Black Eyed Susan
Black Eyed Susan – a Summer Favorite What is summer without the bright and cheerful flowers of Black Eyed Susans? Long blooming, tough, and easy to grow, the Rudbeckias are a large group (genus) of plants that many of us depend on in our summer gardens. And, did you know that there are actually two […]
Oakleaf Hydrangea
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 […]
Virginia Sweetspire
Virginia Sweetspire – beautiful in Delaware too Virginia sweetspire (Itea virginica) is one of the most attractive and versatile of our native shrubs. It is a deciduous to semi-evergreen shrub that is found in the southeast USA on stream banks and wet pine barrens, along swamp edges here in Delaware. It can grow up to […]
Winter King Hawthorn
A Tree for all Seasons – Winter King Hawthorn The Winter King green hawthorn tree (Crataegus viridis ‘Winter King’) is a lovely small tree for sun or shade, with flowers, berries, good fall color, and attractive peeling bark. It shines in winter with its beautiful red berries, and peeling silver gray bark revealing cinnamon colored […]
Fringe Tree
A particularly spectacular small tree is blooming now called the Fringe Tree, or Old Man’s Beard –Chionanthus virginicus. This tree is a must have in a partly shaded or mostly sunny spot in your yard! Slowly getting to about 25’, it has a rounded, irregular shape. It is native to our area, naturally found along […]
Fall Clean-Up
Fall clean up? Less is more Recent research says that a long time gardening tradition, the big fall clean up, may do more harm than good. In many ways, letting existing natural systems do what they have always done is better for your soil, your garden, your back, and the environment. Like many things we […]
Purple Coneflowers
Purple Coneflowers – lots more than meets the eye Did you know that when you look at a purple coneflower, aka Echinacea purpurea and its cousins, you’re not looking at one pretty flower but a cluster of hundreds? Coneflowers, like Black Eyed Susans, Sunflowers, and other “daisy” flowers are members of the Composites family, one […]
Brandywine Viburnum
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 […]
Beautyberry
Beautyberry – how about some wild color for you? There are plenty of shrubs with berries that shine in the fall and winter – red ones, blue ones, yellow and even black berries. But have you seen the shrub with bright purple berries! The American Beautyberry, Callicarpa americana, is at first glance a nondescript and […]