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
Pinus thunbergii ‘Banshosho’ has made a great specimen at JLBG. This dwarf Japanese selection of Japanese black pine, reportedly matures at 3′ x 3′, but we forgot to let our plant read the books, which is why it’s now 5′ tall x 9′ wide after only six years. Those published growth rates probably come from
A Great Show with Banshosho Read More »
We have long had a love affair with the conifer genus, Podocarpus. Of the 116 currently recognized species, many are much too tropical for our long, cold winters. We have trialed 23 species here at JLBG, and so far have found only 8 that will survive in our climate. The most unusual, and least-known of
Parlatore’s Podocarp Read More »
Living in the community of Juniper Level, there should be little surprise that we have a significant collection of junipers from around the world. One of the rarest and most unusual is Juniperus cedrus (Canary Island Juniper). This native to high elevations in the Canary Islands, almost went extinct, due to overharvesting, which is now,
The Cedar-like Juniper – Juniperus cedrus Read More »
It was on a 2008 expedition to Taiwan, where I met the Taiwan native spruce, Picea morrisonicola. This amazing plant was named in honor of its native habitat on Mt. Morrison, which was, as was the colonialistic habit at the time, named for English missionary, Robert Morrison (1782-1834) . Today, the mountain is known as
