Category Archives: flowering shrubs

Just a Few of the Plants Blooming Now

Fragrant Blireiana flowering plum

Some years plants bloom a couple weeks earlier than usual but not this year. Our February weather put many plants on hold. Nature’s catching up now. Outside my window the Blireiana flowering plum is covered with dark pink, double blossoms. It’s one of my favorite spring blooming trees with a sweet fragrance strong enough to scent the garden. It usually blooms in February in time for my birthday but not this year. Worth the wait. We all look forward to the earliest flowers of the new season. Spring officially began on March 20th.

Forsythia

The cold and rainy weather didn’t stop an old fashioned shrub like forsythia from blooming. They figure prominently in many old gardens because they are tough plants, able to survive neglect and still look beautiful. The bare stems of forsythia are completely covered with deep golden-yellow flowers in late winter and early spring and become the focal point of the landscape when in full bloom. The showy stems of this easy care shrub are great for cutting. Forsythias are native to eastern Asia but a chance discovery in Germany by a grower who specialized in breeding for the cut flower industry led to the especially vivid variety ‘Kolgold’ in the 1800’s. Forsythia has long been used in Chinese medicine. The flower petals contain powerful bacteria-fighting properties which make it an important dressing.

Flowering quince

Flowering quince is another old garden staple providing early color. They are easy to care for and nearly indestructible in almost any soil that is well drained and not overly fertile. Once established quince is a very drought tolerant plant and their spiny branches make them an excellent choice for hedges, screening or as a security barrier. There are red, pink, orange and white flowering varieties. The Toyo Nishiki cultivar even has pink, white and solid red flowers all on the same branch.

Yellow clivia

Buds are just starting to form on my clivia or Kaffir Lily. What would a shade garden be without a bright orange clivia? Every year I look forward to their huge flower clusters that emerge from between dark green, strappy leaves. Even in dark shade they will bloom and brighten the late winter/early spring garden although they would do fine in morning sun. If you have a north facing window you can grow them as houseplants. Clivias are hardy to several degrees below freezing. I have a yellow flowering variety also but I’m not seeing any buds forming yet. Possibly it’s too young. Clivie bloom best when crowded.

Hardenbergia ‘Happy Wanderer’

A beautiful vine that blooms at this time of year is hardenbergia ‘Happy Wanderer’. In the pea family, this evergreen vine looks like a small wisteria when in bloom. Pinkish-purple flowers cascade in clusters on twining stems that reach 12-16 feet long. They require little water once established and are hardy to about 23 degrees. If you have an older, tangled plant you can rejuvenate it with hard pruning in early spring after flowering. Never prune in late summer or fall because you will cut off the wood that is going to bloom the following winter.

The last plant I couldn’t live without is Fragrant Sarcococca. The tiny white flowers of this plant are easily overlooked but you can’t miss their scent. I have one near the front door that greets me with that vanilla fragrance every time I walk in or out. The flowers are followed by a bright red fruit. Sweet Box forms a natural espalier against a wall and if you have a problem spot in deep dry shade where other plants won’t grow give this plant a try. They are easy to grow, deer resistant and trouble free.

Tough Flowering Plants for Rain & Snow

It takes a pretty tough plant to flower in heavy rain let alone snow. How do they do it? After getting well over an inch of snow last week at my house up here in Bonny Doon all I know is I want more of these steel-clad plants in my garden.

Helleborus orientalis blooming in the snow

I garden in pretty tough conditions- light wise- not receiving sunlight for 6 months of the year. Still I have winter daphne, helleborus, abutilon, loropetalum. Autumnalis flowering cherry and choisya blooming now. The pansies, cyclamen and primroses are looking a bit beat up but they’ll bounce back. These are my winter flowering heroes.

After the snow melted I have to say the hellebore help up perfectly. I received a couple new ones last year for my birthday. Wish I had saved the tags. The double burgundy one is lovely. One of my favorites is called Cinnamon Snow but all of the varieties of this buttercup relative accept wind, rain, cold and less than perfect soil while getting by with only moderate watering in the shady summer garden. Deer aren’t attracted to them either

I had to wait a couple years for my variegated winter daphne to settle in before setting flowers but beginning last year it’s making up for lost time. There’s something special about a plant that will bloom in the depth of winter, hold up to rain and scent the garden all at the same time. With beautiful rosy-pink flower clusters and attractive yellow-margined variegated foliage, daphne make a great foundation plant for dappled shade gardens. They are deer resistant and have low water requirements during the summer. What’s not to love?

