 3 greenhouse biomes that are beautifully planted. The first one we visited was the arid house. I didn't take notes on what the varieties were, mostly for my benefit so I don't seek them out! I don't have room in my house for more plants!

Next up is the tropical house. Again no notes taken, in fact there were a few things that I would have like to find more info on but I couldn't find tags.

No there isn't anything wrong with this Colocasia, that's how it grows!

Last stop, the semi-tropical hosue. Still no notes, but readers may recognize more plant material here. Some plants here are even quite hardy, to zones 6 or 7. This house features some nice topiaries, including a massive dinosaur covered with Piper nigrum, Black Pepper. Very cool. Also featured was a bog-garden with some nice carnivorous plants.

Burgundy, Red, and Purple Heuchera

2011-01-12T12:17:00.000-06:00

The Heucheras that everyone is familiar with would be the various burgundy varieties. They can lend fantastic color contrast or color echoes to the garden. Many of them have some amount of sun tolerance. This is where the bulk of hybridizing work has been done. The variety of sizes, shapes, foliage color, flower color is unmatched in the genus. You can find one for nearly any garden site except maybe hot, dry, baking sun.

'Palace Purple' put coral bells on the map as a great garden plant. It is tolerant of sun and shade. While it prefers consistently moist well-drained soils and some afternoon shade like other Heuchera, I've seen it growing in dry clay in the sun. It wasn't thriving, but it didn't seem to be suffering either. An overall great performer and still worthy of garden space. This variety was produced from seed for a long time, leading to color and performance inconsistency. It was recently reselected and clonaly propagated as 'Palace Purple Select'. also 'Absi' and 'Molly Bush' are clonal selections that are superior to seed forms as well. This is often sold as a form of H. micrantha, however it is definitely a selection of H. villosa purpurea.

'Swirling Fantasy' is a nice burgundy selection with some silver overlay. It's been a great performer in my gardens reaching nearly 24" wide. This variety features rosy pink flowers in profusion in June which are loved by hummingbirds. Sanguinea and americana are definitely in the background.

'Obsidian' is the reigning champion of darkness. This is the "blackest" of the Heuchera varieties and is a good performer as well. Some sun tolerance, I have not trialed it in the heat of the day though. White flowers. Micrantha, villosa, and americana are in the background.

'Blackout' is another good dark variety. This one is more sensitive to sun, keep it in morning sun only. I believe villosa is in the background, not sure what else is.

'Hollywood' is a great burgundy selection with some silver overlay to the foliage. Great profusion of rose flowers. It seems a little slower and smaller than 'Swirling Fantasy' so far. It's also darker and has more silver on the foliage.Flower production from a small plant has been very good though. Micrantha, cylindrica, americana according to Terra Nova. Must have sanguinea somewhere as well for the flower color.

'Beaujolais' is one of my favorite burgundy villosa hybrids. It has some silver overlay to the foliage indicating americana heritage and pinkish flowers indicating sanguinea in the background as well. It's been a good performer, grows somewhat larger and looks great in mass plantings. Sun and heat tolerant as well, but looks its best with morning sun and afternoon shade. May fade, picture is from July on a plant with some afternoon sun.

'Mahogony' has been a great performer for me so far. Fast growth and a dense mound does well in full sun. White flowers are fairly nice.

'Plum Royale' is a fantastic purple selection. Purple is a fairly recent color breakthrough in Heuchera breeding, as most were some shade of burgundy before. It has a good amount of silver overlay. White flowers are fairly nice and in proportion to the mound size. This one has the best color with some sun, but scorches with too much. Morning sun until 11 or 12 seems to do best here. Americana, micrantha, and sanguinea in the background. One of my favorites.

'Shanghai' is another purple selection. the foliage is more deeply cut than 'Plum Royale' and less glossy, but it has a similar color and silver overlay. White flowers are more profuse than 'Plum Royale'. Micrantha, americana, and sanguinea are in the background. Turns more burgundy for fall and winter. Another new favorite.

'Fire Chief' has expanded the selection closer to red than before. This variety has fairly nice pink and white flowers produced in proportion to the mound. Somewhat compact and slow growing for me. Micrantha, sanguinea, and villosa are in the background. Darker burgundy for fall and winter.

'Autumn Leaves' is even more red than 'Fire Chief' and has an almost velvet-looking quality to the foliage. The flowers are less attractive on this variety, I removed them. Villosa and americana background, this is likely to be a great performer. It has grown well for me so far.

There are many other great varieties that I don't have room to talk about. Check out 'Milan', 'Rave On', 'Dark Secret', 'Chocolate Ruffles', 'Black Beauty', 'Root Beer', 'Cherry Cola', 'Purple Petticoats', 'Brownies', and 'Mocha'.

December's Mystery Plant

2010-12-24T11:35:00.001-06:00

Who am I?

Hopefully someday I have prizes for the winners, but until then you just get to show off your superior plant geek knowledge!

Green Heuchera

2010-12-21T09:01:00.002-06:00

Who wants a green heuchera? Well, I do for one. While Heucheras are great for adding color to gardens, they also add foliage texture and contrast. They also make great filler around accent plants where you might be looking for green space so you don't detract from a specimen plant. Or in some cases, they might be the speciment plant, or they might echo color of the specimen plant.

H. 'Firefly'

Heuchera 'Firefly' is an older green variety that is relatively easily found within the trade, but harder to find at retail. It is a vigorous grower, my clump maxed out at 10" high and nearly 30" wide. Rosy flowers are on relatively tall stalks at around 18" but sturdy. Great for hummingbirds and adding flower color to a shaded garden. This one has nice red fall and winter color as well. Sometimes listed as a variety of H. sanguinea, more likely this is a brizoides group variety the parentage of which is H. sanguinea x H. americana.

H. villosa 'Autumn Bride' is a great variety for foliage texture. It has huge fuzzy light green leaves, and is a fairly large plant. Mine hit 18" tall x 30" wide, white flowers were easily to 24" but I usually break them off. They're a little unruly for me. This one has also self seeded for me in the past, but isn't a pest.

'Sashay' fall shot, sorry for the leaves!

H. 'Sashay' is a great variety for texture. It's a dense mound of ruffled foliage that stays fairly compact. Mine is about 8" tall x 10" wide right now. I expect eventually it will be 10" x 15". Foliage is green on the top and burgundy beneath. The undersides show at the margins where the leaf curls up. This one is pretty distinct. H. villosa and H. micrantha are in the background.

H. 'Malachite' is a new variety for 2011 that has a nice mid-green color and ruffled foliage. I saw this at a trade show this summer, and I think it's quite nice. Lots of potential for use as a container plant!

H. 'Apple Crisp' is another new one that's hitting the scene in 2011. This one is even more dissected and ruffled than 'Sashay' or 'Malachite'. This one is a nice grass-green with silver overlay. Not sure of the background of this one, I would guess H. micrantha and H. americana.

H. 'Mint Frost' is a nice minty green variety with silver overlay. This one picks up nice plum tones for the winter as well. White flowers on 15" stalks. This one has been a little slow growing, but is worth the wait for its nice foliage color. H. americana is in the background.

