MIDWEST GROUNDCOVERS Display Gardens & Plant Trials

Iowa Shade Tree Short Course and INLA Tradeshow

2012-02-13T13:36:00.004-06:00

Happy New Year to all,
It has been a while since I've written a post, but have been asked to let you all know about a great educational opportunity. In Ames, Iowa, the Iowa Shade Tree Short Course and INLA Trade show will be taking place on February 22-23, 2012. Several great plants people will be on hand sharing their knowledge like Mike Yanny from Johnson's Nursery in Menomenee Falls, WI and Ed Lyons from Allen Centennial Garden in Madison, WI. Keynote speakers are Marty Grunder from Ohio and Jason Grobosky from Rutgers University. Rex Bastian from The Care of Trees and Carrie Tauscher of The Morton Arboretum from Illinois will be speaking as well as ANLA Political Guru Craig Regelbrugge. These folks as well as others will be there in a great event. Last year was my first time at this event, and I got a lot out of it. This year, I will also have the pleasure of speaking to the masses in presentations titled, "Success with Ornamental Grasses," and "Are You Ready to Talk to Your Customers About Natives?". Here is a link to the program if you are interested in attending. http://www.ucs.iastate.edu/mnet/_repository/2012/shadetree/pdf/workshops.pdf

I hope to see some of you there. Until next time, have a great day!

Fleeting Fall Colors

2011-11-11T14:47:00.008-06:00

Hello again,
Colors are starting to disappear from the landscape and change to various browns, grays, and yesterday, whites. After a brief snowfall though, some colors have persisted and are quite beautiful yet. Here are some of the highlights from our landscape.
Cotinus 'Golden Spirit'
This can be seen from quite a distance. The summertime golden leaves turn a fiery red on this smokebush. I personally love how the veins turn last giving it a multi-colored effect. Golden Spirit continues to surprise me every year. In addition to the fiery red fall color, it actually produced smoke this year as well. It was the first year since planting that I've seen flowering on it. I just assumed it wasn't going to happen. My previous experiences with Cotinus in general is that you can cut the plant back to the ground each year for bigger, more beautiful foliage but then you lose the flowers. I hadn't been doing that intentionally, but there has been some dieback. This year, we got the best of both worlds.
Physocarpus Coppertina™
Coppertina™ is quite a beautiful plant all year 'round. Dark purple foliage with copper highlights in the summer and brilliant red in fall. During the winter time, this plant has interesting exfoliating bark which adds to its four season appeal. For Midwest Groundcovers, Coppertina™ has replaced the more well known 'Diabolo' based on it's better resistance to powdery mildew. It grows 6-8' tall and wide. In our garden, it contrasts well with the Forsythia Show Off™.

Fothergilla 'Beaver Creek'
Beaver Creek Fothergilla has always been one of my favorite fall coloring shrubs. Growing 3-4' tall with creamy bottle brush-like flowers in spring, this is a great plant for the shady border. Here in fall, its orange-red fall color is nothing to scoff at. Another multi-dimensional shrub, I have this growing close to where deer are always browsing, and they have yet to attack it. Today the white frost on the orange-red foliage contrasted very nicely.

Cotoneaster 'Hessei'
Looking like red raindrops cascading to the ground, this plant really caught my attention today. The gray stems contrasting with the red leaves really does add interest to this already interesting plant. Summer and fall red fruit are typically what I love this plant for, but these days in late fall, show off a delicate beauty. A Chicagoland Grows introduction from many years ago, this plant really merits use in the area. Great job Morton Arboretum for promoting this plant in the program!

Callicarpa hybrid
More kudos to The Morton Arboretum for this gem. While yet to be named, the fruit on this particular beautyberry are quite their namesake. We received two varieties a few years back and this one has remained a favorite of mine. The fruit are sometimes so heavy that the branches look like they are weeping. Here's hoping that Chicagoland Grows picks it up and starts marketing them. I think there are great applications for the landscape for these.

Thanks again for reading the blog. I hope you enjoyed. I'll be keeping my eyes out for the more subtle beauty of winter for the next couple months, so keep checking the blog. Until next time, have a great day!

Grasses in Fall

2011-10-21T14:02:00.010-05:00

Hello again,
This week I wanted to make note of some of the dwarf grasses in our gardens. Fall is the best time of year for most grasses, so it makes my job very easy in showing off how beautiful they can be.

Sporobolus heterolepis 'Tara' 'Tara' has been in the garden for some time now. I've had it on the blog several times, but this year, it showed me something distinguishingly different. The stems are a rustic red color! In this particular picture, a straight species Sporobolus reseeded itself amongst the 'Tara', and that is why it looks so large. The species having the bright yellow stems above, contrasts quite nicely with the smaller 'Tara'.
Calamagrostis brachytricha
This is not necessarily a dwarf, being a species itself. Just a smaller grass that is not well enough known. C. brachytricha is a 3-4 tall grass that has amazingly showy plumes in late summer. Unlike it's cousin 'Karl Foerster', this blooms late in the year rather than in spring. It can also handle a small amount of shade. Preferably afternoon shade, as the morning sun is as important to plants as your first morning coffee.
Deschampsia cespitosa 'Goldtau'
Gold Dew Tufted Hair Grass is quickly becoming one of my favorite grasses in the landscape. Glowing seedheads float above pale green foliage, and light up with just a touch of sun. This planting gets half day sun and does quite well. This variety does prefer some moisture, but can handle periods of drought. Only growing 24" tall with flowers in our garden, the grass itself is about 12" tall and 24" wide.

Schizachyrium 'Carousel' In my estimation, this is one of the best plants to come out of Chicagoland Grows. It offers a native cultivar that grows more uniform so those that are afraid of the wild look can be satisfied. Consistently growing to 24" tall and wide, the fall colors on this are astounding, and only when in nutrient rich soils, does it flop over.
Schizachyrium 'Blue Heaven' Another impressive Little Blue Stem is 'Blue Heaven'. This one grows about 4' tall and sways with the slightest breeze. Reds and oranges abound, this beauty will be appreciated by the hardest to please. In summer, foliage is steely blue and matches well with orange flowers from Daylilies or Geum.

Gentiana 'True Blue' I wish my picture would do this plant justice. But it seems very difficult to capture the color blue that these actually are. Regardless, this stunning fall bloomer grows to 24" tall and wide with a somewhat cascading habit. We had these in containers this year and they presented like a nice "Spiller" would.

Allium 'Ozawa' 'Ozawa' is one of my favorite plants this time of year. It seems like I wait and wait for it to look amazing, and when it finally starts to bloom, it never fails to impress. As you can see in the picture, the honeybees love the late season pollen that these produce. And who wouldn't love that color in the front of the shade border.

Thanks again for taking the time to read this blog. Don't forget that it is perfect timing to plant some bulbs. Give us a call, we still have some great varieties available. And while the fall colors last, enjoy them. Until next time, have a great day!

Fall Colors in Illinois

2011-10-07T09:01:00.003-05:00

Hello again,
Fall is the time for forgotten flowers and fabulous foliage. I think that fall reminds most people of Asters and Chrysanthemums. For me, while I find them both beautiful in their own right, I find that Anemones are the most stunning. This years avoidance of frost has allowed our Anemones to flourish.
Anemone 'Pamina'
This is growing in full shade below a 50' tall Picea abies, Norway Spruce. In this deep shade, it is also forced to live with strong drought conditions. Other plants that have done well under this tree include Brunnera and some Boxwoods. Otherwise, it has proven to be a difficult area to get things to grow. I had previously tried Geranium maculatum with little success. 'Pamina' grows 24" tall and similar width. This is something difficult to beat for fall flower.

Anemone 'Honorine Jobert'
This Anemone is also growing here showing off her cheery white blooms with yellow stamens.
Also known as "Windflower", these blooms dance around the tops of the plants with the slightest breeze. Bumblebees still visit the heavy pollen producing flowers if the temperature remain in the 70's like we are seeing these last few days. This is a little taller than the 'Pamina', growing to 30" tall but remaining around 24" wide. Imagine this mixed in a bed of Carex 'Ice Dance' and watch the combination of variegated foliage from 'Ice Dance' blend ever so nicely with the flowers of this gem.

Aster laevis and Aster novae-angliae
In one of our native garden spaces, these two plants have provided a fantastic fall display. Neither plant were actually installed here, but they existed in other parts of the garden and reseeded here. I am quite impressed how they have come together to form a picture reminiscent of a Monet painting. This just proves that sometimes nature is the best landscape designer.

Corylus americana
Finally a little fall color to finish the blog. American Hazelnut has become one of my favorite plants for fall color. Oranges, yellows and reds mixed into one plant and growing up to 15' tall combined with some funky looking nuts, this has so many fun things to look at. In spring the catkins are interesting as well making this a true 3 season plant.

Thanks again for reading the blog. Until next time, have a great day and enjoy the amazing weather we are having!

My Favorite Fall Combo

2011-09-23T15:01:00.002-05:00

When asked what was my favorite plant combination, I asked, "At what time of year?" So they gave me this time slot! If you are a customer of ours, each week we send out an email blitz with specials and each week we have an employees favorite plant combos. Two of the plants below are my favorites any time of the year, but the Liatris is mostly special now!

Liatris aspera
Butterfly magnet, when it's a little warmer. Now, it's an upright exclamation in the garden. This plant grows to 4' tall and prefers to be in dry to slightly moist soils.

Calamintha nepeta ssp nepeta
This has been a favorite since the day I laid eyes on it. Flowering from late June until frost, Calamintha nepeta ssp nepeta is a blooming machine. Flowers are incredibly attractive to honey bees, so for the faint of heart, be careful. I am however allergic to bee stings, but love to view them hard at work. They've only gotten me once in seven years when I shake the plant and watch them fly. This particular variety is sterile so it won't reseed all over the garden. And furthermore, when temperatures drop at night in the fall, flowers turn light blue.
Geranium 'Rozanne'
When I first started working at Midwest Groundcovers, I was not a perennial person. In fact, I thought this Piet Oudolf guy was crazy for ripping out our shrubs and groundcovers and planting a garden entirely of perennials. "There is no way this garden will look good", I thought. December that year, Geranium "Jolly Bee" which no longer exists, was still blooming. I soon changed my mind and became a perennial plant geek. The bees never got the memo either, and still love 'Rozanne' even though she changed her name. They may not be as jolly, but they are working hard on Rozanne.

Sorry for the quick blog, but it has been a busy week! Until next time, have a great day!

IGIA HOPE

2011-09-12T14:15:00.002-05:00

Last week, the IGIA HOPE group came to Midwest Groundcovers to tour and learn from our company. If you are not familiar with HOPE, it stands for Horticultural Occupation and Professional Experience. Top students from local community colleges travel to 7 locations a year and learn from these companies what they may or may not want to do in their careers. We were their first stop this year. Here are some of the things we did.

I was the tour guide for this segment. I think it's always interesting to see it from a different perspective, so I like people to see what I see. Here, we learned the entire process of how an order makes it from nursery ground to vehicle. It was an eye opening experience for some. As a former customer, I never had any idea how large the nursery was. When you get a chance to peruse all the acreage, you realize, "That's why it takes so long to get my plants!"

On the second day in Virgil, there were several opportunities to learn. Here, Bruce Zierk is teaching about our state of the art greenhouse. Some of the feedback from the event expressed the surprise by how many gadgets and settings there were to make sure everything is running correctly. In this greenhouse, we are able to produce amazing plants for Bud and Bloom and other items for early spring sales.
Here, Kevin Donnelly trekked us up to the top of the mountain of pine fines. Here we are checking the temperature to make sure things are ok. On a 70 degree day, the mulch was a "cool" 120 degrees Fahrenheit. Kevin said that was cooler than normal.

Overall, it was a fun two days for the tour guides, and hopefully the students felt the same. To the students, thanks for coming out. We really enjoyed your enthusiasm and excitement for all things Midwest. Until next time, have a great day!

Piet Oudolf Design Phase IV

2011-09-02T11:12:00.005-05:00

Hello again,
A real quick one this week. We have began our forth phase of the Piet Oudolf designed garden. In this phase, we remove our large hedge of Panicum 'Dallas Blues'. It wasn't a design flaw that required this removal. But we've since removed 'Dallas Blues' from our product line and therefore it gets removed from the garden. Roy Diblik's introduction, Panicum 'Northwind' will take its place. Also being removed are the Sanguisorba 'Red Thunder', that we all like. The problem with this plant, is that the Japanese Beetles like them even more than we do.

Along with 'Northwind', we will plant Sporobolus heterolepis. To some peoples dismay was the removal of Phlomis tuberosa. This plant, while beautiful, had become a nuisance in the garden. I was constantly removing seedlings. And if you are familiar with Phlomis tuberosa, you know that having a lot of seedlings like this isn't a good thing. It's a BIG plant. From the same area, Inula magnifica was removed. This was part of the first installation. It also moved around a little, but not too bad. Just never really did anything for anyone here. We never wanted to grow it, and through many tours, nobody ever once asked what it was. To me, that was an indicator of a plant that is not necessary for the product line. In their place will be Liatris pycnostachya and Echinacea pallida. Some Geranium sanguineum 'Max Frei' will be interplanted with exsisting Coreopsis 'Golden Showers'. Eupatorium 'Little Joe' is also coming into this section, replacing some of the aforementioned Sanguisorba.

This has been a fun project this year, and there is only one more major phase to complete. Then we'll wait for the plants we don't grow until next spring. Until next time, thanks for reading and have a great day! Happy Labor Day!

Garden Phlox for Landscapers

2011-08-25T14:44:00.007-05:00

Hello again,
Here at Midwest Groundcovers, LLC, we are growers of fine plants for the midwest. We are pretty good in my estimation at making plants look great in containers so that landscapers, garden centers, and rewholesalers get outstanding plant material. For Phlox, we've gone through a myriad of changes over the years with many varieties going in and out of our product line. Now, we have several varieties that look outstanding in the ground. These garden Phlox that have excelled are three of the most eye-catching plants in the landscape today. Some have made the blog before, and some haven't. But as a collection, they can make your yard look superb. Without further ado, here they are!
Phlox paniculata 'David's Lavender'
This one has been posted in the past. Now, I'm a big fan of Phlox 'Blue Paradise'. And while it's colors are more intense than 'David's Lavender', the plants don't even compare. The foliage of this one is super clean, and I have it in part shade. No mildew to be seen, whatsoever. On nearby plants, they are covered.

Phlox paniculata 'Lord Clayton'
We've had several reds in the past. The best selling was the 'Starfire'. Those plants would be destroyed by powdery mildew by this time. 'Lord Clayton', on the other hand, is more than just marketing. Brought to you by Plants Nouveau, this red flowering, dark-leaved variety, is visible from afar. I have it planted in the landscape next to a white flowering Euphorbia corollata, and the combination is stunning.

Phlox arendsii 'Baby Face'
This has also made the blog in the past. This plant in the phot has already been in full bloom, yet it has a complete set of new blooms coming right now. It has outperformed many other highly touted Phlox in the garden. While initially, I trialed this plant as a recommendation for a pink version of 'Minnie Pearl', but it clearly is not. It blooms later and longer, but it still has the great disease resistance.

That's it for today. I hope you enjoyed! Until next time, happy planting. Have a great day!

New for 2012

2011-08-22T08:48:00.005-05:00

Hello again,
Things have been busy around here in August. I've been working on pictures for our 2012 catalog and that has consumed most of my time. But I thought I should share some of the new for 2012, and let you know that we have these two available now in bloom!!!

Hibiscus 'Cranberry Crush'
This is our regal dark red variety that has been looking great in the nursery for a week or so. The plants are not yet in full bloom, but are getting close. It's a nice time to get them to a garden center or, in your significant others garden. They look great and have a massive eye appeal. This one gets 3-4' tall and 4-5' wide according to the breeders.

Hibiscus 'Jazzberry Jam'
Jazzberry Jam gets a little bit bigger than its friend 'Cranberry Crush'. Growing 4-5' tall and 6-7' wide, this beauty gets big and bigger. Large dinner plate sized blooms are the star, but clean dark green foliage enhance the color of the flowers. We've carried Hibiscus in the past, but now we are trying again. These should be great sellers in the garden center, or just what the kids needed as a back to school gift! Maybe you should send one in with your child to give to their teacher!

Thanks for reading, and I look forward to spilling the beans on some of the other new plants for 2012 in the coming weeks. Until next time, I hope you have a great day!

Natives Still Looking Great!

2011-08-12T14:09:00.005-05:00

I was fortunate this week to go on a seed/plant collecting experience in St Charles. We were collecting seed from the very cool, but difficult to find Saururus cernuus or Lizard's Tail. While our production hero, Angel, was digging plants from an area that we were given permission to take from, Joan Kramer and I looked around the garden at some of the very cool and interesting native plants in her Pottowatomie Garden. Here are some of the highlights!

Euphorbia corollataThis has quickly become a favorite plant of mine. I first acquired this plant at Summer Field Day at Ball Seed five or six years ago. Donna Cummings had given me a plug from the Natural Garden and I planted it in our garden at Midwest. I've admired it ever since, and now that Natural Garden Natives are a part of the Midwest Groundcovers catalog, I can now sell them. This plant grows to 24" tall and wide. Flowering right now, this plant even looks good not in flower. Being a Euphorbia, plant parts are toxic, but the seeds are attractive food for game birds.
Sium suave Interestingly, this was the other plant that Donna was giving away that day. Upon first glance, I thought she was trying to give me Queen Anne's Lace. But I've come to learn that this plant is important for its amazing insect populations that live amongst it. This plant does best in wet situations, hence the common name, Water Parsnip. This is a plant that has alluded my camera for many years so I was very excited to get this shot of it. Sium suave is variable in height, so it can be anywhere from 2-6' tall according to the Connecticut Botanical Society.

Phyla lanceolata, F/K/A Lippia lanceolata Unfortunately, this is something that we do not grow. Lanceleaf Fogfruit, is a widely distributed wetland plant that was nicely situated along the Fox River. Large patches were creeping around other native perennials and all were blooming with these dime-sized pinkish-purple flowers. Only about 6" tall, it looks like it can reseed around a little, but is easily manageable.

Thanks again for taking the time to read the blog. Until next time, have a great day!

