What's your favorite plant?

Hello again,
We are starting a new segment where we will introduce Midwest Groundcovers employees and their favorite plants. I always find it interesting when people discuss their favorite plants, so here it is.
Our first entry is from Brent Gustason. Brent Gustason has been a member of the sales team since 2003. He serves Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota regions. Brent has over 25 years of nursery production, management and retail sales experience to share with his customers. He is a graduate of the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls and currently serves on the Iowa Nursery and Landscape Association Board of Directors.

One of my favorite plants would be Viburnum sieboldii ‘Ironclad’. This is a plant that will make a statement in the landscape either as a specimen plant or it can be used as a hedge or screen. This plant provides at least 3 seasons of appeal with the white umbel flowers in May, producing fruit in late summer that start out white, turning to pinkish/red, and finally black that will persist until the birds clean them off with the unique red petioles that remain on the plant into the winter. It has a nice golden yellow fall color with gray bark in the winter. It prefers full sun to partial shade and tolerates most soils as long as they are well drained. It can be used as a middle plant in your landscape and under planted with smaller scale shrubs and perennials to provide a sustainable landscape. It does not have any disease or insect issues due to the larger, coarse, somewhat glossy, and pubescent underside of the leaves. I recommend under planting with grasses like Molinia to soften the size but also can be utilized with a combination of perennials or smaller shrubs to provide seasonal color and texture.

Thanks for reading, and have a great day!