Megan Nichols

Is it a coneflower? Is it a daisy? No, it’s a Black Eyed Susan, or a Susie. The Rudbeckias (the Latin, or scientific name) are a large genus (a group of living things with similar characteristics that is further subdivided into species), that is familiar to us all. With several different species, there is at least one Black Eyed Susan that will fit in your garden.

Rudbeckias are found in different habitats, from damp woodlands to dry prairies, but none are very picky about their growing conditions. All prefer sun to part shade and moist to average soil. They are generally fairly drought and heat tolerant when established. They are clump formers, meaning they won’t spread by runners; they are well behaved in your garden. Most are fairly coarse in texture, so planting them with a finer, fluffier plant like a Hubricht’s amsonia would make a pretty combination. All have roughly the same familiar Black Eyed Susan flower, but with a few differences: the cone section can be brown or black, and can get quite prominent in some.

All Rudbeckias are great pollinator plants. Small finches love the seeds, so try to avoid deadheading at the end of their blooming season.

Here are three less common members of the Black Eyed Susan genus that make great garden plants.

Rudbeckia subtomentosa ‘Henry Eilers’ has lovely delicate flowers. The petals are quilled, meaning they are rolled into little tubes with a tiny flat area on the end, subtle and beautiful. The lemon yellow flower itself is about 2 inches across. The whole plant can get to 4 to 5’ tall, with stiff stems that won’t break in the wind. It is very low maintenance, like all Susie’s and makes an excellent cut flower, particularly with its long stems.

Rudbeckia maxima, the Giant Coneflower. A spectacular plant! Growing to 5 to 6’ tall with large, grayish blue leaves, it is a strong vertical accent in your garden. It has tall upright single stems each crowned with a yellow flower with a large cone. Very striking in front of a stand of Zagreb tickseed, faced down with some Lyreleaf sage.

And, last but not least, Rudbeckia laciniata, Cut leaf coneflower, which can get to  to 10’ tall. Imagine a 10’ Black eyed Susan! The leaves are a beautiful medium green, lobed, a little like a maple leaf. The cones on these flowers are a dark yellow green. This plant can take some shade, and likes a moister soil – its natural habitat is moist woods and along stream banks. It would be very nice paired with some Switchgrass, which would help hold it up and whose chunkier form would be a good contrast to its open habit.

All these summer and late summer blooming plants would look wonderful planted in the middle to the rear of your garden. Give yourself a treat and plant one today!

Written by Liz Nalle.

Published in the Coastal Point.

If you drive down route 1 between Bethany and the bridge, you might see a shrub starting to bloom now, with white to light pink flowers. This is one of our prettiest natives, the Beach Plum, Prunus maritima.

Its native habitat is the dunes, where it grows to around 8’ in dense thickets. It is salt tolerant, and needs sandy, well drained soil and full sun. It will grow inland, where it can get to 15, but will not tolerate poorly draining clay. The flowers bloom white in small clusters, and when they are pollinated, usually by native wild bees, they get a pink tinge. It has an interesting adaptation to living on the dunes: as sand covers its trunk, it grows more roots along the trunk, eventually producing a wide spreading root system that is excellent in helping stabilize the dunes. As a member of the cherry family, it has cherry like fruit, which range from sour to fairly sweet which appear in August and September. Birds love the fruit, and it makes great jam, if you get to them in time.

It makes a great garden shrub, or very small tree, depending on what shape you’re looking for. It needs full, meaning all day, sun, and well drained soil. The bark is pretty as well. Imagine it now, growing with some daffodils, and spreading phlox under it. With its thick, spreading root system, it is great at dune stabilization, although it does prefer the older dune community, not the newer, ocean front dunes.

If you see beach plums growing, you’ll know you’re looking at an established, mature, and healthy dune system, which is great!

By Liz Nalle for the Coastal Point

Brandywine Viburnum – beautiful, adaptable, and reliable

The whole Viburnum family are great shrubs, but today we’ll be talking about one that is looking more and more beautiful everyday – Viburnum nudum ‘Brandywine’. Because the berries are desirable to birds and the flowers to pollinators, this is the ideal shrub for your garden to become a certified wildlife habitat!

