Author: Russell Stafford

Hortiholic and plant evangelist, Russell Stafford, transplanted his first perennial at age 7 and thereby began a lifelong plant addiction. He is the founder and custodian of Odyssey Bulbs (and Odyssey Perennials), an online nursery specializing in cool and uncommon plants. Russell also works as a horticultural consultant, freelance writer (Horticulture and The American Gardener magazines), and garden editor. He formerly served as Curator and Head of Horticulture at Fernwood Botanic Garden in Niles, Michigan and as the Horticultural Program Coordinator at the Center for Plant Conservation, then located at the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts. His academic degrees include a masters in forest science from Harvard University.

The Patriotic Perennial Garden: Planting in Red, White, and Blue

Native perennials in red, white, and blue!

What could be more American than a planting of native perennials that flowers red-white-and-blue in summer? If you have a sunny to lightly shaded garden spot with reasonably decent soil, you could celebrate next Independence Day with your own floral fireworks, courtesy of the following perennials. All are native to eastern North America, and hardy to USDA Zone 5. If your soil is excessively sandy or heavy, be sure to dig in a couple inches of Fafard^® Premium Natural & Organic Compost before installing your patriotic planting.

Red Garden Flowers

Bee balm (Monarda didyma hybrids)

‘Jacob Cline’ monarda has big bright red flowers that hummingbirds cannot resist.

Few plants are more all-American than the species and hybrids in the genus Monarda, which is endemic to the New World. The frilly, fragrant flower heads of these tall, often vigorously spreading perennials expand in late spring and early summer, drawing in whatever hummingbirds are in the vicinity. Powdery mildew can be a problem in humid, droughty weather, so look for varieties that have been selected for mildew resistance. These include cultivars in shades of brilliant red (‘Gardenview Scarlet’, ‘Jacob Cline’), rich purple-red (‘Judith’s Fancy Fuchsia’, ‘Raspberry Wine’), violet-purple (‘Purple Rooster’, ‘On Parade’), lavender-purple (Monarda fistulosa ‘Claire Grace’, ‘Dark Ponticum’), and hot pink (‘Coral Reef’). All of the above are in the 3- to 4-foot-tall range. Several recently introduced, lower-growing bee balms are also available, including purple ‘Grand Marshall’ (2 feet tall) and bright pink ‘Grand Parade’ (15 inches).

Winecups (Callirhoe involucrata)

Another purely North American genus, Callirhoe encompasses 9 species of sun-loving perennials and annuals, most blessed with showy burgundy-red flowers that continue through much of summer. The trailing habit of Callirhoe involucrata is typical of most winecups. If you’re looking for a sun- and heat-loving perennial that will cover ground, cascade down walls, or weave through neighboring plants, you can hardly do better. Fringed poppy mallow (Callirhoe digitata) is more upstanding in habit, to 2 feet tall; it’s also well worth growing.

White Garden Flowers

American ipecac (Gillenia stipulata)

Gillenia is an easy perennial that deserves to be in every garden.

A long-lived, 3-foot-tall perennial with lacy leaves, starry early summer flowers, brilliant fall color, and a tough, drought-tolerant constitution, the eastern North American native American ipecac (and its close cousin, Gillenia trifoliata) is one of the best garden perennials, period. It takes a couple years to get going, which makes it a hard sell in an era when many gardeners and nurseries want instant results. But if you get a chance to buy one (or more), grab it. You’ll thank yourself for years to come.

Other White-Flowered Native Perennials

White coneflowers are bright and beautiful!

Quite a few other U.S. native perennials sometimes dress in white, even if it’s not their typical flower color. Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) sometimes goes albino, as in cultivars ‘White Swan’ and the dwarf, 20-inch-tall ‘PowWow White’. Their large-coned, many-rayed blossoms debut in early summer and continue for many weeks. False dragonhead (Physostegia virginiana) is another purple all-summer bloomer that often diverges into white forms. Cultivars such as ‘Alba’ and ‘Summer Snow’ have the same general habit as purple forms, bearing their flower spikes on 3-foot tall, rapidly spreading plants. Less rampant forms include ‘Miss Manners’, a 2-foot-tall clump-former, and the 15-inch ‘Crystal Peak White’. Purple-to-white also happens in the genus Phlox. Most border phlox (Phlox paniculata) come into bloom after the Fourth. Several other species and hybrids, however, start flowering in June and continue through summer. Look for ‘Solar Flare’, ‘Daughter of Pearl’, and ‘Aurora’, all bearing white, pink-eyed flowers on 2- to 3-foot, mildew resistant plants in spring and early summer with repeat flushes until frost.

Blue Garden Flowers

Anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum)

If you love masses of lavender-blue flowers and bumblebees, you’ll want to work this eastern North American native into your plantings, patriotic and otherwise. The flowers are carried from late spring through much of summer on airy spikes undergirded by clumps of coarse toothed oval leaves. All parts of this large, 3- to 4-foot tall, short-lived perennial waft a pleasant fragrance. A reliable (and sometimes prolific) self-sower, it comes in several forms, including white-flowered and gold-leaved varieties. Dalliances with other species including the East Asian native Agastache rugosa have led to numerous hybrid selections (e.g., ‘Blue Fortune’), most of which offer a somewhat more compact habit.

Tall larkspur (Delphinium exaltatum)

These larkspurs are more delicate their hybridized European cousins.

Common garden delphiniums are European hybrids of Eurasian species that melt in the heat and humidity of eastern North American summers. Tall larkspur, in contrast, hails from the Southeast United States, so it can take just about anything summer throws at it. Don’t expect flowers the size of those of the prima-donna hybrids. Count instead on spikes of purple-blue blooms that are much daintier and less flop-prone, on 4- to 5-foot stalks. They’re right at home in cottage borders, butterfly borders, and other informal settings. Flowering kicks in around the Fourth, yet another reason to celebrate the holiday.

Surefire Perennials for Shadier Gardens

Bowman’s root is an underused perennial that tolerates both sun and some shade.

Where have all the flowers gone? If your shade garden has you asking this question around late June, you might consider adding a few of the following perennials to your plantings. They’ll answer the “where have they gone” question with an emphatic “They’re still here!”.

Of course, even the most shade-tolerant perennial may languish if conditions are too dark, dry, or lean. You can improve impoverished or overly heavy soil by digging in a couple of inches of Fafard Premium Natural & Organic Compost before planting your new prizes. In areas with very dense low shade from overhead branches, consider removing a few of the branched culprits.

American Ipecac and Bowman’s Root

*Gillenia trifoliata* is a much underused native perennial wildflower whose fall color is as spectacular as its blooms.

American ipecac and Bowman’s root (Gillenia stipulata and Gillenia trifoliata), which also goes by the botanical name Porteranthus, is a durable shade- and drought-tolerant eastern U.S. native that starts summer with a flurry of starry white flowers on bushy, feathery-leaved, 3-foot plants. As with many of the best garden perennials, they’re rarely available because of their incompatibility with the mass-market plant production mill that dominates most of American horticulture these days (click on the plant name links for good sources).

Gillenia takes a while to get going, and they look doughty on a garden center display bench. Don’t let this deter you. Once they’re up to size, they’ll anchor your shade border for decades with their ferny presence and delightful June-to-July blooms. They’ll also go out with a fiery salvo each fall when their leaves turn sunset tones of purple, orange, and yellow. Few perennials offer so much beauty for so little effort.

Poke Milkweed

Bummed because your garden is too shady for milkweed and its attendant monarch butterflies? Good news: it probably isn’t. You just need to grow the delightful milkweed species that naturally occurs in woodland edge and clearings throughout much of the eastern United States, poke milkweed (Asclepias exaltata). It opens its starburst clusters of down-facing white flowers on 4-foot stems in early summer, making an excellent complement to Gillenia, for one. The common name of this clumping, noninvasive perennial refers to the large elliptical leaves, which bear something of a resemblance to pokeweed (Phytolacca americana). Plants sometimes go dormant in late summer, so don’t be alarmed if it dies back a few weeks after blooming.

