Plants of the Week---Sweetspire, Oakleaf Hydrangea, Serviceberry, and Winterberry

While autumn's tree foliage brings incredible beauty to our landscapes, several shrubs offer brilliant color as well. Following are a few fall favorites.

' Henry's Garnet 'Sweetspire is a native deciduous plant found in the southeastern United States. Itea virginica grows from about 6-8 feet tall, forming graceful, arching branches. In the early summer, Sweetspire blooms small, lightly fragrant white flowers on arching racemes.

Sweetspire photo by Sam Bahr, UMD

'Henry's Garnet' puts on a colorful show in autumn with red to purple foliage that lasts into winter. The shrub prefers moist soil in partial sun and shade. It is a great plant to use along banks or in wet areas to control soil erosion. Prune after flowering as it blooms on last year's wood. Sweetspire is a great plant

to add to the landscape for blooming color in summer and wonderful fall leaves. 

The Oakleaf hydrangea, Hydrangea quercifolia, dominates the front of my home where I have let it grow a little too big on the corner. This plant has four season interest. The white flowers in late spring turn a mauve color in mid-summer. The fall leaf color sports shades of maroon, purple and red beneath the fading flowers. Added to that, the bark has a peeling nature in a lovely cinnamon color.

Oakleaf hydrangea fall colors

Oakleaf hydrangea photo courtesy of University of Maryland

Oakleaf hydrangea is a native to the southeastern United States. It thrives in light shade, shooting sprouts from underground which allows it to colonize easily if space is available. The deer have left it alone, unlike the other hydrangeas in my landscape. Oakleaf hydrangea will handle moist, though not wet, soil. The cone-shaped flower clusters are about 6-12 inches tall and about 5 inches wide at their base. 

Serviceberry, Amelanchier canadensis, may fall more into the small tree category, as it grows 15 feet or more, but its natural form is a multi-stemmed shrub. Native to Maryland, it easily adapts to a broad range of soils, including clay and sand. The white flowers in spring and the fall berries are prized by native wildlife. Early flowers provide pollen and nectar to a wide variety of beneficial insects, including native bees. The berries provide for many birds, including Robins, Baltimore Orioles, Cedar Waxwings and Catbirds. The fall leaf colors are yellow, orange and red. 

Serviceberry photo courtesy of Plant Finder as seen on our website

Serviceberry grows in full sun to part shade in slightly acidic soil. It is an excellent alternative to the invasive Bradford pear. 

Winterberry, Ilex verticillata, is a fall favorite for the berried stems that find all sorts of uses in fall and winter decorating. The deciduous holly loses its leaves in the next month or two, leaving branches of colorful red berries. Native to the eastern United States, Winterberry does very well in wetland habitats, and is adaptable enough to adapt to dry sites. The shrub reaches 10-15 feet and is available in a dwarf version. Winterberry requires a female and male plant to produce berries. 

 

The leaves will drop, leaving a bounty of berries

Winterberry is attractive to birds and butterflies. Look for coral-colored varieties too. 

Don't plant this---Euonymous alatus, known as Burning Bush for its bright red fall color, is an invasive plant. It is on Maryland's Tier Two Invasives list. While it can still be sold in Maryland, a sign must accompany the plants on the nursery lots to warn gardeners of its invasive nature.  Plant some of the native plants listed above to take the Euonymous' place in landscape. 

The Burning Bush has since been removed from this landscape. 

Autumn's colors are amazing and may be part of the reason that so many call fall their favorite season. Plant some native trees and shrubs this October while the soil is warm and the air cool.

Enjoy this wonderful time of year!

Plants of the Week---Ornamental Grasses

 

Ornamental grasses rarely take center stage, instead they provide backdrop, form and movement in the summer, fall and winter gardens. Ornamental grasses can be diminutive, like Blue Fescue, or dominating like Arondo donax. Most fall somewhere in between. 

Grasses grow in various shapes. Most like full sun, but a few do well in shadier spaces. Hakonechloa is one of those. It's soft, arching habit is bamboo-like. Use it to soften the edge of a water or rock garden. In the shade, the bright yellow foliage brightens up darker areas. Hakonechloa grows to 24".

Hakonechloa grows in drifts over a rock-edged stream 

Bright foliage blends with the new foliage of emerging trees at Ladew Gardens

On the other end of the spectrum Arundo donax can grow to 6 feet or more depending on the variety. This plant works well in the background of taller plants like upright sedum, Russian sage, taller rudbeckias among others. 

Arundo donax pictured with Russian sage and sedum at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens

Combinations of summer and fall blooming annuals and tropical plants are the perfect way to use ornamental grasses. Pennisetum, aka fountain grasses, add movement to the garden too, as they sway with the breeze. 

The garden border isn't the only place to use grasses. Consider containers. While grasses may not overwinter in pots, they add a unique seasonal element to fall displays. 

