Most of the prehistoric sago palms we grow in the garden are Chinese natives, yet a few of the most unusual, winter hardy ones we grow are actually North American natives. Ceratozamia hildae, which looks great this week, hails from oak woodlands in the provinces of Queretaro and San Luis Potosi, at elevations up to
Mexican Bamboo Cycad Read More »
It’s always a great day when our NARGS seed order arrives, as it did yesterday. So, what is a NARGS, you ask? NARGS is the North American Rock Garden Society, a group of rather intense gardeners from across North America, with some members scattered worldwide. NARGS has what I’m pretty sure, is the worlds largest
I remember watching the first Planet of the Apes movie in 1968, and being struck by the depiction of Earth’s landscape after a nuclear war in which humans were wiped out. Unquestionably, humans manipulate landscapes for our own use, and have done so since we evolved into two legged creatures some 4-5 million years ago.
I have seen the Garden’s Future Read More »
We’ve written before about our plant collection rescue efforts, and last week, we were fortunate to conduct yet another of those important missions. This was the rescue of the Flory/Flagg/Smith rain lily collection. Walter Flory and Ray Flagg are two of the biggest names in the rain lily world over the last 70 years, while
Earlier this year, my friend, former Garden Rant columnist, Carol Reese, told me about a California blog, Conservation Sense and Nonsense, written by Sierra Club conservationist, Mary McAllister. In her thought provoking blog, Mary calls out those who engage in ethnic profiling of plant for the purpose of discrimination, something about which we have voiced
Conservation Sense and Nonsense – Invasion Biology Read More »
One of our goals at Juniper Level Botanic Garden is to secure a wide diversity of species and, where possible, a wide range of genetic material for each species. Our specialty collections focus on preserving genetic germplasm through ex-situ conservation, scientific and taxonomic research, plant breeding, and sharing of unique, native, and rare perennials. Here
Genetic variability is the spice of life! Read More »
One of the top pollinator plants in the garden this month is this clump of adult ivy. All ivies clump, instead of run, once they gone through horticultural puberty, which usually happens around age 15. English ivy, Hedera helix makes a similar, but larger shrub, that flowers in July. The clump below is our selection
A Hedera the Class – A Pollinator Magnet Read More »
In 2012, plantsman Hans Hansen and I were botanizing in the Balkans, when we drove up on a patch of flowering Aconitum superbum in a field at 4,200′ elevation, near the town of Kupres, Bosnia. Hans collected seed, since monkshoods fare far better in Michigan than they do in the heat and humidity of Raleigh,
Despite the impending flooding late last week, Patrick, Zac, and I took off to the mountains of western South Carolina for a few days of botanizing. Despite the monsoon-like rains, we managed to visit seven amazing sites. Below is a highlight. One stop was at a giant granitic outcrop. The rocks are covered in an
Very Wet behind the Ears Read More »
Flowering now in the garden is the delicate toadshade, Trillium delicatum. This diminutive trillium, published in 2019, hails from Central Georgia, where it naturally grows in floodplains. Despite a damp habitat, it has performed beautifully for us, even in average to dry garden soils. This species is quite rare, and is suffering significant damage from
Delicate Toadshade Read More »