Life in the Prairie

2011-07-30T11:15:00.004-05:00

Hello again,
I don't typically post two blogs in a week, but I couldn't resist mentioning something about our prairie. Last year, the prairie pictured was actually a planting of Juniperus and Flower Carpet® roses. We made the change so that the prairie that existed would have a "designed prairie" next to it. I didn't expect to see the life that I see in just one year. Yesterday, I was literally startled by the amount of butterflies that flew into the air as I approached the garden. Swallowtails, Monarchs, and others flew off in every direction. I only wish I was walking up with my camera ready to go, but sadly, I was changing lenses at the time. I was able to capture some of the critters before they left.

Eupatorium maculatum was blooming in the creek bed, with Tiger Swallowtails all over it. Unfortunately only a couple remained after my approach, and this is the only one that was feeling photogenic.

Liatris spicata seems to be what most of the butterflies are going to though. This is a black version of the Tiger Swallowtail. Apparently, only the females have the black version. There were several of these black ones in the garden as well.

The prairie to me looks stunning. Although, I'm a little biased as I got to choose which plants to place there. Cassia hebecarpa, Liatris spicata, Pycnanthemum virginianum, and Parthenium integrifolium constitute the majority of what is planted. I've also noticed some Giant Swallowtails in the garden that seem to be infatuated with the Pycnanthemum, or Mountain Mint, as I seem them frequenting these often. Overall, even though the roses and junipers looked nice, they did not attract the amount of life that currently resides here.

Thanks again for browsing the blog. Until next time, have a great day!

Daylilies!!!

2011-07-29T14:01:00.003-05:00

Hello again,
So after five years of writing the blog, I have never written an entire post solely on daylilies. Some of them have made the blog, like 'Rocket City' which shows up once again today, but mostly, I figure people know what a daylily is. But the truth is, a daylily is not a just a daylily. While 'Happy Returns', 'Stella de Oro', and 'Pardon Me' are used very frequently, some of what I think are the best daylilies are hardly used. Furthermore, we have some new ones that aren't in the catalog yet, so I wanted to give a shout out to let you know we have them.
Hemerocallis 'Going Bananas'
This is a new one to us. 'Going Bananas' is an improved version of 'Happy Returns' with more flower power. When looking at them today, I also noticed that the flowers are larger. Foliage stays nice and clean on this plant making it a nice choice for the landscape. Pair it with Veronica 'Eveline' for a nice pastel garden.

Hemerocallis 'Siloam Peony Display'
A unique new color to our product line is this variety. We now carry two double daylilies. This one is peachy-orange with decent foliage. While this color is sometimes difficult to put into a garden, I would think it would be stunning mixed with white Phlox or Nepeta 'Walker's Low'.

Not pictured today is another new one we are carrying called 'Ruby Sentinel'. In the past few years we've experienced great difficulty in producing 'Woodside Firedance' which is one of our most highly sought after daylilies. Because of this, we are switching over to the more available 'Ruby Sentinel'. We think you will appreciate the change.

Hemerocallis 'Grape Velvet'
This has always been one of may favorite daylilies. The color is so rich and I especially love the contrast of the chartreuse throat. If you are looking for a great deal, I can put my salesman hat on and give you a great price on these beauties! Coreopsis 'Creme Brulee' mixed with this makes a great combination.

Hemerocallis 'Rocket City'
This one has made the blog before, and I need to reiterate how great it truly is. A couple days ago we received a request for "those native roadside daylilies". Knowing that he was referring to what I call ditch lilies, I tried to steer him in this direction. When seeing the plants he exclaimed that they look much nicer than what he was thinking of. I said, "Of course they are". In full sun, mix this with Schizachyrium Blue Heaven™ or 'Carousel' and have a stunning orange and blue display.

Well that was fun! I hope you liked today's daylilies. Try one out and see the difference. We currently have available 24 different varieties. Thanks again for reading, and until next time, have a great day!

What's Hot in the Shade and Prairie

2011-07-21T08:09:00.006-05:00

Things are sure hot around here. New plantings in the Piet Oudolf garden have been temporarily suspended until we can get heat indexes below 100 degrees. So I perused the gardens for other things looking good in the sweltering heat, and found some nice surprises.

Liatris spicata with Parthenium integrifoliumThis was part of a renovation from last year. This area was formerly Flower Carpet® Roses and Junipers. Junipers are still surrounding the area, but we replanted the rest of it with native prairie plants.

Another view of this area shows Eryngium yuccifolium and in the background Cassia hebecarpa. The beautiful Quercus bicolor, or Swamp White Oak makes a nice transition from our older prairie to the newly planted one.

Hosta 'Halcyon'
This is one of my all time favorite Hostas. It holds up very well even in intense heat. The plants further back are in full shade, while the ones in front do get some afternoon sun which is why they have a green tint to them. This variety of Hosta has been one of the best for sports. Some of the plants that have come from this include, 'June' and 'First Frost' to name two.

Astilbe Color Flash™Color Flash™ Astilbe looks great in the landscape right now. The flowers are light pink with a pleasing light fragrance. Not pictured, is the partner for this planting, Carex elata 'Aurea'. Together, this makes a nice combination for wet shade. The area in which these are planted gets wet everyday from us watering our display yard and perhaps is why this has been so successful.

Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola'Hidden below a Washington Hawthorn is this nice stand of Hakonechloa. This year, this is the only variety that we carry. But next year, watch out! We'll be carrying two other varieties of Hakone grass. They will be 'Fubuki' which is a white and green variegated plant. Those also look nice in the landscape right now. And we will also be carrying 'All Gold'. These are nice plants for the shade, but usually require some moisture. In this area, they are under a tree and rarely get watered, so there is some drought tolerance there as well.

I hope everyone is staying cool and healthy out there. This weather is brutal. Thanks again for taking the time to read, and until next time, have a great day.

Summer blooms

2011-07-15T11:45:00.006-05:00

The garden is looking great right now. Echinacea are blooming everywhere you look. There are definitely some stars out there, even though it all looks great.

Echinacea 'Pica Bella'This has been a favorite of mine since the first day I laid eyes on it. This is a nice, shorter variety growing to 30" tall maximum. The petals curve upwards which give it a unique look different from other coneflowers. Dark stems, and just an overall interesting color, make this a top-of-the-line perennial.

In the Piet Oudolf garden, seedlings have popped up everywhere with Echinacea and quite a few others. But these white Echinacea looked very nice amidst various pink seedlings. The contrast in colors is always a welcome site.

Monarda Grand Marshall™ has been one of the best beebalms in the garden for mildew resistance. I have it planted here in part shade where it gets plenty of morning sun but is in medium shade from mid afternoon on. Plants are located next to Ligularia 'Britt Marie-Crawford' and Dryopteris 'Brilliance', the Autumn Fern, and look great there. In the background, you can see that our Aesculus parviflora hedge is in full bloom. Grand Marshall™ grows only 3' tall in shadier locations to 28" in full sun. In a full sun garden, I would site near Liatris 'Floristan White' or Phlox 'David's Lavender' for some nice color contrast.

Thanks again for reading. We intend to go back to enhancing the Piet Oudolf garden next week! Until next time, have a great day.

Pink Hydrangea arborescens

2011-07-08T13:44:00.003-05:00

Hello again,
I've been watching the two Hydrangea arborescens varieties the past two years. Last year however, a deer made it difficult to judge as it ate all the blooms off of Bella Anna® before I had a chance to see them. I have to admit to being a skeptic at first when these were originally released. I didn't expect the beautiful plants that I have seen this year. They have really changed my mind.

Hydrangea arborescens Invincibelle™ Spirit
Invincibelle™ Spirit is a bit taller than the other variety. These plants currently stand around 42" tall. My original concern on these plants was their ability to stand up. They have yet to flop on me. A lighter shade of pink than Bella Anna®, some have grown to appreciate it more. Even after 65mph winds this morning, they still stand up straight.

Hydrangea Endless Summer® Bella Anna®
This plant has darker blooms than Invincibelle™ Spirit. We have this planted in our entrance mixed with Rudbeckia subtomentosa 'Henry Eilers'. While not in bloom yet, I expect the yellow and pink combination to be stunning. We also have this in full shade, and it has done very well. These plants are coming in around 24" tall and wide.

Both of these plants have exceeded my expectations. I would expect them to do the same for you. Until next time, have a great day!

Section Three of Piet Oudolf Garden

2011-07-07T16:22:00.004-05:00

This is round three of the renovation.

I wanted to start this post with something that has worked very well in the garden. This combination of Stachys 'Hummelo' with Coreopsis 'Golden Showers' has been very nice to look at the past couple weeks. The fine texture of the foliage on 'Golden Showers' also contrasts well with the more coarse 'Hummelo'. The colors together make a great contrast and the foliage textures will look great together well into fall.

In this area, we removed a large patch of Amsonia x 'Blue Ice'. The area in which is was planted was starting to get too big. We are going to cut the large swathe into pieces and plant Scabiosa 'Pink Mist' and Monarda bradburiana in the areas that are removed. We currently don't have the Monarda, so that will go in later. I also refrained from cutting out the other piece of Amsonia until we have the replacement plants. Originally, Geranium 'Jolly Bee' climbed over the top of the Amsonia, but eventually, the 'Blue Ice' took over the area and smothered the 'Jolly Bee'.

In this section, we used to have a large Amsonia hubrichtii seedling, that I was very fond of. If you've ever been on a tour of the gardens, I probably pointed it out to you. However, Piet did not like the height that it had, so we removed it. It was the plant collector in me that wanted to keep it there. But I do see his point, that it didn't quite fit. We will replace it with the real Amsonia hubrichtii.

Other changes in the garden include removal of Anemone 'Honorine Jobert'. While there is no question that it is a beautiful plant, it struggles with the dry soils that we provide in this garden, and often gets hit by frost right as the blooms start to break bud. They will be replaced by Liatris spicata. We also removed a large chunk of Sorghastrum nutans 'Sioux Blue' as it didn't really fit where it was. It will be replaced by Allium 'Summer Beauty' and when we have it, Geranium soboliferum. Thanks again for taking the time to check out the blog. Comments are always welcome, so keep them coming. Hope you are having a great summer, and until next time, a great day!

Piet Oudolf - Second Phase

2011-06-30T15:47:00.005-05:00

Hello again,
The second phase of the Piet Oudolf planting is finished. Gustavo and Fakundo have been working hard on this garden.

This week we again removed the Panicum 'Dallas Blues' from the garden. In its place, we will be planting Eupatorium 'Little Joe'. Also another area where Epimedium x rubrum was planted before, we will be incorporating Zizia aptera. Originally, we had tall Hamamelis vernalis in the garden. They were removed a couple years back, and now there is more sun than there used to be. So to give them some protection, the Zizia will provide some shade for those plants. At my request, we will keep the Epimedium there because in combination with the Muscari that bloom in spring, it is stunning.

Other weeds have been removed this week, such as milk thistle. This has been a little bit of a problem this year. They were about to bloom, so I had to take the guys from a different area of the gardens to remove them before they set seed. We don't want to have a perennial issue with this. Plants that we are waiting on for this section of the garden include Monarda bradburiana, Gillenia trifoliata, and Geranium soboliferum.

Thanks again for reading, and hopefully next week, we will have more excitement in the garden. Until next time, have a great day!

Natives in the Garden

2011-06-24T11:41:00.006-05:00

Hello again,
Native plants are looking great these days. So to encourage and inspire you to use some of these great native plants, I've got some pictures for you. Next post will be back to the Piet Oudolf garden changes. Here we go!
Echinacea pallida
One of the more common natives in the garden is the Pale Purple Coneflower. This beauty blooms a couple weeks earlier than the even more common Echinacea purpurea or Purple Coneflower. Both are excellent for your gardens. E. pallida grows 3-4' tall and very upright. It is easily distinguishable from other species by it's heavily drooping petals. There is even a cultivar out there called 'Hula Dancer', because the petals resemble the hula skirts. This grouping is located near the entrance to our facility in St Charles and cannot be missed.

Penstemon digitalisThis is a personal favorite of mine. The flowers are easily seen from far away. Variation of colors can be seen on this plant from pure white to dark pink. Sometimes even the foliage turns red and then gets selected for cultivation like 'Husker Red' did. Now more varieties are in the market including another favorite of mine, 'Dark Towers'. What I enjoy most is the tubular flowers that seem to attract bees and butterflies alike. While some may be wary of its reseeding capability, I think it's worthy of use. In large gardens, seeding around can even be encouraged. In fall the seed capsules and foliage turn dark red and are attractive again causing this perennial to be a 3 season gem.
Heliopsis helianthoidesThis is a plant whose cultivars first intrigued me. 'Summer Nights' and 'Asahi' are two that we currently offer. This is a cheery plant that brings a punch of yellow to you. Growing up to 5' tall, it can also seed around a little. It does like to live, that's for sure. Goldfinches, and other birds love this plant, and I see them and Juncos eating the seed late into winter. The foliage stays very clean, and overall the plant works well in the back of a border. Mixed with Parthenium integrifolium, the combination will offer a very nice contrast of white and yellow.
Asclepias tuberosa
Blooming all over the place right now is the Butterfly weed. It's very hard to miss with its dark warm orange colored flowers. This plant does best with well drained to dry sites, although I've started to see it seed around in areas that aren't so dry. Climate change??? Anyway, this is one from the genera that feed the Monarch butterflies. It is a great thing to plant this in your garden. Even though I'm not the biggest fan of pink and orange together, it looks pretty good around the base of the Echinacea pallida in our front entrance.
Asclepias syriaca
I tend to see more larvae from the monarch on the Common Milkweed. This one does have very large leaves and much larger flowers that are typically in the shape of a ball. It can reseed a little around the garden, so I recommend this as more of a middle of the border plant. If you don't want plants to reseed around, than I don't recommend this to you.

Baptisia leucantha
Over the years I get more and more excited about Baptisia. When seeing them in the wild, it is very exciting. These plants were growing near a stand of Penstemon digitalis at Nelson Lake Forest Preserve in Batavia. This is a very slow growing plant that will reward you if you have the patience to let it grow. This is also a plant that will be happier if there are other plants around its bare legs. I like to see it with Sporobolus heterolepis around the base.
Thalictrum dioicum
A very fine textured plant that has white flowers dancing over the delicate foliage. The dark stems on this particular plant really attracted me to it. There have been many cultivars of Thalictrum produced in the past few years. I personally like the straight species. We do have many of these in the Natural Garden Natives™ product line. They like to grow along the edges of the forest in damp locations and grow to 5' tall.

Thanks again for reading the blog. I hope you've enjoyed once again. Until next time, have a great day.

Piet Oudolf Garden Changes

2011-06-22T10:26:00.004-05:00

Hello again,
The changes for the garden designed by Piet Oudolf are happening fast. The first part of the garden has been renovated, with the exception of some plants that we don't have ready yet. So yet to go into this section of the garden will be Achillea 'Pomegranate' and Achillea 'Pink Grapefruit' which will be mixed in a combination together.

Gillenia trifoliata will be placed in front of the new planting of Pancium 'Northwind' that have replaced Panicum 'Dallas Blues'. Unfortunately, we don't have those yet, so we wait. We also replaced Panicum 'Shenendoah' with the correct variety. When we initially planted the garden, our 'Shenendoah' were done from seed. There was a lot of variation. Now we have started to produce this plant from division which keeps the integrity of the plant better. So the new plants installed will all have the red coloration that the seed grown variety did not.

This is the part of the garden that we took the most out of. Limonium latifolium had taken over this part of the garden, and once removed, there was quite a bit of space to fill. Veronica 'Eveline' was planted in its place and you can see that photo below.

This is the garden now that the Veronica are installed.

Round two begins today with the removal of more Coreopsis tripteris, Limonium latifolium, Vernonia glauca, and Aster novae-angliae. There was also some spread of Aster 'October Skies' that needs to be corrected. A little infestation of Creeping Bindweed will also be removed and we will be removing the Salvia that they have crept up on. The Salvia will be replaced with the same variety. Also of note, a planting of Geranium 'Dilys' will be coming out. This was part of the original planting and a variety that we never decided to grow. In it's place will be Monarda bradburiana. Other new plants that will enter the second garden include Eupatorium dubium 'Little Joe' and Scabiosa 'Pink Mist'.

Thanks again for taking the time to read the blog. I hope you are enjoying the updates. Until next time, have a great day!

Piet Oudolf Garden Changes

2011-06-16T14:07:00.004-05:00

Round one of the renovations to Piet Oudolf's garden are about to begin. I'll be a little more specific about what's about to happen in today's blog. Several varieties are coming out of the garden for various reasons.

Eric and Fakundo are working hard on the removal of Panicum 'Dallas Blues' and Salvia 'Amethyst'. These two plants are coming out because for one reason or another, we no longer sell these varieties. 'Dallas Blues', especially in production was a magnet for rust. We love the look of the Panicum, so we are replacing it with Roy Diblik's introduction, 'Northwind'. 'Northwind' will give the same verticle element to the garden that 'Dallas Blues' has without the rust. Salvia 'Amethyst' left our product line because of a lack of sales. It is a great looking plant, but if sales cannot support it, it goes away. In this case, Salvia 'Pink Friesland' will replace it in the garden. It will be a little bit shorter, but that will work in this instance.

In this part of the garden, Limonium latifolium is being removed. I'm waiting on some plants for the back part of this garden where more of this plant resides, but I don't have the replacement yet. In the section that has been emptied, we will be planting a small number of Geranium 'Brookside' and Heuchera 'Mocha'. Limonium left our product line, because the more and more we tried to promote the plant, the less and less we'd sell. Hasta la vista Limonium.

In this area, Eric is working on an area that will have Veronica 'Eveline' planted. The Limonium had reseeded in most of the garden, so he's removing parts of it from all over. In it's place will go the Veronica. The other difficult plants in the garden that are being removed are Coreopsis tripteris and Aster novae-angliae. Neither of these were ever intended for the garden, but reseeded from other locations.

Another interesting thing happened when walking through the gardens. When Piet first showed up, we talked about removing all the Tradescantia from the garden. Then we found this wonderful combination of Tradescantia and Zizia aptera. Both of us were impressed by this combination, so we plan on using it in another location. While the picture here is of Tradescantia ohiensis and Zizia aptera, we will be using Tradescantia 'Concord Grape'. This picture was taken at Nelson Lake a couple days after Piet visited, reaffirming to me, that this is a "natural" combination for the garden.

Once again, thanks for taking the time to read. I hope you enjoyed the first round of changes that we will be making. Stay tuned for many more. Until next time, have a great day!

