Plant a Hydrangea on your Tree




There are few plants that create as much excitement as does Climbing Hydrangea (Hydrangea anomala subsp. petiolaris) especially when seen in full bloom, lighting up the trunk of a tall oak tree. This is an outstanding plant that deserves greater use. Climbing Hydrangea is native to the woodlands of Japan and coastal China. The lacy, creamy-white blooms are 6 to 10" in diameter and appear in late June or early July. The blooms are actually comprised of numerous small flowers, some fertile and some sterile. The sterile flowers are larger and showier and encircle the smaller fertile flowers in the center of the bloom. The effect is unforgettable! Climbing Hydrangea is an attractive plant even when not in bloom. It has glossy heart-shaped leaves and cinnamon colored stems with exfoliating bark that make this plant interesting all year long.
Climbing hydrangea can reach heights of 50 to 80 feet if it has the support of a large tree to do so. It looks great on tall trees, on stone pillars, on brick walls or cascading over a rock pile. It is not overly aggressive like some vines can be. Dr. Michael Dirr, author of the Manual of Woody Landscape Plants calls it "The Best Vine!"

Climbing Hydrangea is most often sold as a container grown plant. Planting can take place from spring until fall. Plant it next to a brick wall or aside tall tree with an eastern or westward exposure. The planting depth should be the same depth as it was grown in the nursery. On poorly drained soils, planting depth may be raised several inches and soil should be sloped up to the original soil level of the container. The addition of organic matter such as compost, aged manure or peat moss will improve plant growth. Once situated at the proper depth in the planting hole firm the soil around the root ball and water thoroughly to remove any air spaces. The addition of a surface mulch of 3-4” will help retain soil moisture. Climbing Hydrangea is not the fastest plant to establish and growth will be slow for several years after planting. Once established the growth will improve with each passing year.

Climbing Hydrangea is a great plant that has tremendous potential. Few people have ever seen this plant. Once they have they will never forget it and will most certainly want one of their own!

There are several new cultivars of climbing hydrangea that are worth looking for. 'Skyland's Giant' (see above image) is a new variety selected for especially large flowers. 'Fire Fly' is a new variegated selection of climbing hydrangea that is simply spectacular in in the spring when the plant flushes. It has the same great flowers as the species. As the season progressed the variegation becomes less pronounced.

Budapest - Our next plant Hunting Trip

Budapest is truly one of the world’s most beautful cities




My next plant hunting trip takes us to the beautiful city of Budapest and the surrounding countryside. I have met some wonderful Hungarian nursery people and plant breeders during our travels and finally I get to visit them and this beautiful city.
Do I have a rough job or what?
I am truly amazed by the number of people that subscribe to my blog, and I am equally amazed that we have subscribers from across the globe, so today I am seeking your advice.

With our upcoming trip to Hungary, I was hoping that some of my subscribers might offer me some advice. If you are from Hungary, or have travelled to Hungary - tell me about your experiences there and offer me some tips on things to see or foods to try. While we do not normally have a lot of free time for your typical tourist activities, we do on occasion see a few things besides plant nurseries.

And if you have followed my blog for any length of time you know that food is high my priority list when travelling. Can any of you recommend a must have dish or a gem of a restaurant?

I've never been to Hungary so I'm counting some good tips and advice.

Hunting for New Plants in the Netherlands

I just got back from a week in the Netherlands and now that I've recovered from jet lag, I thought I would share a few new discoveries.

What do you think? Commet on your favorites.

Skimma japonica 'Magic Merlot'



Pieris japonica 'Passion'

Cornus x 'Venus'


Lavendula 'Garden Beauty'



Sedum 'Elsie'

Finding New Plants is Not Difficult




One of the great benefits of having a job such as mine is to be fortunate enough to discover a new plant developed by a breeder, seeing the original plant and then actually getting to see that same cultivar out and about in residential landscapes.

It has been about eight years since I saw my first Limelight Hydrangea, and now with paniculata hydrangeas in full bloom, I see this variety in yards wherever I go. My neighbour about six houses down, whom I don’t know, planted about six Limelights around her front porch. Even my wife Tracy beams with pride when the Limelight in our front yard is in bloom. Every day, people walking by are compelled to stop and ask its name.

There is no doubt that Limelight is a breath-taking, one in a million plant, but surprisingly there were many professional nursery people that did not recognize it as such when they first saw it. About the second year we had plant at our nursery, and before the plant was introduced, we had a visit from the Ohio Nursery Association “Plant Selection Committee.” Made up of about six well respected plants-people, the group identifies plants that merit growing and recommends them to the trade. Well here they were, on the nursery looking at about 200 three gallon limelight plants in full bloom and none of the hardly took notice. "Who wants a green flowered Hydrangea" was their comment. The famous Plantsman, Mike Dirr has nothing good to say about Limelight, while at the same time sales of Limelight continue to climb and consumer forums like GardenWeb.com are littered with personal accolades for the plant.

