This past weekend, I noticed an unexpected fragrance from the mixed border that surrounds our home. It didn’t take long to realize that it was time for the amazing Autumn tea olives, Osmanthus fragrans to begin their perfumed floral show. The first to open for us this year is the amazing Osmanthus fragrans var. aurantiacus
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
On a recent trip to Asheville, I made a long overdue stop at Hefner’s Nursery in Conover, NC. I have known about Hefner’s Nursery for decades, and always admired their plants at our state nursery trade show, but had never managed to visit. I was prompted to finally stop after running into current president, Randy
Hefner’s Centerfolds Read More »
One of the trees that the late J.C. Raulston cherished, and hoped to see become more widely planted is the Asian (China, Japan, Korea) native, Euscaphis japonica, commonly called the Korean sweetheart tree. This little-known genus consists of only two species, and in 2017, one taxonomist proposed eliminating the genus altogether, and moving it into
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 »
Looking spectacular in the garden this week is our specimen of the deciduous Viburnum sieboldii. This lovely plant from Central and Southern Japan, is named in honor of German physician/naturalist Phillip Franz von Siebold (1796-1866). My early attempts at growing this at JLBG were all failures, since this species isn’t known to be very heat
Burnum, Baby Burnum Read More »
In flower now at JLBG is the fascinating tree, Firmiana simplex. This odd Chinese/Taiwan/Japan native, with smooth green-striped bark, produces these fascinating flowers that mature to seed receptacles which resemble three-part umbrellas with lots of heads (seed) underneath. This odd tree is currently a member of the Malvaceae family, making it a cousin to hibiscus,
The Tree of Parasols Read More »
Many years ago, US National Arboretum plant breeder, Don Egolf (1928-1990) embarked on a crape myrtle breeding program, combining the hardiness, and dark bark of the white-flowered Japanese Lagerostroemia faurei with the commonly grown Lagerostroemia indica, with its more colorful flowers. Most of the crape myrtles in the market today named after “Native American” tribes,
Dazzling Sweetheart Read More »
We all flock to the Internet to find information about plants, but not all information sources are created equal. Without question, the finest source of information about woody plants for researchers and plant geeks is Trees and Shrubs Online. What started as an effort to digitize one of the worlds best woody plant books, W.J.
Trees and Shrubs On-Line Read More »
An outstanding BLE (Broadleaf Evergreen) at JLBG this month is the amazing Prunus laurocerasus ‘Batumi Rubies’. This full-size form of the more commonly sold dwarf selections makes an amazing specimen. The fruit of this Black Sea native is typically black, but plantsman Todd Lasseigne made this amazing red-fruited collection in 2001, in the country of