Piet Oudolf Visit

2011-06-10T10:53:00.004-05:00

Hello again,
This week will be a little shorter than most. It has been busy and a lot of things have been going on. On Monday, we had world famous designer Piet Oudolf on site to look at the garden he designed in 2004. We discussed many options including the elimination of varieties that we no longer grow. Some of the items that will be coming out of the garden include Limonium latifolium, Panicum 'Dallas Blues', Aster novae-angliae that wasn't intended on being planted in the garden, but seeded there from some faraway land. Also being removed will be areas of Salvia 'Blue Hill' and Anemone 'September Charm'. Some of the plants that we will be introducing into the garden include Eupatorium dubium 'Little Joe', Monarda bradburiana, Scabiosa 'Pink Mist', and Nepeta 'Early Bird' to name a few. As the project continues on, I will be blogging the progress with more detail. Until that time, thanks for reading, and have a great day.

Warm days are here

2011-06-03T15:02:00.004-05:00

Hello again,
Things are looking great outside, and business is getting better as well. It's great to be busy, that's for sure. On Monday, June 6th, Piet Oudolf will be at our nursery to look over the gardens that he designed back in 2004. It's hard to believe that we've been surrounded by that beauty for so long. He is coming at the ideal time too, because the gardens are looking fabulous. There will be some changes, so please come out in the future to check out what we've done. Onto the plants....

Sisyrinchium 'Lucerne'
Blue eyed Grass only grows to 16" tall in our gardens. Iris-like foliage with a tint of blue looks great in combination with the yet to bloom Stachys minima. Both these plants are together in our garden in a dry location with morning shade. This is the first year I've had a mass of the 'Lucerne', and I have to say it is breathtaking. If this plant is not part of your palette, you should think again and start using it.

Dianthus 'Little Maiden'This diminutive groundcover is very showy this time of year. Foliage resembles Sagina subulata and flowers look like tiny white egrets flying around. Or maybe, little maidens is what the breeder had in mind. Regardless of what you see flying around above the plant, this one is drought tolerant and nice both in flower and not in flower.

Phuopsis stylosa
This plant has been on the blog in the past. But I haven't had a picture that illustrated how many blooms are on the plant. This plant has proven successful on the edge of a walkway that gets salted in the winter. It also grows well in a part shade situation. There doesn't seem to be a spot that I've tried so far that it hasn't been successful. I believe this would be a great substitution for Polygonum reynoutria which has found itself on the "Invasive" list.

Geum 'Fireball'This plant has been a beacon of light in the garden. It's rare that a plant carries this color and doesn't grow in a ditch. 'Fireball' is an introduction from several years ago that we added when Echinacea Orange Meadowbrite™ first came out. Orange was in! Now we have these beauties available to you. They look especially great in the garden mixed with Salvia 'May Night' and Oenethera macrocarpa.

Thanks again for taking a spin around our gardens with me. To those of you that will be visiting for the Piet Oudolf talk, we'll see you then. If you missed out, talk to you later. Until next time, have a great day!

Sedges have Edges

2011-05-25T11:51:00.004-05:00

Hello again,
Sedges have edges. If you've ever heard that saying, than you know what I mean. If not, I'll explain. When identifying whether the plant in question is a sedge or a grass, or for that matter a rush, you can look at the stem of the plant to find out. Sedges are usually triangular, rushes are round, and grasses are flat or hollow.

Carex bromoidesBrome-like Sedge is an excellent landscape plant. This variety typically grows natively in the wet woods. While it performs wonderfully there, it will also do quite well in full sun, like I have it in this picture. The 6-8" tall foliage is covered in airy seed heads and flowers now. Mixing this with a short Aquilegia or Allium bulbs would create a very nice short planting. This is part of the new wave of plantings that people that want to get ahead of the curve are using. So remember, Sedges have Edges, but now so can you.

Brunnera 'Jack Frost'
This is an oldie but goodie. I remember when this plant would cost a fortune just for the small liner. Now it can be had at an affordable price. The white foliage with blue flowers is exceptional. Further making this plant a landscape staple, is its ability to work in deep shade. Also known as False Forget-Me-Not's, this plant has become unforgettable. Every year in the landscape, I'm reminded that no matter how many new plants come out each year, this will always remain one of the best.

Thanks again for taking the time to read. If you are coming to the Piet Oudolf presentation, we'll see you in a couple weeks. I believe it is now sold out, so it will be a full house. Thanks for the support! Until next time, have a great day!

Piet Oudolf

2011-05-20T14:16:00.006-05:00

Hello again,
This is a quick one today. Just a reminder that Piet Oudolf will be at our facility on June 6th! I'm very excited to have him come back. There are some plantings that we will be going recreating in the gardens that he designed and hopefully by next year, it will be filled in again with a slightly new look. If nothing else it will generate some excitement in that new plants will be there for the first time is some time. Here is one of my favorite combinations that he put in the first go around. Zizia aurea with Allium 'Purple Sensation' bulbs bursting through the middle. I hope you all have a great day, and thanks again for reading.

Alternative Groundcovers

2011-05-13T14:39:00.005-05:00

The past few years we have been removing some of the traditional groundcovers from our site and planting newer varieties. When we started doing the Jeepers Creepers brand of plants we did find a lot of plants that were down low and fun to grow as the slogan says. Here are a few that have been more than just a little exciting. All three have been used in places where salt has been thrown, and they've all worked very well. Some have had snow piled very deep above them. Most notably the Mazus reptans. In fact, we had a customer slip around a corner in our entrance and drive right over the Mazus. So not only is it tolerant of snow piles, but heavy trucks as well. The customer was not hurt in the slip up. But I did ask him to drive a little slower.
Mazus reptans

This is one that I wasn't so sure about the first year we planted it. We had it at the bottom of a hill and as it turns out, the Voles found the roots delicious. So while the plant never really succeeded, it wasn't its own fault. So after being moved to the area you see in the picture, it has flourished. It does exactly what I ask of it, creeping right up to the drive way in one direction and butting up to the rock in the other. The white you see in the picture is from the Zumi Crabapples dropping their flowers, not the cultivar 'Alba'
Veronica 'Waterperry Blue'

I've been a fan of this for years now it seems. This is an area that used to be Euonymus fortunei 'Coloratus'. That was removed so that we could do some promoting of my favorite groundcover. This was done as a monoculture, but if you've seen any pictures from years prior, you'll know that I like to put Amsonia and Anemone sylvestris in the middle of it so that it adds height and textural differences. This plant has proven to bloom twice a year if irrigated. It will not bloom again in the fall in drought years unless given some moisture.

Potentilla neumanniana 'Nana'While not always as bright and cheery as it is today, this has also proven to be a great plant. Native to the arctic circle, this creeper actually forms small undulating mounds of lush foliage. I think this plant is the best substitute for the invasive Polygonum reynoutria 'Nana', that many people still inquire about. It can also withstand the horrible areas like parking lot islands, and is very salt tolerant.

Hope you enjoyed this weeks segment. It seems as though Spring is back today as the temperatures have plummeted, so stay warm and until next time, have a great day!

David Austin Roses

2011-05-06T13:38:00.004-05:00

Hello everyone!
Finally getting some nice weather around here, and some of the roses coming out of the greenhouse are looking great as well. If you are not familiar with David Austin™ English roses, you should become familiar. These roses have the most intense fragrance I've ever enjoyed in roses. Here are some of the beauties.

William Shakespeare 2000®

L D Braithwaite

Crown Princess Margareta®

Midwest Natural Gardens

2011-04-29T16:06:00.005-05:00

Hello,
With sun, we finally are getting a little busy. So due to time constraints, this week's edition will be short and sweet. Here are some of the great plants over in our Midwest Natural Gardens site. Things are looking very beautiful over there. Here are the highlights!

Hierochloe odorata

Sweet Grass

Phlox bifida

Sand Phlox

Caltha palustris

Marsh Marigold

Geranium maculatum

Wild Geranium

April Showers are stopping the flowers

2011-04-22T15:45:00.007-05:00

Hello everyone!
The rain that we've been having has really put a damper on the growth of plants. It's slim pickings trying to find new things in the landscape blooming. So I turned my focus to foliage and other colors that are appearing. A walk through the woods yielded some interesting plants.

Erythronium albidum
Trout Lilies are emerging and showing off their interesting mottled foliage. This type blooms white in spring, but there are also types in this area with yellow flowers. That variety is Erythronium americanum. Both plants are native to Illinois and have very similar foliage. You have to wonder what caused this plant to evolve the way it has. According to Illinoiswildflowers.info, this plant is greatly threatened by the spread of Garlic Mustard.

Trillium recurvatum
Praire Trillium is another plant taken for granted. I once sent a photo of Allium tricoccum to a colleague from Delaware. He was more interested in the Trillium which I thought nothing of. He later mentioned that he doesn't get this type of Trillium, so that was more interesting. These little guys are on the verge of opening their flowers, and with a little warmth, they will probably do so soon.

Trillium grandiflorum
What is a weed for some, is a treasure for others. Large flowered Trillium is plentiful on the other side of the lake in Michigan, but hardly found around here. We have reintroduced it into the woods on our property. When in bloom, I will surely re post a picture of it.

Carpinus betulus 'Fastigiata'
The catkins have emerged on this very narrow tree. While not in the landscape, we have some of these for sale in #7 sized containers. They are quite nice if you are looking for something for that very narrow area. Plus the catkins are interesting enough to merit purchasing this plant.

Once I left the woods, their were other things that caught my attention. It just takes a conscious eye to see some of the beauty that proceeds the blooms.

Sedum 'Angelina'This is a great Sedum that most know by now. It's winter color changes from the chartreuse of spring and summer to shades of orange and red. Quite the dramatic groundcover. Very drought tolerant, this plant has been known to grow very well in gravel and on green roofs.

Sorbaria sorbifolia 'Sem'
If you've followed the blog over the years, you've heard me wax poetic on this plant for some time. If not, the greatest attribute to this plant is it's spring growth. The new growth is orange, red and yellow and finely textured. Flowers later in the summer are interesting as well, but don't have the jaw dropping effect the foliage does. Not nearly as aggressive as it's parent, this variety has learned to live a little more cohesively with its neighbors. While I've seen a little suckering the past couple of years, the initial one plant that I planted 5 years ago is still only 4-5' wide with suckers and all.

Viburnum x juddi
Judd Viburnum has always been one of my favorite plants. It was the first plant I ever planted in my parents yard when I got into this business. It's also my first misidentification of a plant to a customer. I once sold several of these as Witchhazel because I thought the flower buds, like the ones pictured, had to be something that a witch would make. I was 18 and had no idea what I was doing. This actual instance has reminded me to give newcomers to the horticulture business a little break on ID because I surely needed one. And of course, it only took a couple days after for the blooms to open up and then I knew 100% what this plant was named.

Happy spring everyone. I hope that the rain will start to go away a little and we can enjoy what spring is all about. I suppose if you are a Forsythia fan, then this is the best spring possible. The cool weather has definately kept the blooms on a little longer than normal. I'm ready for the Mertensia and Viburnum to start blooming. Until next time, have a great day!

April Showers

2011-04-16T09:10:00.003-05:00

Hello again, Happy Spring everyone. This weeks post will be shorter than normal. The rain has made it difficult to get good photos. And luckily, business has started to pick up a little so that takes my time as well. Without further ado, here are the plants.

Forsythia Show Off® In my estimation, this is the year of the Forsythia. They look absolutely great. Most have been flowering since we had the 80 degree plus days a couple weeks ago. The cooler weather we've been having ever since has kept the blooms looking fresh as ever. This particular variety is a Proven Winner® ColorChoice® Shrub. It only grows 4-6' tall and has a very upright habit perfect for placing among perennials in a bed.

Forsythia 'Kumson' Another Forsythia looking great right now is the 'Kumson'. This variety is known for its venation on the foliage. White veins contrast very nicely with the dark green foliage. What is particularly interesting about this plant is that it has bloomed again in the fall each year it has been in the garden. Talk about a show off! This one grows 6-8' tall and spreads even wider. It prefers full sun, but can handle some shade as well. In full shade, the venation will go away and you'll have solid green foliage.

Bergenia 'Winterglow' I was pleasantly surprised to see the Bergenia blooming this morning. It's nice dark pink flowers barely reached above the soil. Later the squeaky foliage offers something great for a children's garden. The common name for this plant is Pigsqueak, because when you rub the foliage together it makes a pig snort like sound.

Pulmonaria 'Blue Ensign' This is a plant that has been in the trial garden for three years now. When we first saw photos we were very excited. A very vivid blue flower on an all green foliage. Unfortunately, we were unable to get liners back then, or it would have made the product line. Now it's back to the drawing board. Would you buy a Pulmonaria that did not have spots or white on the leaves? Let us know. If you want Midwest Groundcovers to grow it, you'll have to speak up. Thanks in advance! Thanks once again for taking the time to read. Until next time, have a great day!

Inspiration for Spring!

2011-04-08T14:15:00.004-05:00

Hello again, On this cool and dreary day, I thought I would send some color your way. Things are starting to wake up and look fantastic. Below are some great items to get your imaginations going. I hope you enjoy them. - Narcissus 'Dutchmaster' This is your common daffodil. But I just think it's such a great sight to see when all we've been looking at is brown all winter. Other varieties have started as well. And with the heat that is coming this weekend, I would imagine most will be in bloom by the 15th of April. It's a great time to think about going to the Morton Arboretum to get more inspiration in their Daffodil glade. Pulsatilla vulgaris var rubra This is the first time we've carried this plant. Also known as Pasque Flower, this beauty not only looks great in flower, but the seed heads become a feathery mass that float gently above the foliage. Pasque Flower grows best with well drained soils in full sun. It also grows well above City Hall in Chicago on the rooftop. Helleborus 'Ivory Prince' This is my favorite Hellebore by far. What makes it so great in my opinion, is that the flowers face upward rather than the majority that face the ground. The subtlety of the green, white and pink colors dancing on the flower are romantic and a welcome sight once the snow finally melts away. These will grow well in most shady to part sun areas.

Phlox divaricataThis is one of my all-time favorite native plants. The light purple flowers above the clean green foliage are delightful. In the woods, this naturalizes well with Geranium maculatum. This requires some moisture if planted in full sun, but is very easy to maintain if given some shade. The foliage isn't the greatest after the blooms have faded, but if it is too unsightly, it can be pruned back and it will reflush as nice as it was in spring.

Thanks once again for taking the time to read. I hope you have a wonderful day and beginning of spring. Until next time, have a great day.

The First Notes of Spring

2011-03-25T11:26:00.005-05:00

Happy Spring everyone,
As we watch the migratory birds fly above, we can start to appreciate the emergence of spring. While it's hard to ignore the calls of Sandhill Cranes high above, I find even more pleasure looking down.

Iris reticulata
The subtle beauty of irises emerging from the ground takes me every year. This year it beat the Crocus and Galanthus to the punch, though all of the above are flowering now. Enjoy this look while it lasts. The flowers will soon transform into another form, seen below.

I think they are both beautiful if we take the time to stop and appreciate them.

Crocus
The quintessential mark of spring bulbs is the crocus. Even when not fully open, the flowers and foliage are interesting. Seen here emerging from a bed of Sedum 'Dragon's Blood'.

Galanthus nivalis
These early birds were blooming last week when temperatures were in the 60's. When the "snow" arrived the other day it was much more difficult to find them. This is a nice naturalizing bulb that is another sign of spring.

Hamamelis x vernalis
The sweet smell of witchhazel greets us every morning on the way into the office. These very early bloomers have also been in bloom for a while, but they are now giving off their unique fragrance. A lot of people confuse the Vernal Witchhazel with the Common Witchhazel. An easy way to remember how to tell them apart is their bloom time. H. vernalis blooms in spring and H. virginiana blooms in fall. The easiest way for me to remember which is which is to look at the alphabet. E comes before I. Therefore, vernalis blooms before virginiana.

Clematis 'Ville De Lyon'
A new cultivar for us this year is 'Ville De Lyon'. We have some of these in the warm houses for early garden center sales. These beauties are loaded with buds and could be the nicest Clematis stock we've ever had. I highly recommend them if you are a plant buyer. These should fly off shelves.

Thanks again for taking the time to read. I hope you all have a great beginning of spring and can enjoy the flowers. Until next time, have a great day!

Blizzard 2011 Day After

2011-02-03T08:44:00.004-06:00

As promised, here are the grounds the day after the storm. Thanks to Carlos and Jose for doing most of the clean up while the rest of us enjoyed the warmth of our homes. And thanks to Catalino for coming in for those potential salt sales. Although nobody came.

February 1st, 2011; A Day in Our History

2011-02-01T13:04:00.002-06:00

(February 1, 2011) – Midwest Groundcovers LLC purchases native plant nursery The Natural Garden, Inc.

Midwest Groundcovers LLC, a wholesale nursery headquartered in St. Charles, Illinois, is pleased to announce the purchase of neighboring specialty native plant nursery, The Natural Garden, Inc.

The addition of The Natural Garden, Inc. to the Midwest family of companies is a timely and favorable product expansion for Midwest and their customers. The acquisition will increase Midwest's native plant inventory and will give Midwest customers access to a diverse array of local eco-type native plants.

Midwest and The Natural Garden are working together to ensure a seamless transition for customers and a smooth changeover for employees. Midwest will continue native plant nursery production at The Natural Garden nursery site in St. Charles, Illinois but will transition to sell primarily Natural Garden Natives™ through Midwest Groundcovers LLC. Natural Garden Natives™ will be the regional eco-type specific native plants originating from The Natural Garden stock plants and seed beds; these plants were originally collected in the 1970s and 1980s primarily in Kane County, but no further than 90 miles from the St. Charles nursery site.

Together with these new specialty native plant offerings, customers will benefit from the diverse selection of plant material, brand programs and plant collections Midwest offers, as well as their efficient, quick and convenient delivery services in the greater Midwest.

An alliance between Midwest Groundcovers LLC and The Natural Garden, Inc. is a natural fit. The long time nursery neighbors have shared history and resources. Walter Stephens, founder of The Natural Garden, Inc., often purchased groundcovers from Midwest’s first nursery location. Midwest business partner – renowned horticulturist, author, and partner of Northwind Perennials – Roy Diblik, was a long-time employee of The Natural Garden, Inc.

