Russell Stafford – Page 3

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.

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!

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!

Sustaining a Fall and Winter Butterfly Garden

Your summer garden has been a haven for butterflies. Painted ladies and orange sulphurs have flocked to your purple coneflowers and white cosmos, and monarch and swallowtail caterpillars have munched on the showy milkweeds, Dutchman’s pipevine, and bronze fennel. Then there were the giant swallowtails, which discovered the golden hop tree (Ptelea trifoliata ‘Aurea’, USDA Hardiness Zones 5-9) in the backyard.

Now – with the approach of fall – your garden takes on a new role: as a sheltering, nurturing habitat for overwintering butterfly species.

How to Help Migrating Butterflies

Monarch butterflies on Goldenrod — Goldenrod is a fall favorite for monarchs making their great flight southward.

Some butterfly species – most famously monarchs – flit away to warmer climes as winter approaches. They don’t require winter shelter, but they DO need ample fuel for their migration flight. To optimize your garden as a butterfly refueling station, stock it with late-blooming, nectar-rich perennials such as goldenrods (Solidago spp.), whose sunny late-summer flowers are monarch magnets.

Among the many Solidago that make excellent, well-behaved subjects for perennial plantings are stiff goldenrod (Solidago rigida, Zones 3-9), which sports dense domed flowerheads on 4-to 5-foot stems clad with large, handsome, gray-green leaves. The flowers of the equally garden-worthy showy goldenrod (Solidago speciosa, Zones 3-8) are held in generous conical spires atop 3-foot, maroon-marked stems. For shade, there are the likes of zigzag goldenrod (Solidago flexicaulis, Zones 3-8), a spreader that forms leafy 2-foot-tall hummocks decked with conical flower clusters.

Monarch butterfly on Asters — Asters are also favored by migrating monarchs.

Additional late-season butterfly favorites include asters, Joe-Pye weed (along with other perennials in the genus formerly known as Eupatorium), and showy and cutleaf coneflowers (Rudbeckia fulgida and R. laciniata, Zones 3-9).

How to Help Winter Pupating Butterflies

Arkansas bluestar (Amsonia hubrichtii), in its yellow fall color, false indigo (Baptisia), and asters. — Many sturdy perennials support swallowtail chrysalises through winter. These include Arkansas bluestar (*Amsonia hubrichtii*), in its yellow fall color, false indigo (Baptisia), and asters.

Swallowtail chrysalis — A swallowtail chrysalis.

Rather than flitting south, most butterflies stay put for the winter, riding it out in a state of suspended animation known as diapause. For many species, diapause occurs in the form of a chrysalis, a hardened structure which encases the pupating butterfly while it morphs from crawling caterpillar to flitting adult. You’ll greatly increase the butterfly-friendliness of your garden if you leave some perennials standing in fall, thus providing structures to which swallowtails and other winter-pupaters can attach their chrysalises. Stems of goldenrods and asters make perfect chrysalis hosts, as do those of other sturdy perennials such as false indigo (Baptisia), bluestar (Amsonia), and wild senna (Senna).

How to Help Butterflies in Larval or Egg Diapause

Collecting raked leaves — Rake your lawns but refrain from cleaning garden beds. This helps overwintering pollinators.

Leaves in winter — Leaves protect many pollinators in winter.

Numerous butterfly species, such as skippers and fritillaries, spend the winter as caterpillars, typically sheltering under a blanketing layer of fallen leaves and other plant debris. This is yet another argument for letting nature take its course in autumn. Instead of cutting back and raking outspent perennials and their debris in fall, consider designating some or all of your butterfly garden as a disturbance-free zone. You can tidy things up in spring after the weather warms. After spring cleanup, apply a layer of Fafard Premium Natural & Organic Compost to give your butterfly plants a boost.

Eggs are the means of overwintering for hairstreaks and a handful of other butterfly species. Again, perennial stems and detritus are crucial for providing adequate winter protection – so save the garden clean-up until spring!

How to Help Overwintering Adult Butterflies

Mourning cloaks butterfly — Mourning cloaks overwinter as winged adults. They take refuge in hollow trees, unheated outbuildings, and other cozy niches. (Image by Pavel Kirillov)

Mourning cloaks, question marks, and a few other butterflies tough it out as winged adults, seeking refuge in hollow trees, unheated outbuildings, and other cozy niches. If you have such features on your property, consider conserving them as winter butterfly habitat. Boxes sold as putative butterfly shelters “can be attractive, and do little harm, [but] studies have shown that butterflies do not use them in any way,” according to the North American Butterfly Association.

In whatever form, winter diapause is a crucial stage of a butterflies’ life cycle. If you want a host of flitting butterflies next summer, be sure to provide the resources they need to make it through this winter.

The metamorphosis of a Painted lady butterfly (Vanessa cardui) — The metamorphosis of a Painted lady butterfly (*Vanessa cardui*). It is also a migrant species, like the Monarch, though their migratory patterns are not synchronized, as with monarchs.

