In 2018, we offered the variegated rose of sharon, Hibiscus syriacus ‘Carpa’. Although it sold well, we never managed to offer it again. In the meantime, the plants in our garden have made truly outstanding specimens to 8′ tall x 4′ wide. What we like the most is that it has produced zero seedlings. Many
Carpa Diem – Seize the Hibiscus Read More »
Flowering now in the garden is the lovely, variegated-leaf tiger lily, Lilium lancifolium ‘Fukurin Fu’.
Variegated Tigers Read More »
We had to share a recent photo of the amazing Arundo donax ‘Peppermint Stick’. This is a classic “Go Big or Go Home” ornamental grass is for those who have a large enough garden. This stunning European native is best known as the source of fiber to make reeds for wood instruments. We love it
This Peppermint Stick takes a lickin’ and keeps on ticking Read More »
Back in 1999, we were thrilled to have Alabama magnoliaphile, Dr. John Allen Smith, of Chunchula, Alabama, stop by JLBG on his way to the International Magnolia convention. We never dreamed this would be the last time we’d ever speak, as he passed away a few months later of a brain aneurysm at age 63.
Mattie Mae Smith – the Striped Magnolia Read More »
Emerging from their winter rest in mid-June are the miniature elephant ears. These little-known plants make fascinating garden specimens (Zone 7b south), and great container specimens further north. All of these mature at around 1-1.5′ tall, when happy. They are slow spreaders via very short rhizomes. By far, the fastest grower of the bunch is
Several years ago, plantsman Hans Hansen shared an Agave ovatifolia mutation he’d found. This unusual sport shared a trait of many hosta, viridescence. This occurs in both gold and variegated hostas which are brighter in spring, but age to green. Such is the case with Agave ovatifolia ‘Awakening Angel’. We had a theory that this
The Angel Awakens Read More »
Euphorbia ‘Ascot Rainbow’ is looking quite dazzling in the garden this week, backed up by the silver foliage of Buddleia marrubifolia. The flowers on the euphorbia emerged for us on March 10, and now, nine weeks later still look amazing. The short-lived Euphorbia x martinii needs very good drainage in the garden. As soon as
An Ascot of Rainbows Read More »
We’re preparing for the release of a new cast of characters for 2024, through our current funding arm, Plant Delights Nursery. One of the “cast” that we’ve been trialing for six years is a new cast iron plant hybrid from Japan, Aspidistra ‘Hanado Raku’ PPAF. This is one of those plants that elicits all kind
A New Cast of Characters Read More »
At the lowest levels of the horticultural world are those plants that naturally carpet the forest floor. One of our favorites belongs to the genus Aspidistra, commonly known as cast iron plants. During the spring and summer, they are barely noticed in the garden, but as everything else around them goes dormant in fall, their
We just love Rohdea, Japanese sacred lilies, and our collection is a showstopper in the winter garden. The winter fruit display adds yet another attractive element to these evergreen perennials. Here’s a clump of Rohdea japonica ‘Taiyoden’ in late December.
