We are thoroughly enchanted by a little-known Southeast native ornamental grass, Schizachyrium divergens, and in particular, a ZZ-Top like, super hairy version, named Schizachyrium divergens ‘The Fuzz’. We say little-known, because it was formerly dumped into the widespread Schizachyrium scoparium, which seems an unconscionable taxonomic stretch. Some taxonomists now consider it a Texas endemic, while
When the new Downtown Cary Park opened in Fall 2023, visiting plant people were shocked at the poor plant choices, many of which simply won’t survive the summer in the Raleigh, NC area. Sadly, this is an all to common occurrence, when landscape architects, instead of knowledgeable horticulturists make the plant selections. In looking through
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Here’s a new one for most gardeners, Carex metallica ‘Fade to Green’, in full flower in our woodland garden this week. We’re not aware of anyone who has grown this evergreen sedge ornamentally. This is our 2008 collection from Taiwan’s Alishan Mountain. We haven’t offered it yet, since we don’t expect the demand would be
In 2023, we listed a new selection of the North American native buffalo grass, Tridens strictus ‘Buffalo Feathers’. It went over as well as a tax hike, selling a pitiful 42 plants over a two year span. Well, after a winter of snow and ice, the plumes are still upright, and looking great. Credit to
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Posing for a photo this week behind Colocasia ‘Redemption’ is a patch of Sorghastrum nutans ‘Slim Pickens’. This amazing form of the US native Indian Grass, named both for it’s form, and nativity to Pickens County, SC, has surpassed all other clones in the trade, in our trials at JLBG. The blue foliage, narrow form,
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Here’s a shot from the garden this week with a textural triumvirate of three North American natives, Muhlenbergia sericea ‘White Cloud’, Opuntia aciculata, and Juniperus horizontalis ‘Wiltonii’. This drought tolerant combination illustrates what’s possible when you design with plant textures in mind.
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From 2009-2014, we offered, what I think is one of the finest ornamental grasses we’ve ever grown, Sporobolus wrightii. Sadly, sales were miserable. Well, a decade later, we are still just as passionate about this amazing plant, and are trying to figure out how to get folks to try it. Over the years, we’ve tried
We’ve long enjoyed the fall-flowering, hybrid muhly grass, Muhlenbergia ‘Pink Flamingos’ in the garden. As an ornamental, it only has one fault, the plumes are so heavy, that they spend most of their life kissing up to the mulch. I was noticing last week that once winter arrived and the plumes lost moisture, they are
Back in June 1998, I was botanizing in Southern Georgia, with Woodlander’s Bob McMartney, when I spied a spectacular patch of ornamental grass, growing alongside the road in remote Warren County. We turned around and dug a small division, before heading on. While I was excited at the prospect of a heat tolerant, blue-foliaged grass
One of our all time favorite ornamental grasses graces us with its stunning display of plumes each year, starting in mid-October. Lindheimer’s Muhly (pronounced mulee) grass hails from central Texas (Edwards Plateau) south to northern Mexico, where it’s found growing on alkaline oak savannahs. Its specific epithet commemorates the Father of Texas Botany, German immigrant,
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