… Red redbud ( Cercis canadensis 'Appalachian Red') was discovered growing beside a road in Maryland. The brilliant pink flowers are much brighter than the typical redbud, making it a … redbuds often have short trunks that begin branching close to the ground. Purple-pink flowers in March or April bloom directly on branches and mature trunks. After their early springtime show, glossy, heart-shaped leaves up to 5 inches give redbud its summertime appeal. In native habitats, redbud grows as an understory tree in partial shade and soil that is …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… on the dunes and beach areas. While it can grow to be a large tree thirty feet tall or more, in cultivated landscapes it is mostly trimmed tightly to form shorter screens and barriers. The sea grape has large rounded green leaves with red veins which turn red in colder weather. The fruit appears in late summer in large green clusters which ripen to tasty red fruits. No wonder it is called a …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… often available through local garden centers after danger of the last frost has passed. Plant in full sun in moist soils. This dahlia is not significantly troubled by pests or diseases in the Chicago region. Dahlias were cultivated by the Aztecs well before the conquistadors …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… deutzia is a dwarf cultivar with a spreading habit. It produces abundant small white flowers in spring. Unlike many deutzia, Nikko offers burgundy fall foliage color. The genus Deutzia … slender stems and a fine-textured arching habit. The clusters of small flowers that appear in spring or early summer are white on most species, but may be pinkish in a few species and cultivars. Deutzias are best used grouped in informal settings as a hedge or …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Hellebores or Lenten roses are prized for their flowers which appear in late winter or early spring and are often the first flowers to appear in the Chicago garden. Blushing Bridesmaid hellebore grows into a low mound about eighteen inches … clusters of up to ten serrated leaves which are evergreen throughout the winter except in extremely cold locations. Blushing Bridesmaid bears clusters of two inch crisp white double …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… a silvery frosted central section and dark venation. Primarily grown for its decorative leaves in spring and summer, it adds drama with tall scapes of foamy cream flowers in early summer. Green Spice Coral Bells has outstanding red and orange fall color and, in milder climates, the colorful leaves remain decorative all winter. It grows well in full to …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Scarlet O'Hara is a cultivar of our native deciduous winterberry hollies. In the wild they are found in swampy sites and stream margins in the eastern US. Scarlett O'Hara is a slow grower to about 6-8 feet high and 6-8 feet wide. …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… features dark green leaves and large clusters of flowers which are either lace cap or mophead in structure. ‘Doublicious’, which grows 4-6’ tall, has mophead flowers which bloom from May … June on old wood and on new wood from July to October. Flower color is dependent on the soil in which the hydrangea is planted – blue in acidic soils and rose-pink in alkaline soils – and color will change as the flowers age. The …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… S. and to our particular area. It breaks out with profuse clusters of simple, small pink roses in May and June for the bees, resulting in colorful red hips from midsummer into winter for the birds. In the wild, it spreads by suckers forming colonies. As a native, it has better natural …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… matures to deep glossy green. The ultimate height and spread of this rose is 3 feet by 3 feet in the Chicago region. This rose is more tolerant of summer heat than many other cultivars, but unfortunately, it is very prone to powdery mildew and blackspot. Plant it in full sun and provide plenty of space around the plant to encourage good air movement, which reduces the conditions conducive to foliar diseases. This cultivar was bred in the Netherlands by the firm of De Ruiter Innovations and commercially released in 1963. It has …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