The Natural Garden brand will continue to be synonymous with quality, authenticity, and customer service. The nursery was founded in 1953 as a place where landscapers and gardening enthusiasts could purchase perennials dug for customers on site. During the 1970s, as public interest in native landscaping and gardening grew, The Natural Garden, Inc. expanded their product line by propagating and producing native prairie plants from locally collected seed and by producing a large selection of container perennials.

Midwest Groundcovers LLC is an industry leader in the propagation, growth, and wholesale distribution of quality container nursery stock. The company operates three state-of-the-art production facilities, including nurseries in St. Charles, Illinois, Virgil, Illinois, and Glenn, Michigan. Each year, these facilities produce millions of ground covers in over 100 different varieties; over 500 varieties of perennials, ornamental grasses, and native plants; and over 170 varieties of deciduous shrubs, broadleaf evergreens, hardy shrub roses, conifers, and vines.

Midwest Groundcovers LLC garners frequent press coverage by regional media outlets and is regularly featured in a number of major trade publications, including The Landscape Contractor and Landscape Architecture. Visit Midwest Groundcovers LLC on the web at www.midwestgroundcovers.com.

February 1st 2011 - Here comes the snow!

2011-02-01T11:11:00.006-06:00

Hello again,
What beautiful weather has graced our area of the world today. Can we really complain? At least we're not in New York right? It's almost noon, and the great storm of 2011 has not appeared yet. I can still take some images of falling snow with some degree of visibility. Hopefully tomorrow, or at least Thursday I'll post some images of what a foot or more of snow can do to our garden. Alas, here are some pictures from this morning with minimal amounts of snow on the ground. Hope you enjoy!

Echinacea variety

In the middle is Panicum mixed with many other perennials.

An image with the woods in the background. Piet's use of grasses really works well in the winter. Using his philosophy of keeping the plants up over the winter is clearly shown why here. What beauty we'd miss out on if these were cut to the ground.

One last view with a different angle to the woods. Again, his use of various textures are really pronounced when snow falls. The different shades of brown are quite attractive as well.

Thanks again for taking the time to read the blog. I hope you are all safe today and nice and warm. Until next time, have a great day!

Midam 2011

2011-01-13T10:50:00.003-06:00

Hello everybody,
Come see our booth with a big surprise! We are located in two different spaces. 1105 is our main area and we will also return to the Sustainability Zone located at 628. We hope to see you there!

Happy New Year!

2011-01-05T15:38:00.002-06:00

Happy New Year to you! Midwest Groundcovers is excited about a brilliant 2011. Come see us at the winter trade shows this year for some great specials. We will be at the following events;
Great Lakes Trade Expo in Grand Rapids, MI - January 10-12.
Indiana Green Expo in Indianapolis, IN - January 17-19
MidAm in Chicago, IL - January 19-21
Gateway Green Conference in Collinsville, IL - February 22-23
Iowa Shade Tree Short Course in Ames, IA - February 23-25
Pro Hort Symposium in Morton, IL - March 1-2

We hope to see you at one or more of these events.
Hopefully winter is treating you well. Our green trade lists should be arriving on your desk any day now as they left the printers last week. Enjoy many of the new features, including a section devoted to the branded programs as well as a refined Midwest Solutions® chart and much, much more.

We hope to see you soon, but until then, have a great day!

Holiday Containers

2010-11-22T15:08:00.004-06:00

If you haven't already heard, Midwest Groundcovers produces some very nice winter decorated containers. If you are too busy continuing fall clean up, or are planting more landscape jobs because of the great late fall weather we are having, then give us a call because we are trying to make your jobs easier! We have two different sizes of beautiful containers at your disposal. 10" and 14" containers with live plants so that they can look great now, and in spring planted in the landscape. It can't get much more sustainable than that! Please give us a call with your order or if you have any questions. Until next time, have a great day!

The Last Flowers

2010-10-22T12:32:00.003-05:00

Hello again,
It's getting to the end of the colorful seasons. Winter will be here shortly, so viewing some nicely colored flowers and fall color is needed before the doldrums of winter when everything looks black and white. Some surprises and some not so surprising follow here.

Centranthus ruber 'Coccineus'
This is the one that surprised me to see in flower. Usually blooming much earlier, the Jupiter's Beard was looking rather nice today. While this plant has been reported to be a seedy character, I find that it is well behaved. I like to mix it with Geranium 'Rozanne' for a blue and red summer show. The foliage stays very clean and could take the place of a red Phlox any day for me. Topping it off, is the fact that this plant is very drought tolerant. If you are unaware of this plant, try it for yourself. You will not be disappointed.
Aster tataricus 'Jindai'
This is a plant that can move around a little bit. But if you use plants that compete with it well, it shouldn't be a problem. I've had it planted for 6 years at Midwest Groundcovers and started with 5 plants. Now that same area has about 15. It is combined with Panicum 'Dewey Blue' and Solidago 'Fireworks', and the two of them keep 'Jindai' in check. Plants in general are much different than most Asters. While most are mounded in habit, 'Jindai' grows vertically. A recommendation would be to plant it near a stairway where people can look down at its' upward facing blooms.
Aster 'Vibrant Dome'
Sticking with Asters here. This is a new one that we just started selling this year. It is the sister to the well known 'Purple Dome'. Both develop nice mounded dome shaped habits. This is the pink for those that need something a little larger than the 'Wood's Series' Asters.

Allium 'Ozawa'
I was very impressed by the bees swarming this plant today. The pollen looked fresh and they were taking a dip in it. I showed this plant often last year as it progressed. I find it to be quite interesting. Unfortunately, the masses didn't agree and we will not have it for sale in 2011. However, we are revamping it in a quart pot thinking that it suits the plant much better. Overall, this isn't a terribly large plant. Growing only 12" tall and not much wider, it's difficult to make a small plant like this look good in a #1 size pot. So hopefully in 2012, you will take advantage of our new size and plant at will. It makes for a great late season perennial to poke in between your Echinacea and grasses.
Schizachyrium 'Carousel'
This is one that looks great all year round. But I am a fan of Little Blue Stem the most when it is in seed. I love the colors that the grass takes on. Russet reds and browns look great in contrast with Aster oblongifolius 'October Skies'. The Allium above would work great as well as many other smaller perennials. This plant can take dry conditions and does well with some moisture as well.

Thanks again for taking the time to read the blog. I hope you've enjoyed. And furthermore, I hope you have a great day!

New Winter Hours

2010-10-18T12:33:00.003-05:00

Hello All,
Midwest Groundcovers has changed its' winter hours for 2010-2011. Starting on October 25th, Midwest Groundcovers will be open from 7:30-4:00 Monday through Friday. We will be closed the week between Christmas and New Year's Day. We hope this is of no inconvenience to you. Have a great holiday season, and as always a great day!

Annual Fall Color Review

2010-10-14T08:16:00.005-05:00

Hello again,

I always like to do a fall color edition. This is my favorite time of the year when the plants are in the midst of transformation. Just like spring when they come to life, fall is nearly as spectacular with all the colors. While I love the trees a lot, the shrubs and perennials also have some great color. Here are some of the most outstanding at our facility.

Viburnum molle 'Morton'
This is a plant under consideration for the Chicagoland Grows program. It grows similarly to Viburnum dentatum, or Arrowood Viburnum, but it has beautiful exfoliating bark similar to that of an Oakleaf Hydrangea. Fall colors range from dirty yellow to the red you see in the picture. All colors are on the plants at the same time. Hopefully this will be offered in the future.

Sporobolus heterolepis
This is a plant that I talk about often. To me, there are not many grasses better than this one. A drift like this under a tree makes for an artistic impression. Very little maintenance is ever required for this. We burn in March and let it go the rest of the year. No watering is ever needed and it will look this nice well into winter. In this particular planting, Echinacea pallida is mixed in to give some spring color to the area.

Viburnum x juddiiThis is an all time favorite for me. I love the fact that I can say this is the first plant I ever planted once in the industry. I planted it because the flowers in the spring are very fragrant. Later I learned of its' amazing fall color. Growing 6-10' tall and just as wide, this is a great plant for the back of the border, or somewhere near a window where you can enjoy the sweet and spicy smells in spring.

Deschampsia 'Goldtau'This has been a very difficult plant for me to photograph. The delicate seed heads are difficult to get without blurriness. This variety is nice because it is very resistant to foliar rust. Other types of Tufted Hair grass are very susceptible. I have it interplanted with Flower Carpet® Scarlet and the two look great together. You should give it a try. They look great in containers as well!

Rhus Prairie FlameOne of the best fall coloring shrubs in my opinion is the Prairie Flame Sumac. The bright reds and oranges that come from this plant are spectacular. The plant can sucker a little, but it does offer an excellent substitute to the overplanted Burning bushes you see everywhere.

Amsonia hubrichtii
One of the best fall coloring perennials around is the Narrow leaf blue star. Read on later to learn about one of her sisters. A. hubrichtii has very fine textured foliage and can come in all sorts of shades of gold in the fall. While this plant tends to look chlorotic a lot of the summer, the fall color more than makes up for it. Mixed with Aster oblongifolius 'October Skies', the blues and yellows can highlight any garden.

Physocarpus 'Coppertina'

Most of us have grown to love the purple summer colors of our new Ninebarks that have hit the market. But I especially like the contrasts of reds and purples when fall colors start to appear. 'Coppertina' gets its' name from the early spring colors it displays on new growth. This is a Proven Winners™ ColorChoice™ shrub.

Amsonia tabernaemontana var. salicifolia

This is one of those plants that looks great all year long. The willow-like leaves gently sway in the winds throughout the summer, and in spring, when first emerging, the purple to red stems look great in contrast with the light green foliage. Then this time of the year, mostly golden foliage with some tints of red show off for all who wish to see. These have proven to be very drought tolerant, and for those looking for more flower color during the summer, it would make a nice combination with Perovskia 'Little Spire' or Echinacea 'Sunrise'.

Thanks again for reading the fall edition. Hopefully more things will color up soon, and different fall pictures will be available. Until next time, have a great day!

Did you know?

2010-10-07T12:01:00.005-05:00

Hello again,
Did you know that Midwest Groundcovers started selling fruits and vegetables in 2010? If you didn't realize that, we are. We are selling the plants! In an effort to help our customers and our customers' customers, we are producing fruit plants so that we can all live a more sustainable lifestyle! The six fruits and veggies are below that we will be carrying. I hope it is as exciting for you as it is for us!

Strawberries

Blueberries

Concorde Grapes

Raspberries

Blackberries

Asparagus

Sorry for the quick post this week. Things have been fairly busy around here which is great! Keep up the landscaping and have a great week!

Fall Colors

2010-09-30T07:37:00.010-05:00

Here we are, a day away from October. The temperatures outside are wonderful. Who doesn't love the 60's? Things in the garden are looking great, although a lot is starting to go to sleep. It's interesting to see how things change from year to year dependent on how the weather is or was during the summer. We had a lot of drought this year, which means certain plants are losing leaves earlier. Some are not coloring at all. Our Viburnum 'Redwing' in the landscape looks poor compared to last year. Check last falls post to see how gorgeous it can be. So onto the plants. Many things were looking quite nice this morning.

Easy Elegance™ Mystic Fairy® Rose
Mystic Fairy® has long been one of my favorite roses. It produces clusters of many flowers on each stem. The flowers size is about 2" across, but the richness of the color is what I find most striking. Foliage on these plants looks great as well. What I have noticed on this plant that further increases my appreciation is the fact that the Japanese beetles seem to stay away from it. At least more than some of the other varieties we carry.
Speaking of Roses, when a bed of them can look this good going into October, it's amazing that we don't use them more often in our fall plantings. I know it's not the most traditional mum or kale in the world, but the richness of the colors and their variance should make them a natural option for fall color programs.

Rhus 'Prairie Flame'

Speaking of beautiful fall colors. The Rhus are starting to color up in the landscape here. I show this every year, because I think this is such a great substitute for the Burning Bush. Similar textures, but much greater color in my opinion.

Hosta 'Patriot' with Carex 'Ice Dance'

This is a combination that was developed in a shady container. I liked it so much that I had to try it out in the landscape. While 'Patriot' is an old classic, why not still use it. It looks great in combination with the Carex. It especially looks good now that the deer have started to leave them alone.

Aesculus parviflora

This was more of a surprise than anything this morning. I was walking and shocked by the fact that these June bloomers had flowers on them now. Not just one or two, but there are many flower buds starting to open. When I spoke of weather conditions above changing what plants are supposed to do, this was the one that got me thinking the most today.
Viburnum prunifolium

The fruit of this giant shrub are spectacular every year. I urge you to read the excerpts from Michael Dirr's Manual on this plant. He creates an amazing image with his description of his group of fellows eating the fruit. They are just now starting to color up, and will eventually share purples with its current reds and pinks.

Callicarpa

This is a yet to be named cultivar that Chicagoland Grows™ is working on. I have been trialing them for 3 years now. They have made it through two winters. The fruits of these are extravagant. Multiple shades of purple tantalize the eyes, but of course are currently unavailable. Feedback would be exceptional on these. If you feel that this is something that you would like to have in the future, please send us a line.

Baptisia Twilite Prairieblues™

In the talks of fruits, I should perhaps mention the seed heads of this great plant. If you are thinking of trying any from seed, you should pick them now as the seeds are falling fast, I thought on first examination today that the seed pods looked like little mouths asking for food.

Sedum Sod Flats

A potential contemporary option for fall colors in your landscape is to use our Sedum sod flats. Not only are the reds that come from these plants great, but it also gives you a little touch of the holidays to come. Green and Red. Time to start setting up the Christmas trees! But really, this is a simple quick solution to a color program. Lay out the sod flats like you would grass and have a beautiful layout for the fall.

I have a whole bunch of Asters to show in the next post. These are looking quite nice as well. For more information on the plants that are in this post visit www.midwestgroundcovers.com

Until next time, have a great day!

The First Day of Autumn

2010-09-23T07:41:00.006-05:00

The first day of Autumn has come and there are some amazing plants in the landscape.

Physostegia 'Vivid'

Last year we made a change from 'Pink Bouquet' to the much more requested 'Vivid'. Judging solely on landscape performance, this was a good decision. These plants just bloom their little hearts out. I have not seen this plant to be overly aggressive in the landscape. It's surrounded by plants that could easily be overtaken by an invasive, but they have stayed still. Last year I photographed this plant in December with blooms on it. There are more blooms on it now then their were last year, but this is just to say that it has a long bloom time. Especially if you are looking for fall blooms.

Sisyrinchium 'Lucerne'

Being a member of the Iris family, this plant has grass-like foliage that offers a really nice texture to a dry location in full sun. Here they are planted at the front of the border with Mazus reptans as a groundcover in front of it. The texture changes are quite nice to the eye. In the summer, the purple flowers attract bees and small butterflies.

Anemone

I look forward all year to when the Anemone start to bloom. The display garden has a nice grouping of 'Pamina', 'September Charm', 'Honorine Jobert, 'Robustissima' and 'Prinz Heinrich'. 'Robustissima' is about done, but the others are just starting to look their best.

Gentiana 'True Blue'

They've begun to bloom! This is new to our product line this year. It is very exciting to be able to offer a Gentiana to our customers. It is a hybrid and not a native variety, but that is what allows us to have success growing it. Plants are fully budded and will make a great impression at your garden center or in the landscape. This plant in deer resistant and attracts late season butterflies and according to some websites, hummingbirds. It can be grown in full sun to part shade.

Calamintha nepeta ssp nepeta with Aster laevis

The cooler our night time temperatures get, the more blues that come out in the Calamintha. Combine that with the light purple flowers of native Aster laevis, and you have a brilliant combination. This would be a very nice option for a dry location keeping in mind that the Aster doesn't look like much until now.

Sedum display

Our Sedum display is 90% done. I need to get the labels out there and there are two varieties unavailable at the time of planting. Currently, 28 of the 30 groundcover Sedum we sell are displayed in this location. We had done this in the past and the competition ended with Sedum kamtchaticum being the most vigorous. Everything was torn out and replanted so that we could again show you the differences between these excellent drought tolerant plants. I hope you are able to come out and take a look.

Thanks again for reading. Until next time, have a great day!

Fall colors in September

2010-09-16T07:48:00.006-05:00

Hello again,
It's mid-September and fall colors are starting to show. Our Honeylocust have already started to drop it's golden leaves. Amelanchier's are starting to show some of their beautiful oranges and reds. Crabapples are losing leaves and showing off their gorgeous fruit. Roses are starting to look phenomenal! Here are some of the others that look stunning. As well as another new project being installed this week.
Coreopsis tripteris
One of my favorite natives is the Tall Coreopsis. The purples that start to show on its foliage at this time of the year are outstanding. It grows to 8' tall and can be a reseeder, so space and a little diligence with pulling the seedlings are good ideas when planting this one.

Zizia aptera

Another native showing great color is the Golden Alexander. Most of the foliage and seed heads have turned this color of red. We have a nice planting of this in front of our pick up yard and they look stunning right now. It flowers in early spring when the Salvia first start to bloom. This plant will do well with moisture, but can also handle a good amount of drought.

Asclepias tuberosa 'Hello Yellow'

This is also in front of the pick up office. I really didn't expect this plant to come back when we first installed it. I thought it would offer up some nice mid-summer color but it would succumb to the winter. In general, Butterfly Weed really likes superb drainage or they risk rotting. In this area, it remains very dry and that was the key to its success. These have been flowering since June and still have lots of blooms still going. It's fun to see its cottony seed heads surrounding a bright orange-yellow flower. A great deal of Monarch butterfly larvae have been feeding on these plants all year. It has been fun to watch.

Liatris aspera with Allium 'Summer Beauty'

These beauties just started blooming this week. Already, I have counted at least 6 different species of butterflies drinking the nectar. Some of the smaller butterflies have been the most beautiful. The seed heads of the Allium are quite nice in contrast with the flower color too. Being such a late bloomer, it was nice that the Allium filled the area earlier in the season with flowers. Other natives that would work well with it include Ratibida pinnata, Eryngium yuccifolium and Panicum virgatum.

Schizachyrium 'Carousel'

Thought the picture is somewhat blurry, the colors are there to see. The autofocus on my camera no longer works, and it's like learning how to use a camera all over again. I digress. 'Carousel' is an amazing plant if just for this time period. But the colors throughout the year are outstanding. Even in winter, the foliage is a different brown than the seeds which gives it contrast all year round.