All viburnums, Brandywine included, grow well in sun or part shade, although in our southern Delaware summer heat, I’d give them some afternoon shade. They are easily grown in average, medium to moist, well drained soils. They can take a short flood but not standing water. They can take a little salt too. Slightly acidic soils, like we have here, are best. Average soil fertility is fine; most plants do not need extra fertilizer. They can get to about 6’ tall, and almost as wide. Prune after flowering if you really need to, but leave some flower clusters for fall berry production. This is a great plant for creating a hedge on your property so plant them 6-7’ on center (6 – 7’ from the center of one plant to the center of the next) or just use it as an outstanding focal point in the landscape. All in all, this is an easy, low maintenance shrub. Many viburnums need another related plant to cross pollinate and sent berries, but not Brandywine – it is self fertile. It does make a good pollinator for Winterthur viburnums, though.

If you plant one or more of these, you will be rewarded with 3 seasons of beauty. In spring, about May if we don’t have a cold, damp spring, Brandywine will have flat clusters of creamy white flowers. The emerging glossy, dark green leaves perfectly set off the fluffy flower cluster. And, speaking of the leaves, they are spectacular. Oval, medium sized, they are a shiny deep green; they look like they’ve been sprayed with leaf shine. In fall they turn a deep glossy mahogany red, absolutely spectacular. They are starting to change color now. To top all this off, Brandywine has one of the most beautiful berry displays of all. The berries start off small and green – as they get larger they turn a pretty, bright pink. Then they change to different shades of blue – you’ll have pink, and blue berries at the same time!

While there is no such thing as a perfect plant, this one comes close. Easy care, medium size, and outstanding beauty all contribute to making this a great plant for you!

by Liz Nalle, contributor to the Coastal Point Newspaper

Oakleaf hydrangea – a spot of early summer color in the shade

The Oakleaf hydrangea , Hydrangea quercifolia, is a dramatic, white-blooming shrub with four seasons of interest. Native to the eastern United States, it is a gorgeous and versatile deciduous shrub which provides a spectacular show all year round. Named after the shape of its beautiful leaves, it produces loads of creamy-white flowers, up to 12 in., in late spring and early summer – it’s blooming now. Lasting about 3-4 weeks, the elongated flower clusters gradually turn a dusty pink as fall approaches and they dry out. Crafters and flower arrangers love the dried flower heads. In fall, the foliage of deeply lobed, oak-like leaves steals the show by turning bronze, crimson or burgundy, making this flowering shrub one of the most attractive shrubs for the fall garden. As the leaves fall, they expose the rich brown exfoliating bark.

It is not picky about soil type, and appreciates the good drainage our sandy soils provide. It does not like a wet spot though, and will get root rot if it doesn’t get some drainage. Once established, it is somewhat drought tolerant. Mulch it well to keep the roots cool (almost all plants love a summer mulch!). Here in our muggy summers, it needs some shade, afternoon preferred. It blooms on old wood – the growth it produced the previous year – so if you really need to prune it (you usually won’t if you get the right variety), prune it right after it flowers. Because of our humidity, it might get some leaf spots, like most hydrangeas. This is mostly an aesthetic problem, the leaf spot won’t do much damage. Hygiene and no overhead watering are key to controlling this; clean up the leaves that fall to the ground and put them in the trash. Deer might munch on it, sadly. You can find varieties that get to anywhere from 3’ tall and wide, to 8’; there’s one for you. 

Striking leaves and texture – fabulous flowers – wonderful fall color – and beautiful peeling bark – this shrub really has it all. 

by Liz Nalle, contributor to the Coastal Point Newspaper

A beautiful native shrub that is blooming now is the Fothergilla.  This native shrub deserves the spotlight for its fall foliage show, and spring flowers, ease of care, and versatility round out a profile of a beautiful and multipurpose plant. (Did I mention the gorgeous fall color?) These native shrubs are useful as foundation plants, in shrub borders and when massed. Related to witch hazels, they combine well in home landscapes with azaleas and rhododendrons, as well as Japanese andromeda. 

There are two species in the genus: Large Fothergilla (F. major) is native to the Allegheny Mountains of the eastern United States, while dwarf Fothergilla (F. gardenii) grows naturally along the Southeastern coastal plain. Both shrubs are very hardy here and are rarely troubled by insects or diseases. Large Fothergilla grows 6 to 8 feet high and wide, while dwarf Fothergilla stays at 3 to 6 feet.

