Looking wonderful in the garden in mid-February is Aspidistra retusa ‘Nanjing Green’. This little-known cast iron plant species was shared with us in 2000, by the late plantsman, Greg Speichert. The specific epithet “retusa” is a Latin word meaning blunt (adj.), and not blunt (noun), despite it also being pretty smoking hot. We like the
The Blunt Cast Iron Plant Read More »
In 2021, our staff spotted one of our patches of Ajuga ‘Black Scallop’, in which part of the clump had mutated to a form which had foliage that was nearly 2-3 times as large as the original. We moved the sport nearby and watched it over the next three years until we were sure the
Looking good in the winter garden is the dwarf cast iron plant, Aspidistra zongbayi ‘Old Glory’. This cast iron plant never grows taller than 1′, but makes a lovely 3-4′ wide evergreen groundcover. This is our 2002 introduction of a 1996 Darrell Probst collection from Sichuan, China. This has been fine for us for over
Reineckea carnea is a plant in need to better PR firm. Despite offering this several times, sales are always miserable, while its cousins, liriope and ophiopogon are readily accepted into both home and public gardens. I think reineckeas are rather amazing evergreens, looking great as you can see below, as we move toward mid-January. Not
Searching for a better PR Agent Read More »
We’ve tried many times to grow the common rock garden perennial, Cerastium tomentosum, commonly known as Snow in Summer. Its origin in the European Alps, has not exactly been a climate match for our hot, humid summers. A few years ago, we were excited to obtain seed from a Balkan native cerastium from Greek plantsman,
Snow in a Real Summer Read More »
Looking great new in the woodland garden now is the evergreen Selaginella braunii. Native to ten provinces in Southern China, this evergreen spikemoss can either grow in the ground (terrestrial), or as an epilith (on rocks), but always as a xerophyte (adapted to the driest of conditions), and always below 5,500′ elevation. The plants slowly
Braun’s Spikemoss Read More »
Looking lovely this fall/early winter is the fascinating Asian beautyberry, Callicarpa rubella, planted here beside the golden, Juniperus conferta ‘All Gold’. This little-known beautyberry species has been a star for us in the garden since 2015. Thanks to the US National Arboretum for sharing their wild collection.
Looking amazing this month is the evergreen, southeast US native groundcover, Houstonia procumbens. Our selection of roundleaf bluets, Houstonia ‘White Clay’, is our 2003 cutting collection from Clay County, Florida. Originally discovered in 1902 in Charleston, South Carolina, and hailing from the southeastern US, (southeastern South Carolina west to eastern Louisiana), roundleaf bluets live their
Florida’s Houston-ia Read More »
We just snapped this photo of one of our more amazing fern introductions, Microsorum buergerianum ‘Datun’. This six year-old clump is from our 2008 spore collection of this fabulous mat forming, epiphytic fern from north of Taipei, Taiwan. Although the foliage burnt back at 11 degrees F, it re-flushed quickly the following spring. Hardiness Zone
Evergreen Fern Mat Read More »
One of our favorite summer combinations is our planting of Amorphophallus konjac ‘Gordon’s Gold’ in the middle of this patch of the North American native Juniperus horizontalis ‘Wiltonii’ (aka blue rug juniper). This patch of groundcover juniper looks completely normal until mid-June, when the love lily emerges with it’s stunning gold foliage. What a contrast