H. americana 'Green Spice'

H. 'Green Spice' is one of my favorites. This fantastic beauty has green leaves with a silver overlay and red veins. Great fall and winter color as well, generally red to burgundy for me, but may have orange as well. Dense mound to 10" x 18" over time. White flowers. This one is a selection of H. americana.

H. americana 'Green Spice' in fall

Another selection of H. americana, 'Marvelous Marble' is a seed strain that is similar to 'Green Spice' but has far more red and less silver. This is a new one for 2011.

There are a number of other fantastic selections with green foliage, many with beautiful flowers: 'Dale's Strain', 'Paris', 'Chatterbox', 'Strawberry Candy', 'Lipstick', 'Mint Julep', 'Paris', 'Peppermint Spice' and more. Many of these can't be beat for flower effect.

Next time you see some green Heuchera for sale, take a closer look. I'm sure there's a spot in the garden for at least one of these!

Growing Heuchera

2010-12-13T10:28:00.001-06:00

I've been putting off talking about Heuchera for a quite awhile now. There is a huge number of fantastic cultivars, it's been hard deciding where to start. I'm going to leave out a lot of the older varieties, as there's already a great book out by Dan Heims and Graham Ware that covers them. I'm told the book by Charles and Martha Oliver is also good, but I have yet to read it. This post is going to be on just general culture, I will post about various color groups later.

Heucheras come in a various shades of green, silver, burgundy, purple, orange, yellow, and nearly any combination of these colors. Nearly everyone (including me) mispronounces Heucera. Proper pronunciation is HOY-ker-uh. I've been pronouncing it WHO-ker-uh for 15 years, and it's hard to change.

The common name coral bells comes from the pink to red flowers of H. sanguinea. Nearly every other species goes by the name alumroot. The genus is exclusively American in origin, with around 37 species and naturally occuring hybrids in N. America and another 4 found exclusively in Mexico. Heuchera breeders have mostly concentrated on H. micrantha, H. americana, H. sanguinea, H. cylindrica, and H. villosa.

Heuchera species fall into two basic categories. The western species (micrantha, sanguinea, & cylindrica) tend to be crevice dwellers, suitable for the rock garden and well drained soils. They tend to be heat tolerant and are more sun tolerant. The eastern species (villosa & americana) tend to be woodland dwellers suitable for shade gardens. They want soils that are consistently moist but well drained with adequate organic matter. Each species will impart certain characteristics. Knowing which species are used in a variety's background will help you know it's tolerances.

H. americana is a hardy woodland species. It likes a humus rich soil and some afternoon shade. It is however heat and cold tolerant. Zones 4-9
H. villosa is the other woodland species, it also likes a rich soil. It is very heat and humidity tolerant. Zones 3-8.
H. micrantha is a western species and prefers good drainage. However it is probably the most tolerant to heavy soils and moisture. Zones 6-9.
H. cylindrica is tolerant to harsh winds and temperature extremes. Zones 3-8.
H. sanguinea is extremely heat and drought tolerant. This is where great flower colors comes from as well. Zones 3-9.

In general, loose well drained soil is important. Few varieties will last long in heavy or compacted soils. Most varieties appreciate morning sun, with shade in the afternoon. Provided those 2 conditions, most varieties will do well. However a little research will help determine which varieties will truly thrive in your location. In future posts, I will give which species are in the background if possible. Some time in the next week I'll post about the green varieties.

Hypericum androsaemum 'Albury Purple'

2010-11-17T10:12:00.001-06:00

'Albury Purple' is a nice form of St. Johnswort that is generally grown for its purple-tinged summer foliage and yellow flowers. It is much more purple on the new growth, turning more green as the summer progresses. Seed pods start out a beautiful shiny black and change to gray. One thing I hadn't read about before planting was the fantastic dark purple fall color. It holds its color well into the fall, and still looks great in my garden.

While Hypericum androsaemum 'Albury Purple'

is a woody shrub in zones 6 and above, it is root hardy to at least zone 5. For me it dies back mostly to the ground in the winter, and returns in the spring. It has been a little bit slower to establish than most of the other plants in my garden, but is growing fairly well now. I have it growing in full sun for the best color, but H. androsaemum is reportedly quite shade tolerant. Hypericum species in general appreciate well drained soils, but I haven't had any problems with growing a number of them in clay-loam. As long as the soil isn't too wet in the winter, 'Albury Purple' seems fairly adaptable.

Gentiana scabra 'Zuki Rindo'

2010-10-16T19:42:00.001-05:00

Nobody even wants to GUESS at the mystery plant? Well, it's an incredibly beautiful fall bloomer that everyone needs to go out and buy. Gentiana scabra 'Zuki Rindo'. There are many great gentians out there, also check out G. septemfida var. lagodechiana, G. 'True Blue', G. clausa, or G. 'Blue Cross'. All make great garden plants for partial sun and orgainic rich soil with consistent moisture.

Grasses

2010-10-11T21:34:00.002-05:00

RtoL: Panicum 'Shenandoah', Miscanthus 'Malepartus', Calamagrostis 'Brachytricha' and Calamagrostis 'Avalanche'

The incredible rise in popularity of ornamental grasses has been no surprise. They offer forms and textures that are hard to accomplish when just using other herbaceous or woody plants. Grasses provide interest during the fall and winter season as the rest of the garden is winding down.

Most of the grasses we grow in our gardens are warm-season grasses. They prefer warm temperatures, and often come up fairly late. I've found the best time to plant them is early June. Planting earlier is ok, but there isn't much advantage since they don't grow much when the temps are cooler. Planting late in the fall can be even more problematic, the cooler temperatures in fall slows the grasses down and signals dormancy. They don't have enough time to establish a root system before winter, and often frost-heave out of the ground or die altogether. This is especially true for grasses such as Miscanthus sinensis, which often times when planted too late in the season can be pulled out with no effort in the spring after they've died.

Some grasses are cool-season grasses and can be planted in early spring or fall. The various Calamagrostis varieties fall under this group, and represent the most popular of the cool-season grasses. Festuca, Chasmanthium, Koelaria, Molina, and some Carex (I know, they're sedges not grasses) species also fall under this group.

I don't have a favorite, but I do like some better than others. Calamagrostis 'Brachytricha', Panicum 'Northwind', Chasmanthium latifolium, Hakonechloa macra (all varieties), Sporobolus heterolepis, Schizachyrium scoparium, Koeleria glauca 'Blue Sprite', Miscanthus sinensis, and Andropogon gerardii.

Calamagrostis 'Brachytricha'

Panicum 'Northwind'

Miscanthus 'Silberfeder'

Chasmanthium 'River Mist'

Whatzat?

2010-10-01T13:38:00.001-05:00

Here's this month's mystery plant. Any guesses?

Who am I?

What a beauty!(berry)

2010-10-01T13:36:00.000-05:00

Beautyberry is an often overlooked plant at the garden center all season. It's just a green bush most of the season. You might notice some minuscule pink flowers in late July to August if you pay attention when you're standing or working next to it, but they certainly don't stand out. As soon as mid-September hits, those flowers have turned to berries that quickly mature to a beautiful amethyst color. There's nothing quite like it for fall fruit effect.