How it is that the professional get it so wrong? Time and time again, when we introduce a new plant, nursery people respond with scepticism. When we introduced Weigela Wine & Roses, I was told it was no better than ‘Java Red’ and that no one would bother changing.




The problem with nursery people is that they look at a plant as a horticulturist. With four years of college, and years of on the job experience, we become cynical; we need to extend our opinion, finding fault with every new we plant meet - after all we are the experts. It takes a concerted effort to change the way we look at plants so that view that as a consumer, in particularly a female consumer. We need to start accessing the positive points of a new variety as well as the negative points. Certainly every plant has its shortcomings. There is no such thing as a perfect plant and we need to understand these weaknesses, but we need also to see beyond them.

We discover numerous new and unusual plants on every trip we take. Every week someone is offering us a new plant. There is no shortage of new plants. Hunting for new plants is not the difficult part of the job, it’s understanding which new plants are worthy of introduction that is difficult. And surprisingly, it is very easy to dismiss or underestimate an exceptional new plant, because we think too much like horticulturists and not enough like consumers.

Guest Author - The Perennial Diva





Once upon a time several years ago, Sinclair Adam Jr of Dunvegan Nursery of West Chester, Pa. He had a whole field of Phlox 'David', and lo and behold a pink mildew phlox appeared. We know 'David' is the father and we suspect 'Eva Collum' is the mother, but only the pollinators know for sure.

I trialed the plant and he called it 'Shortwood, in honor of my garden. 'Shortwood' is not short, but a medium sized phlox in bright pink. The combination produced one of the most mildew resistant phloxes on the market.

Phlox 'David' is a studly plant. In my garden'David' crossed with 'Shortwood' to producea beautiful bi-color phlox. It will be released in'08. Since I found it I named it 'Blushing Shortwood'. It's dramatic and fragrant. The end of my story unless 'David' finds a new conquest.
-------
PHLOX paniculata SHORTWOOD - PP#10379 - Tall 42" - Plant 20 " apart. Zone 4-8. The mildew resistance of P. David with the bright pink blossoms of P. Eva Cullum. Strong, sturdy stems are excellent for cutting. Forms a broad clump. A Blooms of Bressingham selection. Shortwood can be purchased on line at Bluestone Perennials.

The guest author of this post of the Plant Hunter is ...
Stephanie Cohen is "The Perennial Diva"

Known by many names throughout the horticultural world -- the "Vertically Challenged Gardener" and the "Dr. Root of Perennials," among others -- Stephanie Cohen has much to offer your club or institution.

She specializes in giving unique garden lectures, writing attention-getting, informative articles and designing award-winning garden spaces. Stephanie Cohen has taught herbaceous plants and perennial design at Temple University for more than 20 years. She is the former director of the Landscape Arboretum at Temple University, Ambler. Stephanie is a contributing editor for "Fine Gardening" and The HGTV Newsletter; sits on the advisory board for "Green Profit" and is on the advisory board of "Green Scene"; and she is a regional writer for the Blooms of Bressingham Plant Program. She also writes for "Country Living Gardener" and "American Nurseryman" magazines.

She has received four awards from the Perennial Plant Association for design, and received the group's Service and Academic Award. She has received awards from Temple University, Pennsylvania Horticultural Society and The American Nursery & Landscape Association for Garden Communicator of the Year 2000.

Stephanie has written a book on design called "The Perennial Gardener's Design Primer," which is published by Storey Press. It was the publisher's best-selling book for 2005. In 2006 she and co-author Nancy Ondra, along with photographer Rob Cardillo, were awarded Storey Publishing's Garden Media Award for the year's Best Overall Product: Book. Stephanie has started on her second book in 2006.

Stephanie has lectured coast to coast, including in Alaska. She has been on QVC TV as the "Perennial Diva." In April 2005 she became a Temple University Alumni Fellow, the most distinguished award that can be given to an alumna. She does a monthly show for CNN TV.
For more information, or to arrange a speaking engagement or consultation, please contact Stephanie at (610) 409-8232 or e-mail to info@perennialdiva.com.

Clethra: The Sweetest Summer Shrubs


I distinctly remember my first encounter with Clethra alnifolia (Summersweet or Sweetpepperbush). The air was thick with its spicy sweet fragrance and it begged me to search for it source. Tucked into the center of a large shrub boarder was a tall, gangly plant with small white spires about eight feet in the air. Not much of a plant, but it was obvious that it had never been pruned or cared for. Despite its poor habit, I felt that any plant that smelled that sweet deserved to be used. Some years later I specified Clethra in a landscape design. Of course I was a naïve greenhorn, too foolish to realize that it was not available in the trade for purchase. But I was smart enough to realize it was a plant worth growing.

