Podophyllum peltatum ‘Fuzzy Wuzzy’ is a 2015 discovery of former JLBG staffer, Jeremy Schmidt from Calhoun County, Alabama. This is undoubtedly, the hairiest of the American mayapple selections we grow. The foliage emerges with a lovely brown flush, before aging green. If the hairs weren’t enough, this clone flowers light pink, which is extremely rare
While we love the typical redbuds that we’re all familiar with in our garden, only one plant stands out in the genus, as a true shade tree. While most redbuds that gardeners know, mature at 10-20′ tall, Cercis glabra towers above them all at a whopping 50-60′. This long-lived redbud is sadly virtually absent in
Two of the best performing lungworts in our trials are pictured below, Pulmonaria ‘Diana Clare’ from Cotswold Garden Flowers, and Pulmonaria ‘Shrimps on the Barbie’ from the breeders at Terra Nova. Both have incredible vigor, and put on an exceptional show in the late winter garden and into spring, currently at JLBG. Both are planted
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Looking out from our kitchen is a real joy in late winter, thanks to the show put on by Prunus x subhirtella ‘Scott Early’. This amazing specimen was shared back in the 1990s by the staff of Swarthmore’s Scott Arboretum. Although it’s still rare in commerce, this cultivar was introduced by the Scott Arboretum in
In full flower this week is the amazing dwarf saucer magnolia, Magnolia soulangeana ‘Kiki’s Broom’. This amazing witches broom mutation was discovered by Vermont plantsman Greg Williams, and subsequently propagated and named by Oregon nurseryman, Talon Buchholz. This gem should be in every garden where it can be grown. We expect it to mature at
In full flower in early March is Cardamine quinquefolia, better known as the Five-leaf Black Sea toothwort. This extremely showy spring ephemeral can spread to 8′ wide in 10 years…if grown in rich, organic soils. Like most spring ephemerals, it’s dormant by early May in NC, so be sure to underplant with later emergers like
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Flowering now in the garden is one of the rarest of the lenten rose hybrids, Helleborus x belcheri ‘Pink Ice’. This cross of the European Helleborus niger and the Chinese Helleborus thibetanus, was developed by Kevin Belcher at the UK’s Ashwood Nurseries. Since Helleborus thibetanus has been a miserable failure in our hot summer climates,
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Flowering for us, just after the Christmas rose, Helleborus niger, are the Helleborus x lemperi group. These hybrids represent crosses between Helleborus niger, which only comes in white flowers, and the slightly later group of Helleborus x hybridus, which come in a range of colors. These sterile hybrids flower with, or slightly after the Christmas
Looking quite impressive after our recent night at 15 degrees F, is the Eastern US native Phlox amoena. The common name, hairy phlox’, is given because of the obviouslyr hairy stems. Native from Kentucky south to Florida, it can be found in dry, open woodlands, usually in sandy, well-drained soils. The typical flowering season is
We have been enjoying the amazing Cyclamen hederifolium in the fall garden. One of my favorites is Cyclamen hederifolium ssp. crassifolium, with its uniquely mottled foliage. Cyclamen hederifolium ssp. crassifolium is a subspecies of Cyclamen hederifolium from the Greek Peloponnese that was formally described in 2009 as being different from typical Cyclamen hederifolium in both
