This year, two families of house finches, Haemorhous mexicanus, decided that our Pyrrosia fern baskets were the perfect place to raise their young. Two of three baskets outside our bedroom are filled with the sounds of youngsters, constantly bugging their parents for another happy meal. It usually takes less than two weeks from birth to
Finding Home with a Bunch of Ferners Read More »
North Carolina State University has long had a commercial peach breeding program, but every now and then, a seedling emerges that may not have store quality fruit, but has instead good ornamental traits. Two of my favorites from their program are below. The first is Prunus persica ‘NCSU Dwarf Double Red’. I first saw this
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Arum ‘Chui’, a purported hybrid between Arum italicum (unspotted flowers) and Arum dioscoridis (heavily spotted flowers), is hard to miss as it puts on it’s early spring flowering show. Bothe leaves and inflorescences are heavily spotted on this excellent selection. This gem comes from UK plantsman extraordinaire, John Grimshaw. We’ll probably be chopping into our
Here’s a fun spring color echo in the garden, where Yucca smalliana ‘Bright Edge’ is using Agave ‘Cordial Canary’ as a complimentary skirt and groundcover.
Jeremy Schmidt’s amazing collection of Aesculus sylvatica, that he named ‘Sylvan Glow’ is looking quite spectacular in the early spring garden. The new growth emerges a screaming coral pink. Now four years old, it’s finally approaching 3′ tall. We’ve taken in few cuttings this spring, in the hopes we can get this to root, so
While many people grow acanthus (bear’s breech) in their garden, I’m betting not many folks have grown the Syrian, Acanthus hirsutus ssp. syriacus. Frankly, we didn’t think this native to Turkey, Syria, and Jordan, would be winter hardy here, but after a decade in the ground, our specimen continues to be quite happy. This is
From Syria with Serious Spines Read More »
Here’s a shot from JLBG this morning of the gardens in front of our Botanical Gardens and Nursery staff building…so many plants (Cercis, Phlomis, Agave, Yucca, Abies bornmuelleriana, Daphne, Chamaerops humilis var. argentea), so little time.
As the garden awakens Read More »
Can you imagine living your entire life, looking forward to only one sexual encounter, which will only happen just before death? Such is the life of an agave (century plant). In botanical terms, this is known as being monocarpic. Growing monocarpic plants is the ultimate mixed emotional undertaking. It’s exciting to see them finally flower
We’ve played around with the mostly tender, African Iris relative of the genus Babiana for years. So far, we’ve tried 9 of the 93 species of Baboon flower with little success. The one that has survived in the crevice garden for five years is Babiana rubrocyanea, of which Doug caught this beautiful image last week.
Monkeying around with Baboon Flower Read More »
Trillium oostingii by Doug Ruhren Trillium season does truly start at the turn of the calendar year, in a small way one might argue, but indeed the earliest do start in late December and early January, just foliage at first but it is the mottled foliage of the sessile trilliums that is so beautiful. One