Yellow Fumitory

Shade gardens light up with the bright yellow flowers of this fumatory.

We profiled the little charmer, yellow fumitory (Corydalis lutea), in last month’s piece on long-blooming perennials. Whether in sun or shade, it bears repeat flushes of golden-yellow flowers from spring to fall atop handsome 10-inch hummocks of lobed blue-green leaves. Plants multiply reliably via self-sown (or rather ant-sown) seedlings.

Black Cohosh and Appalachian Bugbane

Black cohosh produces white wands of flowers that look very pretty in early summer.

Two big bodacious perennials for partial shade are black cohosh and Appalachian bugbane (Actaea racemosa and A. rubifolia). These two eastern U.S. natives produce imposing bottlebrush spikes of white flowers that entice summer bees and wasps with their pungent (but pleasant) mineral fragrance. The spikes can tower as high as 5 or 6 feet in sites with fertile moist soil (although Appalachian bugbane tends to be somewhat shorter than its compatriot). Robust shrubby clumps of compound foliage provide the foundation for this floral majesty, with Appalachian bugbane making a bolder statement thanks to its large, maple-shaped leaf segments.

August Lily

Hostas are sometimes referred to as “flowering foliage plants”. This species is one of the main reasons why. As the common name suggests, August lily (Hosta plantaginea) opens its large fragrant funnel-shaped flowers in midsummer, on stout stems that rise above the lush clumps of creased, yellow-green, 10-inch-wide leaves. Hybrids include lilac-flowered ‘Honeybells’, and ‘Royal Standard’, which complements its white flowers with rich green leaves. All forms and hybrids of the species are relatively sun-tolerant.

Turtlehead

The flowers of these eastern North American natives do indeed resemble something you’d find at the north end of a turtle.

Even the most earthbound imagination will readily grasp what the common name is about, for the flowers of these eastern North American natives do indeed resemble something you’d find at the north end of a turtle. All are tall, moisture-craving, shade-tolerant perennials that bloom in summer. Chelone glabra starts things off in July with white “heads” poised at the tips of 3- to 6-foot stems. Two other widely available species – Chelone obliqua and C. lyonii – offer rose-pink flowers a bit later in the season. The compact cultivar Chelone obliqua ‘Tiny Tortuga’ carries its bright pink flowers on slowly spreading, glossy-leaved plants that top out at around 18 inches tall.

Cardinal Flower and Great Blue Lobelia

If you love hummingbirds, you need some of these eastern North American natives in your garden. Cardinal flower sports brilliant red hummer-magnets in August, just about the time great blue lobelia decks itself with (you guessed it) bright blue blooms. Both stand around 3 feet tall in flower, dying back to evergreen rosettes after blooming.

Native to damp woodland edges and the like in the wild, Lobelia cardinalis thrives with lots of moisture and dappled shade. Lobelia siphilitica is more drought- and sun-tolerant, but also grows happily in part shade. Cardinal flower comes in many forms including some with purple leaves (e.g., ‘New Moon Maroon’) or white or pink flowers. It also has occasional dalliances with great blue lobelia that result in typically purple-flowered hybrids classified as Lobelia x gerardii. These are well worth seeking out, as is another comely blue-flowered eastern North American native, Lobelia spicata.

Yellow Sages

Jupiter’s distaff (*Salvia glutinosa*) is a European native with yellow flowers that attract bees.

Not all perennial sages are blue-flowered sun-lovers. Several Eurasian salvias have yellow flowers and a preference for shade. Salvia koyamae sends up spikes of pale yellow flowers in late summer, over handsome 18-inch clumps of bold heart-shaped leaves. Also well worth growing is Jupiter’s distaff (Salvia glutinosa), a European native that’s larger than Salvia koyamae in all its parts. A first-rate foliage perennial, it’s particularly effective during its early- to mid-summer blooming season.

Yellow Toad Lily

This toadlilies yellow, maroon-speckled flowers bloom in July and August.

Most toad lilies flower from the end of summer into fall. Not so with the Japanese native, Yellow Toad Lily (Tricyrtis latifolia), whose 2-foot stems are decked with erect branching clusters of yellow, maroon-speckled flowers in July and August.

Grapeleaf Anemone

Silver-pink, saucer-shaped blossoms toss in the August breeze on branching 3- to 4-foot stems.

Like yellow toad lily, Grapeleaf Anemone (Anemone ‘Robustissima’) is an anomalously early-blooming member of a group of perennials (hybrid Japanese anemones) that typically flower in late summer and fall. The silver-pink, saucer-shaped blossoms toss in the August breeze on branching 3- to 4-foot stems. Plants grown from questing underground rhizomes that eventually form large colonies. Exceptionally sun-tolerant compared to most Japanese anemones, it thrives in full sun to half shade.

Garden Perennials That Don’t Stop Blooming

As flowering plants, most perennials are a mixed blessing. To their credit, they produce some of the garden’s signature blooms, on plants that return reliably year after year. What would spring be without primroses and trilliums, or summer without bee-balm and black-eyed Susans, or fall without asters and Japanese anemones?

Seasonality of bloom does have its downside, however. Many perennials are as fleeting as they are beautiful, flowering for a mere 2 or 3 weeks. Many – but not all. Here are some of our favorite perennials that depart from the norm by blooming for 3 months (or more) rather than the typical 3 weeks. Most will.

Nonstop Flowering Perennials

Yellow Fumitory (Corydalis lutea, aka Pseudofumaria lutea)

The bright yellow flowers and delicate blue-green leaves of this fumatory bring season-long color to gardens.

Few shade-loving plants of any type flower as brightly and as tirelessly as this somewhat short-lived perennial from mountains of central Europe. The golden-yellow, sharks-head-shaped flowers occur on mounded, ferny-leaved, foot-tall plants from mid-spring to fall, with barely a pause. Plants often generously self-sow, assisted by ants that distribute the seeds. Not to worry: unwanted seedlings are easily pulled – but you’ll likely want to keep all or most of them. Yellow fumitory is a perfect fit for shady cottage gardens and other semi-informal settings, mixed with celandine poppies (Stylophorum diphyllum), creeping phlox (Phlox stolonifera), ferns, hostas, zigzag goldendrod (Solidago flexicaulis), and the like. USDA hardiness zones: 5 to 8

Kenilworth Ivy (Cymbalaria muralis)

The ever-flowering Kenilworth ivy grows beautifully along rock walls and between paving stones.

Another shade-loving European native, Cymbalaria muralis does indeed resemble a miniature ivy in its lobed near-evergreen leaves and its clambering growth. Its small blue snapdragon-like flowers depart completely from the ivy model, however. The trailing plants grow best in well-drained soil, quickly covering the ground or a wall, and flowering happily from early spring to late summer. Plants can become a nuisance in favorable climates, so use with caution in areas such as the Pacific Northwest. The similar Cymbalaria pallida spreads less vigorously, forming condensed mats spangled with mid-blue flowers (or white, in the case of ‘Albiflora’). Both are hardy from zones 5 to 8.

Geranium ‘Rozanne’

‘Rozanne’ forms attractive mounds and blooms effortlessly through summer.

Few perennials flower as unceasingly as this hybrid geranium. Happy in full sun to light shade, it produces violet-blue saucer-flowers from late spring through summer on lax continually lengthening stems. You can shear plants to a few inches from the ground in midsummer to keep them more compact and to stimulate more prolific late-season bloom. The 2008 winner of the Perennial Plant Association’s Perennial of the Year award, ‘Rozanne’ has become immensely (and ubiquitously) popular throughout its USDA zone 5 to 8 hardiness range. (True Geranium are distinct from florists’ “geraniums”, which actually belong to the genus Pelargonium).

Corsican Violet (Viola corsica)

Corsican violets and delicate year-long bloomers.

