Wildflowers: Iris Native to the Southeast
Karen Meyers Iris is a genus of 310 species and is in the plant family Iridaceae that also included gladiolus, crocus and freesia. The plants are all perennial and grow 2-79″ from…
Plant Profile: Sweet Scabiosa (Scabiosa atropurpurea)
Karen Also known as mourningbride, and mournful widow, this annual is a member of the honeysuckle family, Caprifoliaceae, that also includes weigelia, Centranthus, and valerian. It is native to the Mediterranean…
Plant Profile: Maximilian Sunflower (Helianthus maximiliana)
Native to the Great Plains of central North America, this herbaceous perennial is a member of the aster family, Asteraceae, that also includes daisy, yarrow, and lettuce. With a rhizomatous…
Plant Profile: Rayless Sunflower (Helianthus radula)
Also known as pineland sunflower, this tender perennial is native to southeastern US from South Carolina to Florida and eastern Louisiana where it grows in sandy uplands, along moist to…
Plant Profile: Thinleaf Sunflower (Helianthus decapetalus)
Also called rough sunflower and ten-petal sunflower, this herbaceous perennial is native to the woodlands and forests of Eastern and Central US. It is a member of the daisy family,…
Plant Profile: Java Glorybower (Clerodendrum speciosissimum)
This tropical evergreen shrub is also known as pagoda flower and giant salvia and is native to Java where it grows in forest clearings in the low mountains. It is…
Plant Profile: Common Sunflower (Helianthus annus)
Although there are many perennial sunflowers there is only one annual that is garden worthy but that one has dozens of cultivars and is very popular. A native of western…
Plants for a Mary Garden: Fuller’s Teasel (Dipsacus fullonum) “Our Lady’s Little Brushes”
The association between the the Virgin Mary and fuller’s teasel is tenuous and rests on tradition and folklore rather than on biblical evidence. According to legend, Mary was dedicated to…
Plant Profile: Woodland Sunflower (Helianthus divaricatus)
This clump-forming herbaceous perennial is a native of central and eastern North America from Ontario and Quebec south to Florida and Louisiana, and west to Oklahoma and Iowa where it…
Plant Profile: Willowleaf Sunflower (Helianthus salicifolius)
Willowleaf sunflower is a clump forming perennial native to south-central US, primarily in Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas where it grows in limestone prairies and rocky outcrops. It is a…