CAROLYN'S SHADE GARDENS

Snowdrop Articles on Carolyn’s Shade Gardens Blog

Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is a retail nursery located in Bryn Mawr, PA, specializing in showy, colorful, and unusual plants for shade. The only plants that we ship are snowdrops. For catalogues and announcements of local events, please send your full name, mailing address, and cell number to carolyn@carolynsshadegardens.com and indicate whether you are mail order only. Click here to get to the home page of our website for catalogues and information about our nursery and to subscribe to our blog.

Every photo in this collage is of a giant snowdrop, Galanthus elwesii, in my garden. The differences in the markings are caused by the natural variation in the species. None of them have been selected and given a cultivar name, although many plants like them have been named, probably too many. Yet I find this variation fascinating.

Our current snowdrop catalogue is on line here.

To be put on the special snowdrop email list, please send your full name, cell number, and mailing address to carolyn@carolynsshadegardens.com and indicate that you are interested in snowdrops.

In this post you will find links to and descriptions of every post I have written on snowdrops. The original purpose of this post was to let readers know that The Hardy Plant Society Mid-Atlantic Group honored me by asking me to write an article on snowdrops for their newsletter. It is called “Confessions of a Galanthophile” and is the Feature Article for the January 2013 Newsletter. You can access the on line version by clicking here.

Galanthus gracilis, an elegant species snowdrop.

While letting you know about the Hardy Plant Society article, which makes use of parts of some of my previous blog posts, I thought this post would be a good place to list all the articles that I have written on snowdrops for easy reference. I have interspersed the article names and links with photos of some of my favorite snowdrops.

A very unusual and pricey newer snowdrop with squared off outer segments, ‘Diggory’.

November 22, 2010

“Snowdrops or the Confessions of a Galanthophile”

origins of galanthomania, fall-blooming snowdrops

profiles G. reginae-olgae and ‘Potter’s Prelude’

click here to read

G. reginae-olgae blooms in the fall with ‘Shell Pink’ lamium.

January 22, 2011

“Snowdrops: Further Confessions of a Galanthophile”

fascinating history of snowdrop cultivars

short profiles of 16 snowdrop cultivars

click here to read

Galanthus rizehensis, a species snowdrop.

February 9, 2011

“Are Snowdrops Thermogenic?”

discusses plants that produce their own heat

click here to read

The shiny bright green leaves of the species snowdrop G. woronowii.

January 19, 2012

“New Snowdrops for 2012”

importance of provenance in snowdrop collecting

profiles ‘Brenda Troyle’, ‘Tiny’, ‘Hippolyta’, ‘Dionysus’, and G. plicatus subsp. byzantinus

click here to read

The lovely American, fall-blooming snowdrop ‘Potter’s Prelude’.

January 7, 2013

‘New Snowdrops for 2013″

where to find information on snowdrops

profiles ‘Wendy’s Gold’, ‘Standing Tall’, ‘Mighty Atom’, and ‘Scharlockii’

click here to read

A new American snowdrop introduced by Carolyn’s Shade Gardens, Galanthus elwesii ‘Xmas’

The Hardy Plant Society Mid-Atlantic Group

January 2013 Newsletter

“Confessions of a Galanthophile”

why gardeners collect snowdrops

click here to read

‘Straffan’, photo by Jonathan Shaw

January 5, 2014

“The Un-Common Snowdrop”

the common snowdrop and its cultivars

profiles G. nivalis, ‘Flore Pleno’, ‘Viridapice’, and ‘Blewbury Tart’

click here to read

My favorite single classic snowdrop, ‘Magnet’.

January 16, 2014

“The Sochi Snowdrop”

G. woronowii and its cultivars

profiles G. woronowii and ‘Elizabeth Harrison’

click here to read

‘Kite’, very early-blooming with extremely long outer segments.

‘Kite’ can have twin flowers on one flower stalk.

January 27, 2014

“Top 25 Snowdrop Plants Part One”

UK ranking of top 25 all-time favorite snowdrops

profiles and photos of snowdrops ranked 13 to 25

click here to read

‘Godfrey Owen’ has six outer segments.

February 4, 2014

“Top 25 Snowdrop Plants Part Two”

UK ranking of top 25 all-time favorite snowdrops

profiles and photos of snowdrops ranked 1 to 12

click here to read

The gorgeous double yellow snowdrop ‘Lady Elphinstone’

December 2, 2014

“Do All Snowdrops Look Alike?”

shows the many very different types of snowdrops available

photos of 14 strikingly different cultivars

click here to read

Although considered ordinary by some, ‘Viridapice’ remains one of my favorite snowdrops.

December 9, 2014

“New Snowdrops for 2015”

profiles ‘Blonde Inge’, ‘Diggory’, ‘Walrus’, and ‘Wasp’

click here to read

‘Cowhouse Green’ is a lovely part virescent snowdrop.

