One of the first plants we ever put in the ground, when we purchased the first piece of land that would become JLBG, was the red-twigged Japanese maple, Acer palmatum ‘Sango Kaku’. It didn’t take long before the red no longer showed on the branches, and while we were quite disappointed, we allowed the specimen
Redneck Maple, All Grown Up Read More »
The deciduous Korean spindle tree has been looking quite sharp for the last month. Native to Japan and Korea, Euonymus oxyphyllus is a small tree, usually to only 8′ tall in cultivation, that brightens the fall garden with its showy fruit. Reportedly, it can reach 25′ with great age, but that certainly wouldn’t be in
A Sharp Heart’s a Bustin Read More »
Looking absolutely fab in the garden now is the native dogwood selection, Cornus florida ’85 Carat’. You’ve probably never heard of this, because it hasn’t yet been commercially introduced. We acquired this in 2006, from former PDNer Jon Roethling (now Director of Reynolda Gardens), who discovered it on an Interstate 85 off ramp in Gaston
What’s Up Doc? 85 Carats, that’s what Read More »
Our Japanese maple, Acer palmatum ‘Geisha Gone Wild’ is looking rather dazzling this spring. This Buchholz Nursery introduction has amazing variegated foliage, purple with a red edge. Our plant has now topped 10′ tall after 12 years.
Flowering this week in the garden are two stunning buckeyes, Aesculus pavia ‘Splendens’ (native from Ohio through Texas) on the right, and its offspring, Aesculus x carnea on the left. Aesculus x carnea is a cross of Aesculus pavia and the European Aesculus hippocastanum. It’s hard to imagine two more showy trees for the spring
Aesculating the Buckeye Battle Read More »
One of the first shrubs we planted at JLBG in the late 1980s was the giant snowball bush, Viburnum macrocephalum sterile form. Today, this amazing selection of the Chinese native species, tops out at 25′ tall. In April each year, it puts on a truly indescribable show, as you can see from our new April
Giant Spring Snowballs Read More »
Looking quite dazzling in mid-April is our specimen of the Chinese fringe tree, Chionanthus retusus ‘China Snow’. The incredible masses of white flowers perfume quite an area during the flowering period. This is a particularly heavy-flowering selection from the late nurseryman, Don Shadow. Mature size is 30′ tall x 30′ wide, with a winter hardiness
Looking great in the garden in early March is Cornus officinalis ‘Spring Glow’. I remember when the late J.C. Raulston first planted this in the 1980s at the arboretum that now bears his name. It elicited so many comments, that he finally named and introduced it to commercial horticulture. As it did over forty years
Spring Glow – No Mas Read More »
For years, I assumed olives would not be winter hardy in our formerly Zone 7b garden, but after killing several clones in our attempts to confirm this, we finally found success in 2006 with the self-fertile, Olea ‘Arbequina’. The name Arbequina, comes from the Spanish village Arbeca, where this hardy olive cultivar originated in the
The Color of Olive Read More »
On October 17, JLBG is excited to welcome the International Oak Society as part of their seven-day tour of the Carolinas. If you have an Oak fetish, these are your people. The event follows the International Oak Symposium in Knoxville, Tennessee from October 7-10. You’d hope that Raleigh, as the City of Oaks, would have
