companion planting

Hosta 'Tears in Heaven'

Tears in Heaven

Looking great in the garden is month is Hosta ‘Tears in Heaven’, a unique-looking favorite, from the breeding work of plantsman Hans Hansen, of Walters Gardens. While hostas with long, pointed leaves never sell nearly as well as those with round leaves, we find them much more interesting to use in the garden, from a

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Dryopteris erythrosora 'Brilliance'

Just Brilliant

Looking lovely in the garden this week, is the popular Asian garden fern, Dryopteris erythrosora ‘Brilliance’. This Casa Flora introduction is slightly shorter than the typical species, with new fronds that are more colorful. We remove the old fronds of autumn fern, in very early spring, so they won’t visually interfere with the amazing new

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Hosta 'Liberty'

Shining a Light on Liberty

To quote one of Patrick Henry’s gardening descendants, “Give me Hosta ‘Liberty’ or give me death”. Looking good in the garden this week is the amazing sport of Hosta ‘Sagae’, discovered back in the late 1990s at Virginia’s Mobjack Nursery. Twenty seven years after its introduction, Hosta ‘Liberty’ is still near the top of our

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Microlepia strigosa 'Shishi'

A Lack of Microlepia Respect

Looking lovely in the fall garden is the little-known fern, Microlepia strigosa ‘Shishi’. Despite the durability and appearance of this Southeastern Asia native, it has never been a fern that has sold well. In our garden it forms an 18″ tall x 3′ wide patch. Perhaps now that some fern taxonomists have moved it into

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Dryopteris x australis

Australis Emerges

Emerging beautifully from its winter slumber is the elegant native fern, Dryopteris x australis. The 4′ tall clumps look superb all through the heat of summer. Despite the “down under” sounding specific epithet, “australis” actually means “from the south”, referring to its’ natural range from from Virginia to Arkansas, where it is found in moist

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The Foil of Fall Foliage

Here’s an October shot from the garden, showing the textural possibilities of foliage. Front to back are Heuchera ‘Grande Amethyst’, Microbiota decussata ‘Prides’, Rhododendron ‘Elizabeth Ard’, Athyrium angustum, Cephalotaxus harringtonia ‘Brooklyn Gardens’, and Metasequoia glyptostroibes ‘Shirmin’s Nordlicht’ in the rear.

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