January 5, 2015

“Companion Plants for Snowdrops”

snowdrops are great alone but look even better with other winter interest plants

profiles 10 winter-blooming plants to pair with snowdrops

click here to read

‘Walrus’ is ranked number 12 in all-time favorite snowdrops.

January 14, 2015

“New Snowdrop Book”

Kew Gardens A Plant Lover’s Guide to Snowdrops

review with images from the book

click here to read

An unusual form of spring snowflake with yellow markings, Leucojum vernum var. carpathicum.

March 17, 2016

“Snowflakes (Leucojum) Continue the Snowdrop Season”

profiles many unusual forms of snowflakes, a close relative of snowdrops

click here to read

2017-catalogue-collage-11-26-2016-12-14-18-pm-11-26-2016-12-14-18-pm Some of my special snowdrops that I want to keep well marked.

December 6, 2016

“Curating a Plant Collection: Snowdrops or Otherwise”

how to keep track of your growing snowdrop collection

click here to read

The naturally blue lake at Colesborne Park below a hillside of snowdrops.

March 3, 2017

“Drifts of Snowdrops at Colesbourne Park”

photos and descriptions of our February 2017 trip to the famous English snowdrop venues

click here to read

March 15, 2017

“Snowdrops at the Royal Horticultural Society Spring Show”

setting up the Avon Bulbs snowdrop exhibit at the February 2017 show in London

click here to read

‘Fly Fishing’

November 18, 2017

“New Snowdrops for 2018”

profiles of ‘Ailwyn’, ‘Angelique’, ‘Bertram Anderson’, ‘Greenish’, ‘Fly Fishing’, and ‘Colossus’

click here to read

‘South Hayes’

November 28, 2017

“New Snowdrops for 2018 Part Two”

profiles of ‘Jonathan’, ‘Madelaine’, ‘Mrs. Macnamara’, ‘Welshway’, ‘South Hayes’, and ‘Titania’

click here to read

‘Lapwing’ has a great mark and is a vigorous multiplier.

December 5, 2017

“Fine Gardening Feature Article on Snowdrops”

reprint of my cover article for the February 2016 issue of Fine Gardening

click here to read

Snowdrops and hellebores along the path to a folly at Painswick.

December 29, 2017

“Painswick Rococo Garden”

tour of winter garden and snowdrops at Painswick Rococo Gardens

click here to read

John Morley welcomes us to the gardens at North Green Snowdrops.

January 15, 2018

“North Green Snowdrops”

tour of the snowdrop garden at North Green Snowdrops

click here to read

The best place to see snowdrops in England is Colesbourne Park in the Cotswolds.

March 7, 2018

“Exceptional Snowdrops and Gardens, England February 2018”

highlights of winter gardens and snowdrops in England

click here to read

Rodmarton Manor has an extensive snowdrop collection in its Arts and Crafts garden.

March 20, 2018

“Rodmarton Manor Garden”

tour of Rodmarton Manor’s winter garden and snowdrop collection

click here to read

‘Sprite’ is a beautiful and distinct snowdrop selected at Avon Bulbs.

March 25, 2018

“A Day in the Life of an Avon Bulbs Snowdrop”

introduction of new snowdrops at Avon Bulbs in England

click here to read

‘Art Nouveau’ has a unique and elegant look.

November 13, 2018

“New Snowdrops for 2019: Part One”

profiles of ‘Godfrey Owen’, ‘Barnes’, ‘Art Nouveau’, ‘Armine’, ‘Puck’, and ‘Sprite’

click here to read

‘Richard Ayres’ is a large and vigorous double.

November 27, 2018

“New Snowdrops for 2019: Part Two”

profiles of ‘Richard Ayres’, ‘Green Brush’, ‘Faringdon Double’, ‘Merlin’, ‘Trym’, and ‘Starling’

click here to read

‘Three Ships’ is a gorgeous G. plicatus that blooms around Christmas.

December 11, 2018

“Your February 2019 Snowdrop Trip to England”

planning a trip to England during snowdrop season

click here to read

‘Xmas’ was selected, named, and introduced by Carolyn’s Shade Gardens.

October 23, 2019

“Early-Blooming Snowdrops”

profiles G. reginae olgae, ‘Potter’s Prelude’, ‘Barnes’, ‘Standing Tall’, and ‘Xmas’

click here to read

‘S. Arnott’ is the favorite snowdrop of galanthophiles everywhere.

November 2, 2020

“Classic Snowdrops”

profiles ‘Atkinsii’, ‘S. Arnott’, ‘Merlin’, ‘Hill Poe’, and ‘Scharlockii’

click here to read

‘One Drop or Two?’ is a rare twin-flowered snowdrop.

November 14, 2020

“New Snowdrops for 2021”

profiles ‘Beth Chatto’, ‘Bill Clark’, ‘Bagpuize Virginia’, ‘Fieldgate Prelude’, ‘Natalie Garton’, ‘Pom Pom’, and ‘One Drop or Two?’

click here to read

‘Sarah Dumont’ has gorgeous yellow markings.