Times have changed and so have our pallet of plants. Today Clethra is available to purchase at nearly every landscape pick-up yard, so are a host of improved cultivars. How is it that within a period of 25 years, so much can change?

It all started with Clethra ‘Hummingbird,’ the first dwarf form of Sweetspire. It was an obscure plant that Fred Galle of Callowway Gardens had discovered and for the most part had been forgotten. Then Richard Feist, a Callowway intern at the time, saw the plant and bells went off. With the permission of Galle he registered the plant as ‘Hummingbird’ and then wrote an article in Field Notes in American Nurseryman. All of a sudden Clethra was worthy. Clones started coming out of the woodwork; ‘Rosea’, ‘Pink Spires’, ‘Creal’s Callico’, ‘Fern Valley Pink’, ‘Hokey Pink’, ‘Cottondale’, ‘September Beauty’, ‘Ruby Spice’, ‘Sweet Suzanne’, ‘Sixteen Candles’, ‘White Dove’ and ‘Sherry Sue’ just to name a few.

While Clethra is relatively easy to fine these days, it is still greatly under used. In my travels to Europe, I am amazed that the plant has gained little respect; it is available only at collector type nurseries. How can it be?

Summersweet is an American native that can be found along the Eastern seaboard from Maine to Florida and west into Texas; along its western range it is native as far north as Tennessee. As a facultative wetland species is most likely to be found growing in low, moist woodlands, especially in the South, but in its northern range it is not unlikely to find the plant on higher, drier ground. You need not plant this shrub in a swamp to have success. My garden is nearly pure sand, and with the regular irrigation the plant grows just fine. Just remember that Clethra is not a plant for droughty soils. USDA zones 5-9.

Plant height varies greatly depending upon the cultivar. While the species can reach eight feet in height, cultivars such as ‘Hummingbird’, ‘Sixteen Candles’ and White Dove™ max out around three feet. Regardless of cultivar Summersweet benefits from pruning especially at a young age. Regular pruning creates a bushier, fuller plant as opposed to a leggy bare bottomed plant. Clethra alnifolia, especially the variety tomentosa can be suckering or stoloniferous. My observation has been that suckering is more prevalent in moist soils, while it is almost nonexistent on drier soils. Even where suckering is prevalent, it is never so aggressive that it presents a problem.

Flowers while typically white, can also be pink (‘Pink Spires’, ‘Hokey Pink’, ‘Rosea’) or near-red, dark pink such as ‘Ruby Spice’. The light pink varieties are quite attractive and should not be abandoned totally in favor of the darker ‘Ruby Spice’; even though the flowers may fade to near white as they age it is still a pleasing pink in the garden. The blooms appear in late summer; in Michigan we begin to see flowers in late July with August being prime bloom time. The cultivar September beauty™ extends the flowering season several week later than the other cultivars. Leave color ranges from a grey-green (‘Cottendale’) to dark green (Hummingbird, September Beauty, Sixteen Candles and White Dove™) with most other cultivars falling somewhere in between.

A check list of Cultivars:


‘Anne Bidwell’ - Panicle inflorescence with multiple racemes. Selected by Anne Bidwell.

‘Cottondale’ (var. tomentosa) - A selection with very large racemes up to 16” in length and grey-green leaves, suckering. Selected by Woodlanders Nusery.

‘Compacta’ - A very attractive selection with compact branching and a rounded habit of about 4’ in height. Selected by Tom Dilatush.


‘Creels Calico’ - A suckering plant with highly variable variegation. More of a curiosity than a landscape plant. Selected by Michael Creel.


'Fern Valley Pink' - Long, light pink flowers. Selected by Tom Clark.


‘Hokie Pink’ - Light pink flowers, more compact than typical. Selected by Jime Monroe.

‘Hummingbird’ - A low, compact, mounded plant maturing around 3’. Very dark green foliage and good yellow fall color. Selected by Fred Galle.

‘Pink Spires’ - Light pink flowers, matures at 6’-8’.


‘Rosea’ - Very similar to Pink Spires


‘Ruby Spice’ - A sport mutation of 'Pink Spires' with red flower buds that open to a rich pink. Does not fade to white. Very good yellow fall color. Selected by Andy Brand.


‘Sherry Sue’ - Typical white flowers, young stems are an attractive cherry red. Brought to us from the J.C. Raulston Arboretum.

‘Sixteen Candles’ -A seedling of Hummingbird with tight growth and larger white flowers. A fine plant selected by Mike Dirr.