Small in stature but unsurpassed in flower power, Corsican violet blooms continuously year-round, pausing only during sub-freezing winter spells. The violet-blue, white-eyed flowers lift their faces to the sun atop low semi-trailing stems that ultimately extend to 5 or 6 inches. Give this delightful little urchin a place in a sunny well-drained garden niche in its Zone 5 to 10 hardiness range and it will give you virtually endless delight. If you leave a few seedheads you’ll also get a few volunteer plants to spread the cheer.

Lavender (Lavandula hybrids)

Some lavender varieties will bloom from June to early October.

While technically a dwarf shrub, lavender functions as a herbaceous perennial in cold-winter areas of the U.S., where it typically flowers from late spring until late summer. Some lavender varieties take it a few weeks further, blooming into early fall. Among the best of these floriferous selections are 2-foot-tall ‘Royal Velvet’ and the 10-inch dwarf ‘Super Blue’. Also well worth seeking out are hardy hybrids between common lavender and Lavandula latifolia (known collectively as lavandin or Lavandula × intermedia). The lavandin cultivar ‘Phenomenal’ earns its name by producing numerous 2-foot lavender-blue spires on hardy silver-leaved plants from June to early October. It shares common lavender’s Zone 5 hardiness, given a sunny well-drained niche.

Dalmatian Toadflax (Linaria dalmatica)

The non-invasive Dalmatian toadflax is drought-tolerant and blooms endlessly.

Don’t be deceived by the superficial resemblance to the weedy Linaria vulgaris, aka butter and eggs. This is a totally different toadflax, forming non-spreading clumps of 30-inch stems furnished with attractive blue-green foliage and topped from early summer to frost with spikes of lemon-yellow snapdragons. A beautiful drought-tolerant thing, it prospers in hot sunny well-drained garden habitats in zones 4 to 9, self-sowing moderately where happy. It can be a bit too happy in parts of the Western U.S., so check your state’s invasive-plant list.

Phlox ‘Solar Flare’

A hybrid between two native phlox species, ‘Solar Flare’ bears pink-eyed flowers in flushes from spring to fall.

A hybrid of the eastern U.S. native Phlox carolina, this disease-resistant cultivar opens its white, pink-eyed flowers in late spring, weeks before those of garden phlox (Phlox paniculata). It follows with repeated flushes throughout summer and into fall, provided it’s regularly deadheaded. Other laudable features include a compact habit (2 feet tall and 1 foot wide) and exceptional disease resistance. It’s a reliable performer in full sun to light shade in zones 4 to 8. Apply an inch of Fafard organic compost in spring and your ‘Solar Flare’ will be especially dazzling.

Daisy Mae Mongolian Daisy (Kalimeris integrifolia ‘Daisy Mae’)

Clouds of little white yellow-eyed daisies adorn the 2-foot, clumping stems of ‘Daisy Mae’ from early summer until frost. Full to part sun and well-drained soil are all it requires. Use it in borders and containers, perhaps in combination with other sun-loving, drought-tolerant perennials such as winecups (Callirhoe involucrata) and balloon flower (Platycodon grandiflorus). Hardy from zones 5 to 9.

Gaura (Oenothera lindheimeri)

The prairie-native, Gaura, blooms nonstop and is a butterfly favorite.

Also known as Gaura lindheimeri, this prairie native keeps on blooming through heat and drought from early July to frost. The butterfly-shaped blooms are arrayed along wiry 3-foot wands that toss in the summer breeze. Typically white-flowered (as in the excellent variety ‘Whirling Butterflies), it also comes in pink forms (including ‘Pink Cloud’ and ‘Siskyou Pink’). Given a porous soil in full sun, it will reliably winter from zones 5 to 9.

Sweet Spring-Garden Primroses

Cowslips are easy-care European native wildflowers that lend a cottage-garden look to spring beds.

Primroses (known botanically as Primula) have a reputation for being garden prima donnas. Often, this characterization is deserved. Many Primula are fussy garden dwellers at best, hailing from specialized habitats such as alpine crevices and glacial screes. Don’t let this fact keep you from the numerous easily cultivated and highly rewarding members of the genus, however. If you have some shade (or in some cases, even if you don’t) and you’re somewhere in USDA Hardiness Zones 4 to 8, there’s likely a primrose for your garden. Of course, you’ll want to amend any sandy or heavy clay soil with a good helping of Fafard^® Premium Natural & Organic Compost.

Drumstick Primrose (Primula denticulata)

The drumstick blooms of this primula are fun and good for cutting.

The primrose season starts in late winter or early spring with this adorable but surprisingly tough little elf from the Himalayas. The common name refers to the ball-shaped flower cluster that forms the business end of the imaginary “drumstick”. The 4-inch flower stem comprises the stubby “stick”. A rosette of toothed, oval, up-angled leaves collars the base of the stick (as is the case with most of the other primroses described below). Primula denticulata blooms in a wide range of colors, from the typical mauve-purple through shades of white, pink, red, and violet-blue. The all-white ‘Alba‘ is easily found in nurseries as is traditional pink. A not-too-dry soil in part shade is ideal, but it will do fine in moist sunny niches in USDA Hardiness Zones 4 through 7.

Common Primrose (Primula vulgaris)

Though bred in many wild colors, the traditional common primrose bears pale yellow flowers with a darker eye.

In the wild, this cherished European native bears individual yellow flowers on 4- to 6-inch stems over clumps of somewhat radish-like leaves. In cultivation, it’s been selected and hybridized into numerous hues, often with the “wild” yellow coloration confined to a central eye. Many vulgaris spinoffs produce clustered rather than individual blooms. Most notable of these are the popular Polyanthus hybrids (Zones 4-8), which flower in a rainbow of colors from rich red to deep blue. Flowers of “acaulis” hybrids – another swarm of primroses derived from Primula vulgaris – are singly borne. Among the best of the acaulis hybrids are the Juliana primroses, a swarm of miniature cultivars involving the diminutive species Primula juliae. The earliest vulgaris hybrids and forms (including the Julianas) bloom with the drumsticks in late winter and early spring, but some varieties flower weeks later. Many are sweetly fragrant, adding further sensual delight to the early-season garden. Partial shade and humus-rich soil are ideal for all forms and hybrids of this storied species.

Cowslip (Primula veris)

Cowslips are carefree garden flowers for spring.

Another European native treasured and cultivated since ancient times, cowslip (Zones 3-8) is instantly recognized by its signature lopsided clusters of nodding yellow to red flowers that are corseted with funnel-shaped bracts for much of their length, with the petals flaring at the tips. Their form and presentation lend them a lovably disheveled look, ideally suited for cottage gardens and other informal settings in partial shade to moist full sun. Named selections include ‘Coronation’, a seed-grown strain with relatively large yellow, orange, or red flowers (‘Sunset Shades’ is similar). The subspecies macrocalyx also has larger flowers that tend toward orange. All forms of cowslip flower a bit later than most of the vulgaris primroses, in early to mid-spring. They’re also quite lime-tolerant, doing well in acid to slightly alkaline soil.

Oxslip (Primula elatior)

Oxslips are fuller, larger, and more symmetrical than cowslips.

Europe gives us a third eminently growable yellow-flowered primrose species, Primula elatior (Zones 3-8). The scentless, straw-yellow blooms flare more broadly at the tips than those of cowslip, and are presented in fuller, more symmetrical clusters. Flowering time and soil preferences are much the same as cowslip’s.

Cherryblossom Primrose (Primula sieboldii)

Cherryblossom primrose comes in lots of pleasing pink and white shades.

Primula saves some of its most spectacular displays for late spring, as exemplified by this highly adaptable, multi-splendored East Asian native. In mid to late May cherryblossom primrose (Zones 4-8) throws abundant clusters of showy, starry blooms that arise from spreading clumps of scalloped leaves. The typically wedge-shaped petals are variously cut and fringed and crimped, depending on the variety. Flower color ranges from pink to purple to blue to white, often with contrasting striping. It’s for good reason that Japanese gardeners have selected and named hundreds of cultivars of cherryblossom primrose over the centuries. A few of these so-called Sakurasoh hybrids are available in the U.S. and are well worth seeking out. But any form of Primula sieboldii makes an excellent addition to a partly shaded, acidic garden niche. Plants are early-dormant in summer and late to arise in spring, so be sure to remember where you planted them!