November 21, 2020

“New Snowdrops for 2021: Part 2”

profiles ‘Sarah Dumont’, G. nivalis subsp. poculiformis, ‘Green Arrow’, ‘Moortown Mighty’, ‘Wonston Double’, and ‘Trympostor’

click here to read

‘E.A. Bowles’ looks like a white miniature daffodil.

November 13, 2021

“New Snowdrops for 2022: Part 1”

profiles ‘E.A. Bowles’, ‘The Wizard’, ‘Mrs. Thompson’, ‘Cordelia’, and ‘Phantom’

click here to read

New snowdrop reference book

November 17, 2022

“Some Snowdrops: A photographic Ramble by Anne Repnow”

profiles ‘Three Ships’, ‘Standing Tall’, ‘Wasp’, and ‘Godfrey Owen’ and reviews a wonderful new snowdrop book

click here to read

‘Midas’ is a color breakthrough for snowdrops.

November 20, 2021

“New Snowdrops for 2022: Part 2”

profiles ‘Midas’, ‘Augustus’, ‘Cowhouse Green’, ‘Desdemona’, ‘Moses Basket’, and ‘Rodmarton Arcturus’

click here to read

‘Walker Canada’ is big and beautiful.

November 19, 2022

“New Snowdrops for 2023: Part 1”

profiles ‘June Boardman’, G. reginae-olgae, ‘Rodmarton’, ‘Scissors’, and ‘Walker Canada’

click here to read

‘Rosemary Burnham’, an elegant virescent snowdrop

November 26, 2023

“New Snowdrops for 2023: Part 2”

profiles ‘Rosemary Burnham’, ‘Cambridge’, ‘Colossus’, ‘Betty Hansell’, and ‘Warwickshire Gemini’

click here to read

The moat at Benington Lordship Castle

November 11, 2023

“Snowdrops and History at Benington Lordship Gardens”

A 12th century castle near Cambridge, England, with a moat full of snowdrops

click here to read

The walls of Wandlebury Ring enclose tens of thuosands of G. plicatus.

November 19, 2023

“Wandlebury Ring”

An iron age hillfort outside of Cambridge, England, with a naturalized population of G. plicatus

click here to read

‘Phil Cornish’ may be the most beautiful inverse poculiform snowdrop.

November 26, 2023

“New Snowdrops for 2024: Part 1

profiles ‘Anglesey Candlelight’, ‘Phil Cornish’, ‘Daphne’s Scissors’, ‘Franz Josef’, and ‘George Elwes’

click here to read

‘Miss Prissy’ is a very full and neat double that faces outward.

November 28, 2023

“New Snowdrops for 2024: Part 2

profiles ‘Miss Prissy’, ‘Excelsis’, ‘Big Bertha’, ‘Washfield Colesbourne’, and ‘Ivy Cottage Corporal’

click here to read

‘John Gray’ is an outstanding member of the “Might Atom” group of snowdrops

December 3, 2023

“New Snowdrops for 2024: Part 3”

profiles ‘Marjorie Brown’, ‘Fenstead End’, Trumpolute’, ‘Big Eyes’, and ‘John Gray’

click here to read

‘Standing Tall’ is an American selection with a distinct habit.

December 20, 2023

“December Blooming Snowdrops”

profiles ‘Potter’s Prelude’, Standing Tall’, ‘Three Ships’, and ‘Xmas’

click here to read

‘Lady Beatrix Stanley’ is elegant and vigorous.

January 2, 2024

“My Favorite Snowdrops”

profiles ‘Diggory’, ‘Viridapice’, ‘Godfrey Owen’, ‘Madelaine’, ‘Fly Fishing’, ‘Xmas’, ‘Potter’s Prelude’, and ‘Lady Beatrix Stanley’

click here to read

‘Spindlestone Surprise’ is a lovely yellow.

March 20, 2024

“Snowdrops: Live Radio Interview”

live interview of Carolyn with a lot of information about snowdrops

click here to listen

A must-have snowdrop reference!

November 17, 2024

“Some More Snowdrops by Anne Repnow”

profiles ‘Dryad Gold Sovereign’, ‘Jonathan’, and ‘Mrs. Macnamara’ and reviews a wonderful new snowdrop book

click here to read

‘Joe Spotted’ was my favorite new snowdrop from 2025.

November 20, 2024

“New Snowdrops (& a Leucojum) for 2025: Part One

profiles ‘Dryad Gold Sovereign’, ‘Herzilien’, ‘Joe Spotted’, ‘Titania’, ‘Ingrid Bauer’, and Leucojum ‘Null Punkte

click here to read

‘Kildare’ is a beautiful Irish snowdrop.

November 24, 2024

“New Snowdrops (& an Eranthis) for 2025: Part Two

profiles Eranthis ‘Richard Bish’, ‘Dodo Norton’, ‘Kildare’, ‘Bitter Lemons’, and ‘White Swan’

click here to read

The winter color in Cambridge Botanic Garden is amazing.

