About five years ago, we picked up this fascinating crinkled leaf form of Sarcococca hookeriana var. digyna in the UK. Both the leaves and form are different from any other forms of sweet box we’ve grown. Since it didn’t have a valid cultivar name, we’ve christened it Sarcococca ‘Chris Crinkle’. It’s looking quite nice here
Chris Crinkle’s Sweet Gift Box Read More »
Our 28 year old clump of Hedera rhombea ‘Cheju’ is looking fabulous with an ice coating in late January. This is an adult form of English ivy that forms a woody compact shrub.
We just snapped this image of our clump of Aucuba japonica var. borealis ‘Sea of Japan’. In parts of the county where typical Aucuba japonica isn’t winter hardy, this tetraploid subspecies may be worth a try. This subspecies hails from one of coldest regions of coastal Japan, in northern Honshu, where it’s subject to an
See the Sea of Japan Read More »
If you’re a member of the clipped hedge crowd, you can stop reading this blog now. Because we enjoy a more naturalistic look, we never shear any woody plants at JLBG. We find the diversity of shapes and forms of plants to be fascinating, and worthy of embracing, instead of making them conform to a
Take a Walk on the Wild Side Read More »
I was admiring our specimen of Viburnum ‘Moonlit Lace’ the other evening, and wanted to upate our previous post about its mature size. It’s still being touted on-line as maturing at 3-4′ tall x wide, which simply isn’t the case. This 9 year old specimen is currently 7′ tall x 12′ wide. Based on the
Moonlit Lace on a Moonlit Night Read More »
One of the amazing broad leaf evergreen shrubs we wrote about three years ago is the Chinese Euonymus myrianthus. We were excited then, and are even more so now. Our specimen has reached 8′ tall, on the way to 12′-15′. The glossy dark green leaves look great all year. We’re still waiting for our plant
Many-Flowered Euonymus Read More »
Looking lovely in the winter garden is the variegated foliaged Ilex cornuta ‘O. Spring’. We’ve grown this informal-shaped holly for almost 40 years. Although it’s a male, and consequently doesn’t fruit, the foliage is more than enough reason to grow this, where space permits. The holly is named for the late Otto Spring, so the
O. Spring in Winter Read More »
Like so many conifers, Cryptomeria really stand out after those pesky perennials go dormant for the winter. Cryptomeria japonica ‘Elegans Nana’ is looking lovely this winter. This 2017 planting is now grown to 3′ tall x 7′ wide. Cryptomerias are quite durable in the garden, and survive in both full to half day sun. Cryptomeria
If you like botanical oddities, then the cute Camellia parvilimba is just what you’ve been looking for. This miniature species, is tiny, in terms of flowers, leaves, and overall stature. Camellia parvilimba is the victim of a taxonomic tug of war, with many taxonomists classifying it as simply a tiny form of Camellia euryoides, while
Honey, Who Shrunk the Camellia? Read More »
My love affair with viburnums came later in life, as it simply wasn’t a plant I connected with at an early age. The longer I’ve gardened, the more I’ve grown to appreciate all that viburnums add to the landscape, in terms of form, fragrant flowers, and fruit. The Asian evergreen Viburnum odoratissimum is one that
The Odoriferous Viburnum Read More »