Candelabra Primrose (Primula japonica)

Japanese of candelabra primroses grow best in moist soil.

Actually, there are many candelabra primrose (Zones 4-8) species, all flowering gloriously in late spring – but this is the quintessential one. The common name comes from the tiered whorls of flowers borne candelabra-fashion on 2- to 3-foot stems, over shaggy clumps of large puckered leaves. Primula japonica usually flowers in red (as in ‘Miller’s Crimson’), but white and pink forms also occur (including ‘Postford White’ and ‘Apple Blossom’). Other candelabra species venture into other parts of the spectrum, including yellow (Primula bulleyana) and lavender-purple (Primula beesiana). Hybridization readily occurs between varieties and species, so plant only one if you don’t want mongrel seedlings. All candelabra primroses thrive in humus-rich, damp to boggy soil in part shade or sun.

Any one of these Primula would make a wonderful, carefree addition to your spring garden. If you think all primroses are prima donnas, you’re in for a pleasant surprise.

Wonderful Wood Sorrel for Pots and Gardens

Wood sorrels – known botanically as Oxalis – include some of our most familiar and most annoying garden weeds. But this circumglobal genus has its good side too, encompassing dozens of outstanding garden and greenhouse plants.

Saint Patrick’s Shamrock

Purple-leaved Oxalis triangularis subsp. papilionacea — The purple-leaved *Oxalis triangularis* subsp. *papilionacea*, is one of the best-known forms.

One such Oxalis makes a ritual appearance in many upscale grocers, garden centers, and other similar locations around St. Patrick’s Day, where it’s sold by the thousands as Irish “shamrocks”. With its bold three-lobed leaves – resembling an oversized clover – false shamrock (Oxalis triangularis, sometimes listed as Oxalis regnellii) absolutely fits the part. This native of rocky streamside habitats from Brazil to Paraguay is anything but Irish, however. It’s also not a clover, belonging to an entirely different branch of the plant family tree. Still, it makes a splendid, long-lived container plant (and faux shamrock), both in its green-leaved form and in enticing variants, such as purple-leaved subsp. papilionacea and silver-splashed ‘Irish Mist‘.

All forms of the species produce year-round flushes of lush foliage and pinkish flowers, arising from scaly underground rhizomes that resemble miniature pinecones. An easy keeper, Oxalis triangularis favors semi-shade, moderate water, and a relatively porous, humus-rich potting medium such as Fafard Professional Potting Mix. It often does well with a dryish rest in winter, mimicking seasonal conditions in its native haunts. It’s also remarkably hardy as a garden plant, surviving winters as cold as USDA Hardiness Zone 7.

Iron Cross Sorrel

A couple of other Central and South American species sometimes turn up in garden centers and catalogs. Noteworthy for its bold four-parted leaves, Oxalis tetraphylla is commonly grown in its “iron cross” form, with bold purple blotches marking the base of each leaflet. A summer-grower, it gives a good show in a planter, pot, or in a partly shaded garden niche in Zones 8 to 10, sending up sprays of bright purple-pink flowers from July onward.

Silver Shamrock

Silver false shamrock (Oxalis adenophylla (Zones 7-9), from high altitudes in Chile and Argentina, is another South American species often sold in catalogs. It is a bit of a mystery, considering its trickiness in cultivation. It needs relatively mild winters and cool summers to succeed, or a reliable snow cover in cold-winter areas. Give it porous soil in any case, to mimic the gravel slopes it calls home.

South African Sorrels

Bowie's wood sorrel — Bowie’s wood sorrel is a real beauty with large pink flowers and leathery green leaves.

Ornamental Oxalis species have their epicenter in another sub-equatorial region – the South African Cape. Dozens of Oxalis, with flowers and foliage in a rainbow of beguiling hues, come from this florally blessed locale. Almost all South African forms are winter-growers, arising from small underground bulbs in mid-to-late fall and flowering for weeks or months before returning to dormancy in spring. Ample sun, relatively cool air, and not overly moist soil are their only requirements, whether grown in a pot or in a favorable garden climate (such as coastal California). They can go entirely without water during their summer dormant period. Notable South African species include:

Bowie’s wood-sorrel – Oxalis bowiei, whose clumps of large leathery rich-green “shamrocks” give rise to rose-pink flowers in late winter and spring.
Compressed wood-sorrel – Oxalis compressa, which produces bright yellow flowers in winter over mounds of clover-like leaves. The cultivar ‘Pom-Pom’ has fully double flowers like miniature chrysanthemums.
The shrubby Oxalis livida, whose botanical name refers to the liver-purple tinge of its finely divided leaves.
Yellow-eyed sorrel – Oxalis obtusa is an amazingly diverse species that flowers for many weeks in mid-to late-winter in colors ranging from white to pink to purple to yellow.
Palm-leaf sorrel – Oxalis palmifrons is named for its glistening silver-furred leaves that do indeed resemble tiny palm fronds.
Purple sorrel – Oxalis purpurea, which rivals Oxalis obtusa in the color range of its dazzling yellow, pink, purple, lavender, or white flowers.
Candy cane sorrel – Oxalis versicolor is named for its appearance when its white, red-edged petals are furled. As with all South African oxalis, the flowers open wide only in bright sunlight.

Oxalis triangularis 'Irish Mist' — *Oxalis triangularis* ‘Irish Mist’ has beautiful mottled leaves and white flowers.

Cold-Hardy Sorrels

A few ornamental oxalis are suitable for cold-climate gardens. The plant often sold as pink wood sorrel (sometimes named Oxalis crassipes or Oxalis rosea, but actually a form of Oxalis articulata (no matter)) is one of the best ground covers for sunny or lightly shaded Zone 6 to 9 gardens. It spreads gradually into lush clumps of typically oxalian clover-like leaves, spangled much of the growing season with rose-pink flowers. A white-flowered form is also sometimes available and well worth seeking out.

*Oxalis violacea* is a U.S. native that exists from the Eastern Seaboard to the Rocky Mountains.

For sunny to partly shaded rock gardens, troughs, and other similar settings in Zones 4 to 8, there’s the U.S. native violet wood sorrel (Oxalis violacea), which is found in prairies, ledges, and other dryish habitats from the Eastern Seaboard to the Rockies. It’s a delightful little thing, forming tufts of purple-flushed mini-shamrocks, studded in late spring with pink flowers. The rarely available mountain wood sorrel (Oxalis montana), from uplands of the eastern U.S., is similar to Oxalis violacea in appearance but more vigorous in growth if given a cool shaded niche with humus-rich soil in Zones 3 to 7. Curiously, it’s rarely offered in nurseries, despite its ability to form attractive ground-covering clumps of dainty foliage.

Golden Sorrel

Molten Lava™ (Image by Proven Winners™) — Molten Lava^™ is a compact accent plant for containers. (Image by Proven Winners^™)

Two cheerful varieties of golden sorrel (Oxalis spiralis) have become quite popular for container plantings. These are the dark-burgundy-leaved Zinfandel^™ and the brilliant orange-purple-and-yellow-leaved Molten Lava^™. Both plants form low-growing mounds and develop yellow flowers in summer. They are hardy in Zones 9-11.

Whether for greenhouse or garden, ornamental Oxalis have plenty to offer in the way of handsome colorful foliage and charming and often dazzling flowers. Wood sorrels are so much more than weeds – or St Patrick’s Day curiosities.

Landscape Your Home With Fruiting Edibles!

Edible landscaping can be a kick – especially if you take full advantage of the dizzying diversity of fruiting trees and shrubs. While old-time (and often pest-prone) favorites, such as apples and pears, certainly have their place, so too do scores of lesser-known but equally rewarding fruit-bearing species, including those portrayed below. They’ll bring excitement and new flavors to your garden – as well as fewer pest problems than those ubiquitous old-timers. And many of them are beautiful to boot (which can’t be said of most apple and pear trees).

