sun garden

If you grow it, they may not buy it

One of the frustrating things about growing and propagating plants is when you find an incredible plant, offer it for sale, and virtually no one buys it. Such is the case with the Texas native, Ageratina havanensis, aka: Havana Mistflower, Eupatorium havanense. This fascinating woody perennial, formerly classified as a eupatorium, forms a 3′ tall

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Shaggy, but not a dog

The shaggy blazing star, Liatris pilosa has put on quite a show over the last few weeks. Looking quite different in the garden than it did in the wild, this native from Delaware south to Florida enjoys bright sun and well-drained soils. Our plant is growing in one of our Permatill amended rock gardens. Hardiness

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The Standing Silphium

We have a large collection of silphiums at JLBG, but unfortunately most have limited garden value since they splay apart and often completely fall over when in flower. While they’re loved by native bees, we have been frustrated to not find many that are mainstream garden worthy. One that has been impressive in our trials,

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Lavender and White

On my very short commute home, we’ve designed beds along the way that help relieve the stresses of the day. One of my favorite beds in summer is this combination of Allium ‘Millenium’, Sinningia tubiflora (white), Verbena bonariensis, and Pervoskia atriplicifolia. Both the sinningia and the verbena can be a bit aggressive in some areas

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Crying Amethyst Tears

One of the many hardy sinningias that has really impressed us during the last few years is Sinningia ‘Amethyst Tears’. Here is our garden clump, flowering its head off in the middle of August. You’ve probably never heard of this, since it’s an unintroduced Yucca Do selection from plantsman Wade Roitsch.

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Gold Crest…A Crowning Achievement

We’ve tried a number of Caryopteris x clandonensis cultivars over the years, and most fail to survive more than one of our hot, humid summers. One recent exception that surpassed all of our expectations is the amazing Caryopteris ‘Gold Crest’. Below is a mid-July image from the garden. From the incredibly fragrant foliage to the

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Erect Blues

Below is our 5 year old clump of Commelina erecta looking absolutely dazzling, as it does each spring and summer. Commelina erecta is an amazing perennial, virtually unknown in horticultural circles, despite being native from 30 of the 50 states (Minnesota to New Mexico). Our collection below is from Elbert County, Georgia. Each plant forms

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Clematis Time – Engendered or Endangered

Late spring is a great season for clematis at JLBG, but one that’s particularly of interest is the recently named (2006) Clematis carrizoensis, which hails from a very small region of East Texas. It’s not been around long enough to officially be listed as Federally Endangered, but that’s most likely where it’s headed. This new

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