June is National Rose Month

Hello again,

June is National Rose Month, so naturally, we finally replanted our rose garden near our retail center.  David Austin, Easy Elegance, Knock Out, Flower Carpet, Home Run roses and more were planted there this week.  Today I'll highlight the Easy Elegance®.

Easy Elegance® Yellow Submarine
For many years we've been looking for the best yellow rose.  For the longest time, I stood by Carefree Sunshine™ as the best, but I have since changed my mind to this one.  The foliage stays very clean and the flowers hold their color for a long time before fading to a cream color.  These will grow to 3' tall and wide and look stunning mixed with Salvia 'May Night'.

Easy Elegance® My Girl
My Girl is one of the more fragrant of the series.  Foliage remains very attractive even after the invasion of Japanese Beetles. Flowers are on the pink side, though this picture shows a lot of red.  It is a different color than the "knock out red" that has become the trend in rose varieties.  Yellow stamens really show off the pink color. 

Salvia sclarea 'Vatican White'
This is one of those plants that never ceases to amaze me.  Every year it blooms, it has the incredibly white, large blooms that soar over very large foliage.  Foliage is interesting when the plant is not in bloom, and it does have reddish-purple stems which are always a favorite of mine.  This was a trial plant of ours from many years ago, and it still performs.  It has moved around a little via seed, but the plants are pretty easy to pull. 

Geranium 'Rozanne'
My favorite plant.  Those of you that have been on tours with me, have probably heard me say that about many a plant as I walk around the gardens.  I have many favorites, I suppose.  But 'Rozanne' is my absolute favorite.  She blooms from now until frost.  During the hottest times of the summer, it doesn't bloom as heavy, but otherwise it most always looks great. Rambling to 24" tall and 36" wide, it can also "climb" on top of other perennials to make them look good when not in bloom.

Sorbaria sorbifolia 'Sem'
I usually have only photographed this plant when first leafing out.  That is my favorite time for this plant.  However, I've been asked several times about the picture on top of the blog currently, and how does it look later in the season.  This is the bloom time for 'Sem', and in bloom it looks great.  Still some newer foliage that has the oranges and reds with the green are present with the white flowers.  This plant can sucker a little, and form a colony of fern-like foliage.  In 6 years, it has grown 6' tall and 10' wide after suckering.

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

April Gems in the Garden

Hello again,
This week we have lots of new plants looking great. The cool temperatures of our normal spring are back and slowing down the process. Night time frosts have been scary at the nursery, but for the most part, we've been able to protect what's needed protection and our plants still look great. In the landscape, a couple things have declined due to the frost, but 99% of everything looks better than last year.
Thermopsis 'Sophia'
I had promised someone last week that I would talk about this plant, and then I got excited about all the others instead. Oops. This one deserves our attention though. In the same family as Baptisia, this looks great in our landscape. An evaluation group I'm a part of, called Perennials in Focus, has been buzzing about this plant in our yards. Everyone loves it. Some have it mixed in combination with Geum 'Mai Tai', and it looks very nice. 'Sophia' grows 20" tall and 30" wide in my garden. This picture was taken on the 6th of April and it still looks great.
Syringa vulgaris 'Prairie Petite'
I've had this plant in the landscape for a long time now. I always describe it as the landscape meatball for the meatball lovers. These have never been pruned, yet they keep a very compact pruned-like look. On one hand, the size and mildew resistance are fantastic for a common lilac. In 7 years in the landscape, I've never seen mildew on it actually. They are 40" tall and about as wide. My only problem with this plant is that the flowers barely reach above the foliage when in bloom. Is this a problem designers and architects? If you feel it's not a problem and you want us to grow it, let us know.
Sorbiria sorbifolia 'Sem'A returning member of the blog, one of my favorite shrubs is 'Sem'. This plant is 6 years old and 4 and 1/2' tall. The spread is about 6' wide with some suckering. What's not to like about the new growth on this plant though. White flowers will come later in the season, but the highlight is now when the new growth makes people sprain their necks double taking. In this instance, this plant is grown in full sun and very dry conditions. Last year was a wet one, and for the first time, I started to see suckering, encouraging me to recommend it for dry sites.
Kolkwitzia Dream Catcher™ I've begun to really like this plant over the years. Our plants are growing in the shade of a State Street™ Maple and have retained their color well. At this time, the plants reach about 4' tall and then create the illusion of Dr. Seuss's The Grinch's fingers as they extend to the woods. New growth displaying an orangish-red cast. For the shady area, it really gives a nice color to brighten up this spot.


Veronica whitleyi and Sedum sexangulare These two plants have learned to play very well together. While at first separate after planting, they now create an effect of spilled water over moss. The blue flowers of the Veronica are her for a month or so, and then the Sedum will follow with a display of bright yellow flowers. A nice groundcover combo.
Heuchera villosa 'Caramel'
Always a favorite of mine since I first laid eyes on it. The color throughout the season is great. This year, I think it may be the best I've ever seen. The These plants are 12" tall and nearly 2 feet wide. They are surrounded by Dodecatheon so they should be even more interesting to look at next week.

Nepeta 'Early Bird'
Mark this one as the earliest flowering Nepeta in our catalog. It blooms a couple weeks before 'Blue Wonder' in our gardens. Last year this was an addition to our Piet Oudolf designed garden, and so far I like the effect. We basically used this in areas near the walkways or the roads and they "spill" over the sides. At this point they haven't gotten quite big enough to spill, but they're almost there. Never having been a fan of Nepeta in general, I wasn't sure about this one. But it is starting to become more appealing. Every plant has its place, right? I think this one has found its spot.

Thanks once again for taking the time to read. It has been a nice and busy spring. Attitudes this year have been excellent, and that will lead us into better times. Until next time, I hope you have a great day!

April Showers are stopping the flowers

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!