There are a number of Callicarpa species (over 40) but only 4 are readily available. The best species for us in the north is C. dichotoma, which is also becoming the most readily available. The cultivars 'Issai' and 'Early Amethyst' are readily available to gardeners and have both performed well in zone 5. In my gardens they reach 4' or less with a nice arching habit, and die back to the ground each winter. There is also a white-fruiting form, 'Albofructa', and a selection which leafs out gold and changes green with the obvious name 'Spring Gold'; neither of which I have seen.

C. japonica will also possibly grow in the north similarly to C. dichotoma. There is a fantastic variegated selection that I will growing next season. Similar size, habit, and hardiness to C. dichotoma. C. japonica also dies back to the ground.

C. americana is the only US species I can find information on. This one is less hardy, to zone 6, and I have not tried it. I'm all for native plants though, and will give it a try some day.

C. bodnieri is represented in the trade by the variety 'Profusion'. Though some attribute this variety to C. giraldii. Either way it is also listed as zone 6 and I would like to give it a try some time. This variety has larger leaves than the others, and great fruit set. (another obvious name)

Give a beautyberry a spot in your garden, it's a great choice if you want to move beyone viburnums and crabapples for fall fruit effect.

C. dichotoma 'Issai' with Penstemon 'Dark Towers'

Run for your lives!!! It's... a MINT!

2010-09-26T18:52:00.000-05:00

Mints have a reputation for being weedy thugs that don't belong in any garden. While I'll agree that many species of mint are horribly invasive, there are a number of them that are great garden plants. However it's nearly impossible to convince many gardeners of this fact. One of the best mints for the garden is Calamintha nepeta. We've grown this plant in our display garden at the garden center for 10 years now, and it doesn't run and we haven't seen any stray seedlings from it. It isn't a huge plant, growing about 15" tall and 24" wide in full sun. It's a great butterfly and bee plant, and blooms non-stop June until frost. It isn't horribly picky about soil as long as it isn't too wet and is hardy to zone 4. The fragrant foliage is glossy and isn't susceptible to many pests or diseases. I don't know what isn't to love about this plant, but the average person runs when they hear "Calamint". I propose a name change to something more appropriate that can't be confused with mint. Like Superawesomefreakishlylongbloomingcoolplant.

Calamintha nepeta 9-26-10

Has it really been almost a month?

2010-09-21T01:09:00.000-05:00

I'm afraid it HAS been nearly a month since I've posted anything and summer is now 2 days away from being officially over. It's been a busy month full of projects both personal and professional, with little time for taking pictures or even having a good idea of what to write about!

For customers of the Flower Source, a couple of quick news items. Nearly all plants are marked down at least 50%, some as far as 80%. Mums, Asters, and Pansies are ready and finally showing color. Corn stalks, gourds, and firewood are in. Pumpkins should be in by the end of the week. We've been working on giving the place a facelift, with new paint all over. We're not quite done yet, but our garage is now Geranium Red and is AWESOME looking!!! Also lots of new bright colors in the garden center. In somewhat sad news, my trusty sidekick Jess is leaving us this week to start as a horticulturist for Milwaukee County.

I've been working on a number of other projects outside of work. The main one of interest here is that my wife and I are starting our own small mail-order nursery. we'll be concentrating on plants for shaded and partially shaded gardens, and we should be ready for business Feb. 1st. We've been busy clearing an area for a 13'x80' hoop house, which I should be putting up tomorrow if the weather cooperates. It will be an adventure balancing 2 jobs in retail horticulture!

Enough late-night non-plant babble. Regular plant posts will resume tomorrow!

Name That Plant

2010-08-24T16:27:00.001-05:00

Any guesses?

New Aquisitions

2010-08-23T20:27:00.009-05:00

Salvia Fuji Snow

Every year, I aquire a number of new and unusual plants that we don't carry at the garden center to try out in the gardens. It's what makes gardening fun. This year for a number of reasons (such as starting a small mail-order nursery, and the closure of 2 great nurseries: Asiatica and Seneca Hill) I've managed to get quite a few more than normal. I won't go into detail with this post, as I'm sure I'll write about a number of them at some point next year.

Amorphophallus atroviridis
Amsonia elliptica (both white and blue flowered forms)
Arum italicum Chameleon
Arum italicum Gold Rush
Arum italicum Ghost
Atractylodes japonica
Atractylodes ovata
Buxus koreana Sunburst
Chelonopsis yagiharana
Croton alabamensis
Deinanthe bifida
Deutzia Nikko Dawn
Disanthus cercidifolius Ena Nishiki
Eupatorium fortunei Pink Elegance
Eupatorium fortunei yellow margin
Hosta Appetizer
Hosta Dixie Cups
Kirengeshoma palmata Magic Touch
Leucosceptrum japonicum Gold Angel
Leucosceptrum japonicum Mountain Madness
Leucosceptrum japonicum Silver Angel
Leucosceptrum stellipilum October moon
Lycoris sanguinea
Mukdenia rossii Starstream
Orixa japonica Summer Sunshine
Rabdosia trichocarpa
Salvia glabrescens Momobana
Salvia glabrescens Shi Ho
Salvia nipponica Fuji Snow
Smilacina stellata Blue Dune
Solidago virga-aurea var. lelocarpa
Taxus baccata Amersfoort
Tofieldia nuda var. furusei
Tricyrtis hirta Golden Gleam

Uvularia sessilifolia Cobblewood gold

Taxus Amersfoort

Atractylodes japonica

Leucosceptrum Silver Angel

Leucosceptrum Gold Angel

Hummingbirds and butterflies love licorice.

2010-08-18T09:35:00.034-05:00

At least they love plants from the genus Agastache, many of which have licorice-scented foliage. Many varieties have done very well in my garden. Nearly all of them need well drained soil to thrive and survive the winter. If you can provide the right soil conditions, they will reward you with masses of blooms, butterflies, and hummingbirds.

'Black Adder' is a tall, sturdy variety with dark purple calyces (the calyx holds the flower to the stalk) and lighter lavender flowers, the overall look is a dark purple. This year it is 4' in my garden. Last year it hit 5'. This variety seems to be a heavier feeder than the others, as it gets yellow in the garden without fertilizer. A slow release fertilizer would be a good idea. To much fertilizer and it could get leggy and floppy however, so don't over-do it. Tiger Swallowtail butterflies love this plant.

A. rupestris is a wonderful 30-36" mound of silvery foliage with coral flowers that blooms from the end of June through August. This is probably my favorite variety for the substantial fine textured clumps it makes in the garden. A hummingbird magnet.

'Raspberry Summer' is a rosey-pink flowered variety that gets 30"-36" tall on wiry stems that are pretty sturdy. They sway in the breeze, but aren't too horribly floppy. This year it was a little open and not very dense, so I recently cut it back and it is filling in nicely. This zone 6 variety has perfomed quite well overall, and this is its 3rd year. I do nothing special for winter, so I would say z5 with well drained soil.

(image courtesy of http://www.terranovanurseries.com/)

'Summer Love' is a nice vivid purple that has a habit nearly identical to 'Raspberry Summer'. Hummingbirds love both varieties. This zone 6 variety has proven to be a stronger grower for me, and in year 2 has surpassed my clump of 'Raspberry Summer' for size and blooming power. Easily z5 with well drained soil.

