To those of you
still under the throes of winter, I commiserate; and perhaps you shouldn't
bother to read this blog, for I plan to brag about our lush spring growth.
We've had a number of sunny days, and many plants are rewarding us with fresh
rejuvenation, especially in the greenhouses. It's quite fun to wander around,
as I did last Sunday, and marvel at another spring; except for the bittersweet
realization that I have a limited number of them left.
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Paeonia 'Black Panther' |
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Paeonia lutea |
Paeonia lutea var. ludlowii
In any case, come
along with me as I promise you some floral treats. Consider the Paeonia genus,
for they are popping up around the garden. 'Black Panther' is a delightful tree
peony with lacy purple (and later green) foliage. It flowers a luscious red
with yellow stamens, all on a compact shrub. Paeonia lutea, the "Tibetan
Peony," is a woody bush that produces deep yellow flowers. Paeonia lutea
var. ludlowii is a Chinese species that grows larger than lutea, with equally
yellow flowers and larger leaves. These will bloom later in spring, and it is
only the foliage that is emerging now.
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Paeonia
mlokosewitschii |
Paeonia
mlokosewitschii
Paeonia
mlokosewitschii just took me five minutes to spell out, and I've never been
able to say it either. It is commonly known as "Molly-the-Witch,"
which provides some relief. This low-growing herbaceous species is the
"Caucasian Peony," although black people are able to grow it too. The
nubbins at present are a delicious purple color, but they will evolve to green
with hairy undersides, similar to my office staff – not green, but hairy. The
seed capsules are colorful when open, with black seeds showing off against the
red inner pod. Molly blooms in early June for us in Oregon, with good-sized
light yellow flowers. It is named for its discoverer (in 1897), Mlokosiewicz, a
Polish forester. The name Peony is from Paeon,
who was saved by Zeus from the wrath of another god, by turning Paeon into a
Peony flower. You are invited to refer back to the 6/8/12 blog Bombastic Blooms of last
spring's visit to a peony farm, but as usual, finish the blog
first.
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Disanthus cercidifolius 'Ena nishiki' |
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Disanthus cercidifolius 'Ena nishiki' |
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Begonia 'Escargot' |
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Begonia 'Escargot' leaf underside |
We have nice
foliage emerging in our GH20, the warm greenhouse. Disanthus cercidifolius 'Ena
nishiki' has tiny leaves, not yet full size, but you can already see clean white
and green variegation. Begonia 'Escargot' is always fun to see, and who cares
if the bold spiraling leaves cover the insignificant white flowers?
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Bergenia 'Lunar Glow' |
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Bergenia 'Lunar Glow' |
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Bergenia 'Pink Dragonfly' |
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Bergenia cordifolia 'Winterglut' |
Bergenia cordifolia 'Winterglut'
Bergenia 'Lunar
Glow' features purplish-green leaves in summer, with cream-white leaf orbs spotted
throughout the plant. Ours are currently in bloom, a nice strong pink, and are
very abundant. As with most Bergenias, the fall-winter foliage is evergreen in
Oregon, or rather a dark purple, and glossy. The genus comes from Asia, and I
have seen it in the wild. I don't know if 'Lunar Glow' is a straight species or
a hybrid, but there are many other new cultivars recently, such as 'Pink
Dragonfly' and cordifolia 'Winterglut'. Bergenia is in the saxifragaceae
family, and the common name of "Elephant Ears" is due to the shape of
the leaves. Another common name is "Pigsqueak," which is the sound
you get when rubbing two leaves together. Scientifically the Bergenia name
honors Karl August von Bergen (in 1794), a German botanist and physician. My
Grandmother had a few Bergenias in her garden, and I think most Grandmas do
also, so it is an old-fashioned plant; but new selections are offered these
days, and young gardeners can also fall in love with the "Elephant
Ears."
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Corylopsis glaucophylla |
The Corylopsis are
finishing their early blooms, and the beginning of leaf development is
occurring. The glaucophylla species
is of uncertain origin, and perhaps it is a variety of another species. My
original plant came from the old Heronswood Nursery in Washington state, and
D.H. and his cohorts always impressed me with their accurate nomenclature. But anyway,
what a handsome leaf, eh?