Jurassic Perennials

Most garden perennials are bit players, chiming in with their month or two of bloom before fading from the scene. That’s why every perennial border can use a few plants that provide spring-to-fall presence. Among the best such plants are the giant-leaved perennials profiled below. Their lush, bold foliage provides ample interest and structure throughout the growing season, while the flowers of other plants flit by.

Large-Leaved Perennials For Shade

Big, Bold Hosta (Hosta spp.)

'Sum and Substance' — ‘Sum and Substance’ is a classic large hosta for large shady borders.

Of course! Hostas are shade-garden favorites for several reasons. They’re incredibly tough and adaptable, tolerating drought and other forms of abuse (some will even do well in hot sunny niches). They offer showy and sometimes fragrant flowers (e.g., August lily, Hosta plantaginea) that peak during the summer months. But most of all, they produce broad leaves in a wide variety of colors, shapes, textures, and forms. Behemoths such as ‘Sum and Substance’ and ‘Empress Wu’ mature into 4-foot-tall, 6-foot-broad clumps of huge 2-foot-wide leaves. They’re the sort of thing you can build a whole border around.

Rodgersia (Rodgersia spp.)

Rodgersia aesculifolia in summer — Rodgersia aesculifolia has bold leaves and clusters of star-shaped pink flowers in summer.

Quite a few bold-leaved perennials are native to woodlands, where they use their ample foliage to maximize the capture of sparse sunlight. They’re also often partial to damp soil, to compensate for water lost from their leaves via evaporation. So it is with species of Rodgersia. Emerging late in spring, they unfurl large deeply lobed umbrellas that cover gaps left by flagging early spring perennials. The foliage of some Rodgersia varieties flushes in dramatic shades of burgundy and bronze before fading to green in summer. Flowering occurs in early summer in white or pink sprays reminiscent of their rose-family kin, the astilbes.

Give your rodgersia a moist, fertile, humus-rich soil, and it will wow you with massive clumps of jagged foliage. To get your soil up to snuff, add a generous amount of Fafard Premium Natural & Organic Compost. Astilboides tabularis – a close relative of Rodgersia – produces equally impressive clumps of rounded leaves, and favors similar conditions.

Umbrella Leaf (Darmera peltata)

Umbrella leaves — Umbrella leaf will add prehistoric looks to any shaded garden.

Also thriving in partial shade and rich moist soil is this Western U.S. native, Darmera peltata, which in favorable sites can grow to 5 feet tall and wide. The 18- to 24-inch-wide leaves arise in late spring on tall stems that attach to the leaf blades at their centers, parasol style. Rounded clusters of pale pink flowers appear on fuzzy stems in early spring, before the leaves break ground. Plants suffer in regions with hot humid summers such as the Southeast United States.

Shredded Umbrella Leaf (Syneilesis aconitifolia)

If you took a Darmera and cut its foliage into lacy segments, you’d have something like shredded umbrella leaf. The 18-inch-wide leaves form shaggy clumps that grow to 2 feet tall and wide. They’re perhaps at their most delightfully shaggy when pushing out of the soil in mid spring. The fat silver-furred shoots look for all the world like miniature trolls emerging to possess the garden.

Japanese Butterbur (Petasites japonicus and hybrids)

Warning: this gargantuan perennial will smother everything in its reach under vigorously spreading clumps of 3-foot-wide leaves. It’s thus best placed in solitary confinement, such as in a driveway island bed. Curious, leafy, rounded clusters of shaggy whitish flowers precede the foliage in early spring, giving no hint of the magnitude of what’s to follow.

Golden Groundsel (Ligularia spp.)

Ligularia stenocephala has beautiful large leaves and upright clusters of golden flowers.

Got a soggy, semi-shaded area in your garden where a mega-leaved plant would look good? Ligularia would be perfect. Ligularia dentata produces expansive, long-stemmed, kidney-shaped leaves that are typically dark green but sometimes verge on black-maroon (as in the cultivar ‘Britt-Marie Crawford’). Large clusters of yellow daisy-flowers open above the 3-foot-tall, 4-foot-wide foliage clumps in midsummer. Other mesmerizing ligularias include L. stenocephala, with clumps of large arrow-shaped leaves topped by tall spires of yellow flowers in summer; and Ligularia japonica, whose rounded leaves are dissected into numerous narrow segments.

Large-Leaved Perennials For Sun

Chinese rhubarb (Rheum palmatum)

‘Atrosanguineum’ flowers (Image by M. Zell) — ‘Atrosanguineum’ features rose-pink flowers and colorful leaves that flush maroon in spring before maturing to the usual rich-green. (Image by M. Zell)

Fertile, moist, cool, humus-rich soil in full sun is ideal habitat for this leviathan – particularly where there’s lots of room for its rambling rhizomes. Lobed in maple fashion, the immense leaves measure as much as 3 feet wide. Equally gigantic are the towering plumy white flower clusters on 6- to 8-foot stems in late spring. Variety ‘Atrosanguineum’ features rose-pink flowers and colorful leaves that flush maroon in spring before maturing to the usual rich-green.