'Purple Haze' has not yet been planted in my own garden, but had been perfoming ok up to this year in the trial garden at work. It was planted in a somewhat heavy soil and with the new layer of mulch and all the rain we've had it rotted out this year. Similar growing to 'Black Adder' but with a more vivid purple flower.

'Golden Jubilee' is a nice fairly adaptable variety with golden foliage and purple flowers. It is a prolific self-seeder however, and needs to be deadheaded to prevent taking over part of the garden. This one can take a slightly heavier soil. Hardy to at least z4, probably z3 with well drained soil.

'Blue Fortune' is similar to 'Golden Jubilee' but with green foliage. Also more soil adaptable than other varieties and also a self-seeder. Both are around 30" tall. Hardy to z4, z3 with well drained soil.

I look forward to trialing a good number of new Agastache next year, with hopes that they will be proven hardier than expected. There is an increasing number of new varieties hitting the market, and most have been acceptable in z5 with good drainage. Experiment away, and have fun!

Surprise!

2010-08-06T11:27:00.007-05:00

It's early august, which means it's time for the leafless flower stalks of the Surprise Lily (Lycoris squamigera) to make their appearance. Also known as Resurrection Lily, the foliage appears in spring with the bulbs and goes dormant by mid-June. Flowers appear in early August without any foliage, usually (if you're like me) well after you've forgotten they existed in your garden. Lycoris squamigera is easily grown in partial sun from zones (4)5-9 as long as they have moderately well drained soil as they don't want to be too wet in winter. Mine have done beautifully, I add a few more every year as they're slow to spread for me.

There is a good number of other hardy Lycoris species, and for further reading I recommend Jim Waddick's article here: http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/files/Lycoris/Garden_Lycoris_and_More.pdf

Zone-Denial

2010-07-28T12:04:00.007-05:00

More and more people are living with zone denial. Typically, to most gardeners zone denial means growing plants outside of their recommended zones. Who hasn't grown (or at least tried) hybrid tea, grandiflora, or floribunda roses here in WI? Very few of them are hardy enough to be grown in zone 5, most teas really prefer zone 7. But gardeners do it anyway because they're beautiful.

There are a number of factors affecting a plant's hardiness. One is provenance. Where a plant is from generally affects where it will grow. A simplistic way of looking at it is that tropical plants need tropical climates and plants from the north don't do as well in heat. This gets a little messier when you consider other factors like elevation. A plant may be from a fairly warm area (say equivalent to zone 8) but may range to higher elevations (maybe 12,000' up a mountain) where it is much colder. Selections collected from these higher elevations may survive zone 6 or even 5.

Sometimes doing research into a family of plants that is commonly available as non-hardy will provide an obscure species that is hardy to our area. Everybody knows Croton (at least by sight if not by name) with its colorful foliage found for sale as a houseplant at every lowes, home depot, and walmart or grown as a landscape plant in Florida. Croton alabamensis is a species that is hardy to at least zone 6, possibly zone 5. Another case is Cyrtomium fortunei, which can be grown in zone 4 with ease even though other Cyrtomium species require warmer temperatures.

Another big factor affecting hardiness is growing conditions. This may seem obvious, but so very many gardeners miss it. Every plant has different needs. While we can make broad recommendations and put together a garden with plants that have similar needs, those needs still must be met. Woodland plants don't thrive in heavy clay or full sun, and no gardener should expect them to. Spending an extra $5 on a bag of compost, mulch, or fertilizer might mean the difference between success and failure.

Even placement in the garden can make a difference. Sometimes moving a plant as little as 2 feet from its original spot will show vast improvements in plant growth and hardiness. This can be due to many reasons. Soil might be a slighty different pH, there might be more or less soil moisture, light exposure might vary slighty, and the microclimate might be drastically different. Wind and light exposure plays a big role in affecting both winter and summer conditions. You can really capitalize on a spot that's cooler in summer and warmer in winter when it comes to stretching your zone.

Some plants can be potted up and overwintered in the garage if supplied with a little supplemental water in the winter. Other plants can be screened from the wind. Winter mulch can help tremendously protecting plants from freeze/thaw cycles, and you can try building a cage around the plant and filling it with compost to get non-hardy plants through the winter. Or you can try ugly white rose cones, but I find them the least effective method of winter protection. And they're ugly.

I live with zone denial for a number of reasons. I think most new plants are hardier than they are given credit for. There are some exceptions, Coreopsis 'Limerock Ruby' being sold as zone 5 without extensive trialing comes to mind. But I think for the most part most nurseries are responsible enough to err on the side of caution.

I've found a number of new plants to be hardier than previously thought. When I first got into the industry, Agastache rupestris was widely sold as being hardy only to zone 6. I can say with certainty that it is easily hardy to zone 5, and probably to zone 4 if provided the right conditions. Other Agastache varieties have followed suit, with 'Raspberry Summer', 'Summer Love', 'Purple Haze', and 'Black Adder' surviving in my (and many other) gardens beautifully.

I've also been growing Black Mondo Grass, Ophiopogon planiscapes 'Nigrescens' for a few years now and it is starting to spread. This is another zone 6 plant.

Helleborus 'Hot Flash' in its 4th season. Not big and vigorous, but starting to do well. Listed as zone 7 upon release, now listed as zone 6, 5 with protection. I do no protection other than not removing the maple leaves that fall on it.

Sometimes I like to push zone limits just because I think a plant looks cool. It might provide a texture or color not readily available to us in colder zones. Or it might just be my horrible plant addiction. Either way, I planted Cunninghamia lanceolata 'Glauca' in spring of 2008. This is a neat evergreen conifer with broad, wicked-looking but soft, blue needles that is zone 6/7 borderline hardy. I planted it in my south butterfly garden and other than some pretty good winter-burn it has survived pretty well. I have taken pity on it though and have moved it to a pot with some miniature hostas that will be overwintered in the garage.

There is also another form of zone denial that many of us in the industry have to deal with. The "this plant didn't do well for me, so it must not be hardy" denial. This usually comes about from improper cultural practices, and not providing the plants with the proper requirements. And some people just can't grow certain plants. I've killed ridiculously easy to grow species for no apparent reason. At the risk of my gardening reputation, I'll admit to killing Gooseneck Loosestrife. I'm also very good at killing ferns.

The most common reason most plants die in my experience is that their specific soil conditions are not met. Some plants resent being too wet in the winter and will simply rot away to nothing. The new Echinacea hybrids are a good example. Gaillardia is another example that needs good drainage. I've had Gaillardia 'Frenzy' for 3 years now, and it does very well in a fairly well drained clay-loam. Alpine/rock garden plants like Dianthus licinata or Delosperma species can't be too wet in spring or they will get crown rot. Rhododendrons are widely planted here, despite needing a moist but well-drained acidic soil. Most of them fail in our heavy alkaline pH clay. I've seen a number of huge beautiful Rhododendrons (primarily PJM, but others as well) in the north-central sand counties of WI. Some plants need organic soils that are consistently moist, like Lobelia cardinalis and Lobelia siphilitica. Providing the right soil conditions can make all the difference in the world.

Don't be afraid to try new plants, or even new ways to use old plants. Don't be afraid to try a plant again just because it dies once. If you do some research, it's amazing what can be done in our gardens.