Corylopsis spicata 'Golden Spring
Corylopsis spicata 'Variegated'
I suppose my
favorite Corylopsis leaf is spicata 'Golden Spring', and every year I can't
resist to take new photos, even though I already have plenty. I saw a
variegated form in Japan ten years ago, but I don't have it, and I'm not sure
if it ever made it to America. Maybe it has a reverting habit, but it sure
looked nice there in full sun.
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Hosta 'Cracker Crumbs' |
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Hosta 'Dragon Tails' |
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Hosta 'Medusa' |
Hostas are
breaking through the earth's crust, and a collection of them reminds me of a
bountiful salad. And why not? – in Japan new leaves are sold in grocery stores;
better that people eat them before the slugs do. We have a dozen or more
cultivars, without really trying to accumulate them, but I only have
photographs for 'Cracker Crumbs', 'Dragon Tails' and 'Medusa'. When I searched my
website for Hosta, interestingly, the first on the list was 'Hosta La Vista', a
cultivar of Abies concolor!? The genus name honors the botanist Nicholas Tomas
Host, an Austrian botanist. In England, Hostas are commonly called
"Plantain Lilies," and "Giboshi" in Japan.
Fagus sylvatica 'Aurea Pendula'
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Fagus sylvatica 'Bicolor Sartini' |
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Fagus sylvatica 'Marmo Star' |
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Fagus sylvatica 'Red Obelisk' |
Fagus sylvatica 'Tricolor'
Speaking of edible
leaves, how about the new foliage of Fagus sylvatica for the salad? You must
eat the leaves when they're fairly new, otherwise they can be tough to swallow.
To me, they don't really have a taste; it is just eye appeal, and I got the
idea from a German who claims to eat them also. 'Aurea Pendula', 'Bicolor
Sartini', 'Marmo Star', 'Red Obelisk' and 'Tricolor' would be visually
appetizing in the salad bowl.
Nothofagus antarctica 'Chillan'
I don't know about
eating the Nothofagus genus, however. The name comes from Latin nothus, meaning false, and fagus for beech, and they're commonly
called the "Southern Beeches" or "Antarctic Beeches." But
they are not true beeches at all; they are in their own family, Nothofagaceae. They come from Chile and
Argentina, and some species are native to Australia and some surrounding
islands. We root the cultivar 'Chillan', which displays a cream-yellow
variegation, especially lush in spring. Then I spend the rest of the summer
trying to convince the crew to not overwater them.
Cardiocrinum giganteum
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Cardiocrinum giganteum |
Cardiocrinum giganteum
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Watermelon Man with Cardiocrinum giganteum |
Cardiocrinum
giganteum is sending up leaves, and even if it never bloomed, it would still be
worth growing the "Giant Himalayan Lily." The genus name is from
Greek kardia, meaning
"heart," and krinon meaning
"white lily;" and of course the species name is from Latin for
"giant-like." The white scented flowers won't appear until May; first
the plant needs to shoot up to ten-to-fifteen feet tall. I'm looking forward to
visiting Far Reaches Farm later this spring to see their strain of pink-flowering
Cardios. The seed pods are very attractive in the autumn landscape, and as you
can see, our Watermelon Man is fond of them as well.
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Pulsatilla vulgaris 'Alba' |
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Pulsatilla vulgaris 'Rubra' |
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Pulsatilla vulgaris 'Rubra' |
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Pulsatilla vulgaris 'Rubra' |
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Clematis integrifolia |
Pulsatilla
vulgaris is in leaf as well as in bloom in our gardens. The "Common Pasque
Flower" comes in cultivar flower-shades of white ('Alba') and red
('Rubra') and the cute bells sit atop the fuzzy gray-green foliage. This
herbaceous perennial is in the Ranunculaceae
family, and happily grows in Europe in sunny spots with good drainage.