Carpeting Cranberries

Home-grown cranberries (Vaccinium macrocarpon, USDA Hardiness Zones 2-7) are so much more rewarding and ecologically friendly than market-bought ones. Even better, the plants that bear them are highly ornamental, their creeping stems weaving into dense ground-covering swaths of dainty glistening evergreen foliage. Give this North American native a moist humus-rich acidic soil and ample sun, and it will steadily spread into a 3-foot-wide, 6- to 8-inch-high hummock that covers itself in ornamental red berries in late summer.

Commercial cranberry varieties such as ‘Stevens’ produce especially heavy crops. Where space is limited, consider the dwarf cultivar ‘Hamilton’, which tops out at a foot wide and 4 inches high, but with normal-size berries. Plant two or more different varieties for maximum berry production. Native mostly to latitudes north of the Mason-Dixon Line, cranberry does best in areas with chilly winters and relatively unoppressive summers. Dig a couple of inches of Fafard Ultra Outdoor Planting Mix into the soil before planting, and your cranberries will be extra-happy.

Lingonberries — Lingonberry is similar to cranberry in habit, foliage, preferred garden habitat, and culinary uses.

Also effective (and productive) as a small-scale ground cover is cranberry’s close cousin, lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea, zones 3-7). Similar to cranberry in habit, foliage, preferred garden habitat, and culinary uses, it bears clusters of pale-pink, urn-shaped flowers in late spring and summer that ripen to tomato-red pea-sized fruits in late summer and fall. Lingonberries going by the name of Koralle yield abundant fruits on spreading 8- to 12-inch-tall plants. The vigorous, large-fruited cultivar ‘Red Pearl’ grows a few inches taller and wider than Koralle.

Harvestable Hedges

Black chokecherries — Black chokecherry fruits are excellent for preserves, pies, and other kitchen uses.

A significant food crop in Europe, the eastern North American native Aronia melanocarpa (commonly known as black chokeberry) is surprisingly absent from American orchards and gardens. Yet this rugged deciduous shrub makes an outstanding ornamental and culinary plant for sunny niches throughout USDA Zones 3 to 8. Plants typically form suckering 3- to 5-foot-tall clumps clad with glossy-green oval leaves that turn brilliant sunset shades in fall. Abundant clusters of white flowers open toward the branch tips in mid-spring, followed by tart-flavored, quarter-inch-wide berries that ripen black-purple in late summer. The fruits are excellent for preserves, pies, and other kitchen uses. With its dense habit, black chokeberry works wonderfully as a low garden or boundary hedge.

Commercial cultivars such as ‘Viking’ (which may be a hybrid with mountain ash, Sorbus aucuparia) produce the largest berries, on vigorously suckering stems. For residential gardens, ‘Autumn Magic’ and Iroquois Beauty™ are of relatively compact growth with somewhat smaller – but still toothsome – berries. Two newly introduced cultivars (Ground Hug™ and Low Scape Mound^®) from the University of Connecticut’s breeding program are even more compact, maturing at 1 to 2 feet tall and producing modest crops of fruit. For maximum production, plant more than one cultivar of black chokeberry.

Beach plums — These fruits may small, but they’re unsurpassed for flavoring preserves, syrups, and vinegars.

The tart, grape-sized fruits of beach plum (Prunus maritima) may be small, but they’re unsurpassed for flavoring preserves, syrups, vinegar, and the like. Thousands of beach plum aficionados descend on Eastern Seaboard dunes in August and September to harvest the red-purple ripe fruits. Curiously, however, very few gardeners in beach plum’s Zone 3 to 8 hardiness range recognize its considerable merits as a culinary and ornamental plant.

Although a rather scraggly 3- to 5-foot thing in its native dune habitats, in average garden soil it forms a dense 6- to 12-foot clump well-suited for hedging. Blizzards of white flowers in mid-spring are followed by fruits if another beach plum is nearby for cross-pollination. Most plants bear irregularly from year to year, so look for selections – such as ‘Premier’ and ‘Jersey Beach Plum’ – that are more consistent producers. Cultivars ‘Nana’ and ‘Ecos’ bear reliable annual crops on more compact 3- to 5-foot-tall plants. You can further enhance beach plum’s productivity and habit by thinning out old, unproductive branches in early spring (this also works for the other shrubs described here).

Saskatoon berries — Saskatoon bears blueberry-like, early-summer fruits in easy reach.

From upper latitudes of western North America comes another first-rate hedging and fruiting shrub, Amelanchier alnifolia ‘Regent’. A compact selection of one of several small native tree species variously known as serviceberry and shadblow, ‘Regent’ tops out at a bushy 6 feet tall, placing its blueberry-like, early-summer fruits in easy reach. Clusters of gossamer white flowers precede the fruits in the earliest spring. Commonly known as saskatoon, this extremely cold-hardy shrub thrives in full sun to light shade and most types of soil from Zones 2 to 7. Plant another variety of Amelanchier nearby to maximize fruiting.

Honeyberries — Fleshy, tasty honeyberries have similar uses to those of blueberry and saskatoon.

Also producing blue fruit in early summer is honeyberry, Lonicera caerulea. Olive-shaped rather than rounded, the fleshy, tasty berries have similar uses to those of blueberry and saskatoon. They’re borne on attractive 3- to 4-foot plants clothed with dainty, downy, oval leaves that flush just before the pale yellow flowers open in early spring. You’ll need more than one variety for plants to produce fruit, so why not make a hedge of them? Several cultivars of this extremely hardy (Zones 2 to 7) Northeast Asian native are available, including Blue Moon™, Blue Velvet Palm, and Yezberry Sugar Pie^®. All prefer full sun but will tolerate some shade.

Red, tart to sweet, cranberry-sized Nanking cherries appear in late spring or early summer.

East Asia is also the home of Nanking cherry (Prunus tomentosa), another little-known and highly ornamental fruiting shrub. Its upright to arching stems carry pale pink flowers along nearly their entire length in early spring, before the toothed oval leaves expand. Red, tart to sweet, cranberry-sized “cherries” follow in late spring and early summer, ready for fresh-eating or for making into pies or preserves. Maturing at around 8 feet high and slightly wider, Nanking cherry nicely fills the bill as a large hedging plant for sunny sites in Zones 2 to 7. When available (which is all too rarely), it’s usually offered as unnamed seedlings. Multiple plants are needed for a good fruit-set.

Trend-Setting Fruit Trees

Pawpaw's fruit — The flavor of a pawpaw’s custardy fruits varies from tree to tree.

The standard suburban fruit tree is a rather homely, disease-riddled affair. A well-grown specimen of pawpaw (Asimina triloba) is anything but. In its native woodland haunts in the central and southeastern U.S., it grows as a gaunt, unprepossessing understory tree. It’s another thing entirely in a sunny or lightly shaded garden niche, where it typically forms a dense low-branched 15- to a 20-foot tree whose conical crown is densely furnished with large tropical-looking leaves. Curious fleshy liver-purple flowers in early spring give rise to large, potato-shaped fruits that ripen in late summer (two or more varieties are needed for fruiting to occur).

The flavor of the fruits’ custardy flesh varies from tree to tree, as does the number of seeds it contains, so look for varieties that have been selected for their fruiting characteristics. Young pawpaw trees suffer in harsh wind and blistering heat and should be sited or protected accordingly. The Zone 5 to 9 hardiness of this central and Southeast U.S. native belies its tropical appearance.

Also bearing large tasty fruit on handsome small trees is Chinese quince, Pseudocydonia sinensis. Fragrant bright yellow quinces dangle from its rounded crown in late summer, not long before the leaves turn burgundy and orange. This East Asian native is also well worth growing for its pink sweet-scented mid-spring flowers and for its handsome bark that flakes into multi-colored patches. Plants are self-fruitful, so you only need one tree to get the tart fruits, which are delicious in preserves and baked goods. Chinese quince does well in Zones 5 to 9 in full sun and fertile loamy soil.