Allium Summer Beauty

2010-07-21T08:38:00.005-05:00

The genus Allium is a hugely diverse group of plants, many of which make great garden subjects. Ufortunately, most gardeners are only familiar with the giant globe onions like 'Globemaster', or the weedy species like A. azureum or A. sphaerocephalon. (As a side note A. azureum pulls very easily and the beutiful blue flowers make it worth including in any sunny garden).

The last few years have seen a number of new introductions for Allium (I'll write about more of the in the next 2 months), and one of my favorites has been A. lusitanicum 'Summer Beauty'. This form has nice pink flowers starting in July and lasting into August. The foliage remains a beautiful emerald green all season, despite neglect, and is deer and rabbit resistant. It quickly forms a clump 24-30" wide, and flowers at 30". Summer Beauty seems to tolerate heavy soil fairly well, but I would still amend clay soils with compost. Use it in any sunny garden as a textural contrast with Echinacea, Monarda, Coreopsis, Roses, etc. It makes a great nectar plant for bees and butterflies.

Shasta Daisies

2010-07-14T10:59:00.004-05:00

I'm not a big fan of Shasta Daisies. Don't get me wrong, I don't dislike them. They have their place in the perennial garden as long blooming bee and butterfly magnets that provide a bright and cheery spot of white and yellow in many sizes and shapes. There have been some interesting introductions in the last few years in the way of light yellow flowers, and wildly formed double flowers. But for the most part they're just common and unexciting old fashioned perennials you see everyday. Aren't They?

Maybe not, with the introduction of Leucanthemum 'Paladin' this year it was once again proven that even a perennial that's been around as long as the old fashioned Shasta Daisy, selective breeding can take the plant to the next level.

'Paladin' is a nice mid-height daisy to 20" tall with large double white flowers that cover the plant so completely you almost can't see the foliage. The stems are very sturdy, and shouldn't require any staking unless the plant is overfed. Shastas don't need much in the way of fertilizer, so lay off for most of the season. My plant has been blooming for about 2 weeks now, and is showing no sign of slowing down. I've been deadheading to promote more blooms, but you can just as easily wait until the first bloom cycle is done and shear it back to promote a second flush of blooms. Most varieties of Leucanthemum have an unpleasant (horrid is the word I prefer) fragrance but 'Paladin' has no scent at all, which is a big bonus to me.

'Victorian Secret' is a new variety for 2011 which I had the pleasure to view in Ohio recently. It is similar to 'Paladin' in all respects except it has a shorter 14" habit and a nice citrus scent. I'm told there are more varieties in the pipeline, including some nice yellow varieties. All with pleasant or no fragrance. I'm happy to see daisies getting a makeover, it's a plant that deserves some excitement.

Aralia cordata 'Sun King'

2010-07-01T16:11:00.003-05:00

I like tropical textures in the garden, especially when gardening in the shade. It's important to make an impression with textural contrast in the shade garden, since it's difficult to make a huge impact with flower color. Aralia 'Sun King' gives you that great huge-foliage tropical look, as well as bright color due to the yellow to chartreuse foliage. Individual leaves should get nearly 3' long x 2.5' wide. Big racemes of white flowers in mid-late summer are followed by purple berries. Other species of Aralia attract honeybees, and this one should be no different. Grown with some morning sun in a good organic rich soil, 'Sun King' will make an awesome accent plant. There isn't a lot of information out there on this plant, and a lot of it is conflicting. I've seen zone ratings anywhere from 3 to 6. Also, mature sizes range from 3-9' tall x 3-10' wide. So, what's the truth of the matter? I think hardiness will be at least zone 5, which is the rating Asiatica gave it in their catalog a few years ago. Aralia cordata is known to be hardy to zone 4, this selection could possibly be a little less hardy. Time will tell. Size? I think the 3' x 3' that Terra Nova is giving it is a bit on the small side. I would guess it will easily hit 6' tall and 7' wide, given that it's a selection of A. cordata which can grow to 9'. For a good view of how big Aralia cordata can get, Heronswood has a good picture up. Be sure to give this baby some room in your shade garden!

Hardy Roses

2010-06-08T15:23:00.014-05:00

Nearly every gardener wants to grow roses. But most don't want the constant care and lack of hardiness of the hybrid tea, grandiflora, and floribunda classes. With the vast number of shrub roses on the market, how do you pick varieties that will do well? I've picked some hardy shrub roses that have been doing fairly well for us.

The Knockout series:

Most people are familiar with this series, it's the number one asked for rose in garden centers with good reason. While no rose is completely disease free, it's hard to beat the disease resistance of the Knockouts. With the exception of Rainbow Knockout, they are also self-cleaning which means you don't need to dead-head. I still dead-head them anyway, since this will increase the amount of rebloom. They are not all that super-hardy though, and require some winter protection in zone 4, and it's not a bad idea to give some protection in zone 5 as well. Protecting them is relatively easy, I just mound 8-10" of mulch over the crown of the plant once the soil freezes for winter. This is usually enough to get them through the winter. Once the ground thaws, pull away the mulch and cut off any canes that have died over winter.

The Easy Elegance Series is much like the Knockout series, but there is far more variety in flower color, flower form, and fragrance. Hardiness varies by variety, but I have grown a number of them without winter protection. If in doubt, winter mulch as for Knockout. Disease resistance on almost all varieties is excellent. Some of my favorites include All the Rage, Grandma's Blessing, Macy's Pride, Kashmir, My Girl, Snowdrift, Sweet Fragrance, and Yellow Brick Road. Having said that, I don't dislike any of the varieties in the series.

Home Run is a great single red rose from Weeks Roses that has excellent disease resistance. The foliage always looks great. It is self cleaning, but just like Knockout I dead-head anyway. Winter hardiness is about the same as Knockout. Winter mulching is neccessary in zone 4, and not a bad idea in zone 5. There is a hot pink version coming in 2011 called Pink Home Run which looks promising. A better name would have been nice, maybe Grand Slam to continue the theme?

Midnight Blue and Rhapsody in Blue are both great dark purple roses from Weeks Roses that have proven to be fairly hardy and disease resistant for me. I didn't do any winter protection this past winter and both came through beautifully, only to be trampled by the dogs. Dead-heading is recommended for re-bloom.

Champlain is a great hardy red that is fairly disease resistant. I haven't had to spray mine yet,

but they do get a little mildew and blackspot. You have to look pretty hard to find it though.

Champlain is a larger variety, growing 4-5'. I don't do any winter protection, and get very little

dieback. This is a profuse early bloomer, and the first bloom for me lasts almost through July. You can dead-head to keep it looking it's cleanest, but I wait until it's done blooming and cut it back 12-18" to remove all of the flowering stems. More flowers follow in August. This is a fantastic, easy, variety. Great for anyone who hasn't grown roses before.

Hope For Humanity is another very hardy red that has done well for us. It is less disease resistant than the others, and may require spraying in a hot and humid summer. This one is hardy to zone 3.

Heart and Soul is a fairly hardy variety with beautiful rose and white bicolored blooms. Winter mulch is a good idea in zone 4, but probably not neccessary in zone 5. This one may require spraying as well, but blackspot and mildew haven't been too bad on it.

Watercolors is a single rose from Weeks Roses that is a little hard to describe. It starts out a blend of pink, yellow, and cream and changes to solid pink as the flowers age. Disease resistance has been very good, as has it's hardiness.

