One of the great surprises in our bog garden is the survival of the North American native, bog bean, aka: Menyanthes trifoliata. This odd monotypic genus (only a single species), hails from cool parts of North America and Europe, and we assumed had little chance of survival in our hot, humid Southeastern climate. That was
The amazing glade fern, Diplaziopsis pycnocarpa has long been one of our favorite native ferns, but it’s a bit of a loner. This fern, whose native range is from Maine to Louisiana, also has a bit of an identity crisis, formerly being known as Homolasorus pycnocarpus, Diplazium pycnocarpon, Athyrium pycnocarpon, and before that, several other
From the Glade to your Shade Read More »
One of the dazzling conifers at JLBG that always leaves visitors guessing and admiring is the monotypic genus, Taiwaniana cryptomeroides. While there are many specific epithet names that commemorate countries, this Taiwan endemic is one of the only plant genera named after a country. Taiwaniana ‘Independence’ is a superb, glaucous leaf clone that hails from
Taiwania, from, wait…you guessed it, Taiwan Read More »
Looking great in the garden now is Stokesia laevis ‘Peachie’s Pick’. This incredible selection of our native Stokes aster was discovered as a seedling in the Mississippi garden of gardener/floral designer, Sara “Peachie” Saxon, and in 2001, it was introduced to the commercial trade by the former Niche Gardens of North Carolina. Stokes aster is
The Season for Peachie Read More »
Flowering for the first time this year is one of our favorite umbellifers (carrot family), Molopospermum peleponnesiacum. We grow this for the fernlike foliage, so flower stalks are just an add-on. Molopospermum is a monotypic genus, meaning there is only a single species, which in this case hails from the Alps (France, Italy), and Pyrenees
Moly’s po sperm…Umm Read More »
One of our favorite evergreen trees is the little-known, Trochodendron aralioides. I first met the wheel tree at the JC Raulston Arboretum back in the 1980s, quickly falling in love with the fascinating foliage, which is arranged at the branch tips, like spokes on a wheel. As the curator of the Arboretum’s Lath House, I
Driving the Wheel Tree Renaissance Read More »
Despite it being 55 years ago, it’s still impossible to not flash back to Monty Python’s ridiculous “The Larch” skit, from their “How to Recognise Different Types of Trees from Quite a Long Way Away”. Although we’re limited in the true larches we can grow here, one that does thrive, and one of the earliest
Real News…Fake Larch Read More »
Cryptomeria is a monotypic genus (only one species) of conifer, native to Japan. Despite many reports that it hails from China, DNA has shown that these were brought from Japan and planted over 1000 years ago. For over 40 years, we have been fascinated with the genus and have worked to collect as many cultivars
One of our favorite broadleaf shrubs is undoubtedly Orixa japonica ‘Pearl Frost’. Orixa is a monotypic (one species) genus in the citrus (Rutaceae) family, that’s virtually unknown in US gardens. We are particularly enamored with this superb variegated form, brought into the US by plantsman Barry Yinger. Orixa ‘Pearl Frost’ matures at 8′ tall x
Ok…raise your hand if you’ve grown Aphyllanthes monspeliensis? This odd, monotypic (only member of the genus) is actually a member of the Asparagus family. Hailing from France south into Northern Africa, Aphyllanthes can be found growing in hot, dry, sandy soils, where it produces an amazing spring show of blue flowers on a 1′ tall
Asparagus kissin’ cousin Read More »