Sedum display bed

A new project that we started this week was to replant our Sedum varieties in a new "Sedum Sun". There will be one on each side of this path. Gustavo and Eric are the ones planting it in the picture here. 30 varieities of Sedum will be displayed when all is said and done. One large group representing the sun and 14 rays. It has started out very nice, and should be completed early next week. More pictures to follow.

Hibiscus bed

In this trial bed, we have all of our Rose of Sharon Hibiscus. There are five varieties in bloom in this area. Lavender and Blue Chiffon, 'Lil' Kim', White Chiffon, and Sugar Tip. They are all looking very nice. It is a great time to come out and take a look at these beauties.

Rosa Easy Elegance® All the Rage and Physocarpus Summer Wine®.

I have to admit to not seeing this combo all year. It was quite by accident. I most often see this garden from the other side of the Ninebark. The dark foliage of Summer Wine® with the bright coral color of All the Rage is a very nice contrast. The colors this morning with the strange rain clouds overhead perhaps made it more impressive. But clean foliage on both of these plants warrants use.

Even though it gets used more often now than in the past, Calamintha nepeta ssp nepeta is such a great plant I need to continue showing it. Non stop blooms from late June until frost. And look at how bright it makes this area. Calamagrostis brachytricha, Amsonia hubrichtii and Schizachyrium 'Carousel' offer fall colors all around it. Allium 'Summer Beauty' in front shows off her nice seed heads in contrast.

Thanks again for reading. Hopefully you enjoy this article. There will be more to come soon. Until next time, have a great day!

Major Renovations

2010-09-09T07:31:00.006-05:00

Hello again,
This has been a year of change at Midwest Groundcovers. We have undergone some major renovations in the past month and a half that I want to share with you. Some areas had been left without change for many many years and some, like our grass area, was in need of a fixing. I don't have a great image of our grass area but I will mention it. We removed all the grasses that were there since 2004. Plants were growing into each other and it was too difficult to determine which grasses were which. A new lay out with better spacing should provide a nice display garden for the future. Of course it's small now, but next year this should be a site to see.
The first project that we completed was at the entrance to our Perennial Island. This area had previously been covered by Euonymus 'Coloratus', or Purple Leaf Wintercreeper. Now it has been developed as a trial garden for shade Midwest Solutions®. Lots of new combinations are in this garden. A sun combination flanks the front of the garden with Allium senescens glaucum mixed with Stachys minima. Please come by and watch as it progresses.

A smaller project was in front of our sign to retail. This had previously been planted with Pixie Meadowbrite™ Coneflower, but after several years, the plants reseeded themselves and the originals were crowded out. Echinacea 'Pica Bella' takes its place.

The center median as you drive in has been revamped. Formerly a mix of perennials in the front of the median, we've replaced that with a temporary display of our beautiful mums! Those will be replaced next year with something special! Two hedges of Gold Pillar™ Barberry with Buddleia 'Black Knight' in the middle replaces a very old planting of Calamagrostis 'Karl Foerster' that was starting to deteriorate with weedy grasses seeding themselves amongst it.

For a couple years we enjoyed Koeleria glauca at our front entrance with Allium 'Purple Sensation' a white Hyacinth. The 'Purple Sensation' will be replanted, but the Koeleria had started to decline and needed to come out. We've replaced that with a large planting of Ruellia humilis and interplanted it with Carex glauca(flacca). Once this fills in, it should look great.

Speaking of the entrance. The plantings in front of the signs have been redone. The older plantings were starting to get overrun by Nepeta faasenii. So that planting was removed and replaced by four plants. The back layer, closest to the sign is Geranium 'Max Frei'. In the middle, is Sporobolus 'Tara'. This plant I deem as the best plant ever for underneath a sign. It is the perfect height to not cover any of this sign. In front of that is Coreopsis 'Zagreb'. Interplanted with all of these plants in Veronica 'Waterperry Blue' for a spring and fall show.

Last but not least, we have expanded our prairie. That is in the background of this picture. Removed were Flower Carpet™ roses that were not performing up to expectations. I think it was a little too dry for them here. The native plants that replaced them were Cassia hebecarpa, Wild Senna, in small doses with large swathes of Liatris spicata(Blazingstar), Parthenium integrifolium(Wild Quinine) and Eryngium yuccifolium(Rattlesnake Master). A band of Sporobolus heterolepis(Prairie Dropseed) was planted in front to seperate it from the outer circle which we did not plant native. In order to show our diversity of products, we have removed a large planting of Euonymus 'Coloratus' from this area as well. It was replanted with two great groundcovers. Veronica 'Waterperry Blue' and Potentilla neumanniana 'Nana'. These two groundcovers will be seen every time you leave our facility. These are two plants that have been trialed here and have been proven to be tolerant of salting. Try them out. They look so much nicer than Polygonum!

Hopefully you will enjoy seeing all this progress. More is on the way this fall as we continue to spruce up our facility. Until next time, have a great day!

Hot September

2010-09-02T11:05:00.005-05:00

Hello again,
Back like I promised! Today we have some very interesting shrubs and some other star-worthy plants. This summer has been brutal to many plants. Whether it be the very wet and rainy month of July or the super dry conditions of August. Plants have been put to the test. Here are some of the most beautiful plants in our landscape.
Cotinus Golden Spirit
This is a very showy shrub that has now been in our landscape for four years. Bright yellow foliage proceeds excellent fall colors of oranges and reds. For this plant, we pruned it back to the ground this spring in order to flush out larger foliage. When left unpruned, the foliage will tend to be smaller, but you'll get the "smoke" flowers that the plant is commonly known for. Smokebush does not produce those blooms when cut back, but it does produce larger, more lush foliage. After pruning to 12", this is now 5' tall.

Flower Carpet® Pink Supreme
I've been really impressed by the performance of this groundcover rose. At first, I was sceptical about how different it truly would be from Flower Carpet® Pink. But it is. The flowers are a richer pink, and the foliage much cleaner. The bloom time seems to be better as well. The next generation of Flower Carpet® roses have really performed up to the marketing. It's not always that the plant is as good as the hype, but these pass the test.

Hydrangea Little Lime™
So, I'll do a little hyping of my own here. This is a very cool plant. When I first saw this at Spring Meadow Nursery, in Dale Deppe's yard, I was very impressed. That was three years ago. It's really hard for a plant geek to wait that long. I believe this plant is worth the wait. And, isn't it refreshing to know that they made sure the plant was going to be great before releasing it! The flowers on this star are never white according to Spring Meadow. These plants will always have a touch of green. A dwarf version of the best Hydrangea paniculata to ever hit the market, 'Limelight', this one is sure to please everyone who lays eyes on it. The largest plant I've seen on this was about three feet tall.
Rudbeckia subtomentosa 'Henry Eilers'
I think every year this has bloomed in our garden, I've shown a picture. Does this fall under the perennial that's too tall category? It does grow to 4' tall and could flop if not surrounded by friends. But knowing that, we can lend support to 'Henry Eilers' and give him friends like Calamagrostis 'Karl Foerster' and Eupatorium 'Little Joe'. Who wouldn't want to hang with Henry, Joe and Karl? Phlox 'David's Lavender' also looks stunning with the flowers of 'Henry Eilers'. That's if you prefer to have a party of four.
Aralia racemosa
I always forget the common name of this plant when people ask me, so I'm going to publish it here so that it hopefully stays with me. Spikenard. Can you see why I'd forget that? The fruit of this plant is to die for. It is not poisonous, so you will never die literally from it. The fruit is really what people who visit our gardens love. The plant itself is attractive and gains interest, but when the fruit is there, it's hard to walk past. I've used it in cut floral arrangements and it holds up well.

Anemone 'Honorine Jobert'
When I think of the movie, The Last Samurai, I'm reminded of the Samurai who was always looking for the perfect flower. In the battlefield, at the end of the movie, he is dying and looks up at the flowering cherries that surrounded him and says, "They're all perfect". When I think about how this flower comes so late in the year and has a pure white color to it, I'm reminded of that line. This simple flowers of this plant are perfect.

Hopefully you've enjoyed this weeks rendition of the blog. Check in next week to see the projects that we are currently installing. I'd have shown them today, but didn't want my camera to get soaked. Until then, Have a great week!

Perennials in Late Summer

2010-08-26T08:06:00.009-05:00

Hello again,
It's been a while since I've posted a blog. My apologies. Hopefully I can make up for it here. There is a mixture of plants that we either grow and will have as new 2011 and some that are still in the trials stage. There are also some nice tried and true plants that were too stunning to pass up. This edition will be the perennials. Shrubs will be coming next week.
Euphorbia 'First Blush'
This is a plant that I've been watching for a couple years now. Two years ago they were planted as small plugs, and now I have some really nice plants in the landscape. Euphorbia in general is not always hardy for this area. Sure there are some like the native E. corrolata that are hardy, and there are some weeds like E. esula that you can't get rid of. But this one shows promise for the garden. Nicely variegated with more pink in spring than now. It grows to 12" tall in a shady location. Interested? Post comments. I'd like to see us do this, but we need some interest first!
Gentiana andewsii
The native Gentiana that we used to carry was such a nice plant. The problem is that it is very difficult to grow. We have a solution for you. While what you see is in fact the native, we are now carrying a variety called Gentiana 'True Blue' which is very close to start blooming in the pots. It shows an incredible amount of potential in the containers, and if you are interested in this type of plant, I highly recommend it. It is available now, and will be new in our catalog for 2011!
Geranium Rozanne
I was always a 'Jolly Bee' backer, but now I'll get with the program and back up Rozanne. Truthfully, she is a non-stop bloomer as well. I've tried planting her with Geranium 'Biokovo' to see how the combination will work. 'Biokovo' has a much shorter bloom time, but I think the fall colors of 'Biokovo' are going to really compliment the blue-purple flowers of Rozanne. Stay tuned!
Parthenium integrifolium
This is a very underutilized native plant. When I first saw this at the Lurie Garden at Millennium Park I fell in love. Bright white flowers act like beacons to bees in the daytime. This image was taken in the morning before the bees were awake. We have this in combination with Liatris spicata and Eryngium yuccifolium and they make a great combination together. These plants can handle the drought, so it offers up something nice for those difficult areas.
Heuchera villosa 'Autumn Bride'
I've always loved the large panicle flowers of 'Autumn Bride'. Every year when I see this plant, I wonder why it isn't used more often. This is pictured in an area that is half day sun and they are very successful. Also at the Lurie garden in a similar location, this can brighten up a semi-shady spot and look great in combination with Anemone 'September Charm' or for Spring blooms, Geranium 'Bevan's Variety'.

Allium senescens glaucum
One of the last Allium to bloom in the landscape here at Midwest. Allium 'Ozawa' being the last. I've tried a planting of this with Stachys minima. The Stachys will begin to bloom in late June early July. They are spent now, but the seed heads are very attractive. The flowers of the Allium float above the twisted foliage and in this image aren't fully open yet. When they are, they are a site to see.

Pennisetum 'Piglet'
This is one of the best Fountain Grasses on the market. Reliably hardy, it blooms fairly early and looks great long into the fall. While some Pennisetum are known to be seedy, this one has not shown to be so. I have not seen any seedlings anywhere near the plant. Hopefully it remains this way. There are several types that are supposed to be dwarf in the industry, but not all of them are reliably hardy. Try this and be satisfied!
Sorghastrum 'Indian Steel'
We used to carry an Indian Grass named 'Sioux Blue'. That became increasingly difficult to produce and find liners for. Therefore, we have switched over to the very similar 'Indian Steel'. In my opinion, the foliage of 'Indian Steel' is more blue overall. The flowers are now just starting to emerge, and this grass, is in a bit of shade. Therefore, with complete confidence, I can recommend this for a part shaded location. It still gets a majority of the day in full sun, but mornings are completely shaded.

Phlox arendsii 'Babyface'
We are always searching for good Phlox cultivars that are mildew resistant. This variety, being from a different species than P. paniculata seems to fit the bill. I have not seen any mildew on this plant this year even though it is surrounded by varieties loaded with mildew. This one only grows to 24" tall and also has the opportunity to rebloom. This flowered all the way back in June and the deer ate all the flowers off. Now they are back for another show. This will be new in the catalog for 2011, but we do have some available to you now in 2010!
Phlox paniculata 'David's Lavender'
Here is a P. paniculata that has seriously outperformed expectations. This has been in our catalog, but I don't think it has really caught on yet. The color of the blooms in morning is magical. Of all the cultivars in the landscape, this one demands attention. They have grown to 3' tall, but are completely free of mildew. Others nearby are covered in mildew. The flowers of this mixed with Rudbeckia subtomentosa 'Henry Eilers' is stunning. That combination in the back of a border with Sesleria autumnalis up front could be a real show stopper!

Thanks again for taking the time to read. You will be seeing a lot more from this blog in the near future. Until next time, have a great day!

Green Walls

2010-08-25T07:30:00.001-05:00

Hello again,
Midwest Groundcovers is always trying to be in the front of the newest trends. Made with Sedum sexangular and Sedum album, this is one of our newest projects. Green Walls! With a concentration on detail, these two made a very nice display that we now have hanging at our location.

Summer Is Perfect For American Beauties Native Plants!

2010-07-07T14:14:00.007-05:00

Right now our Midwestern prairies come into one of their most beautiful seasons! The purple / pinks of the Echinaceas fade and the warm yellows and oranges of summer pop up as the prairie grows in height and complexity. Look for Heliopsis, Asclepias tuberosa and the soon to be bobbing tall yellow flowerheads on Silphium species.

For summer Garden Center sales, bring a fresh crop of these lovely summer American Beauties into your store. It's not too late to plant, and American Beauties are the perfect solution. Listen to what young gardener, Christian Keller, has to say about American Beauties:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hty0HWBn32A

Featured in the video:

Amorpha canescens - Lead Plant (full sun, dry soils, 2-3' tall, attracts butterflies)
Eupatorium dubium 'Little Joe' - Little Joe Dwarf Joe Pye Weed (full-part sun, consistently moist soils, 3-4' tall, attracts butterflies)
Silphium perfoliatum - Cup Plant (full sun, moist-wet soils, 6-8' tall, leaf base forms cup which holds water)
Dalea purpurea - Purple Prairie Clover (full sun, dry soils, 2-3' tall, attracts butterflies)
Echinacea paradoxa - Yellow Coneflower (full sun, dry soils, 2-3' tall, bright yellow)
Geranium maculatum - Wild Geranium (full-part sun, consistently moist soils, 1.5-2' tall, lavendar pink flowers)

Learn more about the American Beauties Native Plants Program here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-rxgkIhj6RM&NR=1

NEW! Ground cover in Ellepots

2010-06-11T10:52:00.014-05:00

By: Christa Orum-Keller

At Midwest, we are always looking for the next new thing which can be useful to our customers and improve our green industry practices. And we are constantly looking for your feedback from the field - especially when we present something new.

Over the last year, we have been trialing the growing of ground covers in Ellepots. If you're not familiar with Ellepots, they are a biodegradable unit into which we can plant; the Ellepot sits in a plastic tray, but it eliminates the tray insert plastic and you can plant it without having to remove it from the tray insert. It could save time and $$ on ground cover planting projects and it saves the insert layer of plastic.

We've trialed soil mixes, various sizes of Ellepots and different species and now we're ready to share Ellepot ground covers with you!

This is still a trial program, but we have some inventory available currently, both items for sale and also some trial samples. Check with your sales representative for complete information.

First - the Ellepots we've grown in are the 30, 50 and 65 millemeter sizes. The 50 mm is close to Midwest traditional 3" size. Here's a photo of the three sizes side by side:

The plants we have for open sales are:

Ajuga reptans 'Bronze Beauty' in the 50mm Ellepot
Hedera h. 'Thorndale' in the 65 mm Ellepot
Pachysandra t. 'Green Carpet' in the 65 mm Ellepot
Vinca minor 'Darts Blue' in the 50 mm Ellepot

In addition we have a mixed assortment of various Sedum species in all three sizes in different soils. These are available as trial samples for small or larger jobs. We have 2-300 flats of each size available of mixed Sedum sp. Please check with your sales or customer service representative if you are interested in trying any of the Ellepots ground covers on a purchase or trial basis.

We are interested in your feedback on these topics:

How do the plants root in if you are planting them in a mass planting in the ground?
Do the Ellepot ground cover overwinter any differently than usual 3" material?
If you use the Sedum in a green roof planting, how do they root in, perform and overwinter?
What size do you prefer? 30, 50 or 65 mm?
Should we grow more and add them to our regular line? If so, what ground cover should be part of the line?
Could you see Ellepot ground cover replacing our 3" ground cover line?

100th Blog!

2010-05-17T14:32:00.008-05:00

Hello again,

We've had a lot of great people post their favorite plants thus far. And a couple other blogs in between. There has been a request that I do my favorite plant. And I thought I'd save it for the 100th blog. I've been preparing and preparing, and then the shocker! The patent police are claiming Geranium 'Jolly Bee' invalid. DNA says it's too close to Geranium Rozanne. Most would think that I could easily make the switch. But my loyalties are to 'Jolly Bee', the first plant I've ever been able to definitively say was my favorite. So instead of giving you just one, I have to give you my top ten for sun. The top ten for shade will be seen in a future Landscape Contractor article. So my top ten sun plants in no particular order.

Geranium sanguineum 'Max Frei'Such a great overall plant. Very little maintenance is ever required. It makes a stunning perennial hedge, and is the perennial meatball without any pruning for the meatball lover. Plants can be pruned back after flowering to encourage new floral growth.

Amsonia x 'Blue Ice'This is one that always attracts attention when in bloom. It has multiple uses like the Geranium above in that it can also be used as a perennial hedge. In our landscape it is planted with Geranium 'Jolly Bee' and that crawls over the top of Amsonia when it is not in bloom. This extends the time of beauty and usefulness of this plant.

Penstemon digitalisThis is a great native with so many uses as well. The seed heads are so attractive that I've placed those here instead of the flowers. I am very smitten with the flowers as well. Late June these will be blooming their hearts out in front of our nursery. They line IL Route 25 and create clouds of white in early summer.

Allium 'Summer Beauty'I've talked about this a few times in the three years of the blog. Here it is pictured with Festival® Burgundy in a container last year. The combination of these two plants was quite nice. The tropical Festival® Burgundy highlighted the bright green foliage of the Allium. Look at past posts if you would like more information on Allium 'Summer Beauty'.

Campanula 'Samantha'This is one of those plants I thought would be an instant hit. It is a much easier plant to deal with than other Campanula. Namely better than 'Blue Clips'. This flowers for a very extended bloom time and is a great combination with Dianthus 'Firewitch' for early season bloom.