Prairie dock (Silphium terebinthaceum)

The upright, oval- to arrow-shaped, 2-foot long leaves of this massive perennial are a signature element of the American prairie. They also make quite the foliar statement in a sunny border. Yellow daisies on statuesque, 6- to 10-foot stems provide a statement of their own in late summer.

Glade mallow (Napaea dioica)

Glade mallow leaves — The large leaves of glade mallow are palm-shaped and attractive.

The neighbors may wonder whether you’re growing a particularly robust form of Cannabis sativa. They’ll wonder no longer in early summer when clusters of white flowers open on towering 5- to 7-foot stems. The lush clumps of lobed, foot-wide leaves that are the main reason for growing this midwestern native, however – preferably in moist, fertile, humus-rich soil in full to part sun.

Whether you have sun or shade, plant any one of these grandiose perennials as a bold garden statement. Space is required.

Growing Hops at Home

If you’re into brewing your own beer, perhaps it’s time to start growing its components, too. Hops – the cone-like fruits that give most brews their signature flavors and aromas – are a cinch to cultivate if you have lots of vertical garden habitat such as a pergola or large trellis. A close relative of “weed” (it’s a member of the Cannabis family), hops (Humulus lupulus, USDA Hardiness Zones 5-10) is something of a weed itself, twining to 15 feet or more in spring and summer and dying back to a suckering perennial rootstock in winter. You’ll sometimes find it winding through the abandoned shrubbery of pre-revolutionary estates, a legacy of a time when home-grown and home-brewed beer was a way of life.

Hops Flowers

Hops are borne on female plants of Humulus lupulus – no male companion required. In fact, growers and brewers generally shun male plants, preferring the flavor of seedless hops. No nearby males mean no pollination and thus no seeds. Occasionally, female plants may produce conical sprays of small sterile flowers that appear to be male. These ersatz male flowers are pollenless.

Growing Hops

Hops flowers growing on a trellis — A strong, attractive trellis is a great support for growing hops at home.

Humulus lupulus plants flourish in full sun and fertile, moist, organic-rich soil. Dig a planting hole several times wider than the root ball, and amend the backfill with Fafard Organic Compost, as needed. If indicated, topdress your newly planted hops with a fertilizer relatively high in nitrogen and potassium and low in phosphorous (5-2-4 works well). Mulch with a couple inches of compost, and your hops are good to grow. Water frequently during late spring and early summer, when the hops vines (or “bines”, as they’re traditionally known) are growing most rampantly – as much as 9 inches per day. You can also propagate hops from seed, rogueing out male seedlings as they flower.

Hop Varieties

Golden hops is a common ornamental variety, but it is not a good choice for beer makers.

Numerous of hops varieties are available from specialty growers. (Click here for the hops list.) The fruits of each variety possess characteristic levels of acids and other compounds that determine the bitterness, aroma, and other qualities of the hops – and of your brew. All have comparable growth habits. The real differences are in the fruits. One variety – Humulus lupulus ‘Aureus’ – is grown for its ornamental yellow foliage rather than for its hops.

Across Eastern North America, Japanese hops (Humulus japonicus) has become a nasty invasive species with no beer-making value because the flowers lack the pleasing flavors favored for beer. One distinctive characteristic is that the leaves and stems are covered with scratchy spines. The female flowers are also very small. Pull these plants on sight because they terribly invasive vines can reach 35 feet in a season and cover beds and landscape areas quickly.

It’s best to purchase hops as container-grown plants propagated from disease-free stock. Hops were traditionally propagated from sections of root-like rhizomes, but rhizomes sometimes carry viruses and other diseases.

Harvesting Hops

Hops ripen in late summer – August or September in most of their USDA Zone 4 to 9 hardiness range. Plants may not bear well their first year or two. Harvest the hops when their outer scales begin to feel dry, papery, and slightly springy to the touch, and when their powdery coating (known as “lupulin”) turns yellow and sticky. You can either pluck the hops off the standing vines, or cut the plants back to 3 feet and harvest the hops from the cut vines. In either case, wear gloves and thick clothes to protect your skin from the bristly, irritating hairs that coat the plants.

Hops with a glass of beer — Hops can be used fresh or dried to flavor brews.

Either use the freshly harvested hops in your brew, or spread them out to dry on a screen or in a food dehydrator or 140 degree oven. Dried hops are ready to store when they’re papery and slightly brittle, and when their lupulin sheds readily from the scales. Bag and freeze the dried hops to use in future brews.

Vining Vegetables for Vertical Gardening

Don’t have as much space for growing vegetables? Then maybe it’s time to go the way of Jack with his beanstalk. Numerous veggies are vines perfectly suited for training up a trellis, thereby taking advantage of upright, aerial space. Vertical veggies also hold their fruits clear of the ground, reducing their susceptibility to rot. Three-dimensional gardening offers multiple advantages.