Winnipeg Parks is a great hardy magenta with large flowers that is very hardy and fairly disease resitant. This one overwinters in zone 4 without any problem. Another great one for beginning rose growers.

Carefree Spirit is a great red single that has shown excellent disease resistance and good hardiness. No winter mulch needed. I really like this one.

The Oso Easy series from Proven Winners shows a lot of promise. Paprika is my favorite, as it has the most unique color of the series so far. Cherry Pie is another red single. So far I like Carefree Spirit better. Strawberry Crush is an interesting rose-pink color, and Peachy Cream is a peach that fades to cream as the flower ages. Fragrant Spreader is a groundcover rose with small single pink flowers that are supposedly fragrant. I honestly haven't noticed. This one seems to take a long time to rebloom, and I'm not real impressed with it so far. They all seem very hardy so far, and show good disease resistance. They are self-cleaning, which is great since they are a dead-heading nightmare! They are incredibly profuse bloomers, and trying to deadhead is almost a losing battle. I may try shearing them back in the future.

There is vast number of other hardy shrub roses that will do well all the way to zone 3, these are just some of the newest or my favorites. Don't be afraid to grow roses, there's a rose for nearly every gardener.

Abelia mosanensis

2010-05-31T07:03:00.003-05:00

Korean Abelia is fairly new to the gardening world. It becomes a fairly large shrub, with a somewhat wild habit. 8-10 feet tall, a little less in spread with gracefully arching branches. In spring, May to June here in WI, it is covered with clusters of Daphne-like flowers that have the fragrance of Gardenia. Buds are formed on the old wood, so any pruning should be done shortly after it's done blooming. Fall brings orange fall color to the leaves. This beautiful shrub is fully hardy to zone 4, and should be fairly easy to grow. Average soil seems to suit it just fine, amend heavy clay with some compost to improve drainage. If you have room for just one large shrub, this is my pick for the year.

New camera=some picture updates

2010-05-24T10:52:00.003-05:00

So we finally sprung for a good DSLR camera. An expensive camera doesn't make me a pro, but pictures sure turn out nicer. :) I updated pictures for Pretty Much Picasso Petunia, a couple of Arisaemas, and Pinus mugo Dew Drop.

Arisaema

2010-05-13T18:40:00.016-05:00

The various Arisaemas are all in full bloom for me right now. I love going out to the shade garden and seeing these bizarre aroids coming up amongst the various hostas and other shade plants.

Arisaema triphyllum is the most commonly encountered species, and also probably the easiest to grow. Nearly everyone who's spent time in the woods is familiar with Jack in the Pulpit. There's quite a bit of variation between populations, some spathes being green and some being purple. Also there is a form with white veins called 'Starburst', and a form with black leaves called 'Black Jack'. Additionally there is a large form, growing up to 30" tall with leaves 24" across!

Arisaema draconitum is a less well known native. It has done fairly well for me, but is not very showy by itself. I think a colony would be more effective than a single plant.

Arisaema sikkokianum is probably the next most well known, and definitely the most coveted by gardeners. It's incredibly showy, no description I can give will do it justice. There are some forms with silver-centered leaves. These have not performed as well for me as the solid green leaved forms. It may be just coincidence, but I've lost 3 silver forms and not a single green form.

Arisaema serratum hasn't been very showy for me so far. I think I need to improve the soil for it, since it should get almost 3' tall and hasn't gotten taller than 15". I have seen this species looking fantastic in other gardens.

Arisaema ringens has big, glossy, plastic-looking leaves and interesting purple spathes. This species has been easy to grow and hasn't failed to impress me so far.

Arisaema urashima is maybe the most bizarre species I'm growing. It has a beautiful purple spathe, and from inside a whip-like appendage extends to 18". This has also been easy to grow, and can tolerate dry shade.

Petunia Pretty Much Picasso

2010-05-12T12:40:00.017-05:00

I'm not big into annuals. I am a plant geek, so I do love quite a few non-hardy plants, but I don't really talk about them. I certainly rarely get excited about something as mundane as a petunia. But the new supertunia 'Pretty Much Picasso' from Proven Winners is really quite beautiful. It works great in all the same applications as a typical Wave Petunia. Like the waves, it is a heavy feeder. We've got some great hanging baskets, and also used it in combo baskets and pots. It's been quite fantastic. If you're going to use petunias this year, give this one a try.

Hellebores

2010-05-12T11:36:00.019-05:00

This might seem a bit late for a post about Hellebores, but I was walking in the garden today and realized just how good mine look now that the new growth has come up.

Hellebores are easy to grow and are fantastic year round in the shade garden. All they need is soil that isn't heavy clay or too wet. Mine are growing in clay-loam. I've also grown them in sandy-loam and organic rich soils, and have seen no real difference. They grow a bit more slowly in the clay-loam, but that could be because I'm not watering enough as well. My shade garden tends to be a bit dry.

Nearly all varieties are great garden plants, so find one you like and experiment away! They're also all deer and rabbit resistant. Slugs and snails do chew some minor holes in the new growth at this time of year, but they much prefer the hostas.

'Courage' is supposed to have upward-facing rose-red blooms, but so far they've been downward-facing. It does have a good growth rate however, and looks fantastic this year.

H. niger is the hardiest species, and can be grown into zone 3. Big white flowers are usually upward facing for me. I found one with nice veining in a batch we got from a nursery. It could possibly be a hybrid, but blooms just like H. niger.

'Walhelivor' (Ivory Prince) has done fantastically, and is getting incredibly huge. No problems in zone 4/5. Great looking foliage year round, and outward-facing ivory flowers change to green and are effective for a long time.

H. foetidus is one of my favorites for foliage and flower, but needs winter mulch to prevent it from blooming too early. This one has fantastic green flowers that are unlike other hellebores. This year there was plenty of snow cover, and they're blooming beautifully. Other years, mine has tried to bloom in January and had the flower stalk freeze.

'Hot Flash' is a selection of H. x sternii that I've been growing for 3 years for it's beautiful silver foliage. It is taking a long time to grow, but that's to be expected. I'm glad it can't read descriptions, it hasn't realized it's not supposed to grow here. Listed hardiness zone is 7(maybe to 6). It's even flowering for me this year. Flower is muddy pink and nothing to be excited about, foliage is so great it doesn't matter though.

Chasmanthium latifolium 'River Mist'

2010-04-15T16:00:00.001-05:00

Northern Sea Oats has long been one of my favorite grasses. It's incredibly adaptable, tolerating full sun to shade and well drained to heavy soil. It can grow nearly anywhere! In sun it stands 2-3' tall with bright green leaves. In the shade it grows 3-4' tall and tends towards darker foliage. In the fall it gets beautiful flattened spikelet seedheads that hold up into February. It can be a prolific self-seeder, but this has only been a problem for me in well-drained soils.

This wonderful grass has recently been made even better with the introduction of 'River Mist' from ItSaul plants in Georgia. This new variety has beautiful white variegation and white seedheads. I've been amazed by the incredible growth rate of 'River Mist', I expected it to be much slower considering how much white area the leaf contains. It also seems to have darker foliage, even in the sun which may account for the good growth rate. This variety will certainly brighten up a spot in a partially shaded garden, or provide contrast with dark-leaved plants in the border or container. FANTASTIC!