December 7, 2024

“Cambridge Botanic Garden in Winter”

lots of photos of this extremely colorful winter garden

click here to read

The winter garden is on fire at Anglesey Abbey.

December 14, 2024

“A Special Tour of Anglesey Abbey”

visit to this renowned snowdrop destination and winter garden

click here to read

‘Early Bird’ is an early blooming, inverse poculiform, G. woronowii cultivar.

November 12, 2025

“New Snowdrops for 2026: Part One”

profiles ‘Early Bird’, ‘Peter Gatehouse’, ‘Poculi Perfect’, and ‘Selina Cords’

click here to read

‘Treasure Island’ might be the most vigorous yellow

November 16, 2025

“New Snowdrops (& a Leucojum) for 2026: Part Two”

profiles ‘Treasure Island’, ‘Lord Lieutenant’, ‘Elfenkind’, ‘Prestwood White’, and Leucojum carpathicum

click here to read

‘Frank Lebsa’ is a gorgeous fall-blooming snowdrop

December 3, 2025

“New Snowdrops for 2026: Part Three”

discusses the advantages of buying snowdrops in the green

profiles ‘B and B Duncan’, ‘Clare Blakeway-Phillips’, and ‘Frank Lebsa’

click here to read

Galanthus Mrs. Thompson ‘Mrs. Thompson’s’ erratic flowers are a plus.

2026 Snowdrop Catalogue

Over 35 varieties of snowdrops and snowflakes plus winter aconite for sale mail order in the US

click here to access

‘Blonde Inge’ is breathtaking in a mass and bulks up quickly.

* * * * *

All the posts as well as the catalogue itself, provide interesting and informative reading on subjects ranging from the origins of galanthomania, the fascinating history of snowdrops, their provenance, how to research them, and even whether they produce their own heat. I intend to add titles and links through the years as I write more about one of my favorite topics.

Enjoy, Carolyn

Note: Every word that appears in orange on my blog is a link that you can click for more information. If you want to return to my blog’s homepage to access the sidebar information (catalogues, previous articles, etc.) or to subscribe to my blog, just click here.

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New Snowdrops for 2013

Posted in New Plants, Shade Perennials, snowdrops, winter, winter interest with tags Carolyn's Shade Gardens, common snowdrop, fall-blooming snowdrops, galanthophile, galanthus, Galanthus 'Hippolyta', Galanthus 'Mighty Atom', Galanthus 'Potter's Prelude', Galanthus 'Scharlockii, Galanthus 'Standing Tall', Galanthus 'Wendy's Gold', Galanthus elwesii, Galanthus nivalis, giant snowdrop, Greatorex double snowdrops, Matt Bishop, snowdrop bulbs, snowdrop catalogue, snowdrop plants, snowdrop provenance, snowdrops, Snowdrops Gunter Waldorf, snowdrops in the green, Snowdrops Matt Bishop, Snowdrops: A Monograph of Cultivated Galanthus on January 7, 2013 by Carolyn @ Carolyns Shade Gardens

Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is a retail nursery located in Bryn Mawr, PA, specializing in showy, colorful, and unusual plants for shade. The only plants that we ship are snowdrops to the US only. For catalogues and announcements of local events, please send your full name, mailing address, and cell number to carolyn@carolynsshadegardens.com and indicate whether you are mail order only. Click here to get to the home page of our website for catalogues and information about our nursery and to subscribe to our blog.

Some of the snowdrops available from Carolyn’s Shade Gardens in 2013.

Our current snowdrop catalogue is on line here.

This post includes photographs and colorful descriptions of the 4 new snowdrops I am offering for sale in my 2013 Snowdrop Catalogue. There were three more new cultivars offered, but they sold out within two days of the catalogue being posted on my website. For entertaining descriptions of most of the remaining 13 varieties offered, click here.

The Greatorex double snowdrop ‘Hippolyta’ was new in 2012. For background on the Greatorex doubles, a discussion of snowdrop provenance, and information about ‘Hippolyta’, click here. Photo by Paddy Tobin. We are also offering the early flowering Greatorex double ‘Ophelia’.

In Snowdrops or The Confessions of a Galanthophile, I described my transition from someone who grows snowdrops to someone who is obsessed with them. In Snowdrops: Further Confessions of a Galanthophile, I explained that most snowdrop cultivars can be appreciated as much for their colorful history as for their ornamental characteristics. That history is contained in Snowdrops: A Monograph of Cultivated Galanthus by Matt Bishop, Aaron Davis, and John Grimshaw (Griffin Press 2006), commonly called the “snowdrop bible”.

‘Potter’s Prelude’ is a vigorous and beautiful snowdrop that blooms in the fall. This year it started in mid-November and still has some fresh flowers today (1/6/13). For more information on fall-blooming snowdrops, click here.

