Shrubbery Garden - Elegant and Easy

I get to my local library often, and the elegant shrubbery garden that surrounds three sides of the building is always changing.  The garden was donated by Dorothy R Yeck and named after her.  The design was created by Craig Jaynes who is a talented landscape designer.  The ever changing garden caught my eye this week.  It was a mild gloomy day here in South West Ohio, and the Woodbourne Washington-Centerville  Public Library caught my eye as anything but gloomy. 

Evergreens, like these Gold Thread Junipers, sometimes referred to as False Cypress, set off the lovely red fruit of the Ilex verticillata , “Red Sprite”. 

The Ilex “Red sprite” stays small and grows only to three and half feet high and about four feet wide.  Nice plant in this border because it stays within its boundaries.

The Rhassus Frangula, “Fine Line” is the tall thin shrub here.  It will spread to about two – three feet wide, and it’s delicate leaves give this plant a wispy appearance.



This bright blue shrub is a Picea pungens glauca “Globasa” – a compact shrub with blue needles.  



Juniperus ‘Gold Cone’, is a columnar evergreen that will not grow more than two feet wide.  The leafless shrubs around the Juniper, are Caryopteris, ‘Worchester Gold’ and Caryopteris ‘Longwood Blue’ Even thought the Caryopteris is a deciduous shrub, the seed heads remain for some winter interest.


Featured at the front door of the library are Hydrangea quercifolis “Sikes Dwarf”.  Again, this deciduous shrub holds onto the dried seed heads that rustle in the breeze.


Pinus nigra “hombrookiana” is the round pine on the right.  Staying small in height of about 3 feet, this shrub can spread to 6 feet wide. The ‘army’ green needles make this a good backdrop for this shrubbery border. 

Syringa “Prairie Petite” is a dwarf lilac that has ‘large panicles packed with tubular, purple flowers’ as described by Craig Jaynes in his plant summery of this garden.


Aronia, melanocarpa “Viking” has shiny black berries from September through December.  (These few are hanging on into January.)

Beautyberry has these wonderful purple berries.  Callicarpa D “Early Amethyst is the botanical name for this plant.  I’m told that Beautyberry will bloom with small, pink blossoms and will produce more berries if planted in groups. The stems of this shrub make great winter decorations in planters and holiday decorations.

Liriope and an ornamental grass grouped at the entrance of this library garden, are not in the original shrub garden, but they certainly add texture to the winter landscape. The liriope is a grass-like plant that gets spikes of berries in the fall and is sometimes called lily tuft, or border grass.  Just to the rear of the liriope are Oak Leaf Hydrangea, a native shrub.

As these photos show, the shrub garden is in a narrow border surrounding the front three sides of the library.

All the plants chosen are dwarf or columnar so that the maintenance is minimal.  Ask  questions when you are planning a space in your landscape, and choose plants that 1) have color, 2) have texture, 3) have seasonal features like blooms or winter berries, 4) will grow to mature size that will fit into the space.
Do you have a space where the plant material outgrew the allotted area?  I’ve learned this lesson the hard way on several occasions. Envision the look you want, plant the right plants, and above all, enjoy your garden. 

Plant a Native Shrub

This SATURDAY, Sept 8, 2012, is National Planting Day

                                                                   

Get Growing: National Planting Day! - Get Growing: A Keep America Beautiful Initiative

September, the days are shorter, the temperatures are lower, and the rains are (suppose to be) resuming. So now is a great time for planting something new in the landscape. Native shrubs seem to be a good choice.

Ninebark – Physocarpus opulifolius

Native shrubs offer many advantages in the landscape.  They have lovely leaves, blooms, are insect resistant, disease resistant, and, once established, they need little  supplemental water, or fertilizer.

This Ninebark, called Diablo, in indigenous to the eastern parts of North America. There are other varieties that are found in the western states. This red/burgundy leafed shrub has nice white blossoms in spring, and the seed heads are deep red.



The name ninebark supposedly comes from the lovely exfoliating bark in the winter - Year round beauty.
  Ninebarks reach to 10’ tall, and as wide.  They can be used as a specimen or as a hedge.  With the dark leaves, ninebark makes a great backdrop for yellow or chartreuse plant. They are hardy in Zone 3-7.

Another native shrub that has multi-season interest is the Red Chokeberry, Aronia arbutifolia.  Hardy in Zones 4-9, the red chokeberry gets about 10’ tall, and 3’ – 5’ wide.
 


Small white blossoms in spring develop this small red fruit. As pretty as the red berries are, birds do not like the very astringent taste, so the berries last well into winter. Red Chokeberries like soil that is more acid, and take well in either wet or dry locations.

The native black chokeberry shrub differs from its red cousin.  The black chokeberry, Aronia melanocarpe, is hardy in Zone 3-8, and only reaches a height of 3’- 6’.

Fall foliage is a pretty red, and the black berries, too, are not tasty for birds.

Ilex glabra, Inkberry, is in the holly family.  The ‘ink’ comes from black fruit.

This evergreen native shrub prefers moist, acidic locations, in part sun to part shade.  To insure pollination and formation of flowers, a male and female holly need to be in close proximity to each other,  Hardy to Zone 4 – 9, the Inkberry is native to Eastern United States.

  This native shrub is the common Snowberry, Symphoricarpos albus. Soil neutrality, shade, and moist or dry locations are favored by this plant.  It can grow to 3’ – 6’.  The Snowberry is the host plant for the Vashti sphinx moth. 
Vashti sphinx moth 
Birds and small mammals use this plant as cover, nesting and food. The berries are, however, poisonous for human consumption.