There are a couple of common trellis types. Crosswise bamboo trellises fitted with trellis netting is an easy way to go. Twine strung between sturdy stakes or posts provides an excellent trellis for most vertical vegetables. Run a horizontal length of twine along one side of the plant row, then loop it back on the other side to secure the stems. Add a new tier of twine every 8 to 12 inches or so to keep pace with the vines. Alternatively, you can secure your climbers with twist ties or snippets of string. Some veggies help by self-attaching with “grasping” structures such as tendrils.

Orient the trellis rows north to south, so both sides get similar amounts of sun. If the soil needs more organic matter, till in a couple of inches of Fafard® Premium Natural & Organic compost or Garden Manure Blend before constructing the trellis and sowing seed.

I featured three climbing veggies – Malabar spinach, scarlet runner beans, and purple pole beans – in last month’s “Easy, Attractive Vegetables for Any Garden”. Now we’ll go further.

Pole Beans

String or snap beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) are undoubtedly the aerial champions of the veggie tribe. The ever-popular snap (or string) bean comes in a variety of twining forms, including the purple-fruited varieties profiled in last month’s article. All are wonderful for threading through a twine trellis, or for growing up a teepee of tall stakes. They include:

Broad romano beans are surprisingly tender. (Image by Jessie Keith)

Standard-issue green beans. Heirloom favorites ‘Blue Lake’ and ‘Kentucky Wonder’ both are available as climbers (many gardeners favor them over the bushy versions because they are more productive). More recent introductions include ‘Fortex’, featuring long slender pods that ripen relatively early, and somewhat shorter-podded ‘Malibu’.
Speckled beans. The tan, purple-streaked pods of the heat-tolerant variety ‘Rattlesnake’ are borne most prolifically in areas with long growing seasons, making it a great choice for Mid-Atlantic and Southeast gardens. Speckled varieties for cooler climates include ‘Cascade Giant’, a prolific producer of large beans that are similar in coloration to ‘Rattlesnake’.
Flat, Romano beans. Among the best romano varieties for cooler climates is ‘Northeaster’, with tender 7-inch beans that ripen some 55 days after sowing. For a later, longer harvest, try ‘Helda’, which produces tasty 9-inch pods for much of the summer.
Yellow wax beans. The 5-inch pods of ‘Grandma Nellies Yellow Mushroom’ have a wonderful rich complex flavor that really does have hints of chantarelle. Many of the best wax pole beans are also golden romano types. These include ‘Goldmarie’ and the Italian heirloom ‘Marvel of Venice’, which also has pinkish-purple flowers.
Shelling beans. Grown for their colorful and flavorful seeds that are shucked from the pods late in the season, these varieties are sometimes also excellent as snap beans. One such variety is the heirloom ‘Cherokee Trail of Tears’, whose tasty pods yield shiny black seeds if left on the vine. Another excellent multi-purpose American Indian heirloom variety is the white-seeded ‘Hidatsa Shield Figure’, named for the seeds’ oblong tan markings.

Yellow wax beans have a milder bean flavor.

Lima beans or butter beans (Phaseolus lunatus) are grown for their broad, flattened, buttery seeds, lima beans are a much more diverse tribe than the frozen food section of your local supermarket might lead you to believe. The heirloom ‘Willow Leaf’ bears small, meltingly succulent, greenish-white limas, borne on disease-resistant vines furnished with distinctive narrow foliage. A favorite of Thomas Jefferson, ‘Sieva’ also produces small whitish scrumptious limas, but on high-climbing vines with broad leaves. Some Phaseolus lunatus varieties are brightly colored, as is the case with the heirloom ‘Christmas’. It yields large, white, heavily red-splotched limas on tall disease- and heat-resistant vines.

'Red Noodle' beans — Yardlong beans like ‘Red Noodle’ produce for longer than average beans and thrive in heat!

Yardlong beans (Vigna unguiculata) are East Asian legumes grown for their remarkably long slender beans that ripen all summer on tall, vigorous, exceptionally heat-tolerant vines. Look for ‘Chinese Red Noodle’, with deep red, 18-inch beans; ‘Chinese Mosaic’, with pale purple pods; and ‘Taiwan Black’, which produces 40-inch-long fruits studded with black seeds.

Other Vigna unguiculata varieties are grown expressly for their seeds, commonly called cowpeas, rather than their pods. Many of these varieties also grow as vines, including ‘Whippoorwill White’, ‘Blue Goose’, and another Thomas Jefferson favorite, ‘California Blackeye’. All varieties of the species do best in areas with hot summers and long growing seasons.