Plant these shrubs in full sun to partial shade, however, they will flower and have better fall color in sun. They grow best in moderately moist but well-drained ground that has a soil pH on the acidic side (what we generally have here). Since it blooms on last year’s growth, prune after the flowering period if you truly need to prune (alternatively, if you do not mind losing a few of next year’s flowers, you can prune when the bush is dormant). But Fothergilla requires only minimal pruning. If branches are rubbing against each other in the inner part of the plant, you may wish to prune to “open up” the shrub. But avoid pruning it to give it a uniform shape: it is more appealing when it sports the “wild look.” You can trim off dead branches at any time of the year.

There are two cultivars that are commonly found, both outstanding plants: Blue Shadow, and Mount Airy. Mount Airy has an upright growth habit and reaches 3 to 5 feet in height, with a similar width. In spring, this shrub is tipped with white flowers (1 to 3 inches long) that have the appearance of little bottlebrushes, which is why “bottlebrush” is another common name for the shrub. The flowers, which bloom in mid- or early spring, smell a bit like licorice. Blue Shadow is a little bigger, 4 – 6’ tall and wide.  Its foliage comes in green in spring, turns a beautiful blue/gray in summer, and brilliant shades of yellow, orange and red in fall. It will sometimes shoot out an all green branch – just prune these off so the whole plant doesn’t revert to green. 

You won’t regret planting one of these in your garden! Pick one up from your local garden center.

by Liz Nalle, contributor to the Coastal Point Newspaper

One of the stand out plants in the fall garden is Pink Muhly grass, Muhlenbergia capillaris. With its clouds of pinkish purple plumes dancing in the wind making a stunning display, it will stop traffic in your neighborhood.

Muhly grass is native to the southern and eastern United States. They often grow in dry or semidry regions, with adaptations that make them a good choice for low-water landscapes. This also means they appreciate well-drained soil to remain healthy and survive wet winters, which we can certainly provide. They need full sun and dry conditions to look their best, and may suffer in shade or wet summers. They do like a dryer spot in winter as well, they can rot if they stay too wet when it’s colder out. Muhly grass tolerates heat, humidity, drought, poor soil and is even highly salt tolerant. It’s not a deer favorite either. Like any ornamental grass, it looks better if it’s cut back in early spring, before the new growth starts, but it doesn’t need to be.

This beautiful grass gets to about 3 – 4’ tall and wide, vase shaped and tidy. The leaf blades are dark green and feel rounded to the touch. They look a little spiky, somewhat stiff and straight, but certainly don’t feel that way. In spring and summer, they provide great texture to the garden, stiff, but fine textured. The plant has a great V shape, nice with mounded shapes. In late summer the tiny rosy pink flowers emerge in airy groups, they are just starting here. They then develop into pinkish purple seed heads. Long-lived, with little to no insect or disease pests and highly resistant to deer grazing, this ornamental grass is perfect for the low-maintenance garden. Try massing it, the seed heads are absolutely gorgeous in a group, providing movement and structure to mixed borders. It is beautiful over in the meadow at the Delaware Botanic Garden, go take a look.

This isn’t a well known grass, but deserves to be much more popular. Try one today and see.

by Liz Nalle, contributor to the Coastal Point Newspaper

The purple coneflower – Echinacea purpurea – is one of the most common, and loved native wildflowers. It is beautiful, easy care, not a deer favorite, and comes in different sizes and colors. We wrote about coneflowers last year, but there have been new varieties introduced, and we have learned more about them, so we thought we could look at them again.

Coneflowers are not indigenous to our region – they are not naturally occurring, you’ll find them growing in moist prairies, meadows and open woods of the central to southeastern United States. But, by our definition of native, which is how functional a plant is in providing food and shelter for all the birds and pollinators that we love, Coneflowers are definitely native! They aren’t invasive or aggressive either, they won’t spread everywhere and become a nuisance. And, they don’t mind our heat, humidity, and sandy soil.

