We’ve always loved false plum yews of the Asian genus, Cephalotaxus, which contains only eight species. In garden and nurseries, you’re most likely to see selections of the species, Cephalotaxus harrgintonia (or harringtonii), especially dwarf or columnar forms. Many years ago, I was enchanted by this wonderful form of the straight species, Cephalotaxus harrgintonia ssp.
A nice surprise has been our unexpected success with growing the Bhutan cypress, Cupressus torulosa. This conifer, which can reach 100′ in the wild is generally considered not reliably winter hardy here in Zone 7b/8a. Despite this, our seven year old plant is still thriving, with no winter issues so far, even at a low
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Our ten year old plant of Cryptomeria japonica ‘Gifu’ is looking quite lovely. Often sold under the trademark Dragon Prince, this compact selection from Japan’s Gifu Prefecture, is one of the smaller of the “dwarf” Japanese cedar selections. In our good growing conditions, our 10 year old plant has reached 2.5′ tall x 3.5′ wide,
Many of the winter gold colored spruces don’t color up well in our climate. Once exception is the Norway spruce selection, Picea abies ‘Aurea Magnifica’, which has been absoluty wonderful during our cold weather.
Since the 1990s, I have been enamored with the weeping red cedar, Juniperus virginiana ‘Hancock’s Weeping’. This native gem was originally discovered by plantsman Bob McCartney of Woodlanders Nursery, in Georgia’s Hancock County. We are thrilled to have this amazing specimen as part of the JLBG collection. Sadly, it’s not a plant that will ever
We’ve long been a fan of the Japanese cedar cultivar, Cryptomeria japonica ‘Gyokuryu’. This excellent plant was first brought to the US from Japan in 1967, by famed rock gardener, Joel Spingarn, who was also a founding member of the American Conifer Society. For us, this mid-sized confiner tops out at 18′ tall x 10′
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It’s been a few years since we posted photos of one of our favorite conifers, Thujopsis dolobrata ‘Jurassic Park’. This little-known selection with dense, thick, plastic-like foliage, is most likely a tetraploid form of the wild species. We planted our first typical Thujopsis in 1999, but the cultivar Thujopsis ‘Jurrasic Park’ didn’t go into the
It’s been almost five years, since I extolled the virtues of the amazing Juniperus chinensis ‘Kaizuka’. If you’re a card carrying member of the plant-butchering, meatballs-r-us crowd, this is not your plant. Sadly, because this introduction from Japan’s Yokohama Nursery, prior to 1920 is so widely used in industrial plantings, many keen plantspeople also dismiss
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Our conifer collection really shines in the winter, and one that I walk by daily is the false cypress, Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Clouded Sky’. This sport from the old standard, Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Squarrosa’ is an introduction from Holland’s L. Konijn & Company Nursery. Our 18-year old Clouded Sky False Cypress is now 8′ tall x 12′
There are few plants better to add a upright, phallic statement to the garden, than the native (Canada south to South Carolina) American arborvitae, Thuja occidentalis ‘Degroot’s Spire’. It is truly odd that I’ve never heard a native plant talk that recommended planting this…hmm. I’ve grown this in every garden I’ve every built, valued for