Female Chinese-peppercorn fruit — Spicily aromatic, reddish-brown, pepper-like fruit capsules mature in late summer on female Chinese-peppercorn trees.

If your taste buds have ever thrilled with the zingy flavor of Szechuan peppercorns, you should also be thrilled to know that the species that bears that Chinese-peppercorn fruit (Zanthoxylum simulans) makes a striking small tree for the culinary garden. Its spiny trunk and branches grow rather rapidly into an open 15- to 25-foot specimen that becomes characterfully gnarled with age. Pinnate leaves similar to those of mountain ash unfurl in early spring, a few weeks before the inconspicuous clusters of greenish flowers appear. Spicily aromatic, reddish-brown, pepper-like fruit capsules mature in late summer on female plants, which are usually somewhat self-fruitful. Plants offered for sale tend to be self-pollinated seedlings of such female plants, which do not need a male companion to produce peppercorns. Zanthoxylum simulans thrives in sun and well-drained soil from Zones 6 to 9. It functions as a large shrub in Zone 5, where it sometimes dies back in winter.

If you’re looking to literally add distinctive character to your edible landscape this spring, any of the above would be the perfect place to start. There’s always plenty of room to explore in the garden!

Wonderful Winter-Blooming Shrubs for the Garden

January showers bring winter flowers. No – really. Plant the right shrubs, and you can have midwinter bloom whenever the weather turns mild, provided you’re in USDA Hardiness Zone 5b or warmer. Boston, Rochester, Columbus, Detroit – wherever. And, all feed early bees and other essential pollinators.

Witch Hazels

'Aurora' witch hazel flowers — Witch hazels with orange- or red-tinged flowers, like ‘Aurora’, are especially colorful.

Topping the roster of hardy winter-blooming shrubs are the witch hazels (known botanically as Hamamelis). These medium to large deciduous shrubs are to winter what roses are to summer. The gossamer, spicy-scented flowers unfurl their ribbon-like petals as early as December. (The eastern North American native Virginia Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana) departs from the witch hazel norm by blooming in autumn.) Witch hazels are also attractive during the growing season, bearing broadly oval, gently scalloped leaves that turn bright yellow, red, or orange before shedding in fall.

Plant witch hazels in full sun to light shade and humus-rich soil that’s not overly heavy or dry. Mulch with Fafard Premium Natural & Organic Compost to get them off to an especially good start. Their semi-translucent flowers are showiest when flooded with light, so give them a position where they can be viewed against the sun.

Witch hazels in Fall — Brilliant fall color is another notable trait of witch hazels.

A good place to start your winter-blooming shrub collection is with one of the many hybrids of Chinese witch hazel (Hamamelis mollis), arguably the showiest-flowered members of the witch hazel tribe. As with all Hamamelis species, the 1/2- to 1-inch-long petals of Chinese witch hazel and its hybrids are lemon yellow (with a citrusy scent to match), but sometimes stray into other colors. Among the most outstanding of this wonderful group of large shrubs are:

Chinese witch hazels are known for their lemon-yellow flowers.

‘Arnold Promise’, which opens its large sunny-yellow flowers relatively late in the witch hazel season, from late January to late March.

‘Aurora’, whose orange-tinged, golden-yellow flowers are among the largest and most abundant of the lot. Like most cultivars, it flowers from early January to early March or so.

‘Diane’, a coppery-red-flowered selection that also features outstanding bright orange to red fall foliage.

‘Primavera’, noted for its pale moonlight-yellow flowers and its exceptional fragrance.

‘Strawberries and Cream’, named for the delicious intermingling hues of its pink, yellow, and maroon flowers.

Vernal witch hazel in snow — Vernal witch hazel is a yellow-flowered Ozark native that’s smaller and denser than Chinese.

In USDA zones 4 and 5a, where Chinese witch hazel and its hybrids are marginally hardy, consider instead the U.S. native Hamamelis vernalis, commonly known as vernal witch hazel. Somewhat smaller and denser in habit than Hamamelis mollis, this 6- to 9-foot-tall shrub typically bears orange-yellow blooms with stubby ¼- to ½-inch-long petals. The cultivar ‘Amethyst’, in contrast, offers flowers of a striking mauvy maroon that’s unlike anything else in the witch hazel tribe. Another marked departure from witch hazel norms is ‘Quasimodo’, a semi-dwarf selection that tops out at 4 to 6 feet tall. Some forms of vernal witch hazel also bloom exceptionally early, including ‘Beholden’, whose pale orange flowers debut as early as November.

As companions to your witch hazel collection, consider the following winter-blooming shrubs.

Winter Heath

Winter heath (Erica carnea) is a low, hummock-forming, 8-inch-tall evergreen shrub with small needle-like leaves, this European native covers itself with small flask-shaped flowers from midwinter to early spring. Cultivars include ‘Springwood Pink’, with lilac-pink blooms on vigorous spreading plants; ‘Springwood White’; and the relatively petite, rose-pink-flowered ‘Vivelli’.

Japanese Camellia

Japanese camellia (Camellia japonica) is another reliable winter bloomer. “Hardy camellia” may sound oxymoronic, but in fact some members of the tribe can withstand remarkably low temperatures. Japanese camellia is undoubtedly the hardiest of the genus, with plants of Korean origin flourishing in Zone 6 or even Zone 5. Camellia japonica ‘Bloomfield’ features brilliant red flowers, lush evergreen foliage, a large, dense, rounded habit, and rock-solid Zone 6 hardiness. The single, 3-inch-wide blooms occur in flushes during mild spells in late winter and early spring. The original plant – grown from Korean seed at Morris Arboretum in Philadelphia – is more than 12 feet tall and 6 feet wide. Even hardier is ‘Korean Fire’, which produces smoldering-red, six-petaled, 2-inch-wide flowers. It’s well worth trying in favorable partially shaded microclimates into USDA Zone 5a. Plants grow to 10 feet tall and 6 feet wide.

Black Pussywillow

Black pussywillow (Salix gracilistyla ‘Melanostachys’) has large, mitten-like, black-purple catkins line the maroon-tinged stems of this wonderful pussywillow in late winter and early spring. It’s hardy to Zone 4. Equally arresting (and hardy) is ‘Winter Glory’ (aka Salix chaenomeloides), with even larger catkins of the typical silver-gray color. Both these shrubs grow to 10 feet tall or so, and benefit from a hard early-spring pruning every couple of years. Give them full sun and moist humus-rich soil.

Winter Honeysuckle

Winter honeysuckle (Lonicera fragrantissima). A welcome sight and scent in the late winter garden, this East Asian native perfumes the air with small white blooms that open on mild days from midwinter to early spring. A deciduous, 6-foot shrub in the colder sectors of its zone 5 to 9 hardiness range, it behaves – or rather misbehaves – as a moderately to highly invasive 8- to 12-foot evergreen in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast. It’s thus best reserved for northern U.S. gardens. Its hybrid Lonicera × purpusii (including the cultivar ‘Winter Beauty’) does much the same thing. All forms of winter honeysuckle favor full to partial sun and well-drained, average to fertile soil.

Cornelian Cherry

Corenlia cherry flowers — Cornelian cherry has yellow winter flowers and edible summer fruits.

Cornelian cherry (Cornus mas) is a large shrub or small tree from southern Europe and western Asia covers itself with clusters of small acid-yellow flowers in late winter and early spring. The common name refers to the fleshy edible fruits that ripen red in summer. Don’t be deceived, though; this “cherry” is actually a member of the dogwood tribe. The East Asian native Cornus officinalis is similar, but also features handsome exfoliating bark and a slightly earlier bloom time. It’s also a bit less hardy, to Zone 5 rather than Zone 4. The award-winning ‘Kintoki‘ is known for its superior floral and fruit displays. Both species like full sun to light shade and do well in most soil types.