Pulsatilla vulgaris is also named "Dane's Blood" or "Roman's
Blood," and I'll repeat the legend that they sprang up in places enriched
by the blood of Danes or Romans. The seed heads are hairy, Dr. Seuss-looking
creatures, reminiscent of Clematis. Don't try to eat the Pulsatilla leaves, for
they are so bitter and burning that you can't ingest enough to kill yourself,
but I've never had a bad reaction from planting one. I had a good
reaction, though, when I walked past a clump of 'Alba' this morning.
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Rubus spectabilis 'Golden Ruby' |
Rubus spectabilis 'Golden Ruby'
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Rubus spectabilis 'Golden Ruby' |
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Rubus parviflorus |
Ribes spectabilis
'Golden Ruby'...wo, wo, whoa – I mean Rubus spectabilis 'Golden Ruby' –
my mind was befangled because cultivars of "Current," the Ribes
genus, are in flower now – but today the Rubus is displaying its golden
leaves. The species is an Oregon weed that grows along stream sides, and in
summer produces yellow raspberry-like fruits which are edible, although rather
insipid. I eat them anyway when hiking, because after all they are free.
'Golden Ruby' is known for its soft-yellow foliage, and the "ruby"
part of the name is due to the flower color, and together they are a nice
combination. A close relative is Rubus parviflorus, the red "Thimble
Berry," which I also eat along the trail, but unfortunately it too
delivers an insipid taste.
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Podophyllum 'Kaleidoscope' |
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Podophyllum 'Kaleidoscope' |
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Podophyllum 'Kaleidoscope' |
Everybody is
thrilled to see our GH20 display box with an enormous Podophyllum
'Kaleidoscope'. This Asian "Mayapple" produces large variegated
leaves in the shape of old "tractor seats." While this plant is
mostly evergreen, we prune out the older leaf stalks and stems in March...to
give ample room for the fresh new leaves. Not to be missed before the
"apples" – the seed pods – form, are the dark burgundy-red flowers.
And, please God, smite any nurseryman who spells burgundy inkorrectly as burgandy!
Pieris japonica 'Katsura'
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Pieris japonica 'Flaming Silver' |
Pieris japonica 'Flaming Silver'
The "Andromedas"
are a wonderful genus, known botanically as Pieris,
and are justly famous for their early spring flower cascades. This ericaceous
genus combines well with Rhododendrons, as both prefer similar climates and
growing conditions. But my new favorite is Pieris japonica 'Katsura'; not
because of the flowers, but rather for the deep-purple new leaves. They are
quite difficult to photograph because they are so glossy, so illuminative. I
don't remember a thing about their flowers, as I am consistently overtaken by
their new leaves. The same is true of Pieris japonica 'Flaming Silver', a
cultivar with boring variegated foliage, but which bursts forth with dramatic
red new growth.
I'll finish this
blog with a few highlights from last week's visit to the Rhododendron Species
Botanical Garden in Washington state. If you still have energy, you can refer
to last year's blog:
The Rhododendron Species Garden. I'll show you some photos from my recent
memorable day, without any text, and let them speak for themselves; for while I
loved the foliage, I don't really know much about the plants.
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Agapetes oblonga |
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Gaultheria pseudonotabilis |
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Rhododendron megacalyx |
Rhododendron nuttallii
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Rhododendron moulmainense 'Stenaulum' |
Impressive was
Agapetes oblonga and Gaultheria pseudonotabilis, though neither of them are
hardy, I suppose, since they were both housed in the Foundation's fancy new
conservatory. Also inside were Rhododendrons boothii, megacalyx, moulmainense
'Stenaulum', and my favorite "tender," Rhododendron nuttallii (or
sinonuttallii), mostly because of the fantastic bark.
So, we've had a
wonderful journey, don't you think...to wander with me in my nursery, as well
as in other gardens? True, I don't sell all of these plants, and I don't
grow all of these plants; but, more importantly: I have seen
all of these plants this past week. Did the banker notice anything in his week
except for numbers, the baker anything but his bread, or the candlestick
maker...? Thanks to my hard-working loyal employees and customers, I can
indulge a Sunday with the joys of Flora
Wonder.
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Flora dispensing her favours at Buchholz Nursery |