plant trials

Musa aurantiaca

Red Banana

This October marks our first flowering of Musa aurantiaca, a little-known species from the Arunchal-Pradesch and Assam region of India, into surrounding Myanmar and Tibet. We love that both the flower and developing bananas are both bright red. So far, our plant has sailed through winter temperatures of 11 degree F, with no problems. Thanks

Red Banana Read More »

Eurybia hemispherica 'Baby Blues'

The Aster hemisphere

Eurybia hemispherica ‘Baby Blues’ (southern prairie aster), formerly known as Aster hemispherica, is a little-grown South Central US (Kansas south to Florida) native aster that’s thrived in our full sun garden since 2011. This Van der Giessen Nursery collection of this little-known mesic (moderately moist) to dryland species hails from the Black Belt region of

The Aster hemisphere Read More »

Agave sp. Sierra Azul seedlings

More than a century of mystery – Agave ‘Azul Monterrey’

The latest new mystery in the century plant world is a plant that first showed up on a German seed vendor’s website in Fall 2022 under the name, Agave ‘Azul Monterrey’. It was touted on the site as a potential new species, which always generates lots of buzz in the agave collector world. Seed were

More than a century of mystery – Agave ‘Azul Monterrey’ Read More »

Scroll to Top