The American Highbush Viburnum is also called the American Cranberrybush Viburnum.  This native is a favorite in the landscape for multi-seasonal interest.    Hardy in Zones 2-7, this viburnum prefers moist, rich soil, and partial shade.


Urban pollution and wet conditions are tolerated by this native shrub.  Birds will eat these berries and jams can be made from these tart fruits for human foods as well.

Finally, there is an evergreen native shrub that can add to the landscape.  It is the Eastern Red cedar  Juniperus virginiana.
As a member of the juniper family, not a true cedar, the red cedar is a native conifer found in most of eastern  US.  Birds help distribute these trees by eating the bluish cones.

I like the color in winter as the red cedar turns to a brownish shade.

Fall planting is ideal for these native shrubs.  The extra moisture will settle the roots into the soil before the ground freezes.  And the plant will be ready to give us it all come spring. 


Planting can continue until the ground freezes, so pick a favorite, enhance your space, and enjoy. 

What natives do you like?  I certainly didn't list them all here.

Plants for Winter Brightness - Still Time to Plant

Winter Color is More Than Black and White

Even though we have had measurable snow, the ground temperatures are still suitable for planting.  If you can dig, the dormant shrub or evergreen will settle in just fine for the winter.

This is a holly I did not know, 'Orange Flame' a Ragon Grape Holly from Monrovia.  Beautiful burgundy and red leaves caught my eye at a local garden center.

Nandina - spectacular

Hardy to Zone 6, this disease resistant variety, Firepower is a beauty. 

I saw this at a local city park with ornamental grasses behind it.  The tan behind the red was striking.

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Viburnum is probably my favorite shrub, with many varieties that have quite different features among them.

Viburnum Brandywine has mauve berries.  There are at least 83 varieties and cultivars of Viburnum in the nurseries.  The American Cranberry Bush and Doublefile Viburnum both have red berries.  Arrowwoods grows to 15' and has blue fruit.  Leatherleaf Viburnum  has black fruit .

Doublefile Viburnum plicatum tomentosum grows to about 9'. 

These red berries appear in the fall on the Serviceberry, Amelanchier.  Like Viburnum's,  the Serviceberry, 'Autumn Brilliance', has a nice spring bloom.  Four seasons of interest in this shrub that grows to 15' to 25' in Zone 4-9.

Ilex verticillata, Winterberry is a holly that is hardy in Zone 3-8.  This plant is dioecious, which means it has either male or female plant parts on each plant.  Therefore, you will need both male and female varieties to cross pollinate this plant in order to get blooms and fruit.. A dwarf variety, "Red Sprite" grows to 3'-4'. 

Aronia , known as chokeberry  has reliable bright autumn color. Hardy to Zone 4-9, this plant has two varieties;  one variety Black Chokeberry (A. melanocarpa), has black fruit, and another Aronia, Red Chokeberry (A. arbutifolia),  has red fruit.

These shrubs are just a few that I have put on my list.  Winter may not be sooooo loong(!) if I had a these to greet me on a cold, gray day. 

Winter is a time to plan for spring, another way to endure the winter doldrums.  A gardener associate of mine has a website you may enjoy, Mike's Backyard Nursery.  Hubby has watched Mike grow and sell plants right out of his garden for several years.  Quite a story.  Enjoy.

Winter Lingers and Lingers and Lingers

Just trying to make the most of this snowy Feburary in Ohio.  As I said last time, the planning opportunity is just giving me more items on my To-Do List. The Winter Garden can be a magical place. If we take the time, next year we will look out to even more spectacular views.

As you can see in this photo, not only are the shrubs putting on a show, but also the bird feeder and thermometer.  Garden accessories have a year round attraction. Trellis and arbors really hold their own in a backdrop of snow. And evergreens, such as holly, boxwood, and arborvitea, are some of my favorites all year.

I missed a picture of a dozen robins scrounging beneath some crabapple trees.  The fruit was clinging to the trees and the bright red was vivid against the white backdrop.  The robins seemed to be enjoying the meal. When the ground is frozen, food for the birds becomes scarce. So planning to provided for our feathered friends can benefit all of us. Other food sources for birds include viburnum and  hawthorne.

Viburnum is a wonderful shrub that has varying leaf textures, beautiful blossoms in summer, and fruit varieties.  Some fruit is black,(tinus) some red.  The size of each variety varies too.  Viburnum opulus , the European cranberrybush viburnum, grows to 12' or higher. A dwarf variety, Viburnum opulus 'Compactum' is small, only growing to about 6'. This species grows more dense than the Viburnum opulus, but isn't really all that 'dwarf'. A truly small viburnum, maxes out at 2', is the Viburnum opulus 'Nanum'.

Another shrub that holds it berries well through the winter is Aronia, chokeberry. Aronia arbutifolia has red berries, and Aronia melanocarpa has lovely black berries.

Winter may be long, but we don't have to settle for dreary.  A few other plants I'd like to bring to you attention are Sedum, 'Autumn Joy', and all of the various ornamental grasses.  The faded bloom of the sedum shows well with a cap of snow. The burgendy color is anything but dreary.  The ornamental grasses turn golden in late fall and the plumes wave throughout the cold season usaually.  I preface this comment because the very heavy, wet snow - 8" or more - we had last week have buried the grasses into big mounds.  They were pretty while they lasted.  Oh well, there is always next year. 

This brings me back to the 'planning' part of this season.  Look around your yard or garden.  If you don't have lovely scuptures in the snow, plan to pick up a chokeberry or viburnum during the spring planting time.  Add the perennial,s 'Autumn Joy' or one of the many ornamental grasses to your landscape.  The seasons - all of them - are what we gardeners live for.

What is your favorite winter garden element?  Share your ideas of seasonal interest.  Grow and Share!