Coneflowers need full sun (6+ hours a day) to flower well, and average to moist soil. Once established, they are somewhat drought tolerant, Their stems are stiff, so they hold up well in a garden. Some varieties have large leavers, and can be subject to some leaf spot diseases, but those mostly cause aesthetic problems, they will rarely kill the plant. They do need good drainage, so make sure your area doesn’t stay wet all the time – moist is ok, wet is too much.

There are a lot of different cultivars (cultivated varieties) available, as well as different species of coneflower. We all know the Purple Coneflower, but do you know the Pale Purple Coneflower – Echinacea pallida? It get 2 to 3’ tall, needs sun to do well, and is tolerant of poor soils. The ray flowers (what look like the petals, see our article last year) are a pale purple, more of a pastel combining very nicely with for example, “Moonbeam” Coreopsis. It blooms a couple weeks earlier than Purple Coneflower, and has a taproot, making it a little harder to move. The leaves are narrower, and the ray flowers droop down very gracefully. All in all, a very pretty plant.

Of the cultivated varieties, one of our favorites is “Pica Bella”. The great botanical garden, Mt. Cuba up in Hockessin, has an excellent research and development program on plants best suited to the Mid Atlantic states. They have published their results and the plants are available at select nurseries and garden centers – ask if your local garden center carries the Mt Cuba Top Performers, or the Mt Cuba Collection! These are plants proven to do well here! “Pica Bella” grows to about 2’, and is compact and covered with rosy purple flowers. Researchers at Mt Cuba noted that it was one of the best at attracting pollinators – butterflies love it too! You can cut a few stems, it does make a great cut flower, but leave a few flowers to develop the seeds for the birds, which are absolutely adorable as they perch on the flowerhead to munch away. Very pretty massed with Black Eyed Susans or Coreopsis, Gayfeather, and Russian Sage, with some Little Bluestem in the background. This would make a great pollinator garden, easy care and beautiful.

Try a Coneflower today in your garden, it’s not too late to plant one, and you won’t regret it!

by Liz Nalle, contributor to the Coastal Point Newspaper

Switch grass – Nothing to panic about, a wonderful plant

Switch grass, also known as Panic grass, or Panicum virgatum, is one of the most common grasses found here on the Delmarva coast.

It is easily grown in average, medium to wet soils in full sun to part shade, and it tolerates a wide range of soils, including dry ones, but prefers moist, sandy or clay soils. Switchgrass also tolerates occasional flooding and salt spray. It may flop in overly rich soils, so this is great for us near here as it doesn’t need fertilizing, so won’t contribute to water quality issues in the bays. It generally performs best in full sun; it will grow in part shade, but begins to lose its form in too much shade, growing more openly and possibly falling over. It grows primarily in clumps, but will slowly spread by slightly creeping rhizomes (a horizontal underground stem). Very low maintenance – cut back clumps to the ground in late winter to early spring. Plants may self-seed in optimum growing conditions but cultivars may not come true from seed. Growth often starts slowly at the beginning of the season – you could be wondering if your plant is dead? It isn’t, it’s just waiting for it to get warm. Once soil and air temperatures climb, they grow well through the remainder of the season. The seedbeds are beautiful, pinkish purple, in open, lacy sprays with small seeds, in Aug-Oct. Little birds love the seeds.

Panicum virgatum ‘Northwind’ was the 2014 Plant of the Year® awarded by the Perennial Plant Association. Many cultivated varieties (cultivars) are naturally occurring varieties that someone noticed. They are not artificially produced, and can be perfect in wildlife gardens.

Switchgrass has many fascinating uses, besides being a great ornamental. It can be used as a feedstock, as ground cover for soil conservation, to control erosion, for forages and grazing, and as game cover. It can be used by cattle farmers for hay and pasture and as a substitute for wheat straw in many applications, including livestock bedding, straw bale housing, and as a substrate for growing mushrooms. Switchgrass has been researched as a renewable bioenergy crop since the mid-1980s, because it is a native perennial warm season grass (meaning it grows best when it’s warm out, as opposed to many turf grasses which grow when it’s cooler), with the ability to produce moderate to high yields on marginal farmlands. In a new application, scientists have genetically modified switchgrass to enable it to produce a plastic, which accumulates in beadlike granules within the plant’s cells. Switchgrass is useful for soil conservation and amendment. It has a deep fibrous root system – nearly as deep as the plant is tall, helping control soil and wind erosion. It was once one of the dominant species the tall grass prairie, holding that soil in place and feeding huge herds of bison. Plants host the caterpillars of several skipper species, including the Delaware skipper.  The seed are eaten by a variety of birds and small rodents. Tender young foliage is browsed by deer and livestock and dense upright growth provides winter cover for wildlife.