Sweet Suzanne’ - Another seedling of Hummingbird with large flowers. Has been a weak grower for us, not as good as above. Selected by Mike Dirr.

var. tomentosa -A suckering plant with grey green leaves. ‘Cottondale’ is a superior selection

White Dove™ - Another seedling of Humingbird, Compact habit and larger white flowers. Selected by Flowerwood Nursery.


Related Species:


Clethra acuminata: Cinnamon Pepperbush - A small tree or larges suckering shrub at 12-15' in height. White flowers borne in termial racemes, with only slight fragrance. Attractive cinnamon colored bark. USDA Zones 6-8.


Clethra barbinervis: Japanese Pepperbush - A small tree or large shrub 15'-20' in height. White, fragrant flowers in terminal panicles in mid-summer. Superb exfoliating bark. An excellent plant for USDA Zones 6-7.


Behind the Iron Curtain


Poland stirs my soul. The people are warm and loving. The food is superb, yet unpretentious (The mushroom porogies were unforgettable). It is a country of many contrasts. I am struck by the difference between the stark cement Soviet architecture of Warsaw and the old world beauty of Krakow. I feel the pride and triumph of Lech Walesa and the sorrow and cries of Auschwitz. But more than anything I feel Poland’s enduring love for freedom.

For decades, little was known about the nurseries of Eastern Europe and what plants they were cultivating there. There were rumours of Syringa (Lilac) breeding in the Soviet Union and of vast conifer collections in Czechoslovakia, but few if any Eastern plants defected and turned up in the West. With the fall of the Soviet Empire and the Iron Curtain the door was opened to discover what if anything might be found in Eastern Europe. From a cultural and climatic standpoint my greatest hopes were in Poland, East Germany, The Czech Republic and Hungary. Of these, Poland was the most interesting. Its people had a reputation for plants, gardening and hard work. Since the fall of the Iron Curtain Poland lead the East in the importation of nursery stock and cut flowers. Clearly the Polish people had an appreciation for plants. It was my hope that a nursery culture and perhaps even an underground nursery industry had survived the cold war.

Mateusz Milcznska was our key to Poland. A former intern at Spring Meadow, Mateusz volunteered to be our guide and translator while touring Poland. He spoke excellent English and he had the driving skills essential for navigating the narrow and hectic roads of Poland. Mateusz had arranged all of our appointments including of our most pleasant surprise, the nursery of Lucjan Kurowski. One look at Lucjan Kurowski’s nursery and you could tell he had a passion for plants.

Mr. Kurowski established his nursery in 1960. Initially it was started on a small acreage and his market was limited to his local area. Over the years the nursery prospered and had grown to its current size of 24 hectares, which includes 12 hectares of container plants and 4 hectares of in-ground plants. The fall Iron Curtain had a dramatic effect on his business and as a result Lucjan now exports to Russia, Ukraine, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Lithuania, Belarus and Hungary.

We were surprised at the quality plants at Lucjan’s nursery and we were especially surprised by the mix of plants he was growing. All of the latest Western introductions were there. He had wasted little time in accumulating the best new plants from the West. We were also delighted to learn he had active breeding program and had even introduced five of his own selections.


The one plant that caught our eye was a narrow upright barberry with bright golden foliage called SunjoyTM Gold Pillar Barberry (Berberis thunbergii ‘Maria’ ppaf). Adding to its appeal, hues of red and orange tinged the new growth. In essence it is a golden version of Helmond’s Pillar. With Mateusz translating, Lucjan explained that his selection was more than just beautiful; it was also extremely burn resistant - a bonus because most gold leaved variates burn in full sun. Lucjan showed us the proof; Sunjoy Gold Pillar was the only clean plant in a full sun test bed that included all the latest varieties.

While the discovery of Sunjoy Gold Pillar made our trip to Poland a success, importing it was whole new challenge. The problem is that some species of Berberis are host to a disease called Wheat Rust. While Sunjoy Gold Pillar and all other selections of Berberis thunbergii are resistant to wheat rust, Federal Law prohibits the importation of cultivars that are not listed as certified rust resistant. Obviously this plant was not on the list. The catch 22 was we had to import the plant in order to have it tested, but we could not import it because it had not been tested. With a bit of hard work and a lot of luck we were able to import the plant directly to the Federal Wheat Rust laboratory and after two years of testing and yet another two years to get the plant published on the Federal list, we are now able to offer this plant legally in the United States. While the entire process took over six years, it is exciting to see that our trip to the former Eastern Block was a success.



Getting a new plant can be a struggle, but it is nothing compared to the struggles Poland has endured to gain its Liberty. Still - I find satisfaction in both and I am not alone. According to Thomas Jefferson "The boisterous sea of liberty is never without a wave” and “The greatest service which can be rendered any country is to add a useful plant to its culture."