Asclepias incarnata This is the plant that should assume the name of "Butterfly Weed". I see more insects fluttering around this plant than any other plant in the garden. The array of butterflies it attracts is quite impressive. A great plant for the rain garden or any location where it may be moist. Monarch butterflies use the foliage for their larvae. An amazing plant!

Solidago rugosa 'Fireworks'This is a non-aggressive Solidago. Flowers that explode in late summer last for quite some time. They make a remarkable combination with Panicum 'Dewey Blue' or Rosa Flower Carpet® Scarlet. In early spring, the foliage is also attractive with reddish tints dominating the look.

Echinacea 'Pica Bella'The Echinacea trend continues to pour out new varieties left and right. This one is one that has a lot of staying power. My mother does not particularly care for coneflowers. She finds the drooping petals depressing. 'Pica Bella' solves that by having very straight rays of petals. The color is fantastic and it also has nice dark stems. Goldfinches enjoy the seeds throughout the winter as well!

Eupatorium dubium 'Little Joe' I have to admit that I wasn't that fond of Joy Pye Weed until I met 'Little Joe' He was a little shorter and could stand up straight. Others would lean over and just didn't command the attention of the upright 'Little Joe'. Butterflies, especially Painted Ladies, seem to love this plant. Seed heads remain attractive into winter.

Calamintha nepeta ssp nepetaCalamintha is one of my favorite plants for many reasons. First and foremost is the bloom time. From late June all the way to frost, the tiny white flowers can be seen in abundance. When temperatures are low at night, the flowers transform to a light lavender. Another reason I love this plant is that it attracts all sorts of bees. The honeybee population is quite outstanding and can be heard from afar on a quiet night once we've closed.

These are some of my favorite plants. Of course like I said, there will be an article in the Landscape Contractor that covers my favorite shade perennials. And neither of these lists has my favorite shrubs or trees. I have a lot of favorites. What are some of yours? Please let me know and I'll post them here. Thanks again for reading, and until next time, have a great day!

Early Season Bloomers

2010-05-04T12:04:00.004-05:00

Hello again,

It has been some time since I last posted on the blog. I apologize for the length in time. Hopefully some beautiful pictures will make up for it. Midwest Groundcovers is offering some really great

plants in new sizes!

Salvia 'May Night' is a tried and true perennial that has some excellent uses. We are now offering this plant in a flat of 12. These plants offer themselves up very nicely to combination gardens. The 04 size is easier to carry around, and there are more varieties to choose from. Allium 'Summer Beauty', Sporobolus heterolepis, and Geranium 'Max Frei' to name a few.

Zizia aurea This American Beauties Native Plants® offering is a prime candidate to be combined with Salvia 'May Night'. The color combination is striking and they start to bloom around the same time. Zizia is a highly beneficial perennial for the native garden. Its early season flowers offer pollen to insects which feed migratory songbirds and the foliage is food for the black swallowtail butterflies.

Using 60% Salvia 'May Night' and 40% Zizia aurea creates and excellent Midwest Solution® for the dry sunny area of your garden. The combination will reach heights of 24-30" tall.

Thanks for reading and until next time, have a great day!

Drew's Favorite Plant

2010-04-02T11:03:00.003-05:00

Hello again,
This weeks entry will be Drew Koschmann.

I started working at Midwest in May, 2003 as a Production Intern. I am currently the Nursery Manager for the Michigan Farm in Fennville. I am a member of Michigan Invasive Plant Council and active in the Perennial Plant Association.

Adiantum pedatum - Maidenhair Fern
As a native Michigander and avid outdoorsman, I have grown to appreciate the state's diverse natural landscape. One of my favorite things to do while hiking is to observe native plants in their natural habitat. While hiking, I enjoy discovering indigenous plants including Trillium and Jack-in-the-Pulpit. My favorite woodland plant type is the fern, specifically Adiantum pedatum, commonly known as the Northern Maidenhair Fern. This deciduous, mounding fern showcases delicate pink fiddleheads when emerging in late spring. Reddish-brown to black stems create a striking contrast with the plant's bright green fronds. For those of us who are not blessed with ideal conditions for growing prairie species, woodland plants such as the fern are an elegant yet natural landscaping solution for properties dense with trees and acidic, well-drained soil.

Thanks again for reading and have a great day!

Herman's Favorite Plant

2010-03-22T12:11:00.004-05:00

Hello again,

This week we will feature Herman Tiedeman and his wife Carol! This will be the first time a family member has been featured on the blog, but we all love our science teachers, so she deserves a spot!
Herman O. Tiedeman, our Inventory Specialist, started with Midwest in 2005 in Customer Service after working at various Garden Centers in Iowa and Illinois for eight years. He currently works with the Inventory, Sales, Marketing and Production staff regarding Production Forecasting and coordinates our yearly Physical Inventory in fall. His affiliation with the outdoors dots his life from years of Scouting and family gardening in his youth to his degree in Biology emphasizing botany and ecology. Herman shares his passion for nature with his wife, Carol, who is a 7th grade Life Science teacher who uses every opportunity to bring their yard into the classroom, as well as providing the kids the opportunity to explore wild areas near the school.

Within our culture we seem to adore the underdog, whether political arena, sports event or business venture. With many of the popular hedging choices, like honeysuckle, currant and privet, fading in popularity possibly due to their contested invasive nature, I champion the original thicket – American Hazelnut. A native of the Midwest surviving suppression by the periodic fires of the prairies, savannas and forest edge, the natural ability of this shrub to sucker lends itself to use as an informal hedging choice, especially on larger properties. C. americana does host a number of insects, but diversity in fauna is what our landscapes need to be healthy. As a food source for numerous insects which will feed other insects, birds and small mammals, the American Hazelnut

can be a sustainable hedging option without even mentioning the delicious nuts it will bear after several years in the ground. Although not a highly ornamental shrub, the interestingly different catkins are harbingers of spring when they open in March. Tolerant of a wide pH range, C. americana does tolerate light shade to sun making it rather adaptable to many landscape locations. And the best feature for me, other than its contributions to sustaining a biologically diverse landscape, is the quintessential autumnal coloration. In fall the muted rust-bronze-red-orange leaves with golden highlights are the epitome of autumn.

Ephemeral- lasting only a short time. Dodecatheon meadia may only bloom for a short period each spring, but what a show it puts on for those few days. Prior to my husband working at Midwest Groundcovers I was unaware of the many incredible native plants that were available to the average person. With all of those choices I would still herald Dodecatheon, the shooting star, as truly a star among them. Each spring I carefully search the spot where they will appear. And seemingly overnight they arrive, dancing and swaying all over my yard. The tiny drooping little bird beaks of color create a spring display any natural woodland would be jealous of. The clusters of them scattered throughout my yard give me great pleasure and joy. They may last only a short while, but their impact is epic.

Amber's Favorite Plant

2010-03-16T12:20:00.003-05:00

Hello again,
Thanks to those of you who have been following the favorite plants. I have a couple more entries from employees here for the next couple of days. Here is Ambers!

Amber Ulmer, Customer Account SpecialistA member of the Midwest team since 2007, Amber started her green industry career working at an Independent Garden Center. Amber serves a broad range of customers, including many specific accounts and most enjoys working with customers to achieve a successful resolution for each specific situation or request. Her favorite plant group is perennials.

Phlox divaricata var. laphamii

I love it because it comes up in shady spots with unexpected color to brighten your day.

Editor's note: This is also one of my favorites for a shady area as they provide so much color in early summer. Different shades of purple and white are possible with this variety and they are also mildew resistant.

Thanks again for reading. Have a great day!

Mary Ellen's Favorite Plant

2010-03-08T11:39:00.006-06:00

Happy Monday,
Today we have the very bright and energetic Mary Ellen. Her favorite plant is amongst my favorites as well.

Mary Ellen Biell, Administrative Assistant & Customer Service A member of the Midwest team since 2002, Mary Ellen works with both external and internal customers on direct sales needs and in administrative functions. She holds a Bachelor of Science and supports many development initiatives through her excellent project management skills. She says what she likes best about working with customers is recognizing their individuality and ultimately helping them and being able to thank them for their orders. Some of her favorite plants include Conifers and Ferns.

Calamintha nepeta ssp nepeta

I learned to love Calamintha nepeta spp nepeta gazing out my window at work. We have a beautiful clump of these in our Piet Oudolf garden. The tiny white flowers cover this neatly clumped plant and last from June until frost. But, I’m not alone in loving this plant. Honey bees and bumblebees are crazy for it. They work on each tiny flower until sunset, even later, well into the fall. It’s a delight to see nature unfold before me on this lovely plant.

A couple further notes about Calamintha. This particular variety is sterile which makes it a better option than the straight species which can run you down. The straight species will seed about readily. Calamintha nepeta ssp nepeta and/or Calamintha 'Montrose White' have been named the 2011 Wisconsin perennial plant of the year! And one last reason as to why you could love it too; when temperatures fall in autumn, flower color goes from white to lightly lavender.

Until next time, have a great day!

More favorite plants

2010-02-26T15:06:00.003-06:00

Hello again,
Today we meet Judy Wehrmeister and her favorite plant, Physocarpus Summerwine™
A member of the Midwest team since 1996, Judy serves the Michigan and Indiana region. Her professional experiences include Inventory Control, Purchasing and Sales. She serves on the Board of Directors as Past President for the Southeast Michigan Nursery and Landscape Association. Judy earned her Associate’s degree in Landscape Technology at Oakland Community College in Rochester, Michigan.

Right now, with the deciduous plants bare, I am very attracted to bark. This may be an under-used and under-talked about characteristic of woody material that the time to enjoy is now!

One of my favorites is Physocarpus opulifolius, Common Ninebark; Summerwine™ is the name of mine. I love its bark in the winter! The varying colors (are there nine?) of the stems stand out lovely against the white background of fresh snow.

Here’s some fact from U of I Extension: 5–10 x 5–10’; hardiness zone 2-6; Full sun to partial shade; rounded with arching branches; tolerant of all soil conditions. Annual pruning is needed to keep the plant in good shape.

They produce clusters of white to off-white flowers in early summer drying to papery fruit taking on a pinkish to flesh color in mid-late summer; autumn color is a poor yellow. Can be used for specimen, border, hedge or massing.

The one in my yard is in front of some blue spruce trees. I’ve started a patch of ornamental grass and some sedum in complementary colors nearby.

Thanks again for reading!

My Favorite Plant part 2

2010-02-23T11:39:00.007-06:00

Hello again. We are here with round two of Midwest Groundcovers employees' favorite plants. Today's guest is Grace Koehler. Grace has been a member of the sales and marketing team since 2000. She works with landscape contractors and architects of the Illinois region. She specializes in the development of our sustainable, green roof and native plant markets as well as our brand programs. Grace graduated from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale and is past president of the Midwest Ecological Landscape Association(MELA). Here she writes about the 2010 plant of the year, Baptisia australis and some of it's relatives.

Baptisias add structure and intrigue to any planting. Think of them as a small shrub that dies down to the ground every year similar to Buddleia. The new Prairieblues™ series of Baptisia from Chicagoland Grows opens the door to all types of new colors and variations in form. My favorites are B. australis, with its round bushy form and vivid violet blue flowers that bloom in May and the native B. leucantha which is stunning as it emerges and reaches straight up for the sky with its fluorescent creamy white flowers. B. leucantha has a more upright habit and takes a few years to establish but is well worth the wait. In the fall the foliage turns black and adds a prehistoric look to the landscape. Drought resistant, (the roots go all the way to Tibet) and disease free you can’t go wrong in using these plants. Allow plenty of room for and be patient the first year or two then stand back and enjoy the show.
Baptisia australis: Bushy plant with blue-green pea-like foliage. Flowers are indigo blue in long terminal erect racemes. Produces fruit in the form of a 2-3" long pod that turns black when mature.

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Baptisia leucantha

Tall perennial/shrub with white flowers in early summer. A prairie plant of classic elegance with its small graceful and waxy clusters of lovely legume blossoms. Fixes nitrogen into the soil.

Baptisia Starlite Prairieblues™

Wide mounding Baptisia with arching branches bearing racemes of periwinkle-blue and butter-yellow florets. Chicagoland Grows selection

Baptisia Twilite Prairieblues™

Extremely robust, vigorous bi-color Baptisia. Deep violet- blue flowers up to 32" long are held above the blue-green foliage. Chicagoland Grows selection.

What's your favorite plant?

2010-02-17T11:37:00.005-06:00

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!

Bird's Eye View

2010-01-25T12:52:00.002-06:00

One of the great things about the McCormick Place in Chicago is that they almost always have a place to photograph the events from above. Here is an attempt at a panorama from the food court. It has been made official that MIDAM will be moving back to Navy Pier in 2011. Better food choices and a much more enjoyable scenery all come with a show at the Pier. If you did not come this year, you missed out. Traffic was above average. Make sure not to miss the 2011 show at Navy Pier! Until next time, have a great day!

Welcome to MIDAM

2010-01-20T09:25:00.004-06:00

Hello everyone,
Have you ever wondered what MIDAM is like before you get there? Well, I've got some pictures to show you on how we do setup. Years ago, Midwest Groundcovers had a gazebo, and loads and loads of plants in every last possible spot on the show floor. Those days required two full days of preparation and very hard work putting the displays together. At the end of the show, breakdown lasted well into the night, deconstructing the gazebo and all the other functions of the booth. We are working smarter nowadays, and we don't construct large gardens or large wooden structures anymore. These displays lacked focus and while they looked beautiful, were a little distracting. There was never enough space to stand and talk to a customer and newer attendees may have been a little wary of coming into such a large structure like our gazebo was. This week we have made room for you, our customer, to walk right in and have a great conversation with us. We've even added two tables and chairs for you to take a break from all the walking and for placing an order with us, of course! Keep reading to see why you should come and place those orders!
When the day started on Tuesday, we were lucky to have the skeletons in place. We do still come down for two days of setup. It's just that those two days are much easier and shorter than in the past. So here, our booth is arranged like we planned, but the plants and highlights are not yet in place.

Then we put the fabric on our benches to make the plants really pop. We set up different sections of the booth with themes. Like the center island here is for new plants.

Here is another view with some signs in place.

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Literature stands are placed where you can help yourself. You are always encouraged to talk with us, because we'd love to see you. But if you are in a hurry, catalogs and informational handouts are available throughout the booth. As you can see above the bright green bench, we have show specials. It is definitely worth going to the show for these great discounts!

The final product. Well, actually, the booth will look very different once the show floor carpet is rolled out. But as of right now, or Tuesday afternoon, it was not in place, and we didn't want to wait into the night for that to happen. I'll post again come Friday when I'll be at the show again.

Customer Service people are there all three days. If there is someone you'd specifically like to see, here is the current schedule.

Wednesday: Brent Gustason, Grace Koehler, Janice Guiborat, Beth Guimon and Kim Kaczmarek

Thursday: Brent Gustason, Kim Kaczmarek, Amber Ulmer, Nikki Melin and Grace Koehler

Friday: Chris Darbo, Catalino Mendoza, Elfego Machuca and Kevin McGowen

Thanks again for reading. I hope you all go to the show and check out our show specials. We have some great plant material on display that should brighten up your day! And this year more than ever, with many vendors not showing at MIDAM, you will find that those who do, are very interested in you. Stop by and talk to them. Especially us of course. Until next time, have a great day!

Happy New Year

2010-01-06T12:49:00.005-06:00

Midwest Groundcovers would like to wish one and all a Happy New Year! These are some of my favorite pictures of the year.

Calamagrostis brachytricha

This was a Saturday full of fog. I couldn't resist the puffy plumes of this Korean Feather Reed Grass.

Echinacea 'Tiki Torch'

Close ups of Echinacea are always attractive. I liked the fresh colors of Tiki Torch when it first came to flower.

Hydrangea paniculata Quick Fire™

I've always been a big fan of the paniculata Hydrangeas. This year, when Quick Fire™ first started changing to pink, it was delightful. I can't wait for the Hydrangea trials to be full grown, because it is a site to see. Varieties in our trial include 'Unique', 'Pink Diamond', 'Tardiva', Pinky Winky™, 'Little Lamb', Quick Fire™, 'Limelight', and Little Limelight™.

Aesculus parviflora

This is obviously a close up of the flowers. When in bloom, our stand of 18 plants is pretty spectacular. This year I found green bees who seemed to enjoy the pollen of these shrubs.

Ligularia 'Little Rocket' in front of Ligularia 'Britt-Marie Crawford'
These two plants are remarkable in my eyes. They were planted four years ago and still have done well in a full sun location on top of the hill. These are not given extra water, which goes to show these are great garden plants. They would still prefer more shade and much more water, but they can handle some rough situations.

Once again, Happy New Year, and I hope all of you success and happiness in 2010.

The Second Snowfall

2009-12-08T13:17:00.005-06:00

Hello again,
It's been a while since I was last writing to you, and I apologize for that. I kept looking for something to write about and was having trouble. Yesterday, I was excited by the first snow, but I didn't want to be cliche and talk about the first snowfall. So here I am today talking about the second snowfall. That's unique, right? I really couldn't keep myself from bringing the camera out two days in a row. It's just too darn beautiful to do that. So here are some images that are seen at Midwest Groundcovers today.
Echinacea
Can you imagine cutting these back before they look like this? It's a travesty to think that so many people do not want to see this. Why? I could get all philosophical and say that people in general are afraid of death. But look at the life in these gals. They look ready to go with their white stocking hats firmly attached to their heads. Winter is amazing to perennials if you leave them be. At Midwest Groundcovers, we cut down our perennials in late March.
Linden allee
This is our allee of Lindens that are seen as you drive into our facility. There are a couple times a year where I'm excited to get this picture. The day they begin to bloom, they are remarkably fragrant. The first day of a hoarfrost is also pretty spectacular. But walking this road today gave me a sense of peacefulness the other two times don't express. I suppose the fragrance would be peaceful if I wasn't dodging vehicles at that time of year.
Sedum
Even Sedum can look nice in winter. If left unpruned, each spent flower gives you a frosty bouquet.

Picea abies 'Pendula'
How can one not enjoy snow when it can create such dramatic images? I love this plant year-round, but it's this time of year when the drama is at its crescendo. Snow dripping from the needles mimicking the branches themselves. Sigh. If nothing else, it adds to an otherwise dreary winter garden.