Another tough plant that can take weather extremes is the Lily-of-the-Valley shrub (Pieris japonica). There are many varieties of this early winter bloomer. Some have pure white flowers, other sport various shades of pink or dark rose. Mine is the smaller variegated foliage model with dainty, drooping clusters of pure white flowers in early spring. Right now it is covered with flower buds so dense that you’d think it was already blooming. The new growth in the spring has a beautiful pink tint. This shrub will hold up to the wildest weather. Another plus for the Lily-of-the-Valley shrub is that is useful for firescaping in the landscape and it isn’t on the menu for deer either.

Pink Australian fuchsia bloom profusely despite the rain, I added a variegated variety called Correa ‘Wyn’s Wonder’ to my own garden a couple years ago but I was cavalier about protecting it from gophers and alas it is not with me anymore. Still it’s a great plant. Although not related to hybrid fuchsias, the flowers are similar and their nectar feed the Anna’s hummingbirds when there’s not a lot of plants blooming for them. Australian fuchsia grow well in dry shade under oaks are deer resistant and drought tolerant.

I keep threatening to get a mahonia aquifolium. It would be perfect up here. They are a favorite of birds and indoor floral arrangers with cheery, bright yellow flower clusters that last for months. When each flower sets a purple berry they look like grape clusters. The edible berries make good jelly, too. There are 70 varieties of mahonia including our own native Oregon Grape which grows in the understory of Douglas fir forests. Mahonia aquifolium is resistant to summer drought, tolerates poor soil and doesn’t create a lot of leaf litter.

Other winter blooming plants include euryops, witch hazel, edgeworthia, michelia, grevillea and camellia, of course. Enjoy color in the garden regardless of what Mother Nature brings this winter.

Creating a ‘Moon Garden’

As the days grow longer I anxiously await those warm summer nights when I can sit outside and enjoy the evening air. As daylight fades it’s the white or silver plants and flowers that come to life. Whether your view is from a window or from your favorite place on the patio be sure you have a “white garden” to light up the garden late into the evening. Sometimes the best color for your garden is white.

Cornus ‘Mountain Moon’

Even on a grey day a white garden looks fresh and inviting. With so many white flowering plants, those with white variegated foliage and silver leaved plants to choose from yours can beckon you throughout the seasons. White feels relaxed and clean and will slow you down after a long day.

The plants that take a starring role springtime in a white garden include some of my favorites. I just need to get them all in the same area of my garden in order for them to do their magic.

Iris pallida lends color to the white garden through it’s spectacular

Iris pallida in Butchart Gardens, Victoria, British Columbia

striped variegated foliage. Easy to grow and deer resistant they won’t break your water budget either. The bearded flowers are a spectacular shade of lavender blue and this variety of iris is more shade tolerant than most.

If I add a few more white flowering plants to another area I can have two moon gardens. I wish I had room for a sturdy trellis as I’d surely plant an evergreen clematis. Their scent alone would justify the space. Another candidate for a strong support would be a white blooming wisteria like Longissima Alba. Guess I could get a wisteria that’s been trained as a standard or tree. As it stands I’m keeping a star jasmine pruned to a shrub so I’ll have that sweet fragrance starting in late spring.

Leopard Plant

For my shady garden one of the flowering plants that glows in the fading light of the day or the light of a full moon is pieris japonica or Lily of the Valley shrub. The huge clusters of tiny bell-like flowers are spectacular. Along with the huge variegated foliage of ligularia ‘Argentina’ or Leopard Plant both are sure to draw my eye at the end of a long day.

Choisya or Mexican Orange is one of those work horse shrubs that grows fast, has few pests, is deer resistant and the fragrant lowers will scent your garden in the spring and sporadically throughout the whole year. The handsome foliage looks clean and vibrant even in the winter time.

Rhododendron occidentale

In addition to my white flowering dogwood I have long planned to add California native, Western Azalea to my garden. A true native of California it’s found only in our state except for a tiny spot where it extends into southern Oregon. In addition to the Sierra Nevada it grows naturally in our area and then up the coast north of San Francisco. The large floral trusses are breathtaking- sparkling white marked with a bright yellow spot. The fragrance of the flowers is sweet and spicy clove reminiscent of cottage pinks and carnations. Their beauty and fragrance will enhance any garden.