There are some great varieties available:

• Northwind — to 6’ Tall and upright. Great privacy screen
• Heavy Metal — to 5’ Blue gray foliage, striking
• Purple Tears — to 4’ Soft gray, flowering spikes with purple seed heads and purple leaf tips
• Shenandoah — to 4’ Beautiful fall color – red leaves and tan seed heads
• Cape Breeze — to 3’ More compact and arching form, great substitute for invasive maiden grass. More salt tolerant, beautiful, graceful seed heads

Switchgrass is an essential part of the fall garden, it is beautiful mixed with Coneflowers, Asters, Coreopsis, Goldenrods, and Little Bluestem. Try a few today!

By Liz Nalle, contributor to the Coastal Point Newspaper

In these dog days of summer, when it’s so hot and humid outside, something healthy, flowering and green is a welcome sight in the garden. There is one shrub that shines this time of year, and that is the shrub aptly known as Summersweet or Sweet pepperbush, or Clethra alnifolia.

Clethra is native to the coastal plain, our ecoregion here in Southern Delaware. You’ll see it naturally growing in low spots in the forest, so from that habitat you can tell it loves moist to wet sandy soil. It is one of the few shrubs that will bloom in the shade; its preference is a bright, dappled shade but it will tolerate full shade. It can take full sun too, as long as the soil stays consistently moist. If it’s in the shade, it will grow in somewhat drier soil. A good layer of mulch will help keep the root zone cool and moist. It also tolerates salt spray, making it suitable for our gardens here. Even better, it’s not a deer favorite, although they might munch on it some.

The species itself can get anywhere from 5 to 8 feet tall. It has a fairly upright growth habit, and will sucker, spreading into a nice sized clump. It is very easily controlled however, if you want it to stay smaller. It has beautiful glossy dark green leaves that shine in the shade. They can turn an attractive yellow in the fall, but this shrub is primarily grown for its beautiful flowers. And they are fragrant! The narrow, upright inflorescence (the complete flower head) gets from 3 to 6” long, and is made up of hundreds of small white, or pink flowers. Pollinators love it! It is blooming now, and the name Pepperbush comes from the attractive seed heads that last into winter, each one resembling a peppercorn. It has no serious pest or disease problems. It also needs very little maintenance other than giving it some water. It can be pruned in late winter or early spring, if you really need to keep it in bounds. To control its size, like any shrub, you can cut back about 1/3 of the oldest stems close to the ground every few years, but do it randomly to preserve a more natural look.

There are some great cultivated varieties:

Hummingbird only gets to about 3 feet with large beautiful white blossoms

Sixteen Candles also stays small with great flowers

Ruby Spice can get to 6 feet and has lovely, deep pink flowers

This is a wonderful, easy to grow shrub that deserves far more use in our gardens. Try one today.

By Liz Nalle, contributor to the Coastal Point Newspaper

Our three favorite native picks for this month are unique in their own way. Each one is a fabulous choice for lanscaping with native plants since they will bring an abundance of wildlife to your backyard. 

Corylus americana –American Hazelnut
Great used as a hedge or in a naturalized woodland setting where it has room to spread. Beginning now to produce its “filberts” or hazelnuts — which are edible! Birds love them too making this a great pick for habitat gardening. Will thrive in full sun to part shade. Can reach a height of 16 feet with a spread of 13 feet. 

Lobelia cardinalis – Cardinal Flower
Beautiful bright red flower that hummingbirds depend on for late summer nectar. Adaptable plant, thrives in wet to dry soil and thrives in full sun to shade.

Cephalanthus occidentalis Sugar Shack®– Buttonbush
This smaller Proven Winners Buttonbush stays more compact than the straight species. Does its best in moist, wet soil making it a great shrub for rain gardens. Unique globe flowers attract many pollinators of all types. Thrives in part sun to full sun and reaches a height of 2-3 feet.