Thuja Nordic Spire™
Peter's introduction from the A-Plant group. This conifer is stunning throughout the year with its pendulous branches and bright green needles. This is deer resistant because it has Thuja plicata as one of the parents. Come see ours next year as they mature into a loose hedge to divide the perennial gardens into two rooms.

Crataegus phaenopyrum
The architecture of the Washington Hawthorn with snow nestled upon its limbs is like the first steps into a well done Japanese Garden. It's a very tranquil sight. When looking closer at the Hawthorn, tranquility passes and fears of falling into the wretched thorns begins. On this day, I kept my distance and the emotion remained positive.

The view of the building from our Perennial Island. Imagine if we cut back the Calamagrostis 'Karl Foerster' like so many landscapers do. This picture would be boring and the landscape would feel incomplete. Winter interest is so important in doing a large design like this. Nobody likes looking at a sterile mass of cropped plants. Perhaps the practice of pruning in fall is why people take the beauty of winter for granted.

Panicum 'Dallas Blues'
When I walked past this grass, I thought it was reving up to throw some snowballs my way. It didn't. But I took a picture anyways. I was most impressed that the weight of the snow didn't topple this beauty. He's hanging in their pretty well this year. Wouldn't kids just love having this plant around. There's a stockpile of snowballs just ready to grab and chuck. And building a fort would be much easier, because they could just hide behind the grass.
Piet Oudolf Garden
When people come out here for tours, I always explain that Spring is the quietest season for this garden. You can clearly see why this time of year is not. Winter is perhaps my second favorite month for this garden. The structures of these plants in winter is a beauty far too often ignored. The same reasons why these plants look great together in summer are still apparent now. Spikes with umbels. Horizontal seed heads with grasses. Great contrasts from an amazingly gifted designer. How lucky are we that we get to enjoy this garden day in and day out?
Conifer Island
Our conifer island is a sight to be seen as well. Snows dusting the branches of Juniperus 'Maneyi' add marvelous details to the structure. The large Douglasfir is very pretty as well. You can see the very tip of the Seuss-like Picea pungens 'Pendula' in the background. That is one of my favorites on the island. If you have not encountered the conifer garden here, maybe you should. All our Junipers and Thuja that we sell reside here. There is nothing like seeing an established specimen to know for sure whether you like it or not. My guess is, you may not like everything, but there is something up there that will knock your socks off.

Happy December everyone. I hope this holiday season will treat everyone nice. Until next time, have a great day!

Frost in the Garden

2009-11-11T11:14:00.007-06:00

Not everything in the garden is beautiful at this time of year. In fact, most people would say the garden is dead and not worth looking at. I need to argue against that. There are many reasons to walk around your garden. Those reasons come to life on the mornings where frost covers the ground. Groundcovers! They are the stars of this time. Especially the ones that are evergreen. Here are some that I came across today that I have found to be wonderful.

Sedum 'Immergrunchen'

Not only is this plant great for green roofs, but it is also an excellent groundcover. This was my favorite plant this morning because of the frost. There is something special about the frost lining the rims of the leaves, creating a piece of delicately displayed artwork. How great you are, Mother Nature!?! You can see on some of the plant, that the foliage is turning orange. That is also a characteristic I find charming about this plant. Because of this, it became the centerpiece of our Sedum sun. Turning orange in early winter, it creates the sun with all the other varieties streaking away as its rays. When 'Fuldaglut', 'Dragon's Blood' and 'Red Carpet' turn their brightest colors of red, it is a stunning display.

Sedum forsterianum

Speaking about the virtues of sedum, here is the iceberg stonecrop, which looks very interesting today. The corkscrew effect of the foliage is more easily seen with frost dusting the plants. These plants have flourished in the garden for many years underneath our crab apples. So they do receive their fair share of shade and still keep looking nice.

Phuopsis stylosa

Sort of Sedum-like in appearance, this groundcover has a spiral effect as well. The frost on this was quite beautiful. I don't think the picture does it justice. I have this planted in areas where it gets full sun and in areas where it receives very little sun. In the area with more sun, it is a pale yellow-green color right now. It resembles Sedum 'Angelina' in these areas. In the shady area, they are a dark green. In both areas, the plant has proven vigorous and will undergo a salt test this winter. I'll let you know. This could be the ultimate Polygonum reynoutria substitute if it holds up to the salting. It even has pink flowers in spring!

Ajuga 'Black Scallop'

I don't typically like to talk about Ajuga. I think I say that every time I bring up 'Black Scallop'. It's not that they don't have a use. It's just that I like other groundcovers better. Black Scallop however, is on my good list. And with white frost sprinkled over the top of the near-black foliage, I find it irresistible. The plants pictured have been in the landscape for four years and have flourished. They receive good drainage and half day sun. The foliage is larger than most other Ajuga we carry with the exception of 'Catlin's Giant'. 'Catlin's Giant' is similar but with lighter colored foliage.

Geum 'Tequila Sunrise'

This is another introduction from Intrinsic Perennials in Hebron, IL. While there isn't a flower to show you, these plants look spectacular covered in frost. You can really see how fuzzy the foliage is because the frost has attached itself to each little hair. I'll be excited to show you the bi-colored flowers in spring. I currently have three of Intrinsic's Geum on trials. I'll be looking for feedback next year on whether or not you like them.

Stachys 'Big Ears'

Speaking of fuzzy! These are the fuzziest plants known to me. And they look marvelous with frost covering them. At this time of year, these start to yellow up a little for winter. But with frost attached, they are looking like they do all year. Fuzzy. To really appreciate the frost on this, enlarge the picture and check out the edges of the foliage. Very interesting.

Dianthus 'Little Maiden'

These small plants have looked great all year. At this point, with the frost covering them, they sort of look like turf. But a refined turf right? If you are familiar with Sagina subulata, and you have had trouble growing it, then try this one out. The foliage offers a very similar look, but then it adds dainty white flowers in spring and sporadically throughout the season. Like most Dianthus, a dry and well drained site is important for the plants to thrive.

Potentilla neumanniana 'Nana'

Its varying stages of foliage offer color this time of year. With browns and greens, and a little white from frost, they look fun. To me, they look like little pinwheels. This has been a remarkable addition to our groundcover line. We have found that this plant is salt tolerant and grows rapidly. The species is native to Eastern Canada, so it is a North American native. While aggressive on the ground, I don't anticipate any issues with this being invasive. It has been in the landscape for several years now, and I have not seen any plants go to seed. Another great possibility as a substitute for Polygonum reynoutria.

Heuchera richardsonii

I didn't anticipate the beautiful fall colors that are emerging from this plant. We have several planted in our experimental groundcover garden, and they are all turning shades of red and orange. The frost creates a wonderful rim around the leaves, which makes this Illinois native look sharp. In the summer, leaves are medium to dark green. It flowers a creamy white, and sometimes pink. The pink ones are few. But a selection could be done for fall color. Some plants are definitely better than others. The beauty of bio-diversity and growing native plants from seed. Heuchera breeders should be looking at this plant for hybridizing because it would add a really nice fall feature. Imagine Heuchera 'Chatterbox' type flowers in summer followed by an orange and red fall display. What a combo that would be. But alas, it doesn't exist yet. It is just a dream.

Even at this time of year, the garden is full of surprises and beauty. November is not the time to forget about the garden. It is the time to respect it for its subtle beauties. It will make you appreciate the flowers more come spring because you'll know there is another show to anticipate later! Until next time, have a great day!

The Morton Arboretum

2009-11-11T08:56:00.007-06:00

I took a trip last week to the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, IL for a perennials trial group that I'm a part of. Once we've set our website up, I'll give more information on that. In the meantime, we were deciding which plants to grow for next year and have as part of our trials. Once our main business was finished, we took a little walk into the children's garden. It has been some time since I've been to the Arboretum, so it was a very exciting task. Of course, most of the perennials were finished, but the shrubs and trees were not.

Quercus rubra

I am always delighted to see the fall colors of oaks. Before they get to the brown stage, they have a complex mixture of oranges, reds and yellows. Near my home, I had mistaken a Red Oak for a Red Maple when it first started to color. I had always known the tree was a red oak, I just hadn't seen it so beautifully colored before. What a great native!

Carpinus carolinianus

Look up this plant on Google™ and see how many common names you can find. This is one of those perfect trees to talk about when deciding whether or not botanic names are important. Anyways, off of that soapbox. This is a spectacular tree year-round. You can see its delightful fall color. The bark is very smooth and reminiscent of Fagus or Beech trees, which is why one of it's common names is Blue Beech. Also, if you look closely, the bark looks like muscles, hence the common name Musclewood. I like to think of it as an American Hornbeam. But then Ostrya virginiana is commonly called the Hop-Hornbeam which just confuses things further. So, now that I haven't said much about the plant, I'll start to. They grow 15-25' tall with a similar spread. They are a native plant and attract many types of beautiful native moths whose larvae feed on the leaves. This is a nice medium sized tree for the home garden.

Catalpa speciosa

I wish I had this picture when Halloween rolled around. I just love the structure of this tree. The seed pods, or as my grandmother used to say, the cigars hang down and can create a walking hazard on the sidewalk. But their showy display of flowers in summer is hard to match. The flowers are almost orchid-like in appearance with yellow and purple speckles coming from the middle of a pure white flower. And of course, once the giant leaves fall, the tree takes on a monstrous look in the winter. Just in time for Halloween as a matter of fact!
Cornus mas 'Golden Glory'

The dark purple fall colors of this gem are hard to miss. They are very late to color up, but when they do they are quite nice. This is not a native of the US, but a nice plant nonetheless. It has a wonderful display of yellow flowers in late March/early April. The fruit are bright red drupes that are very tart if eaten. They supposedly are great in pies! I have yet to try that.

Ligularia 'Desdemona'

This was a nice sight to see. As we peeked through a small opening in the garden, we could see the seed heads of Ligularia in front of a Chamaecyparis of some sort. We carry the 'Britt Marie Crawford' Ligularia which is quite similar and would give the same effect as this, only with darker foliage. In the foreground is Allium 'Ozawa' with its purple flowers.

Hydrangea quercifolia 'Pee Wee'

This is such a nice plant. This native Hydrangea cultivar is a dwarf version of the plant that only grows to 4' tall and wide. The fall color is tremendous, and much later than most other plants. This picture was taken on November 6th, so you can see the fall color develops late and holds well. No worry of frost.

Here is another view of the plant. In a different area of the garden, it looks great with tall ornamental grasses flanking it. In this particular instance, they have Miscanthus. But how can you not love the deep purples and spots of red.

Hydrangea quercifolia 'Alice'

This is the variety we currently carry. And as you can see, the fall color is just as spectacular. These plants do get larger, growing to a potential of 8' in a long period of time. They are slow growing. The bark peels and looks fantastic once the foliage has dropped.

Can you believe how nice our native plants look in fall? It definitely makes an argument to having native plants in the landscape. They just do so well. How can one complain? I'm clearly not a native purist, but some of the plants in your landscape should come from your region. It's the responsible thing to do, and there are so many wonderful choices to pick from. Until next time, have a great day!

A Couple more Pictures of Fall

2009-11-04T09:47:00.008-06:00

Hello again,
I have a few more shots from last week that didn't make the blog. When I looked back through my pictures, some of my favorite ones were not used. How wasteful! Well, I couldn't just let them disappear and never be seen, so here they are.
Geranium maculatum
When I first started working here, we had a pretty extensive display of Geraniums in our perennial garden. Many of the varieties we never sold and some, like 'Jolly Bee', have gone on to be superb sellers. This is a seedling that arose in a nearby spot that I have kept since that time. I like the blooms and by golly, I love the fall color. I think this is the best fall color I've ever seen on this variety. It is getting a fair amount of sun, though the plants typically grow in shade. Well, I think this fall color is enough to make me want these in full sun.
Aconitum fischerii
Speaking of blooms, these are still looking fabulous. After frost and rain, these plants look stunning. There is not a lot of purple this time of year. The question I have is, would anyone buy these? If your company would, please email us at mgplanttrials@midwestgroundcovers.com. It only takes a couple seconds to let me know if there is a market for these. If nobody replies, I'll assume that there isn't interest in monkshoods.
It's always a pleasure to eat lunch and then hang around the pond at our site. It is always chock-full of bullfrogs and sometimes the occasional turtle, as well as some giant Asian carp that lurk around. Right now though, the Bald Cypress with their rusty brown needles dropping into the pond are the stars. It's fun to see the rusty rim that forms around the pond from the needles floating to the sides. In the background, my favorite oak tree on site is turning shades of orange.
Fothergilla Beaver Creek™
What a beautiful plant in fall. My favorite attribute of the plant is the fall color. The flowers are great and all, but nothing beats the fall color of Fothergilla. The name is excellent as well. Who doesn't like saying Fothergilla. It's kind of like saying Bouteloua! I find it amazing that these haven't been ravaged by the rabbits. At home, the rabbits love this plant. I rarely get to see fall color over the height of 4". Wascally wabbits!
Euonymus europaeus
These plants have always been interesting in the landscape. We have them in multiple locations and they've been there longer than I've been with the company. Therefore, the fact that I have not seen any seedlings of this in the forest or anywhere else in the landscape leads me to believe that this is a Euonymus that I need not worry about. It's fall color is in shades of pink and orange.

Thanks again for reading! I hope you've found it enjoyable. Until next time, have a great day!

Midwest Groundcovers Adopts a Highway

2009-11-03T11:36:00.003-06:00

Hello again,

Midwest Groundcovers has adopted a highway! Some employees from Midwest Groundcovers, LLC have decided to donate their time to clean up IL Route 25. As you may or may not know, this is the road that our main facility is located. Since August, twelve employees have signed up to help out by helping clean up the road we drive on every day in our free time. It is quite the rewarding experience driving down the road and seeing how clean you've made it the day before. The clean-up area that we have adopted consists of 2 miles from Army Trail Road to our facility. Most garbage on the road consists of cigarette packs and beer bottles. Kind of scary when you think about it. If only those people were reading right now! I think when people litter, they don't think of the people that have to clean up after them. We at Midwest Groundcovers strive to Keep Illinois Clean! This has been a public service announcement. Until next time, have a great day!

Cool Summers make Warm Fall Colors

2009-10-28T08:07:00.007-05:00

Hello again,
It seems like the fall colors are fairly extended this year. Certain things dropped immediately with the first frost, but others maintain there beauty for much longer. I've been very impressed with the golds I'm seeing this year. They seem so much richer than in years past. Here are some interesting fall pictures I took yesterday.
First I'll start out with our recycling program. It has been a very beneficial thing to some of our customers. This is the product that we ship out. So once we've collected enough plastic, we make these nice cubes of containers that we send out to be recycled. People have asked what it looks like, so here it is! Beautiful isn't it? It is much more beautiful than sending it to the landfill.

Tilia cordata 'Glenleven'
Glenleven Lindens haven't been the greatest for fall color the past few years. This is because of the invasion of Japanese Beetles who make the foliage nearly completely lacy which doesn't allow for much color. We did spray our trees this year so that the beetle wouldn't affect the plants as much. It worked! Our Lindens are beautiful this fall. What a sight!

Metasequoia glyptostroboides
While on the topic of trees. How about these beauties. I love the coppery-orange color these create in fall. We have Taxodium as well on the property, but they don't color up as nice as these do.

Viburnum lentego
This could be considered a small tree or large shrub. Nannyberry Viburnums have always been one of my favorite plants. I love the fruit and love the fall color. The flowers aren't the greatest, but overall the plant is a winner. Native to our area, this particular shrub is always covered in Cedar Waxwings when the fruit comes. They strip these plants of fruit in a matter of hours, not days.

Viburnum 'Winterthur'
Sticking with Viburnums, there are few plants that rival the fall color of this plant. The reds it produced each year are magnificent. I get little fruit on the plants because they require another variety of V. cassinoides to pollinate them. But fruit is secondary to the fall color and year-round appeal that 'Winterthur' foliage offers.

Viburnum molle 'Morton'
Another Viburnum!!! They sure have nice fall color, don't they? Native plants might be the best way to go for fall color! I liked the array of colors this plant was displaying. This is a future introduction for the Chicagoland Grows® program. It is similar to a Viburnum dentatum, but the foliage seems more broad, and the bark peels. So once the fall color is done, the bark provides winter interest!
Physocarpus Summer Wine®
In fall, the Ninebarks start to show nice red colors. While typically a purple foliaged plant, the combination of purple and red is outstanding. Some leaves have half purple, half red foliage and are quite desirable. I've noticed this in the past, but not to the extent that I'm seeing it this year. All the cultivars look nice, including Coppertina, Diabolo and 'Center Glow'.

Rhus aromatica 'Grow Low'
Who thinks of 'Grow Low' Sumac for fall color. I usually don't. This year has changed my mind. This planting which borders our prairie is quite beautiful. Everywhere I look, these are looking nice. And by everywhere, I mean everywhere. These are planted in every commercial job from Chicago to the Mississippi. So every commercial site looks pretty good right now. This salt tolerant plant has become a staple for our customers. While that does not need to change, I just need to stress diversity. If we can make these areas more diverse, we will not have to face a disease like we have with Ash on these guys. There can be too much of a good thing.
Vernonia glauca

The only thing I don't like about the plant is how it likes to reseed itself anywhere it can find a piece of dirt. Of course, my favorite thing about the plant is its seed though. Look at how great it looks going into winter. It does however move around with reckless abandon, so a formal garden or a smaller garden is not screaming out for it. If you have a larger area where you don't mind a few volunteer plants that get close to 6' tall, then this is for you!
Oenothera 'Cold Crick'

This plant was truly spectacular in bloom. I've never seen such brilliant yellow and so profuse. Then it goes into summer being a somewhat boring piece of foliage. Then in fall, it turns into a blazing sunset of colors. Allan Armitage says there are no perennials better for fall color than Amsonia. I beg to differ. He wrote that before the introduction of this plant. It reminds me of Geranium 'Max Frei' for fall color, only much better. We are still in the trial phase of this plant, so we do not actually grow it. I'm not sure what the market would be for it. If you are interested and think we should grow it, please email me at mgplanttrials@gmail.com

I've realized lately, that I do not show enough garden pictures. Sure I show you a lot of plants that are in the garden, but sometimes, the look of the whole garden says so much more than it's parts. In this case, we have Sporobolus heterolepis with Echinacea pallida and Allium 'Forescate'. This area of the garden receives very little maintenance. In fact, we weed it once a year, and do a spring burn. Watering is not necessary. It has become one of the more sustainable areas of the landscape. The plants cover the soil well enough that weeds are not growing in between. Except for a seedling Miscanthus, this area has been virtually weed free all year this year. That says a lot. I've never seen weeds as bad as they have been in '09. So, I will be efforting to show you more garden pictures in the future. You all want the big picture, right?