Other native plants with white flowers are Philadelphus lewisii or Wild Mock Orange. Also Carpenteria californica or Bush Anemone is a beautiful plant to include in a white garden as is silver lupine and douglas iris ‘Canyon Snow’ -often described as being one of the most reliable native iris.

Oakleaf hydrangea

Later in the season look to white hydrangeas– mophead, lace cap or oakleaf- to add to your moon garden. Sally Holmes roses, hardy geranium ‘Biokovo’, Even the common Santa Barbara daisy when planted en masse makes quite a statement in the white garden.

Favorite Plants of Landscape Designers

Big surprise. Many of my friends are also landscape designers. We get together to talk plants, garden design challenges and plant problems while enjoying good food along with a little wine thrown in for good measure. Recently we met in Corralitos to exchange favorite go-to plant ideas and tour the truly fabulous garden of our host. Filled with interesting foliage and texture as well as plants that flower over a long season we all came away excited to use them in our next design. Maybe some of these ideas will work in your own garden.

Fremontodendron californicum

Every interesting garden has good bones. A successful one has a focal point, garden rooms with “walls” and a “ceiling”, plants with different textures and foliage color, repetition and unity. My friend’s garden is no exception.

Rivaling for our attention from the breathtaking view of Monterey bay, a fremontodendron, in full bloom, was a real show stopper. This California native shrub requires little irrigation and provided the perfect backdrop to the entry garden.

Loropetalum / Agave ‘Blue Glow’

Other plants that brought this garden to life included a stunning Blue Glow agave paired with the burgundy foliage of loropetalum rubrum. Both have low water needs and aren’t attractive to deer.

Eggs and bacon plant

A small recirculating fountain tucked within a pocket garden provided an inviting lure for songbirds. Surrounded by the unique lotus corniculatus or eggs and bacon plant along with a tropical-looking melianthus major aka honey bush this garden room invited one to stick around for awhile.

We garden designers were impressed with the size and vigor of acacia ‘Cousin Itt’. This lovely small plant with emerald green, feathery foliage stays small in the garden and has low water needs. Not to be confused with the bully acacia tree seen around here, it’s one of the good guys. Plant in full sun to partial shade.

Euphorbia wulfennii

In deer country you can’t go wrong with euphorbia characias wulfenii ‘Bruce’s Dwarf’. It does an excellent job of seeding itself so beware. Grow it where it can self sow and not become a problem child. Very hardy in winter and water sparingly. In spring and summer the flower heads form at the branch tips covering the plant with a chartreuse color.

A French hybrid lilac called Pocahontas scented the air as we exchanged our favorite plants that pull a garden together. The winners included hardy geraniums like Biokovo and Karmina and California native heuchera maxima. Canyon Snow Pacific coast iris also got a lot of votes. Groundcover sedum ‘Angelina’ and lime thyme garnered support also.

Abelia ’Kaleidescope’ and ‘Confetti’ got the nod from several of us. Also high on the list of favorite plants, the variegated gold and green cistus was used by many because of its low, mounding habit that hugs the ground and provides a bright evergreen accent to a sunny garden.

So if you’re in the mood to add a couple of interesting plants to your garden, take a tip from what landscape designers use or grow in their own gardens.

Flowering Trees & Shrubs of Early Spring

Outside my window the Blireiana flowering plum is covered with dark pink, double blossoms. It’s one of my favorite early spring blooming trees with a sweet fragrance strong enough to scent the garden. We look forward to the earliest flowers of the new season knowing that winter will soon be over. Spring officially begins on March 20th.

Old fashioned shrubs like flowering quince and forsythia figure prominently in many old gardens because they are tough plants able to survive neglect and still look beautiful.

Forsythia ‘Kolgold’

The bare stems of forsythia are completely covered with deep golden-yellow flowers in late winter and early spring and become the focal point of the landscape when in full bloom. The showy stems of this easy care shrub are great for cutting. Forsythias are native to eastern Asia but a chance discovery in Germany by a grower who specialized in breeding for the cut flower industry led to the especially vivid variety ‘Kolgold’ in the 1800’s. Forsythia has long been used in Chinese medicine. The flower petals contain powerful bacteria-fighting properties which make it an important dressing.