Winter Jasmine

Carolina jessamine flowers — Carolina jessamine can start blooming in late winter down south and continue to spring.

Winter jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum). The bright yellow flowers of this scrambling East Asian native resemble those of Forsythia, but open weeks earlier. Its lax green 10- to 15-foot stems are useful for trailing down a bank or wall or for training on a trellis. Flowering may occur somewhat later in the zone 5b to 6a fringes of its hardiness range. Gardeners in Zones 6b and up can grow the somewhat similar Carolina jessamine (Gelsemium sempervirens). Its wonderfully scented winter-to-spring flowers, evergreen foliage, and native origins compensate for its relative winter-tenderness. In colder climes it works well as a greenhouse subject, which can be moved outside with warmer weather. Both winter jasmine and Carolina jessamine do well in most types of soil in full to partial sun.

Terrific Trailing Begonias, Indoors or Outdoors

Terrific Trailing Begonias Featured Image — Shrimp begonia hybrids have lovely leaves and blooms.

If the dark days of December have you pining for flowers, foliage, and fragrance, might we suggest some trailing begonias? These fibrous-rooted members of the Begonia tribe include dozens of evergreen species and varieties that burst into aromatic bloom during midwinter. Bless their hearts.

Brazilian Heart Begonia

Begonia solananthera (Image thanks to Logee's) — *Begonia solananthera* looks spectacular when in full bloom. (Image thanks to Logee’s)

Blessed indeed are the apple-green, heart-shaped leaves and aromatic white flowers of Brazilian heart begonia (Begonia solananthera), one of the best of the group. As with all trailing begonias, the fleshy foliage and butterflied blooms are borne on lax stems that will cascade picturesquely from a hanging basket or scramble up a mini-trellis or other support. Give Begonia solananthera a warm, bright, partly shaded nook, and it will put on a floral show from December into spring, perfuming the surroundings with its spicy fragrance. An easy keeper, it thrives in porous potting mixes rich in composted bark such as Fafard Ultra Container Mix with Extended Feed. Trailing begonias sulk when over-watered, so hold off until the soil surface is dry.

'Tiny Gem' (Image thanks to Logee's) — ‘Tiny Gem’ is a small solananthera hybrid with lots of bright pink flowers. (Image thanks to Logee’s)

Begonia solananthera has also parented some wonderful hybrids. For example, it teamed with an unknown companion at the venerable Logee’s Greenhouses in Danielson, Connecticut, to produce the outstanding cultivar ‘Potpourri’. This 1984 introduction incorporates all the trademark solananthera features with one notable exception: luscious rose-pink flowers. It blooms a bit later than the species, typically from January into April. Also well worth seeking out is the solananthera hybrid ‘Tiny Gem’. Although its bright pink flowers lack spiciness, they amply compensate by reblooming year-round, in masses. The relatively short stems cascade to a foot or so rather than the 2 to 3 feet typical of Begonia solananthera.

Shrimp Begonia

Solananthera-radicans hybrid 'Potpourri' (Image thanks to the American Begonia Society) — The solananthera-radicans hybrid ‘Potpourri’ is trailing and has lush clusters of salmon-pink flowers. (Image thanks to the American Begonia Society)

Many trailing hybrids with Begonia solananthera in their lineage also carry the genes of shrimp begonia (Begonia radicans), commonly named due to the curiously-shaped buds of its salmon-pink flowers. The cultivar ‘Fragrant Beauty‘ wafts a solanatheran perfume from its pale-pink flowers but resembles its radicans parent in its lance-shaped leaves. Another excellent solananthera/radicans hybrid is ‘Splotches’, named for the silvery mottling on its tapered foliage. It covers itself with pink and white flowers in late winter and early spring, at about the same time as ‘Potpourri’ and ‘Fragrant Beauty’.

Other Trailing Begonias

Begonia 'Withlacoochee' (Image by Jessie Keith) — Begonia ‘Withlacoochee‘ is a spectacular trailer that requires a large pot or large hanging basket. (Image by Jessie Keith)

Several additional trailing begonia species and cultivars make rewarding winter-blooming houseplants. Begonia convolvulacea is among the biggest and boldest of them, developing long 3-foot-plus stems set with broad glossy prominently lobed leaves that earn it the nickname “grape begonia”. White flowers appear in large branching clusters in late winter. The similar but smaller Begonia glabra climbs readily via clinging hairs, although it can also be grown as a trailer. It’s one of the parents of ‘Orococo’, another clinger noted for its copper-tinged, ivy-like leaves and white winter flowers. More diminutive is Begonia fagifolia, whose botanical name references the supposed beech-like appearance of its small fleshy oval leaves. This dainty evergreen is adorned in late winter with sprays of white flowers.

Pink trailing begonias — There are many other trailing begonias. Most garden centers with quality house plants carry them.

Other random cultivars of note include ‘Panasoffkee’, a bodacious thing with bold angel-wing-like leaves on stems that trail to 7 or 8 feet. The white midwinter flowers contrast beautifully with the glossy dark green, burgundy-backed foliage. The similarly angel-wing-shaped leaves of the cultivar ‘Withlacoochee’ are smaller and felted with gray fuzz. An excellent subject for a large terrarium, it creeps or trails into a 2- to 3-foot-wide clump, covered in winter with white flowers that often repeat at other seasons.

Like most plants, trailing begonias aren’t perfect. Almost all of them benefit from an occasional pinching to encourage denser, branching growth. Additionally, their profuse bloom eventually results in a flurry of fallen petals, so you’ll want to site them accordingly. Give them what they need, and these cascading beauties will give your spirits a bright boost this winter.

Specimen Trees and Shrubs with Elegantly Twisted Branches

Some trees are just twisted – literally. Rather than growing in the usual linear pattern, their stems crazily zig and zag, each segment veering in a different direction from the previous one. If you’re in the lumber industry, this is not a desirable characteristic. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a garden specimen that possesses an attention-grabbing character, a contorted tree might be just the ticket. Here are a few of the best such trees for North American gardens.

Contorted beech (Fagus sylvatica ‘Tortuosa’)

Contorted breech tree — Contorted beeches are long-lived trees that will bring character to any landscape.

A dwarf, 20-foot tree that slowly develops into a gnarled gesticulating mass of veering branches, ‘Tortuosa’ looks like something that would adorn a haunted castle, or perhaps the dooryard of a slightly demented wizard. Because of the random nature of its growth, each ‘Tortuosa’ is utterly unique, with some individuals dominated by down-sweeping, cascading growth, and others twisting into horizontal knots. Its theatrically writhing silhouette qualifies it as a vista-dominating specimen. Plants are especially arresting in winter when their jagged structure is most starkly visible. The cultivar ‘Tortuosa Purpurea’ is much the same as ‘Tortuosa’, only with maroon foliage.

Dragon’s claw willow (Salix babylonica f. tortuosa)

Frosted curly willow looks beautiful in winter. If you cut the stems, they will leaf out indoors and set roots in the vase.

The corkscrew branches of this 30-foot tree weave upward to form a dense oval crown. The lance-shaped leaves repeat the branches’ undulating pattern. As with most deciduous contorted trees, it’s particularly striking in winter, when its bare framework is on full display. Look for its offspring ‘Golden Curls’ and ‘Scarlet Curls’, noted for the conspicuous yellow-chartreuse or coral-red coloration of their first-year stems. These trees also take well to being cut back to within a couple of feet of the ground each spring, a practice known as coppicing. Coppiced dragon’s claw willows produce especially contorted and colorful stems.

Dragon mulberry (Morus alba ‘Unryu’)

A traditional element of Ikebana cut flower arrangements, the gray zig-zag stems of this sparsely fruiting mulberry develop rapidly into a rather unruly mushroom-shaped small tree. A snarled tangle if left to its own devices, it can be strikingly picturesque if skillfully pruned. It also takes well to coppicing, which produces a bumper crop of suitable-for-cutting stems.

