Commonly known as the Blanket Flower, Gaillardia x grandiflora is a great summer blooming perennial border plant. Gaillardia will suffer in heavy clay soils, plant in well-drained sunny locations. Gaillardia flowers continuously with out the need to dead head.
Susceptible to leaf spot, powdery mildew and leafhoppers to minor degrees. Growing 2-3′ tall this perennial has an impressive 3-4″ flower head and is hardy in Zones 3-10. A great choice for areas that have high summer temps and dry soils.
A few notable cultivars:
I saw this TED talk a while back and came across it again today. Researcher Kamal Meattle shows how a selection of three common houseplants can result in measurably cleaner indoor air quality.
The three plants he references in the video are:
For a more exhaustive list of air-filtering soil and plants check out this Wikipedia entry. The list was compiled by NASA as part of the NASA Clean Air Study, which researched ways to clean air in space stations.
Learn MoreThe 3 inch long glossy green leaves of the Himalayan Sarcococca or Christmas Box are definitely an outstanding feature of this shade tolerant evergreen shrub. Native to the western Himalayas this low growing plant is ideal for foundation planting, or locations that require a lower overall height, as it grows only 18-24″ tall yet spreads 3 feet wide.
When planted in well drained moist soils this evergreen will slowly spread by stoloniferous growth. In winter it bears clusters of fragrant, inconspicuous, pink tinged white flowers; male flowers (towards shoot tips) have pink anthers, female flowers with 2 styles. When planted in mass the fragrance can be quite strong. The fruit is dark blue to black and 1/4 inch in size. The variety humilis is smaller and more cold-hardy than the species.
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The Japanese Cedar, not a true cedar, is a beautiful evergreen and is a worthy consideration when looking for alternatives to more common evergreen selections. Hardy in zones 5-9 this conifer develops a dense pyramidal or conical habit. Overall mature height is about 50 feet and a spread of 20 feet.
As the tree matures the reddish brown bark becomes quite the feature for this tree, peeling off in long strips. The medium green foliage will develop into a bronze color in the winter and returning to green in the spring.
Best used in large open areas and will tolerate urban conditions such as compacted soils, poor drainage and air pollution.
This tree has many cultivated varieties, from the dwarf to the variegated you’ll likely fine a Japanese Cedar to fit your unique conifer needs.
A few varieties of note:
Stewartia monodelpha known commonly as Tall Stewartia or Orangebark Stewartia is a slow growing deciduous tree hardy in zones 6-8. Reaching a mature height of 20 to 25 feet and a spread of 15-25 feed this tree develops a rather symmetrical pyramidal crown in its youth developing into a vase shaped outline as it matures. (more…)
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This fast growing Norway Maple variety forms a rounded canopy that is densely branched. Hardy in USDA Hardines Zones 3 to 7, this deciduous shade tree reaches heights of 45′ and spread of 40′. Medium green color in spring and summer turing yellow in the fall. Performs best in full sun to part shade, and moist well drained soils.
Reported to be tolerant of deer, pollution, wind and dry sites (once established).
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