Peas

Many shelling, snap, or snow pea (Pisum sativus) varieties produce long stems furnished with clasping tendrils to hold them upright. They grow best in spring, fall, or areas with cooler summers, so keep this in mind before planting them. The tallest varieties such as ‘Tall Telephone Pole’ will top out at 6 feet or more. Some peas grow as low bushy plants, so be sure to check before purchasing. (Click here to learn more about growing peas.)

Tomatoes

Tomatoes (Solanum lysopersicum) are often described as growing “on the vine”, and many of them do exhibit clambering, vine-like growth. Yet relatively few gardeners treat them that way. To trellis your tomatoes, start with an “indeterminate” variety – the term for types that keep lengthening their stems rather than growing to a certain height and stopping. Train the plant’s main stem up a sturdy twine trellis as described above, pinching out any side suckers that appear. Rampant varieties such as ‘Yellow Oxheart’, ‘Black Cherry’, and ‘Climbing Triple Crop’ will ascend to 10 feet or more. You can also allow your tomato vines to double back down the trellis once they’ve reached the top. Avoid determinate varieties, which will resolutely not climb. (Click here to learn more about growing cherry tomatoes.)

Cucumbers

Gardener working on cucumber vines — Strong trellis netting will easily support trained cucumber vines.

Cukes (Curcumis sativus) are natural-born climbers, equipped with curlicue tendrils that cling to whatever structure they’re scaling. Consequently, they’re a natural choice for training up a sturdy trellis or fence. Less weighty types such as pickling cukes are often the best choice. A few varieties such as ‘Japanese Climbing’ have been bred expressly to grow as vines. Of course, you’ll want to avoid bush cucumbers, which are bred not to climb. The small-fruited, heat-tolerant Beit-Alpha type cucumbers are also recommended. The easy, crisp, and delicious ‘Diva‘ is a good one to start with. (Click here to learn more about growing cucumbers.)

Melons

Cantaloupes (Curcumis melo), watermelons (Citrullus lanatus), and many other melons have vining habits and work well as climbers. The average cantaloupe or small-fruited watermelon (such as ‘Sugar Baby’) will require something much sturdier than a stake-and-twine trellis. Four-by-four posts and heavy-gauge wire are more like it. (Click here to learn more about growing melons.)

Gourds

Bottle and swan gourds (Lagenaria siceraria), luffa (Luffa aegyptiaca), and a number of other gourd species grow on rampant vines that benefit from the support of a sturdy trellis or other structure. With their fanciful shapes and colors, gourds are a kick to grow, and kids of all ages love them. Favorites include ‘Bird House‘, ‘Big Apple’, ‘Bushel Basket’, and Luffa for homegrown skincare.

Happy climbing!

Climbing Roses for Garden Romance

For garden romance, nothing surpasses a climbing rose cascading over an arbor, its arching canes laden with a torrent of voluptuous blooms.

Sadly, many climbing rose varieties do not live up to this promise. They are – after all – roses, which are rightfully notorious for their susceptibility to pests and diseases. Arching canes dripping with roses aren’t nearly as romantic when they’re also dripping with fungal spores and sawfly larvae.

On the other hand, a few climbing roses (including those profiled below) literally and figuratively rise above the frailties that dog so many of their kin. Give them ample sun and fertile, moist, humus-rich soil, and they’ll give you years of virtually problem-free beauty (and romance). You’ll also want to give them a yearly pruning, removing old woody canes at the base in early spring or after flowering (for non-repeaters).

Resilient, Reliable Climbing Roses

A John Cabot rose climbing an arbor in a backyard garden. — A John Cabot rose climbing an arbor in a back yard garden.

‘John Cabot’ – 8- to 10-foot canes produce quantities of large, deep pink, double roses in late spring. Stiff and upright in growth, this wickedly thorny cultivar works best when bound to a somewhat out-of-the-way structure such as a trellis. As with many of the hardiest, most disease-resistant roses for American gardens, ‘John Cabot’ is a hybrid of the bomb-proof species Rosa kordesii. It’s also one of several hardy, rugged, and beautiful climbers developed in Canada as part of the Explorers Series of roses. Temperatures of minus 20 F (USDA Hardiness Zone 4) are no problem for this cultivar.

‘William Baffin’ – Another outstanding Explorer Series rose with Rosa kordesii genes, this tireless bloomer produces a late-spring-to-frost succession of large, strawberry-pink, semi-double roses with prominent yellow stamens. The arching, 8- to 10-foot, glossy-leaved canes are good for training to a structure, but ‘William Baffin’ also works well as a large freestanding shrub. This exceptionally hardy Explorer rose overwinters with no protection to USDA Zone 3.

Pink roses climbing on white fence embody old-fashioned garden beauty.

‘Awakening’ – The ubiquitous climbing rose ‘New Dawn’ gave rise to this superior sport. The large, fragrant, soft-pink blooms are fully double, to the point of being “quartered” in old-rose style. They’re borne almost continually from late spring to frost on towering, 10- to 14-foot canes. Lush, glossy, disease-resistant foliage and USDA Zone 5 hardiness add further to its value.