Varied Directions larch (Larix ‘Varied Directions’)

Varied Directions by a building — Varied Directions comes by its name honestly. (Image by Topshelver)

Snaking rather than zigging, the relatively rapidly growing stems of ‘Varied Directions’ undulate at whimsically erratic angles. Staked specimens of this deciduous conifer form a sinuous trunk and an irregular crown that varies markedly from plant to plant, depending on the whimsy of its branches. Unstaked plants sometimes behave as impromptu groundcovers, winding their way horizontally while tossing up the occasional skyward growth. Specimens with upright or grafted trunks develop into small trees; creeping specimens spread indefinitely.

Harry Lauder’s walking stick (Corylus avellana ‘Contorta’)

Corylus avellana ‘Contorta’ in winter (Image by Jessie Keith) — *Corylus avellana* ‘Contorta’ has some of the prettiest curly branches of them all. They look beautiful when cut and brought into the home. (Image by Jessie Keith)

Arguably the most famous twisted tree, this dwarf selection of European filbert slowly forms an 8- to 10-foot rounded specimen with randomly looping branches. Plants gradually assume a weeping habit with age. The cultivar ‘Red Dragon’ has purple leaves and slightly less curvaceous branches, but is otherwise similar to ‘Contorta’.

Flying Dragon hardy orange (Poncirus trifoliata ‘Monstrosa’)

'Monstrosa' thorns — Even the sizable thorns of ‘Monstrosa’ are curved and contorted. (Image by David J. Stang)

Take a Harry Lauder’s walking stick, give it flattened, green-colored stems heavily armed with hooked spines, and you’d have something along the lines of this. A hardy member of the citrus family, ‘Monstrosa’ produces showy, fragrant white flowers in early spring, which precede the small waxy three-parted leaves. Small, yellow-rinded, sour-fleshed “oranges” ripen in fall. Hardy orange lives up to its name by overwintering as far north as USDA Hardiness Zone 5b.

Whichever twisted tree you choose, be sure to give it a good start by planting it properly. Dig the planting hole to the same depth as the root ball (or shallower in heavy clay soil), and three (or more) times as wide. Refill the hole with the unamended soil, firm gently, and spread a layer of Fafard® Premium Natural & Organic Compost over the planting area. Top with 2 to 3 inches of bark mulch, water well, and re-water when necessary (one or two times a week). And let the twisting begin! (Click here for more tree-planting tips.)

Black Plants for Goth Gardens

What better way to celebrate the Halloween season than to design and plant a Goth Garden? Admit it: you need one.

Of course, you’ll also need plants that look the part. Spiky or bizarrely shaped or ghostly hued plants are obviously essential (a contorted beech – Fagus sylvatica ‘Tortuosa’ – would fit to a twisted tee). Most of all, though, you’ll want some black flowers – or as close to black as you can get. The possibilities are surprisingly many.

Molly Sanderson Viola (Viola ‘Molly Sanderson’, Zones 5-10)

Black pansies look the part in cool fall plantings and may even survive through winter.

Plum-black miniature pansies envelop this winsome – but slightly spooky – little perennial in spring, and again after the return of cool weather in fall. Each flower flashes a sunny-yellow eye, accenting and enhancing the surrounding blackness. The blooms are darkly adorable in combination with ‘Jack Be Little’ mini-pumpkins. Available as plants or seed, ‘Molly’ is a short-lived perennial that often persists by sowing itself about. It’s longest-lived (and evergreen) in areas with mild summers and moderate winters.

Black Sprite Mountain Knapweed (Centaurea montana ‘Black Sprite’, Zones 3-9)

The spidery purplish-black flowers of 'Black Sprite' in summer — The spidery purplish-black flowers of ‘Black Sprite’ appear in summer.

Spidery-petaled midnight-purple flowers open from cobwebbed buds in late spring and early summer over contrasting clumps of gray-green leaves. At 18 inches tall, the flower stems are somewhat shorter than those of standard-issue violet-blue-flowered Centaurea montana. Cut them black after bloom, and you’ll be rewarded with a second round of sinister flowers in summer. As with ‘Molly Sanderson’, this sun-loving, relatively short-lived perennial usually stays in the garden via self-sown seedlings.

Chocolate Cosmos (Cosmos atrosanguineus, Zones 7-10)

Dark-chocolate colored cosmos flowers — The dark-chocolate colored flowers of this cosmos are fragrant and summer blooming.

This Mexican native earns its common name not from the black-maroon color of its daisy-shaped summer flowers, but from their delicious chocolate-laced fragrance. Appearing on 2-foot stems in summer, the flowers are at their most prolific in sunny sites with fertile well-drained soil (amend overly heavy soils with Fafard Premium Natural & Organic Compost). In colder regions, lift the frost-tender, tuberous roots before the ground freezes in fall, and overwinter them in open paper bags in a well-aerated location. Plants will winter in the ground into USDA Hardiness Zone 7 if heavily mulched with pine needles or straw in early winter.

Voodoo Lily (Sauromatum venosum, Zones 6-10)

Dragon arum has a striking black flower.

An altogether different sort of fragrance wafts from the gratifyingly grotesque spring “blooms” of voodoo lily. Standing 2 feet tall, each inflorescence comprises a central sooty-purple truncheon (the “spadix”), cowled by a lime-green, black-mottled “spathe”. Their macabre coloration – and fetid scent – is a clarion call to carrion-feeding insects. Huge horseshoe-shaped compound leaves with fanned lance-shaped leaflets push up from the underground tubers after the flowers collapse. Famed plantsman Graham Stuart Thomas aptly described this as the flower Beelzebub would present to his mother-in-law. Or he might have been referring instead to dragon arum (Dracunculus vulgaris), another dark member of the arum family that is similarly bizarre and slightly more cold-tender (USDA Zone 7 rather than Zone 6). Both are must-have plants for partly shaded Goth gardens. Plant the tubers in early spring.

Black Widow (Geranium phaeum, Zones 4-9)

'Samobor' flowers — Near-black flowers make the early summer bloomer ‘Samobor’ uniquely beautiful.

Given the name – and the shadowy deep-purple flowers with back-swept petals that nod ruefully from 2-foot stems in late spring and early summer – this is another must-have. The relatively large, lobed, maple-shaped leaves form an attractive foil for the flowers. Look for ‘Raven’, which has especially dark-hued blooms, and ‘Samobor’, whose leaves are generously marked with dark purple splotches that echo the flowers. All forms are tough perennials that tolerate shade and drought and are hardy to USDA Zone 4.

Black Lenten Rose (Helleborus x hybridus (black varieties, Zones 4-9)

Black hellebores look very striking in the late-winter landscape. (Image by Kenpei)

Indispensable shade perennials that bear saucer-shaped blooms in late winter and early spring, the swarm of hybrids known collectively as Lenten roses come in numerous near-black forms. They’re also prized for their verdant, hand-shaped, evergreen leaves, which sometimes are splashed with silver. Many of the blackest varieties – including ‘Black Diamond’, and the double ‘Dark and Handsome’ – can be purchased as seed or plants, and vary slightly in flower color. Give them partial shade, humus-rich soil, and a top-dressing of Fafard Compost for optimum performance.

Persian Lily (Fritillaria persica, Zones 5-8)

Blackish bells — Tall spikes of blackish bells make this arguably the most striking flower of the bunch.

In mid-spring the large, skunky-scented bulbs of this Central Asian native send up 30-inch spikes of nodding chocolate-purple bells dusted with a silvery bloom. The cultivars ‘Adiyaman’ and ‘Senköy’ are especially dark-hued. Persian lily is excellent for combined with “black” tulips such as ‘Queen of the Night’ and ‘Black Parrot’. All the above appreciate full sun and fertile well-drained soil.

Fall is the best time to plant not only Persian lily but also most of the other black-flowered beauties described above. Get them in the ground now – amending with Fafard compost and topsoil as required – to get your Goth Garden off to a great start!

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