Whenever I obtain a new snowdrop or offer one in my catalogue, I always research it thoroughly both for fun and to make sure that what I am offering is the genuine article. The first place that I go is to the “snowdrop bible” to review the detailed description and history of the species or cultivar in question. This year I was also able to consult a new snowdrop book, Snowdrops by Gunter Waldorf (Frances Lincoln Limited 2012). What it lacks in detail, it makes up for with 300 photographs accompanied by short descriptions highlighting the salient characteristics of the snowdrops profiled. It also contains no nonsense advice about growing and collecting snowdrops.

Although the common snowdrop, G. nivalis, pictured above with Italian arum and snow crocus, is the most prevalent snowdrop in gardens, it is by no means common in the ordinary sense of the word. In fact, it is the best choice for gardeners who want to naturalize snowdrops in masses.

After hitting the books, I search the internet and read everything that has been written about the new snowdrop. The available material is mostly the catalogues of all the big UK snowdrop sellers like Avon Bulbs, Harveys Garden Plants, and Monksilver Nursery, among others, but sometimes I come across fun historical or informational articles. I also consult the Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum Galanthus thread where galanthophiles from all over the world meet to obsess. After that, I look at photo galleries of snowdrops, particularly the Galanthus Gallery and the new snowdrop photos on the Dryad Nursery website.

The giant snowdrop, G. elwesii, is also a vigorous spreader. This is the species massed at Winterthur.

Finally, as much as possible, I research the provenance of the snowdrop I am adding to my catalogue or collection. Provenance is the history of a snowdrop’s ownership, documenting the authenticity of the actual bulbs being sold. It is important that snowdrops come from a reputable source and be carefully tracked by subsequent owners. With over 500, and some say 1,000, snowdrop cultivars circulating among collectors, it is easy to make mistakes. For more information on provenance, click here. With that background, on to the new snowdrops.

The very rare yellow snowdrop ‘Wendy’s Gold’.

I am thrilled to offer a yellow snowdrop for the first time, and not just any yellow, but ‘Wendy’s Gold’, the cream of the crop. Not only is this snowdrop much sought after even in England, but it easily refutes the oft made claim that all snowdrops look alike. It was discovered in 1974 by Bill Clark, the Warden of the UK National Trust property Wandlebury Ring near Cambridge. Ten years later, with some prodding, he realized how rare it was and decided to name it after his wife Wendy. All the bulbs except three were then sold to a Dutch bulb company where they subsequently died, Luckily, the remaining bulbs proved robust, and we have ‘Wendy’s Gold’ today.

‘Wendy’s Gold’ is a superb and vigorous snowdrop with a yellow ovary (the “cap” above the petal-like segments) and a large and vivid yellow mark on the inner segments. Its G. plicatus parentage gives it beautiful wide pleated leaves with folded margins, serving as a gorgeous backdrop for the striking flowers.

‘Standing Tall’ is a very impressive snowdrop.

In 1988, regional horticulturist Charles Cresson began evaluating a G. elwesii snowdrop known until this year as 88-1. Over the years of testing it in various conditions in his garden, he discovered that 88-1 is a remarkable snowdrop. Its 12″ height, about as tall as snowdrops get, and very upright habit give it a commanding presence in the garden. However, as it turns out, 88-1 doesn’t have much competition from other snowdrops because it starts blooming right before Christmas and continues through the month of January, a time period when few other snowdrops bloom.

A close up of ‘Standing Tall’s’ flower.

Luckily, I was able to convince Charles that 25 years was long enough to evaluate a snowdrop, and he should introduce this absolutely outstanding new selection. Charles decided to name it ‘Standing Tall’ to reflect its height, very upright habit, and ability to stand up to whatever the season brings, lying down in very cold weather and popping right back up as if nothing had happened. Charles is in the process of registering it with the KAVB, the international registration authority for bulb cultivars in the Netherlands. In the meantime, Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is thrilled to be chosen to introduce it for sale.

The large and elegant flowers of ‘Mighty Atom’.

‘Mighty Atom’ is a beautiful snowdrop with very large, rounded, bright white flowers—the biggest flowers in the catalogue—with a bold, deep green mark on the inner segments. Its habit is short, compact, and even making an exceptional overall presentation. I have admired it for years and urged Charles to offer it, but he was reluctant due to its somewhat confused history.

British snowdrop legend EB Anderson inherited the original ‘Mighty Atom’ from John Gray in 1952 and subsequently named it. However, in later years, Snowdrops states that Anderson distributed a group of distinct but excellent clones, now known as the ‘Mighty Atom’ complex, under this name. Charles’s stock came from plantsman Don Hackenberry who can trace its lineage directly back to EB Anderson, although it is not an offset of what is believed to be Gray’s “original” clone. This member of the ‘Mighty Atom’ complex has proven to be reliable, vigorous, and trouble-free.

‘Scharlockii’ is characterized by the “rabbit ear’s” formed by its spathe (flower covering).