‘Dortmund’ – The relatively flexible canes of ‘Dortmund’ are ideal for training horizontally along a fence or wall, where they make quite the show when bedecked with bright red, white-eyed, single blooms. Flowering peaks in late spring and early summer, but regular deadheading will encourage additional rounds of bloom later in the season. Showy orange rose hips follow the flowers if they’re not removed. Another Kordesii hybrid (but not an Explorer), ‘Dortmund’ is exceptionally hardy, to USDA Zone 4.

‘Climbing Pinkie’ – Speaking of flexible roses, this Polyantha hybrid will weave through a trellis, trail down an embankment, or do any number of other useful things that are beyond the capabilities of stiffer cultivars. It’s also virtually thornless, which means you can fearlessly move in close to enjoy its fragrant clusters of small double pink roses. Flowering peaks in late spring with little or no repeat, and hardiness is moderate (USDA Zone 6).

A 'Zephirine Drouhin' (Image thanks to Jackson & Perkins) — A ‘Zephirine Drouhin’ is beautifully trained against a home. (Image thanks to Jackson & Perkins)

‘Royal Sunset’ – Disease-resistant climbers also come in classic hybrid-tea style, with pointed buds opening to rounded, fully double, fragrant blooms. Introduced in 1960, when hybrid teas were all the rage, ‘Royal Sunset’ bears masses of apricot-pink roses in late spring on tall, 8- to 14-foot canes. Lesser flushes of bloom repeat later in the season. Like most hybrid teas, ‘Royal Sunset’ has only moderate winter-hardiness, to USDA Zone 6.

‘Zephirine Drouhin’ – If you really want to dial up the romance, plant ‘Zephirine Drouhin’, a nineteenth-century heirloom variety with intensely fragrant double pink roses from spring until frost. Nearly thornless, it makes the perfect subject for a bench-side bower or other intimate garden feature. Although not quite as hardy and pest resistant as the Kordesii hybrids, ‘Zepherine’ is still remarkably adaptable, tolerating semi-shade and wintering well into USDA Zone 5.

Yellow and red climbing roses mingle together along a stone wall.

Spring is a great time to plant the climbing rose of your dreams. Just dig an ample planting hole (3 feet wide or more), amend the backfill with Fafard® Premium Natural & Organic Compost, water every few rainless days while your rose establishes, and let the romance begin. (Click here to learn more about how to properly plant shrubs.)

Favorite Fragrant Early Spring Flowering Shrubs

Some shrubs produce flowers that do more than draw the eye; they also delight us with their delicious scent. The most obvious examples are hybrid tea roses and common lilac (Syringa vulgaris), which owe a good deal of their renown to the legendary bouquet of their blooms. Yet many other shrubs offer equally alluring fragrance, often at seasons when lilac and rose are at a lull. Here’s a seasonal summary of a few of the best.

Asian Witch Hazels

The orange-red Hamamelis x intermedia 'Jelena' — The orange-red *Hamamelis* x *intermedia* ‘Jelena’ is a reliable late-winter bloomer.

Asian witch hazels (Hamamelis x intermedia and H. mollis) – The ribbon-like yellow, orange, or red petals of these large shrubs unfurl on mild days in late winter (this year, they started blooming in mid-January here in balmy Rhode Island). Plant Asian witch hazels to the south of paths, doorways, and other winter viewpoints, where their gossamer petals will glow against the slanting rays of the winter sun, and where mild southern breezes will waft the flowers’ lemony scent to passersby. Witch hazels offer a bright encore in fall, their leaves assuming sunset tones that distantly echo the hues of their winter flowers. Hardy from USDA Zones 5b to 9, they succeed in full to partial sun and in just about any soil that’s not soggy or parched.

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, funneled blooms that open on mild days from January to early April. 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 ‘Winter Beauty’) does much the same thing. All forms of winter honeysuckle favor full to partial sun and well-drained, average to fertile soil.

February Daphne

February daphne (Daphne mezereum) – Intensely fragrant mauve-pink flowers crowd the naked, erect branches of this sparse, 3- to 4-foot shrub in late winter and early spring – a bit later than its common name would suggest. White-flowered cultivars are also available. Poisonous red fruits follow the flowers, and sometimes give rise to volunteer seedlings. A long-time garden favorite in its native Eurasia as well as in the U.S. and Canada (where it’s hardy from zones 4 to 7), it does best with plenty of elbow room, humusy well-drained soil, and full to partial sun. Give it a late-spring top-dressing of Fafard® Premium Topsoil to keep its roots cool, healthy, and happy.

Spring-Flowering Viburnums

The classic Korean spice viburnum has clusters of powerfully sweet-scented spring flowers.

