'^- 



-!*■ 



.JLhe white of i 



the snow and the low angle 

 of the sun alters our perception of plants and 

 structures in the landscape — highlighting 

 the red-purple hues in evergreen leaves, 

 the delicate golden strands of grasses in a 

 meadow, or the rough textures of a stone wall. 



ange petals can be enjoyed in February and March, then 

 allowed to slip into the background as other plants take 

 center stage. Native to lowland forests and old fields of 

 the Central US (Missouri and Arkansas), it is good in sun 

 or light shade, wet-to-average soil moisture, and tolerates 

 very poor-to-moderately drained soils. Deep fibrous lat- 

 eral roots mean it is best transplanted as B&B or con- 

 tainer in early spring. Rated for Zone 5b. 



PROPAGATION: Cuttings are easier with this species 

 than the Asian species and hybrids, as long as it is done 

 early enough in the season (early June here) for the cut- 

 tings to harden off a second flush of growth before win- 

 ter. Cuttings treated with 1000 

 ppm IBA talc were slow to 

 root, while 10,000 ppm quick- 

 dip produced more callus, but 

 still took six-to-eight weeks or 

 more. H. vernalis is also easy 

 from seed, provided you col- 

 lect the capsules before they 

 explode. We gather the cap- 

 sules in late summer, when 

 they begin to yellow, and dry 

 them in paper bags — it's fun 

 to hear them bursting in the 

 bags. Seed sown outside in 



early September will germinate the following spring. Per- 

 centages can be enhanced by giving them a longer pe- 

 riod of warm stratification before cold. Like other 

 witchhazels, this species takes shearing well and fills out 

 a container very quickly. 



Leucothoe fontansiana is common in the trade, but Leuco- 

 tftoe axillaris is a more compact plant better suited for 

 smaller spaces. The glossy, leathery leaves stay ever- 

 green, turning red-green to maroon-purple through the 

 winter. Dense clusters of white, urn-shaped flowers are 

 shorter than L. fontanesiana Although native to wet woods 

 on the southeastern U.S. coastal plain and rated "Zone 

 7?" by Hortus III, it grows happily at Garden in the 

 Woods (Zone 5b) in part shade and well-drained soils. 

 We have La. ' Scarletta' which shows beautiful red stems 

 through the winter. 



PROPAGATION is easiest with hardwood cuttings taken 

 after several hard frosts (early November in Framingham). 

 Bill has treated cuttings with Hormodin #3 and stuck 

 them in half pine bark, half perlite with bottom heat with 

 excellent results by spring. 



The glossy bronze-purple winter coloration and small 

 fine texture of Pachistima canbyi makes it a prime candi- 

 date for winter gardens. Forming a low one-to-two-foot 

 mat of small leathery evergreen leaves, this species 

 starts out light green in spring, turning dark green in 

 summer, then bronze-purple through the winter. Flowers 

 and fruits are inconspicuous. Native to steep, rocky, 

 wooded slopes of the central Appalachian Mountains, it 

 prefers mesic-to-mesic/dry soils and tolerates shade. We 

 grow it at Garden in the Woods in well-drained soils in 

 half-day sun. It is sensitive to soil compaction, but trans- 

 plants well. Hardiness 4b. 



PROPAGATION: Semi-hardwood cuttings root easily. 

 Bill has taken cuttings in mid-luly, treated them with 



3000 ppm IBA quick-dip and had 75% root. Cuttings taken 

 in September and treated with same rooted only 20%. It 

 makes a compact, attractive container plant that could be 

 marketed with perennials as well. Bill did have problems 

 with what he assumed was phytophthora in North Caro- 

 lina, mostly due to stress from extreme summer tempera- 

 tures. It grows much more easily in the cooler climate of 

 New England. 



Zenobia pulverulenta is another species that should be 

 more widely grown. The spreading branches with exfoliat- 

 ing red-to-red-brown bark form a soft three-to-six-foot 

 mound of fairly dense foliage. The smooth, elliptical 



semi-evergreen leaves are 

 bluish green (some almost 

 gray-blue), changing in the fall 

 to soft rose-deep purple. At 

 Garden in the Woods, many of 

 the leaves hold that soft rose 

 color into February. Flowers 

 are small white nodding bells, 

 like other ericaceous species. 

 Zenobia is a southeastern na- 

 tive found in bogs, swamps, 

 and wooded glades, and 

 therefore shade-and-flood-tol- 

 erant. It grows well in soils of 

 average moisture, is resistant to heat, drought, soil com- 

 paction and salt, and has few disease or insect problems. 

 Hardy to Zone 5b (GITW) or colder, it transplants well. 



PROPAGATION: Bill has not had much luck with cut- 

 tings, which is unfortunate, because there are some very 

 attractive blue forms. Tip cuttings taken in mid-june and 

 treated with 5000 ppm quick-dip rooted at only 10%, but 

 those that did put on a second flush of growth. The seed 

 of Zenobia is very fine like Rhododendron, and germinates 

 easily. We collect the capsules in early October and let 

 them split. The seed is surface-sown under lights set for 

 14- hour days and the container covered with a plastic 

 dome until the first true leaves are evident (roughly six 

 weeks). Like other ericaceous species, the seedlings are 

 slow to get going, but we've found that bi-weekly appli- 

 cations of dilute ( 150 ppm N) fertilizer speeds them up. 

 Shearing is necessary, as vigorous young foliage has the 

 best color and the plants tend to get ungainly if growth 

 is left unchecked 



Clethra acuminata has beautiful reddish brown exfoliat- 

 ing bark that makes it stand out against the white snow 

 of winter. The large ovate-lanceolate leaves have a cool 

 medium green color through season, turning yellow to or- 

 ange in fall, before dropping in October. The fragrant 

 white flower clusters resemble C. alnifolia, but the 

 racemes are longer and somewhat drooping — a magnet 

 for summer butterflies and hummingbirds. Bill was very 

 impressed when he first saw this species in the wild near 

 Asheville, North Carolina. It forms open stands along 

 floodplains of mountain streams, and the bark color is 

 stunning to see. Books give this shrub a USDA Zone 6a 

 hardiness rating, but again it grows well at GITW (Zone 

 5b). This shrub is very resistant to pest and diseases, 

 tolerant of salt and drought, and seems adaptable to all 

 but excessively dry soils. 



FEBRUARY ♦ MARCH 1996 