Love the drama the grass adds to the potted evergreen

Garden designers at Longwood and Ladew Gardens rely on ornamental grasses to provide vertical lines in the garden as well as the arching habit some provide. 

Longwood Gardens added grasses to an already gorgeous display of tropical Bismarkia palms. 

The early fall Garden Walk is spectacular with the addition of grasses. 

Added to an urban landscape, grasses pair well with summer blooming Rudbeckia and Echinacea. Sedums, Rudbeckias, Salvias, Asters, Coreopsis and fall blooming mums are all natural companions in late summer and fall gardens. 

A welcome oasis in the city

Ornamental grasses are used in informal gardens and borders, but can just as easily be used in a more formal garden as a background element to sheared shrubs and hedges.

Begonias, cleome and grasses add color to the formal hedge

Stop in to see our selection of Ornamental Grasses. We have them available from May-September in our Perennial Department. For more information on all of the grasses, go to Plant Finder on our Valley View Farms' website. Check the box for Ornamental Grasses and view the wide assortment that we may carry over the course of the year. 

The Fall garden transitions to Winter

Enjoy the fall garden with the addition of Ornamental Grasses. 

Plant of the Week---Mums

Bench after bench of fall mums 

I took a field trip today, visiting other garden centers and the big box stores. It is officially fall in the herbaceous plant world. The celosias from last week's blog were side-by-side mums of many sizes. From small mums in 4" pots to jumbo mums in 12" pots, the fall flowering favorites were in good supply. Naturally, I have a bias and think our growers do an incredible job growing our own mums!

Mums soon after planting

We've grown mums at the family farm in Hydes, MD for as long as I can remember. Our growing has evolved from producing over 10,000 mums in 8 inch pots to expanding to 10 and 12 inch pots with multiple plants in each pot. We even grow tricolor pots of mums. While plenty of other plants fill our greenhouse and shade-house, mums are undoubtedly still number one in the fall garden. 

Tricolor mixed pots are beautiful

We don't necessarily call these mums perennial, though if they were planted in the ground early in the season, their chance of coming back are good. Many of our gardeners use mums like pumpkins as autumn decorations. Purchased when the buds start to crack open, mum flowers will usually last for 6-8 weeks, depending on weather and proper watering. John and Vernon, at our farm, grow over 50 varieties. They get planted on 4 different dates beginning in early June to take advantage of their propensity to bloom early, mid-season, late, or what we call season extenders. There is always a chance with the later mums that a frost may occur. A frost won't kill the plant, but will mar the flowers. Covering the blooms with Harvest Guard or a light sheet overnight will save the blooms. 

Bright yellow is always popular

Mums love full sun. In containers, get used to checking them everyday to see if they may need to be watered. A timed-released fertilizer like Osmocote will provide the necessary food to keep the plant healthy and happy through fall. Removing spent blooms keeps the plant pretty well into the fall months. 

I love the big mums!

Enjoy the colors of autumn. Refresh summer plantings with mums. 

Plant of the Week---Celosia

Celosias in Penn States' annual flower trials in Landisville, PA

 As summer transitions to fall, Celosias takes the stage as annuals that thrive in hot August temperatures and sustain beautifully unique blooms through October. 

A plume type celosia introduced at Cultivate, our industry's trade show

Celosia plumosa has feathery flowers atop robust leaves and stems. Many of them sport fall colors, like yellow and orange, but also have delightful red, purple and pink flowers. 

Cockscomb in the conservatory at Longwood Gardens

Celosia argentea var. cristata is know as cockscomb because the flower looks like the comb that tops a rooster.  The wavy crest is very distinctive and admired by gardeners for the shape, color and long-blooming qualities. We've had customers ask for the flower that looks like a brain...I see that. 

Celosia Intenz grows great in large pots. Consider pairing them with mums for fall. 

A close-up view of Intenz

Celosia spicata has bold color spikes that bloom freely summer through fall. The Intenz varieties are low maintenance, attractive plants for blooming spring, summer and fall. Like the other varieties of celosia, Intenz is attractive to butterflies and other pollinators. 

Celosia Kelos Candela Pink

One of my favorite celosias is this newer introduction, Celosia Kelos Candela. Their neon pink flowers bloom atop burgundy and green foliage. The blossoms can be as long as 15 inches! I'm not the only one that loves it; Candela won the prestigious  All-America Selections Award in 2021. Look through the AAS website as many celosias have performed in gardens across the country well enough to be chosen for an award. 

Celosias do well in pots or in the garden. Heights vary by variety; some grow to just 6 inches, others tower to 3 feet. All do well in full sun. Celosia flowers dry extremely well and hold their color as cut flowers in vases or dried in arrangements. This time of year you may see them with dahlias, sunflowers, grasses and mums in floral displays at the farmers markets in our region. 