The final member of the four new snowdrops in my 2013 Snowdrop Catalogue is ‘Scharlockii’, a cultivar of the common snowdrop, G. nivalis. It is a charming and distinctive snowdrop with boldly marked green tips on its outer segments but most notable for the rabbit ears (see photo) formed when its spathe splits into two prominently upright, leaf-like halves. It was discovered in 1818 by Herr Julius Scharlock of Grandenz, Germany, and named in 1868. Charles got his stock from Winterthur, known for its amazing snowdrop display, when he worked there in the early 1990s.

Obviously, I find everything about snowdrops fascinating and hope I have communicated some of my infatuation to you. If you are in the U.S. and want to order from the catalogue, just follow the directions for mail order.

Carolyn

38 Comments »

A Longwood New Year’s Eve

Posted in garden to visit, winter with tags Carolyn's Shade Gardens, kennett square pennsylvania, Longwood Christmas, Longwood Gardens on January 1, 2013 by Carolyn @ Carolyns Shade Gardens

Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is a retail nursery located in Bryn Mawr, PA, specializing in showy, colorful, and unusual plants for shade. The only plants that we ship are snowdrops and miniature hostas. For catalogues and announcements of events, please send your full name, location, and phone number (for back up use only) to carolyn@carolynsshadegardens.com. Click here to get to the home page of our website for catalogues and information about our nursery and to subscribe to our blog.

Pure magic!

For 2012-2013, I choose Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, US, as the garden that I would visit throughout the year and profile. Longwood is probably the most visited public garden in the US and holds a special place in my heart because I have taken almost 20 courses there, earning two Longwood Certificates of Merit in Ornamental Plants. My previous posts profiled Longwood’s creative use of groundcovers (click here to read) and Longwood at night, focusing on the Bruce Munro light installation (click here to read).

One of the Longwood conservatories decorated for Christmas.

Visiting Longwood anytime of year is a breathtaking experience. I have been going there for 30 years, and it never fails to delight me. However, their Christmas display, both indoors and outside, is in a class by itself. Before I go I always think the magic might have worn off. But every time I walk out of the visitor’s center and see the lights, I am amazed once again.

A long view of one of the immense indoor spaces.

Because Longwood is so popular at Christmas, it takes a little planning to avoid the crowds. In previous years, we choose a warm and drizzly night and had the gardens pretty much to ourselves. This year we thought it might be fun to go on New Year’s Eve when musicians stroll through the gardens entertaining the crowds. Our timing was perfect as we arrived at 2:15 pm, toured the relatively empty conservatories, ate delicious food in the uncrowded cafe, and escaped out into the garden just as it got dark and the hordes descended.

One of the rooms in the conservatories was set up for an immense holiday feast. It was gorgeous.

The conservatories encompass four acres so there is a lot to see inside from orchids to bonsai to the actual greenhouses where the plants are grown. All of it is decorated for the holidays. Here are just a few displays that caught my eye:

The maze in the enchanting children’s garden.

A very unusual color for a poinsettia, perfectly complimented.

The camellias were blooming.

The hibiscus were also in full flower.

As much as I enjoy the conservatories, the real magic of a Longwood Christmas is outside where half a million lights decorate hundreds of trees. If you think you have seen it all before, I challenge you to come here and not be in awe. Panoramic shots would really do the display justice, but holding the camera steady for night shots without a tripod proved difficult at best. Here is a small sampling of the light extravaganza:

A photo at dusk by the Peirce du Pont House

The lights show up better in full dark but this effect was kind of surreal.

The famous five-acre fountain garden. It is hard to convey in photos the size and scale of Longwood.

Looking back inside the conservatories.

This was my favorite wrapped tree hung with stars and displayed against the ink blue night.

Mammoth copper beeches completely wrapped.

If you are in the area, it is well worth a visit. The display continues through January 6, and timed tickets are required.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Carolyn

Nursery Happenings: The 2013 Snowdrop Catalogue is on the sidebar of the website and orders are being accepted. To view the catalogue, click here.

Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is a retail nursery located in Bryn Mawr, PA. The only plants that we mail order are snowdrops and miniature hostas. The nursery is closed until spring 2013. Thanks for a great year.

If you are within visiting distance and would like to receive catalogues and information about customer events, please send your full name and phone number to carolynsshadegardens@verizon.net. Subscribing to my blog does not sign you up to receive this information.

Facebook: Carolyn’s Shade Gardens has a Facebook page where I post single photos, garden tips, and other information that doesn’t fit into a blog post. You can look at my Facebook page here or click the Like button on my right sidebar here.

Notes: Every word that appears in orange on my blog is a link that you can click for more information. If you want to return to my blog’s homepage to access the sidebar information (catalogues, previous articles, etc.) or to subscribe to my blog, just click here.

52 Comments »

A White Christmas

Posted in winter, winter interest with tags Carolyn's Shade Gardens, snow, winter on December 24, 2012 by Carolyn @ Carolyns Shade Gardens

The London plane tree over my nursery sales area.

I was hoping for a white Christmas, but it is not to be so I guess I will have to make my own. The winters of 2010 and 2011 provided more than enough photographic material. Enjoy Carolyn’s Shade Gardens in the snow:

A winter dawn in my main terrace garden.