Coneflowers! (part 3)

2010-04-09T06:00:00.002-05:00

Echinacea hybrids
There have been many hybrid Echinacea in the past ten years. They generally involve crosses of E. purpurea, E. pallida, E. tennesseensis, and E. paradoxa. The biggest mistake gardeners make with the hybrid coneflowers is to treat them like Purple Coneflowers. Most of the hybrids will not tolerate heavy clay soil or partial shade the way Purple Coneflower does, and will usually not make it through the first winter if planted in heavy soil, even in zones 7 or 8. It is extremely important to amend the soil with compost or other organic matter for these varieties to thrive. Again, the most important statement in this post: THESE ARE NOT PURPLE CONEFLOWERS!
The Chicago Botanic Garden released the first orange hybrid coneflower ‘Art’s Pride’ which was sold under the trademarked name Orange Meadowbrite. This plant is a cross of E. purpurea ‘Alba’ and E. paradoxa. It is similar in every way to Yellow Coneflower, except for its rich orange flowers. ‘CBG Cone3’ was sold under the trademarked name Mango Meadowbrite and is an amber mutation of ‘Art’s Pride’. Both of these plants are getting harder to find as most growers have abandoned them for newer hybrids with better non-floppy habit and richer color.
‘CBG Cone2’ is sold under the trademarked name Pixie Meadowbrite and is in my opinion the best dwarf coneflower currently available. It is a complex cross of E. tennesseensis x E. purpurea and E. angustifolia x E. tennesseensis. This plant blooms like mad with masses of small pinkish-lavender flowers. It only grows to 20” tall in my garden. It is fairly adaptable and can grow in heavy soil, but does appreciate good drainage. My dog tramples this thing, and it still grows in compacted clay-loam.
The Big Sky series of coneflowers are hybridized by the Saul brothers in Georgia. All are hardy to zone 5 (possibly 4) and require well drained soil.
‘Sunrise’ was the first release and is the result of crossing E. purpurea ‘White Swan’ with a seedling of E. purpurea x E. paradoxa. ‘Sunrise’ has soft yellow flowers that fade to near white on sturdy stems to 3’ tall.
‘Sunset’ was the second release and had orange petals that were usually rolled into a quill. This plant is no longer widely grown.
‘Twilight’ is the third and probably my favorite of the series for its unusual rose-colored flowers and compact habit. It is not a vigorous grower and takes awhile to look good. It has never been widely grown.
‘Evan Saul’ is sold as Sundown and has rich orange flowers that are not quilled. This variety replaced ‘Sunset’ and was a much better performer. Flowers are profuse, but small.
‘Matthew Saul’ is sold as Harvest Moon and has the same amber color as Mango Meadowbrite but a sturdier and more compact habit. It looks fantastic in combination with Rosa 'Radrazz' (Knockout) and similarly colored flowers.
‘Katie Saul’ sold as Summer Sky is a bicolor with dark rose color around the cone lightening to peach at the tips of the petals. Makes an impressive clump, and probably has the largest flowers of the series.
‘After Midnight’ has dark purple flowers, a black cone, dark stems, and a compact habit. However it has the same need for well drained soils as the rest and in my garden the color isn’t any darker than ‘Vintage Wine’ or ‘Fatal Attraction’ which are much better growers.

Terra Nova has put out a huge number of Echinacea hybrids. All of them have sturdy, well-branched stems and do well in well-drained soils. They will not thrive in heavy soils and likely will not over-winter even in warmer zones. They are hardy to zone 5, likely even zone 4. Most are brand new this year, and I'm going off of what I'm told and what I read. I will have all of them this season, and will try to update this in fall and possibly next spring/summer with overwintering data.
‘Tiki Torch’ is a fantastic rich orange with a large cone. This plant is doing fairly well in zones 4 and 5 WI, as long as it has well-drained soil. Overwintered in my clay-loam this season now that it's out of dog reach.
‘Mac n’ Cheese’ is a great dark yellow color that matches its name. This variety is less vigorous than the others, and probably is much more picky about well drained soil. An improvement on this variety is 'Now Cheesier'; which is slightly darker and more vigorous.
‘Tomato Soup’ is a fantastic red and grows similar to ‘Tiki Torch’. Overwintered in the same garden as 'Tiki Torch'
‘Flamethrower’ is a bicolor variety with a dark orange center lightening towards the tips of the petals.
‘Firebird’ is a great red-orange variety with drooping petals and a good habit. I think this has E. pallida in its background, but I'm not 100% sure. I try to find out later in the season.
‘Hot Lava’ is a red-orange variety with horizontally held petals. Similar to ‘Tomato Soup’
‘Maui Sunshine’ is a dark lemon-yellow with horizontally held petals on well branched stems.
‘Tangerine Dream’ is a bright orange similar to ‘Tiki Torch’ but with more horizontally held petals.
‘Coral Reef’ is a double coral-orange with huge flowers.
'Secret Passion' is a dwarf variety with double flowers. I'm not sure of the background on this and am placing it in the hybrids category. I'm very interested to see this one. If it has the size and blooming traits of Pixie Meadowbrite or 'Mistral' and double flowers like 'Pink Double Delight' I'll be totally impressed.

‘Hot Papaya’ is the first double orange to be released to the US, but hasn’t been available in large numbers. This plant came from Arie Bloom of the Netherlands. Other colors will be available in 2011, Arie has been busy. :)

'Summer Sun' is a new variety bred by Kees van de Aardwegh being released by Walter's Gardens. It's a 40" tall variety with sturdy branched scapes and flowers that start out orange-red and lighten to golden-orange.

'Hot Summer' was bred by Marco Van Noort and is being released through the Novalis 'Plants that Work' program. This one starts out Golden and darkens to red-orange. 36" tall with branched scapes.

Coneflowers! (Part 2)

2010-04-02T06:02:00.001-05:00

Echinacea purpurea
Purple Coneflower is the easiest to grow species and the most readily available for gardening. It is adaptable to a wide range of conditions, including heavy clay soil and partial shade. For Purple Coneflower to really thrive, I recommend amending heavy soil with compost to improve drainage. This will help it to establish quickly and you will have fewer problems with crown rot in a wet spring.

The variety ‘Magnus’ was named the Perennial Plant Association’s Perennial Plant of the Year in 1998. Since then, many varieties have been developed for larger flowers, sturdier stems, larger or smaller plant habits, and better color. Some of my favorites include ‘Merlot’ and ‘Ruby Giant’ for their huge flowers; ‘Vintage Wine’ for its more compact habit and rich dark flowers; and ‘Mistral’ for its dwarf habit and huge number of blooms it produces.

There are a few white varieties and ‘Fragrant Angel’ is probably the best for flower size and purity of color. ‘Jade’ is purported to have green central cones, but growing side by side with ‘White Swan’ I see no difference. ‘Little Angel’ is a new dwarf white with profuse flowers and a pretty good growth rate.