Korean spice viburnum (Viburnum carlesii) – The searching clove-like fragrance of Korean spice viburnum’s tubular, pinkish-white blooms is a welcome and warming presence in the mid-spring garden. The domed flower clusters typically open around the first of May in USDA Zones 5 and 6. Korean spice’s hybrid Judd viburnum (Viburnum x juddii) offers similar flowers and grayer, less aphid-prone leaves, in a similar, 6- to 8-foot package. The flowers of fragrant snowball (Viburnum x carlcephalum), another carlesii hybrid, are waxier and of heavier substance, and occur in larger, denser, almost spherical clusters. For tighter spaces there’s Viburnum carlesii ‘Compactum’, which matures at about 3 feet. Most forms and hybrids of Korean spice viburnum prosper in full sun from zones 5 to 8, and turn smoky burgundy tones in fall. Fragrant snowball is slightly less hardy, to zone 6.

Korean Abelia

Korean abelia (Abelia mosanensis, aka Zabelia tyaihyonii) — An unassuming shrub most of the year, Korean abelia grabs sensory center stage in mid-spring when it envelops its branches in funnel-shaped pink flowers. The swarms of beguilingly spicy blooms draw every butterfly (and human) within sniffing distance. The flowers also attract hummingbirds, desipite the fact that these birds have little to no sense of smell. This 4- to 6-foot shrub makes a great choice for full sun and average to fertile soil in zones 5 to 9.

Caucasian Daphne

Caucasian daphne (Daphne x transatlantica) — Late spring is also when this little love begins its lengthy bloom season. Wafting a complex and seductive fragrance containing hints of clove and vanilla, the glistening white flowers flush first in May and June, repeating the performance multiple times throughout summer and early fall. No other shrub in the 3-foot range can surpass it for flower power and scent. The variegated cultivar ‘Summer Ice’ compliments the blooms with white-edged leaves. All forms of Caucasian daphne are ideally suited for planting near paths and patios and other areas where their flowers and scent can cast their spell. Full to part sun and humus-rich, well-drained soil is ideal, as is a niche protected from harsh winter wind and crushing snow loads. Plants are hardy from zone 5 to 8.

Summersweet

The pink-flowered Clethra alnifolia 'Ruby Spice' flowers — The pink-flowered *Clethra alnifolia* ‘Ruby Spice’ flowers in early to mid-summer.

Summersweet (Clethra alnifolia) joins the fragrance fest in early summer. Its candles of fuzzy white or pink flowers carry a distinctive (and irresistible) scent with root beer undertones. The finely toothed, insect- (and deer-) resistant leaves of this rock-hardy eastern North American native are a lustrous dark green, turning brilliant butter-yellow in fall. Compact cultivars of summersweet (such as ‘Hummingbird’ and ‘Sixteen Candles’) make splendid shrubby ground covers for sun or shade, suckering to eventually cover considerable territory. Full-size, 6- foot varieties such as pink-flowered ‘Ruby Spice’ are among the premier shrubs for the summer garden. All forms do best in moist, humus-rich soil in zones 4 to 8.

Swamp Azalea

Swamp azalea (Rhododendron viscosum) is another summer-blooming native shrub with a wonderful scent (which hints at cloves rather than root beer). It, too, loves moist soil, making it an obvious garden companion for summersweet. Also well worth planting within its zone 5 to 8 hardiness range are several swamp azalea hybrids such as pale-yellow-flowered ‘Lemon Drop’.

Glory-Bower

Glory-bower (Clerodendrom trichotomum) — For late-season fragrance there’s this large suckering shrub (which reaches arboreal stature in warmer parts of its zone 6 to 9 hardiness range). The starry pale pink flowers begin in August and continue for many weeks, eventually giving way to blue-black berries nested within showy maroon calyces. This rather rambunctious East Asian native is not for small spaces or for locations where it might invade nearby natural areas (especially in the southern portions of its zone 6 to 9 hardiness range). It tolerates some shade, but prefers full sun.

How to Plant and Site Trees and Shrubs

The key to successful gardening is to go (and grow) with what you’ve got. If your garden has acid soil and lots of shade, go with acid- and shade-loving plants. If sunny, dry, alkaline conditions dominate, then plan and plant accordingly. This also holds true for the garden’s aesthetic. For example, more “naturalistic” settings (such as a woodland edge) call for more informal, nature-evoking plantings. Beautiful and bountiful things happen when a garden is in harmony with its surroundings.

Understand Your Garden’s Site

Light, soil, space, garden-style, and other parameters must be considered before planting a new tree or shrub.

It’s especially important to keep this in mind when choosing – and planting – the trees and shrubs that will form the framework of your garden. Choose the right plants and get them off to a good start, and good things are almost sure to follow.

It all comes back to knowing the site’s conditions. What are the pH, nutrient-holding capacity, and other characteristics of your soil? If in doubt, you can get a definitive answer by sending soil samples to your state’s horticultural extension service (click here for a nationwide list of extension services). What is the site’s exposure to sun, wind, and water (e.g., rain and runoff)? How and when do you use your yard? Now, during the dormant season, it is a great time to assess these factors. Then, based on your site’s particulars and your preferences, compile lists of trees and shrubs that are a good fit.