Our dovecote engulfed in snow.

during a snowstorm

Looking up from the production beds towards the house and terraces.

Dawn on the back side of the house.

The patio in winter.

More of our gigantic plane trees outlined in snow.

A snowy long view.

The carriage house nursery building in winter.

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year

to all my readers, customers, and garden blogging friends.

Carolyn

P.S. As I finished this post it began to snow!

Nursery Happenings: The 2013 Snowdrop Catalogue is on the sidebar of the website and orders are being accepted. To view the catalogue, click here.

34 Comments »

December 2012 Garden Bloggers Bloom Day

Posted in bulbs for shade, Camellias, hellebores, Shade Gardening, Shade Shrubs, winter, winter interest with tags Arum italicum, Carolyn's Shade Gardens, fall-blooming camellias, fall-blooming hardy cyclamen, fall-blooming hellebores, fall-blooming snowdrops, Garden Blogger's Bloom Day, GBBD, Italian arum on December 17, 2012 by Carolyn @ Carolyns Shade Gardens

The first of my hybrid hellebores is just about to bloom: Helleborus x ‘Snow White’ (aka ‘Snow Bunting’).

I am two days late for the official Garden Blogger’s Bloom Day. On the fifteenth of each month garden bloggers from all over the world post photos of what’s blooming in their gardens, and their posts are collected by Carol at May Dreams Gardens. Nevertheless, I thought it would be fun to see which plants are pretty enough to get me outside in December on a somewhat warm but dreary, rainy day. I also wanted to add a new twist by allowing myself only one pass through the garden for photos instead of the numerous trips required by a normal post.

Not surprisingly if you read my blog, Italian arum, hellebores, snowdrops, camellias, hardy cyclamen, and coral bells are hogging the show this time of year accompanied by a few others. Let’s see what we have:

Fall-blooming camellia ‘Winter’s Snowman’ has been blooming since October and still has buds waiting to open.

My late fall garden has been immensely improved by the addition of fall-blooming hardy camellias. All five of mine are blooming now and have plenty of buds left. For more information on fall-bloomimg camellias, click here.

‘Winter’s Joy’

‘Lu Shan Snow’

‘Winter’s Darling’

‘Elaine Lee’

Italian arum is always a highlight this time of year after its fresh foliage emerges from dormancy in early fall:

‘Pictum’ Italian arum

dwarf Italian arum ‘Tiny Tot’

‘Gold Rush’ Italian arum, my favorite

Hellebores are just about to take over as the stars of the garden for the next few months. For more information on hellebores, click here and follow the links at the end of the post. If it wouldn’t violate my parameter for this post, I would run out and photograph bearsfoot hellebore and ‘Praecox’ Christmas rose, which are both almost open. As it is, I have these two hellebores for you:

Another shot of the first flower on ‘Snow White’.

After blooming in October, ‘Josef Lemper’ Christmas rose is at it again and will continue to bloom into spring.

My favorite coral bells or heucheras are the cultivars that give me 365 days of colorful foliage, some of which are pictured below. If I could go back outside, I would add ‘Frosted Violet’ and ‘Bronze Wave’. I would also include some photographs of pulmonarias, especially ‘Diana Clare’:

‘Caramel’ heuchera continues to change from one beautiful hue to the next through out the winter.

‘Green Spice’ is new to my garden this year and looks like a winner.

‘Citronelle’ is a customer favorite for brightening dark corners.

You know I couldn’t resist showing you a few snowdrops:

‘Potter’s Prelude’, a fall-bloomimg snowdrop cultivar, is getting to the end of its bloom period which began in mid-November.

A clump of early blooming giant snowdrops, Galanthus elwesii, hides in the Japanese holly ferns and hellebores.

Except during the heart of the summer when they are dormant, hardy cyclamen are stars in my garden. I find their highly variable leaf patterns endlessly fascinating. For more information on hardy cyclamen, click here.

The last few blooms on fall-blooming hardy cyclamen, C. hederifolium, which began blooming at the end of August.

Spring-blooming hardy cyclamen, C. coum, doesn’t need flowers to attract attention.

Here are some more late fall stars that might surprise you:

‘Brigadoon’ St. John’s wort always takes on this lovely peach color for the winter.

This new mahonia called ‘Soft Caress’ was given to me by the breeders at the Southern Living Plant Collection to trial in my garden. It is evergreen, blooms now, and is hardy to zone 7. For more information, click here. I have high hopes for it because I have since seen it in two other local gardens.

This sedum always turns a lovely burgundy in the fall. Unfortunately, I don’t know its exact name.

Bigroot geranium, G. macrorrhizum, takes on red and pink tones for the winter.

‘Black Scallop’ ajuga has quickly become one of my favorite groundcovers because its dark purple leaves remain shiny and beautiful through the winter.