Purple Coneflower also comes in some pretty bizarre double forms. ‘Razzmatazz’ was the first, but is no longer widely grown because of its weak stems. ‘Pink Double Delight’ is a vast improvement and has huge flowers and strong stems. ‘Pink Poodle’ is a new form with large Zinnia-like flowers. The petals come out like a normal coneflower, and slowly they build up on the cone to be fully double. There are also double white coneflowers, and ‘Coconut Lime’ and ‘Milkshake’ seem to be the best so far. From what I’ve seen of ‘Meringue’, it is pretty good as well, but not different enough from ‘Coconut Lime’ to convince me to have both.

Probably the most bizarre varieties are ‘Green Envy’ and ‘Green Jewel’. The petals of ‘Green Envy’ start out green and develop pink centers that elongate as time goes on to be most pink flowers with green tips. The only downside to this plant is it doesn’t have sturdy stems and tends to flop in my garden. ‘Green Jewel’ has chartreuse green flowers on very sturdy stems and a compact 24" habit.

Part 3 covers all of the new hybrids for 2010.

Coneflowers! (Part 1)

2010-03-26T22:48:00.002-05:00

Coneflowers. The word conjures up images of masses of purple blooms, bees and butterflies, and relaxing on the patio with a lemonade; content with how easy to grow they are. But are they? I want to review some of the readily available Echinacea species and hybrids and give the information you need to grow them successfully. This is Part 1, which covers a little background of some lesser (but still easily found) available species.

Coneflowers in the genus Echinacea are all native to North America, mostly to the Midwestern states. They have a long history of medicinal use, dating back more than 400 years, for treating infections, wounds, scarlet fever, syphilis, malaria, blood poisoning, and diphtheria. Today people use Echinacea for treating cold and flu symptoms, and much research supports (and almost as much refutes) their immune-boosting effects.

Echinacea pallida
Pale Purple Coneflower has pale lavender petals that droop from a large central cone. The growing requirements are similar to E. purpurea and it grows in clay soils just as well. The stems are fairly sturdy on this species, but tend to grow up and out from the center of the plant which gives it a different look than Purple Coneflower, which tends to grow more vertically. This great often overlooked garden plant is the only species native here in WI and is state listed as threatened.

Echinacea angustifolia
Narrow-Leaf Coneflower is mostly grown for its herbal properties, but is occasionally found as a garden plant. It is similar to E. pallida but smaller, growing only 1-2’ tall. It does not share the adaptability of E. purpurea or E. pallida, and requires well drained soil to really thrive.

Echinacea tennesseensis
Tennessee Coneflower is found in only 3 counties of Tennessee and is federally endangered. ‘Rocky Top Hybrids’ is a seed strain that is commercially available and may not be genetically pure. The plant is smaller than E. purpurea reaching only 2’ in height and has smaller flowers with upturned petals. This variety re-blooms well and is a pretty good garden performer. It does not like heavy clay, but will grow but not thrive in it. It doesn’t have the strict requirement of well drained soil like E. angustifolia or E. paradoxa, and average soil suits it just fine.

Echinacea paradoxa
Yellow Coneflower is found in Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas. This is the oddity in the genus for having yellow flowers rather than lavender or purple. Flowers droop from a large brown central cone, and are produced on relatively weak stems. It also requires well drained soil, and does not thrive in clay. In my clay-loam soil plants have lasted a few years, but never thrive and eventually die out. It is also slightly less hardy than the others, but still hardy to zone 5. I believe with the right conditions, it will probably survive zone 4 without any problems. E. paradoxa is one of the parents for the many hybrids that have stormed the market lately.

New Mugo Pines

2010-03-26T22:30:00.011-05:00

I've been growing two great newer Mugo Pines in my garden. The first one is 'Honeybun', which I've had since 2007. It's a dwarf variety with medium-green needles and a moderately slow growth rate. This variety was released in 2008 exclusively by Green Value Nursery. It's performed very well in my sunny front garden near the driveway, not bothered at all by the salt it gets hit with in the winter. It did open up in the center this winter, due to the wet heavy snow being thrown on top of it, but I'm confident it will grow out of it beautifully. 'Honeybun' is a great addition to the perennial garden, mixed shrub border, conifer garden, and even large trough gardens.

The second variety, 'Dew Drop', is also being released exclusively by Green Value this spring. It's even smaller and slower growing than 'Honeybun', and is in fact the smallest Mugo Pine I've had the pleasure to encounter. Last years growth on this beast was about 1 cm. The habit of this variety is so tight and compact, that when I peaked into the center there was moss growing on the branches! 'Dew Drop' is perfect for nearly any size container, as well as perennial gardens, and conifer collections.

Lamium 'Cosmopolitan'

2010-03-20T10:13:00.007-05:00

I never thought I'd be even remotely excited about a Lamium. But 'Cosmopolitan' is different. It's a dwarf version of 'Shell Pink' that only gets 3-6 inches tall, rather than 8-10 inches like so many other varieties. The flowers and foliage are the same as its parent plant, but smaller as well. The nicest thing about this variety is it doesn't have the leggy growth of the larger lamiums. The internodes are shorter, making for a much fuller plant without pinching. It just looks neat, which is something that can't be said for other Lamium varieties.

Comparison shot of 'Cosmopolitan' and 'Purple Dragon' planted and pinched at the same time.

'Cosmopolitan' makes a great groundcover for the shade that helps smother weeds, but because of its more restrained habit won't fight for territory with other plants in the garden. It's also great in combination containers and hanging baskets for both flower and foliage effect as a restrained spiller.

Hakonechloa

2010-03-11T17:38:00.000-06:00

Hakonechloa, or Japanese Forest Grass, is a fantastic grass for shaded or partially shaded locations. Its flowing mound habit gives it a dwarf bamboo kind of look and makes it a great accent plant that can brighten up a shaded garden. In general, Hakonechloa wants to be in a rich, loose, well-drained soil that is moisture retentive. There is a lot of conflicting information about its hardiness, and I think a lot of that has to do with its demanding soil requirements. This plant is not happy in poor soil, and commonly dies out in a year or two even in warmer zones. In good soil it thrives but is still slow growing. I've seen 'Aureola' overwinter and grow successfully in zone 4 here in WI.

'Aureola' is the most commonly encountered variety and was the 2009 PPA Perennial Plant of the Year. My clump planted in 2002 is now about 2' wide x 15" tall. Seems to hold its color well in the shade. Due to the difficulties the general gardening public might have with growing Hakonechloa, I wasn't enthused with the 2009 PPA award regardless of how much I love this genus.

'All Gold' is a newer solid gold variety. It seems somewhat more vigorous and has better color with some morning sun. Too much sun and it will scorch.

'Stripe it Rich' is a newer gold variety with white streaks. It appreciates similar sun exposure as 'All gold.

'Albo-Striata' is an older variety that has green leaves with white streaks. The title to the blog has a picture of this variety growing at Olbrich Botanic Garden in Madison. More vigorous than 'Aureola', and seems to grow a bit larger.

'Fubukin' is a new variety being released by Briggs Nursery that has white leaves with green streaks. I'm guessing it will be the least vigorous of the group, but from the pictures I've seen looks very nice.

There are a number of green-leaved varieties that get some reddish fall color, including:
'Beni-Kazi', 'Naomi', and 'Nicolas'. I have not grown any of them yet. The nicest pictures I've seen have been of 'Beni-Kazi', but I will probably find all three of the above at some point to grow them and compare.