Thanks again for taking the time to read this. I hope you find something interesting in here. And if not, let me know what you'd like to see. I love getting feedback, but I don't receive it enough. Until next time, have a great day!

What's your favorite fall show?

2009-10-24T08:24:00.007-05:00

Hello again,
Cool summers have brought us some outstanding fall colors this year. Things I haven't noticed fall color on before, such as Forsythia and roses, are looking magnificent. I didn't get a good picture of Flower Carpet® Amber, but if you have one in your yard, take a look. They have rich purples and mahogany with a little orange all mixed in. What a nice attribute for a plant that looks great almost all summer. Here are the pictures though. They tell the story better.
Hamamelis virginiana
Are native shrubs your thing? Not what I'd typically think of as a great fall color producing plant. They are currently flowering in our landscape, but it is hard to see through the yellow and green-veined leaves. I love to see leaves with these kind of markings. This is yet another native plant with great fall attributes.

Juniperus virginiana 'Blue Mountain'
Is fruit your thing? If so, 'Blue Mountain' will produce some mighty nice fruit. The plants in our landscape have been here a long time. But even in pots, fruit production is magnificent. The silvery-blue fruit are very nice in contrast with the gray-blue foliage. This is truly a specimen Juniper that not enough people use.

Agastache 'Blue Fortune'
Are seed heads your thing? If so, Agastache looks great long into winter. The swaying seed heads were dancing in the wind yesterday. They look great will all the fall colors in the background. And even in snow, the plants stand tall and look great against the white background of a snow filled landscape.

Hosta 'Regal Splendor'
Are Hostas your thing? If so, then 'Regal Splendor' is a nice plant to look at. Hostas aren't always thought of for fall color. But this year, the silky gold foliage looks quite nice. Most Hosta in the landscape are displaying these colors this year. 'Blue Cadet' is another one with maybe a touch more flare.

Molinia 'Heidebraut'
Are grasses your thing? If so, an underutilized plant is this Molinia. One of my favorite Midwest Solutions® is the combination of this plant and the Rosa Knock Out®. Together they are a striking combination. You can see the flowers of the rose behind the bright yellow foliage of 'Heidebraut'. The texture of 'Heidebraut' looks great all year in contrast with these roses and other plants such as Phlox 'Blue Paradise'.
Coreopsis tripteris
Are native prairie plants your thing? If so, then check out this Coreopsis. Every year I see this plant, I am amazed. The colors mixed in are fabulous. Of course, if you don't have a lot of room in your yard, then this probably isn't the plant for you. But if you have a spot in the back of the border, by all means, plant this guy!

Berberis Sunjoy™ Gold Pillar™
If thorns are your thing, then go with this fella. These plants are visible from a distance. The bright orange is remarkable. I'm not the biggest fan of barberry, but this plant does have a use.

Amsonia hubrichtii
Is texture your thing? If so, few plants can rival the texture of Amsonia. The fall colors of these plants are great as well. The plant itself can be chlorotic throughout the year, so yellows are almost always present on this plant. But as I've learned, a lot of people like the plant when it's yellow in summer. Even with this, the fall color is more pronounced and more beautiful then summer.

Viburnum prunifolium
Are birds your thing? This is a plant we have in American Beauties Native Plants™. This will attract birds because it a)gives cover to the birds from predators, and b) produces fruit that are delicious to the birds. The fall color is pretty nice too. If you are unfamiliar, please give the Blackhaw Viburnum a try.

Viburnum x juddii
Is fragrance your thing? If so, you'll have to wait for spring for this plant to give off its intoxicating perfume. But doesn't her fall color give reason to try? In my opinion, there is no plant with better fragrance than Juddii Viburnum. It's like a spicy lilac. But it's fall color is to die for too. I am a little biased, because this is the first plant I ever planted in my parents yard when learning about plants. But what a great plant to get started with right?
Aronia arbutifolia 'Brilliantissima'
Last week I spoke of the red chokeberry, but never showed how great the foliage can actually get. We did physical inventory on shrubs this week, and I was asked to help. I was fortunate to get to count the hoop house of Aronia. What a sight to see. And what better than to be surrounded by amazing fall color. It was definitely a treat!

Aronia melanocarpa 'Elata'
If your thing is Chokeberries, then you like the last two plants I've spoke of. This is just your common black chokeberry in American Beauties Native Plants™ pots. Aren't they great?!? Our native plants have such great fall color, it's amazing that we search out the other continents for other options. We have some outstanding plants right here in North America.

Allium 'Summer Beauty'
Last, but certainly not least, if your thing is contrast, then this plant is for you. There are so many reasons Midwest Groundcovers has gotten behind this plant. This is one attribute that we forget about most of the year. Look at the amazing yellow scapes contrasted with the bright green foliage. I bet your daylilies don't look this good! On top of that, the spent flowers dangle gracefully above the bright yellow scapes creating a magical display of color. Everywhere in the landscape we have this, it looks this good. I took many a picture and had a lot of difficulty deciding where it looks best. This is a highly sustainable plant because it requires little care.

Thanks again for reading. I hope you are enjoying the many pictures and posts that I've put up here. Soon we'll be on to winter interest. I'm hoping that I can get one more week of fall color before we go to the whites and grays of winter. Also this winter we will be unveiling our new plants for 2010. That will be coming soon! Until next time, have a great day!

Plants on a Wall

2009-10-24T08:07:00.005-05:00

Hello all,
This will be a very quick post, but I wanted to show you our newest addition to the landscape along with a very old landscape specimen. Here they are.
I apologize if you blow this picture up. It was very windy when I took this picture, so it's not all in focus. With the new market of Living Walls taking shape, I wanted to remind you of how beautiful our Parthenocissus tricuspidata could be on a wall. The fall colors of this beauty are impeccable. It just goes to show you that Living Walls are not a new thing, but the technology sure has changed.

One of the newest additions to our landscape is this green wall. We recently hosted a Green Living Technology training and during the training they created this very interesting green wall. There are many species of plants here such as Carex 'Evergold' and Ajuga 'Black Scallop' just to name two. I am very interested in how this will look next year. I will keep you posted. If you would like further information on this kind of project, please email us at mgplanttrials@gmail.com

Beautiful Fall Colors

2009-10-12T12:34:00.008-05:00

Hello friends,
This week is the week that proves most difficult in our industry. Threats of frost and snow mean covering plants in the nursery and annuals that look terrible! It's not a time most of us look forward to unless we have a nice plowing contract for the winter. I look forward to this time of the year because I love the colors fall produces. We were just talking in the office about how nice it usually is this time of the year. Where did the jeans and t-shirt weather go? We didn't seem to have it this year. Well, some plants are surely disrupted by this cold weather, but others go on looking great. Here are some examples of plants that look good after a hard frost.

This morning, I was excited to see this container. Usually the Geranium 'Jolly Bee' goes to bed after a hard frost, but here they are still blooming with a nice specimen of Festival Grass™ accompanying them. Both plants I predicted would look terrible today when I came in. I was wrong on both accounts. The Festival grass has really stood up well this year to all the climactic change. They still show the deep burgundy color everyone loves. While not hardy, the fact that they look good now speaks volumes for planting them in your customers planters. I am still not the biggest annual fan in the world. Or if you truly want to classify it differently and call it a tropical, that's fine. But this plant is beginning to win me over. It is worthy of being in our landscape and yours.

Flower Carpet® Scarlet
It is still blooming. And it's not just a scattering of blooms. This plant is really blooming well! The foliage is very glossy green and tough as nails. This is a great plant. It reminds me how nice the new generation of Flower Carpet® roses really are.

Calamintha nepeta ssp nepeta
I feel like I'm constantly sticking up for this plant in the landscape. I first have to talk about how it is a sterile plant and will not run you down like the straight species Calamintha nepeta would. Then I have to convince people that the bees that cover this plant throughout summer will not sting their customers as they walk to the front door. If you've ever been on a tour here, you know what I like to do to the bees. I dive into the plants and they all scatter drunkenly to the next plant to get more pollen. They don't care about me! But look at this picture taken today. For those of you looking for a long bloom time in the garden, it's still blooming. It has not stopped since June!!! This is a must have! If you don't like the scent of peppermint, well I can't help you there. But I am more than willing to sell you on this plant if you need more pushing!
Sedum kamtchaticum
Not the first plant you think of when considering fall color. But it should be up there. Think of this color as a groundcover! We have it installed on a roof here at the nursery and it looks stunning. We have it mixed with Allium 'Forescate' and other varieties of Sedum. Imagine having a planting of this as your groundcover, and Asters and Amsonia hubrechtii intermixed. Ooh. Bright yellows, purples and reds!
Iroquois Beauty™ Aronia
What a nice plant for fruit and fall color. Oranges and yellows and reds oh my! Add black to that and you have Iroquois Beauty™. This has the best fruit display of any Aronia I have ever seen. It stays short so it adds value because of that. These have not completely changed, so think of how great they could be! Though I like the contrast of green and oranges. Herman Tiedeman and I both agree that Aronia could be a great substitution for Burning Bush in the future, but the time is now to make the change! Aronia 'Brilliantissima' is the best for fall color and adds red fruit to boot.
Rhus copallina Prairie Flame™
It's not that we hate the look of Burning Bush. It's that it is so one dimensional. It turns red in fall. Yea! With Prairie Flame™, you add a bloom time in summer where it looks great again. The texture of the plant is far nicer than that of a burning bush. It does sucker a tad, but otherwise is a fabulous plant. The fall color is outstanding as well. Pictured in reds and purples, it also takes on tones of yellow and orange before it drops. Quite the nice plant.
Redwing™ Viburnum
When I started writing this, it wasn't intended to throw Euonymus alatus under the bus. But since I've started, I feel more inclined to do so. Not only does this have phenomenal foliage, but it is also a native cultivar. So it is beneficial to the environment in addition to being beautiful. The fruit of this species is attractive to birds. In early spring, the new foliage is a reddish tinge which gives it the name Redwing™ as the new foliage amongst older green foliage looks like the wings of a bird.
Corylus americana
Few shrubs rival American Hazelnut for fall color. It is also a native so there are many benefits to this plant. It produces hazelnuts for one!!! I've tried them, and they are just like the flavor you add to your coffee. They are tough to crack, so a nutcracker is recommended. If you are looking to plant the seeds, abrasion is necessary. Be careful though. It says to make a puncture hole on one side of the nut before planting. I'm still not sure what the best way to do that is. The way I tried produced a hole in my finger. Anyways, you can see how nice the foliage is.

It's hard to do a segment on fall color and not show you any trees. I walked by some Amelanchier and Sugar Maples that I would have liked to add. But shrubs are so often forgotten. Grasses and trees can be the easy stars of fall, but there are some great shrubs that deserve your attention as well. It's been a pleasure. Until next time, have a great day!

Free Hotdogs!

2009-10-06T09:34:00.004-05:00

Hello everybody,
You may or may not be aware that this is Midwest Groundcovers' 40th Anniversary this year. Hopefully you are aware. But we've been having some great sales this year as well as some free hot dogs. You missed the October 5th free hot dog stand, but you are most welcome on the 12th as we dish out hot dogs from 11:00am to 1:00pm.
Look at the grill marks! Rick is the grill master! These are all beef hot dogs. All the condiments that you may like as well as some apple cider is on hand for you. Please come and enjoy the flavor.

Allium 'Ozawa'
I've shown a couple pictures this year of this plant. The anticipation of seeing what I see now was, to me, worth it. These are the open flowers of 'Ozawa'. Isn't she lovely? They don't look the greatest in containers, but for the landscape, they look fantastic this time of the year. Patience is a virtue. This one requires it.

Callirhoe involucrata
This is a plant that we are considering growing. They tend to send off some long arms, so we were unsure how that would go over. This is another plant whose virtues are worth waiting for. In the landscape you will be rewarded with fabulous color in summer and fall. Bottom line is, in a container, Callirhoe is lacking. Put it in the ground, and you have a superstar!

Aconitum fischerii
The late bloomer. These are not in our product line either, but I'm interested in the demand. If you want beautiful Monkshood, you should let us know. These are established plants in the landscape. I have them in full sun, but this plant will tolerate a good amount of shade as well. In fact, the shade is "preferred." I look at the plants in full sun, and wonder how they could look any better.

Miscanthus 'Autumn Red'
The farthest right of all the Miscanthus pictured, 'Autumn Red' creates a fairly upright clump that turns a nice mix of colors in the fall. This is most similar to 'Purpurascens' but with nicer fall color.

Yes! Michigan!

2009-10-01T09:52:00.007-05:00

Hello again,
I had the pleasure of going to Michigan to look at some of our sample plants that various vendors have given us to trial. I wanted to see how things have been progressing and work with Drew, our production manager there on which plants we think we should grow. It really helps us when the accession and production groups get together so that we can all be on the same page. Communication is everything in this business. Maybe in all businesses for that matter. Here are some of the plants that we've added in the last few years for various reasons. And also pictured are some nice shots of crops growing there as we speak. In the next couple of weeks, Midwest Groundcovers will be having some great sales! Now is the time to buy plant material. But in addition to the great plants that we will be discounting are some fabulous regular priced items. I will show you one of the great deals, but mostly I wanted to show you some of the great plants that are not on sale and worth every penny we ask.
Phlox 'David's Lavender'
If you like Phlox 'David', then you should like his lavender counterpart. They have a nice colored flower similar to what we used to offer in 'Franz Schubert', but with greater mildew resistance. They are not all blooming now, but the plants are super clean and will perform well for you next year!

Aster tataricus 'Jin-Dai'
Several years ago we planted these in the garden here. They are very late bloomers, so I was never sure if there was a true market for them. Architects and designers have come late enough to see them bloom, and have had really nice words to say about them. A trip to Cleveland a couple years ago brought them back to my attention. They had planted them along a walkway that looked down onto another garden. The blooms were looking up at me with their bright yellow eyes, and I fell in love all over again. They do have a course foliage but they do not show off their naked legs like so many other Asters do. They do have a tendency to spread a little, but what good Aster doesn't?
Aster novae-angliae 'Purple Dome'
The crop of these look so nice right now. I always enjoy seeing a big crop like this one when everything is in bloom. If you were thinking about planting fall mums this week, why? Get some Asters! They'll even come back reliably. Oh, that's why.

Hosta 'June'
This is a favorite of mine. All Hosta have become a recent passion, but 'June' will forever remain the best. This is just the liners, but who wouldn't want to see this. I just made it the background for my computer monitor! It's always fun to see the baby plants, and if you are a grower, to see them mature into larger saleable plants. These babies will be saleable next year.

Hosta 'Frances Williams'
I have to admit that sometimes I forget about the oldies. One look at this crop and I realized that once I have more room to plant at home, I'll be buying some. They are so clean without the slightest touch of a slug. No damage on any plants whatsoever. So, remember that sometimes new doesn't always mean good. Don't forget about the beauties of days past.

Hosta 'First Frost'
So new doesn't always mean good, but in this instance it does. This is the Hosta of the Year 2010. It may not look like much now, but a mature plant of this is very nice. Think Hosta 'Halcyon' with white margins. In my opinion, 'Halcyon' is one of the best Hostas ever. Another sport of 'Halcyon' is 'June' so it has a history of nice children. I'm really excited that we will be able to offer this superb plant to you next year.
Echinacea Big Sky™ Harvest Moon
This is a house of Harvest Moon, just to show you how nice some of these plants still look. In the landscape, a mature plant may not still have as many blooms as these do, but it makes me think that if we could convert people into purchasing them at this time of year instead of mums, the world could be a much better place. Think about the additional benefits of coneflowers over chrysanthemums. After they are done blooming they still provide color with the goldfinches and other birds that will come to eat the seeds.
Echinacea 'Coconut Lime'
Even the double varieties look great in the pots. No need for white mums with these hanging around.

Veronica 'Royal Candles'
These still look superb as well.

Chelone 'Hot Lips'
I never fully understood the appeal of this plant. But I'm learning to love it. This year, these plants look great. They always do, but we always sell out so that I don't get to see them bloom this way. I planted them in the landscape a couple years ago when we finally had plants that I didn't feel guilty to take. I don't like to plant things that our customers really want and we don't have great quantities on. So we did plant them, and we do have good quantities now. Look at the great fall flower color these have. The houses are blooming like mad. If you are not familiar with these, they like some moisture and like some shade. I can't tell you how many times I've been asked about plants for moist shade. That explains why they are in such demand.
Let's move on to grasses:
Molinia 'Transparent'
This would be one of the plants that we are offering at a special price. Look at how nice they are. This is one of the best deals I've seen in a long time. For more information on the sale, please call us or go to our website at http://www.midwestgroundcovers.com/ and go to our availability for pricing.

Miscanthus sinensis 'Purpurascens'
I'm not always the most fond of Miscanthus. But seeing a large crop of 2700 #3 sized plants with their flowers glistening in the sunlight is a sight to see. Clearly they are available, so please don't hesitate to call and order some for your next pick up or delivery!

Sporobolus heterolepis 'Tara'
I always talk about how uniform a house of 'Tara' is, so I wanted to show you. Though I know the picture may not be in the greatest focus, you can get the point. You could put a level on top of these plants, and if the seed heads were strong enough, it would be perfect. This is such a uniform plant. For those that are afraid of the "native look", and still want the cilantro like smell of Sporobolus, try 'Tara'.

Sesleria autumnalis
As you can see, this is a very nice mass of plants. It's a different look than Pennisetum, but they will reliably live and look great season after season. And they are salt tolerant.

Phytolacca americana
Commonly known as Pokeweed, this is my favorite of all weeds. The problem with it is that it is terribly poisonous. If you have kids around, you should probably not have this plant. If you do not, then I say keep it. A friend of mine has a variegated one! Ooohhh! If it is close to an area where it could get stained by it's fruit juice, you may want to remove it as well. The birds in my neighborhood eat the fruit, which can cause a mess once digested. Birds apparently are immune to the poison but mammalian herbivores leave it alone.

Fall colors are coming. My next post will focus on that. Thanks again for reading. Until next time, have a great day.