Mixed pot with ornamental peppers, creeping Jenny and ornamental cabbage

Take a peek at the video below to see butterflies enjoying the celosia blooms. 

Plant of the Week---Rudbeckia

Black-eyed Susans

Rudbeckias are one of the most beloved perennials in the country. As Maryland's state flower, the Rudbeckia hirta is very popular in our state. It has been our 'Floral Emblem' as designated by the Maryland General Assembly since 1918. Rudbeckia was named by Swedish horticulturist Carl Linnaeus after Olav Rudbeck and his son, both professors at the University of Uppsala.

Rudbeckia growing in a mixed border

The National Gardening Bureau named 2023 the Year of the Rudbeckia. So chosen for its summer longevity and durability, Rudbeckia thrives across most of the continental U S. Many varieties of Rudbeckia are sold in our garden center for their beauty and ease of growth. The aforementioned Rudbeckia hirta is a biennial or short-lived perennial that easily reseeds in Maryland. Several cultivars of hirta are longer lived.

Rudbeckia fulgida is the best known of the Rudbeckia species. 'Goldsturm' was the Perennial Plant of the Year in 1999; 'American Gold Rush' is this year's pick by the same group. 'American Gold Rush' is also an AAS winner. Another popular fulgida is 'Little Goldstar', a variety that grows about knee high compared to the others that grow 2-3 feet high. 

Rudbeckias love full sun, well-drained soil and thrive planted in large masses or in a mixed border. Great cut-flowers, Black-eyed Susans are also wonderful pollinator attractors in the garden. They also provide food for birds long past blooming season. Do not cut back spent flowers as the seed heads will provide birds with food through much of the winter.

Rudbeckia maxima can grow up to 8 feet

The flower forms differ a bit between varieties. Echinacea crosses have appeared marketed under the name Echibeckia. New varieties at trade shows and at our trial gardens include a new Sunbeckia series as well.

Trade Show Temptations

Look for the incredible selection of perennial Rudbeckias in our Sun-Loving Perennial aisles at Valley View Farms. Ask us about our favorites. And check in our Annual shade house for less hardy varieties. 

Visit our Sunny Perennial Aisle at Valley View Farms

Plant of the Week---Crape Myrtle

The Crape Myrtle has taken over in our region as summer's blooming tree. Once considered a strictly southern tree, Crape Myrtles, Lagerstroemia, have worked their way into Maryland's USDA Zone 7 transitional hardiness zones. Breeding for better hardiness, including disease tolerance, has made this smaller tree a regional favorite. Our National Arboretum is responsible for much of the hybridization that has improved the Myrtle. Dr. John Creech introduced plants from a colder site in Japan that crossed the indica species with the fauriei species, responsible for so many new introductions over recent years.

Mottled gray and tan bark adds interest to the already beautiful tree with large panicle flowers in colors like purple, pink, red and white. Crape Myrtles also feature great fall color as the small leaves turn shades of gold and red in autumn.

Crape Myrtles do well in clay soil with slightly acidic pH. They prefer full sun for flowering; my dwarf Crape Myrtles struggle to bloom in a lightly shaded area. Water frequently when installed for the first year or so. They become drought tolerant once the roots are well established.

Suckers often grow from the base off the trees. Prune them as they appear. The tree requires only light pruning in the early spring. Crape Myrtles will begin to bloom in July in our mid-Atlantic region.

Use as a specimen tree as my neighbor has at his driveway's entrance, or in mass plantings as I've seen in area city scapes and parking areas. Small Crape Myrtles can also be used in container plantings, though they may need protection from winter's freezing temperatures. 

For more information on Crape Myrtles, visit Southern Living's website. Steve Bender, aka, The Grumpy Gardener, provides great tips for caring for this southern favorite that has migrated north to Maryland. 

Visit out nursery for a close look at the various heights, shapes, foliage and flower color of the many Crape Myrtles we carry. Click on the Plant Finder tab located on out Valley View Farms website for descriptions, photos, and more cultural information.

Enjoy Maryland's favorite summer flowering tree. You will seem them everywhere!

Plant of the Week---Water Lily

 The water lily is the undisputed Queen of the Water Garden. Its beauty takes center stage to of the other plants in the pond or water garden. But its function in the water is more than providing a pretty face. The water lily's large leaves shade the pond, its roots and leaves help to keep the water clear. Hardy water lilies will overwinter in our ponds while tropical lilies bloom in the summer.

Pond depths from 18-24" will give way to a planting depth of 10-16", allowing pots to be 8" deep with soil to for the lilies. Smaller plants can be lifted by using bricks in the pond. 

Check in with our water garden department for information about plants and pond health. We also provide seminars on water garden installation and pond care through the season. 

Valley View Farms' Nick with WBAL's Ava Marie