Evergreen Perennials for Dry Shade
Karen Dry shade is one of the most difficult sites for growing plants. Whether it is on a hill side, under the eves of a house, or under trees where roots…
Drought Tolerant Plants: Ornamental Grasses
Ornamental grasses are versitile and can soften the look of a garden as well as give a naturalistic feel. They are valued for their different textures and colors and the…
Plant Profile: Mountain Avens (Dryas octopetala)
Also known as eightpetal mountain-avens, creeping oak, white dryas, or white dryad, this prostate evergreen subshrub is a circumpolar species found in the arctic tundra of northern Eurasia and North…
Plant Profile: California Interior Buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum var. polifolium)
Also known as eastern mojave buckwheat, this rounded evergreen shrub or subshrub is a member of the knotweed family, Polygonaceae, that also includes rhubarb, dock and sea grape. It is…
Plant Profile: Winter-Blooming Bergenia (Bergenia crassifolia)
Known by many names including leather leaf bergenia, this herbaceous perennial is a member of the Saxifracaceae family that also includes astilbe, foam flower (Tiarella), and coral bells (Heuchera). It…
Plant Profile: Desert Olive (Forestiera pubescens var. pubescens aka F. neomexicana)
Desert olive, also known as stretchberry, elbowbush, spring goldengrow, Texas forsythia, and downy forestier, is a thicket-forming deciduous shrub or small tree is native to desert slopes, canyons, woodland edges…
Plant Profile: Showy Fleabane (Erigeron speciosus)
Showy fleabane, also called aspen or garden fleabane, is a herbaceous perennial native to open woods, prairies, meadows, and roadsides from Alberta and British Columbia, south to the Black Hills,…
Garden Design: Leaf Texture
The texture of leaves can have a big impact on the beauty of a garden yet it is often ignored. Just think about the contrast between the foliage of ferns…
Plant Profile: Creeping Fushia (Fuchsia procumbens)
Creeping fushia is a deciduous, prostrate shrub endemic to the North Island of New Zealand where it is found along the coast including dunes, salt marshes, and gravel beaches.. It…
Plant Profile: Alpine Barrenwort (Epimedium alpinum)
A native of southern and central Europe, alpine barrenwort is a low growing herbaceous perennial that forms attractive clumps of foliage. The medium green leaves are compound and each leaflet…