ae 
Nursery Located At Ruckman Road 63 
OMPHALODES. Navelwort. (Boraginaceae, Borage Family) ~ 
Omphalodes verna. (Creeping Forget-Me-Not) Spreading clumps of long stalked, 
pointed, deep green leaves about 5 inches high and bright blue flowers in loose 
sprays in April and May. The flowers are the same as those of the common Forget- 
Me-Nots. This one makes a very pleasing evergreen ground cover in a rich acid 
soil with humus or leafmold in a moist shaded area. (pH 5-6) 
Omphalodes verna alba. The same lovely evergreen creeper as above except that it has 
pure white flowers with yellow eyes. Same soil and exposure as above. 
OPUNTIA, Prickly Pear. (Cactaceae, Cactus Family) 
Opuntia compressa. Our Eastern native hardy cactus which forms large masses of flat, 
thick fleshy leaf-like joints, It has very pretty, large silky yellow flowers in June. 
Each flower is about 3 inches in diameter. It is an excellent plant for poor sandy 
soil or hot dry rocks, although it grows well in any well drained soil in a sunny 
location. (pH 4-8) The long sharp spines are weapons to be avoided. 
Opuntia fragilis. A dwarf prostrate grower that covers the ground with a close mat of 
| prickly green, The large yellow flowers open from salmon colored buds and the 
almost round, thorny joints are only about an inch in diameter. It comes from the 
Arctic Circle where it is subjected to 50 below zero. It likes a well drained garden 
soil in full sun, (pH 5-7) 
Opuntia polyacantha. A western species with large flat joints that are covered with a 
thick coat of white spines, giving it a hoary aspect. It has lovely large silken flow- 
ers that vary in color ‘from lemon yellow to red and bright orange. [t requires a 
sandy or gritty, well drained soil in full sun. (pH 5-7) 
PACHISTIMA. (Celastraceae, Staff Tree Family) 
Pachistima canbyi. A little evergreen shrub that grows into attract.ve rounded bushes 
about 10 inches high, covered with small, leathery, dark green leaves. If it is 
grown in the shade the branches become long and decumbent, making a loose 
eround cover. The small flowers are hardly noticeable, A native of the mountains of 
Virginia and West Virginia. It likes an acid leadmold soil and\in sun or shade. 
(pH 4-6) It stays more compact in sun. 
PACHYSANDRA. Spurge. (Buxaceae, Boxwood Family) 
Pachysandra procumbens. (Alleghany Spurge) Our rare native spurge that forms large 
attractive clumps of dark green, thick leathery leaves about 10 inches high. It has 
dense, six inch high spikes of odd white flowers in early April, before the new 
foliage unfurls. An excellent plant that is usually overlooked by landscapers. It can 
be used as a ground cover or as a specimen plant in a hrady nook in a rich acid 
loam. (pH 5-6). It does not creep like ordinary Pachysandra. 
PAPAVER. Poppy. (Papaveraceae, Poppy Family) 
Papaver alpinum. A dainty dwarf Poppy from the Swiss Alps. It forms little clumps 
of graceful pale green, ferny foliage about 5 inches high and thin stems about 10 
inches high with delicately colored silky flowers all through the summer. The 
flowers vary from white to shadees of pink and yellow, It is easy to grow if given 
a well drained, sandy lime soil in full sun. (pH 7-8)' It makes a perfect wall plant. 
~ PELLAEA. Cliff Brake. (Polypodiaceae, Fern Family) 
Pellaea atropurpurea. Long, slender, leathery fronds about 12 inches high in loose 
clumps. The stipes are dark purple and the leaflets are a lovely blue-gray color. A 
natural. rock loving fern that inhabits the limestone ledges in our Eastern Moun- 
tains. It must be grown in a crevice of a rock with a bit of leafmold for food. 
(pH 7-8) It will not live in an open bed. 