Flowering quince

Flowering quince is another old garden staple providing early color. They are easy to care for and nearly indestructible in almost any soil that is well drained and not overly fertile. Once established quince is a very drought tolerant plant and their spiny branches make them an excellent choice for hedges, screening or as a security barrier. There are red, pink, orange and white flowering varieties. The Toyo Nishiki cultivar even has pink, white and solid red flowers all on the same branch.

Clivia miniata

What would a shade garden be without a bright orange clivia? Every year I look forward to their huge flower clusters that emerge from between dark green, strappy leaves. Even in dark shade they will bloom and brighten the winter garden although they would do fine in morning sun. If you have a north facing window you can grow them as houseplants. Clivia are hardy to several degrees below freezing but mine, under an overhang, have survived temps of 23 degrees without damage. Clivia breeders have produced gold and peach colored flowers also but I still like the standard orange ones.

A beautiful vine that blooms in winter is hardenbergia ‘Happy

Hardenbergia ‘Happy Wanderer’

Wanderer’. In the pea family, this evergreen vine looks like a small wisteria when in bloom. Pinkish-purple flowers cascade in clusters on twining stems that reach 12-16 feet long. It requires little water once established and is hardy to about 23 degrees. If you have an older, tangled plant you can rejuvenate it with hard pruning in early spring after flowering. Never prune in late summer or fall because you will cut off the wood that is going to bloom the following winter.

The last plant I couldn’t live without is Fragrant Sarcococca. The tiny white flowers of this plant are easily overlooked but you can’t miss their scent. I have one near the front door that greets me with that vanilla fragrance every time I walk in or out. The flowers are followed by a bright red fruit. Sweet Box forms a natural espalier against a wall and if you have a problem spot in deep dry shade where other plants won’t grow give this plant a try. They are easy to grow, deer resistant and trouble free.

Winter Weather All-Stars

Between storms I’ve been scouting for flowering plants that really hold up to pounding rain. Sure pansies, primroses and cyclamen are pretty but they’re looking a bit beat up about now. I have been impressed with many flowering shrubs and trees that are happily blooming despite so much rainfall this winter.

As I write this during another series of storms, my weather station here in Bonny Doon has recorded 85.06 inches of the wet stuff this season with 39.76 inches of that having fallen so far in January alone. I have put out straight sided containers on several occasions to double check my gauge with an old fashion ruler. Yep, the weather station is accurate.

All this rain makes me have even more respect for the flowering plants that are holding up to the weather. These plants are my heroes and you might consider including them in your garden too.

Autumnalis flowering cherry

One of my favorite small ornamental trees, blooming several times a year, is the Autumnalis flowering cherry. It blooms in the spring, a little during the summer, again in the early fall and then another round of blossoms show up in December and January. I’m not sure how it got the name Autumnalis ‘cause it sure can’t read a calendar. I was afraid I would loose the winter show with so much pounding rain but the pale pink blossoms have come through just fine and and chickadees who land in it before going to the feeder remind me that spring will be here before I know it.

Cinnamon Snow helleborus

Also here in my own garden the hellebore flowers are holding up well. One of my favorites is called Cinnamon Snow but all of the varieties of this buttercup relative accept wind, rain, cold and less than perfect soil while getting by with only moderate watering in the shady summer garden. Deer aren’t attracted to them either.

Australian fuchsia

Recently, after seeing a Pink Australian Fuchsia blooming so profusely despite the rain, I decided to add a variegated variety called Correa ‘Wyn’s Wonder’ to my own garden. Although not related to hybrid fuchsias, the flowers are similar and their nectar will feed the Anna’s hummingbirds. They grow well in dry shade under oaks are deer resistant and drought tolerant.

A favorite of birds and indoor floral arrangers is the evergreen mahonia. Plant a mahonia if you want to attract winter hummingbirds. They are blooming now with bright yellow flower clusters that will last for months. Each flower will set a purple berry looking like a cluster of grapes. The edible berries make good jelly, too. There are 70 varieties of mahonia including our own native Oregon Grape which grows in the understory of Douglas fir forests. Mahonia aquifolium is resistant to summer drought, tolerates poor soil and doesn’t create a lot of leaf litter.

daphne odora

Other tough winter blooming plants include winter daphne, abutilon, witch hazel, edgeworthia, camellia and grevillea. Driving around I’m seeing that the Saucer Magnolia’s don’t mind the pounding rain either. Enjoy color in the garden regardless of what Mother Nature brings our way.