Planting Trees and Shrubs

Creating a broad planting hole — A suitably broad planting hole should be around three times as wide as the plant’s root ball.

When you get around to planting, the same precepts remain. Trying to force an ill-chosen plant into an incompatible site is a losing prospect. If the tree or shrub is a good fit, all it needs is a good root system and a suitably broad planting hole, backfilled (to the proper depth) with unamended or lightly amended soil for best establishment. Of course, planting at the proper season and providing regular post-planting care (especially watering) are also essential.

Sizing Up the Planting Hole

Adding a light application of soil amendment, such as Fafard Premium Topsoil, will give the soil extra organic matter.

Planting width requires a “suitably broad” planting hole is at least three times as wide as the plant’s root ball, although twice as wide will do in a pinch. The texture of the excavated and refilled soil differs significantly from that of the surrounding undisturbed soil; consequently, it also differs significantly in other properties such as moistness and aeration. Adding a light application of soil amendment, such as Fafard Premium Topsoil, will give the soil additional organic matter for increased water-holding ability to help the establishing plant. This is of greatest importance in poor or sandy soils. If your soil is of good to average quality, this step is not needed. A wide planting hole gives the roots a relatively homogeneous environment in which to extend and establish. By the time they’ve reached the edge of the former planting hole, they’ll be more up to the job of worming their way into the undisturbed soil. Additionally, the refilled soil will settle over time to a texture closer to that of the surrounding soil, thereby easing the roots’ transition.

New tree in a dug out planting hole — The planting hole should be no deeper than the root ball.

Planting depth – unlike width – can be overdone. In fact, the planting hole should be no deeper than the root ball. Most of a tree’s or shrub’s feeder roots are within a few inches of the surface. A deeper hole serves only to loosen the texture of the soil below the root ball, increasing the likelihood that it will settle and pull the roots down with it. Plants generally do not thrive in air-starved sinkholes.

Pressing down soil around the plant — Work soil in around the plant and press it down to remove any unwanted air pockets.

Shallower planting may be required in heavy clay soil. Planting holes in such soils are subject to the bathtub effect, with water percolating through the relatively coarse refill soil and pooling at the bottom of the hole. Here, dig an extra-wide hole that’s significantly shallower than the root ball, sloping the base of the hole toward its edges. Mix the excess backfill with Fafard® Premium Topsoil, and mound this over the exposed root ball after planting.

Sizing Up the Tree or Shrub

Pot-bound plant roots — Make sure plant roots have not become pot-bound. If they have, work them apart to help them grow into the soil.

Potted trees and shrubs with vigorous, relatively undisturbed roots make the best planting material. Avoid pot-bound plants whose roots have long ago filled or grown beyond their containers. Before buying a containerized plant, try to knock it out of the container to check the root system. If the root ball remains stubbornly wedged in its container even when you apply force to remove it, it’s a risky prospect. Ideally, the roots should not circle the soil ball, and abundant white feeder roots should be evident at its edge. You can plant container-grown trees and shrubs just about any time the ground is workable, but be sure to keep the root ball from drying out after planting. Most potting soils are peat-moss based, making them coarser and more drought-sensitive than the surrounding soil. They also resist re-moistening once completely dry. Newly planted container-grown plants may need watering several times a week during summer droughts.

Plants in containers and heavy clay — Unlike container-grown plants, B&B plants are often grown in heavy clay, which cracks and resists water when dry.

Bare-root and balled-and-burlapped (B&B) trees and shrubs lose much of their root systems when harvested at the nursery. They thus require more kid-glove treatment. Plant them either in early spring or in late summer/early fall to give their roots ample time to regrow before summer heat or winter cold arrive. Be sure that their roots do not dry out before planting. Unlike container-grown plants, B&B plants are often grown in heavy clay, which cracks and resists water when dry.

Be careful to plant bare-root and B&B shrubs and trees at the proper depth. For bare-root plants, partially refill the planting hole with a volcano-shaped cone of soil, spreading the roots atop the cone before backfilling. The plant’s trunk/root junction (also known as the “root flare”) should be just at or slightly above the soil surface. Stems of B&B trees and shrubs are often partly buried in their root ball; if so, remove some of the soil to expose the root flare. Also, be sure to minimize disturbance to B&B root balls as you plant, and remember to unswaddle the burlap (or wire caging) from the top and sides of the root ball before refilling the hole. Either cut and discard the unwanted wrap or pull it back and bury it at the bottom of the hole.

Adding mulch layer to newly planted tree — A two- to three-inch mulch layer will hold in soil moisture and protect against weeds.

Add a good mulch layer to buffer newly planted trees and shrubs from drought, heat, and cold, apply an inch of Fafard® organic compost and a couple of inches of bark mulch to the planting area. They’ll appreciate the extra pampering, and you’ll appreciate the results!

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