You may be wondering why I would limit myself to one trip outside for photos for this post. Every article that you read here takes me at least a full day to compose, including the photography, the research, the writing, and the editing. I wanted to see if I could cut that back to a few hours and still produce a quality product, and I believe I have been largely successful. It would only work for a post like this though where no significant supporting research was required.

Enjoy, Carolyn

Nursery Happenings: Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is a retail nursery located in Bryn Mawr, PA. The only plants that we mail order are snowdrops and miniature hostas. The nursery is closed until spring 2013. Thanks for a great year.

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A Shrub for All Seasons: Edgeworthia

Posted in Fall, Shade Shrubs, winter, winter interest with tags Carolyn's Shade Gardens, Edgeworthia chrysantha, fragrant flowers, paper bush on December 10, 2012 by Carolyn @ Carolyns Shade Gardens

I love edgeworthia in all its manifestations, but late winter when the buds start to swell has to be my favorite.

Edgeworthia chrysantha also known as paper bush is a collector’s plant. That means it is rarely seen in public and private gardens and is hard to find at nurseries. However, I have been able to offer it to my customers in fall 2011 and fall 2012 because my wholesale shrub supplier carries beautiful specimens of it. I have grown it in my own garden for three years so I decided it was time for a full blown profile of what has become one of my favorite shrubs.

[Note:Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is retail nursery located in Bryn Mawr, PA. The only plants that we mail order are snowdrops and miniature hostas.]

My photos of the whole plant do not do justice to how gorgeous it is, but as I reviewed the on-line literature, I realized that everyone has this problem. This edgeworthia is pictured in mid-April on the terrace of the main house at Chanticleer gardens in Wayne, Pennsylvania.

Edgeworthia is native to China and was named for Michael Edgeworth (1812 to 1881), a plant collector for the East India Company. It arrived fairly recently in the US. My 1990 edition of Michael Dirr’s Manual of Woody Landscape Plants contains no mention of it, and it was not covered in my 1994 Longwood course, Deciduous Flowering Shrubs II. Although articles state that its common name is paper bush, I have never heard anyone who actually grows it call it anything but edgeworthia. In China, its bark is used to produce very high quality paper and for various medicinal purposes. Here it is an unusual and elegant four season ornamental notable for its leaves, buds, flowers, and habit.

Edgeworthia’s leaves are large and tropical, and its bark is an unusual reddish-brown. This photo was taken in September and the highly ornamental buds have formed but have not yet expanded.

Edgeworthia is in the same family as daphne and has even occasionally been called yellow daphne. It is deciduous and has large and distinctive leaves. They are 5 to 6″ long and about 2″ wide, blue-green on the top and silvery green on the bottom. Although they can turn yellow in fall, you wouldn’t grow edgeworthia for fall color. The leaves cluster at the tips of the branches giving the shrub a decidedly lush and tropical appearance that really stands out in the garden. When the leaves drop, they reveal the slender and pliable reddish-brown bark seen above.

Edgeworthia buds in November as they start to expand.

Edgeworthia buds as they appear through the heart of the winter.

Please use your imagination to envision how gorgeous this shrub must be covered with hundreds of the silky silver buds shown in the preceding photo. This edgeworthia is pictured at the very end of January and is in the Isabelle Cosby Courtyard at the Scott Arboretum at Swarthmore College, Pennsylvania.

My favorite season for edgeworthia is winter when the leaves drop to reveal the buds which form in late summer or early fall depending on where you live. Each 1″ plus bud resembles an intricately designed tassel on the corner of an elegant Victorian pillow. The silky hairs glow in the light, and the plant looks like it is covered with hundreds of silver flowers–simply breathtaking. The falling leaves also reveal edgeworthia’s striking architectural habit. It is a multi-stemmed shrub that forms an almost perfectly rounded umbrella shape of cinnamon colored branches.

Edgeworthia’s buds start to open at the beginning of March in our area and as early as January in the south.

Edgeworthia’s flowers starting to open.

Fully open flowers in my garden in mid-March 2012. I wish blog posts could include a fragrance button!

Blooming begins in our area in early March and can continue through April. Each bud expands to reveal 25 to 35 tubular flowers with a silky silver exterior and a bright yellow interior. That would be ornamental enough but the fragrance is amazing. I can’t describe it—you will just have to find a specimen and experience it for your self.

Edgeworthia blooming at the Scott Arboretum (photo taken by Rhoda Maurer and used with the permission of the Scott Arboretum).

I am going to give cultural information for edgeworthia with the caveat that I don’t think the plant has been grown long enough for it to be definitive. Most sources say that edgeworthia grows in light to partial shade and requires moist, fertile, well-drained organic soil with supplemental water in summer. I grow mine in an east-facing location with very high shade, but edgeworthias at the Scott Arboretum and Chanticleer are in the sun while Charles Cresson has a relatively old plant in full shade. My edgeworthias have organic soil but are in a dry location. This causes the leaves to go limp when it’s hot but doesn’t seem to harm the plants, time will tell.

Zone information is also variable, and the only thing I can guarantee is that specimens have been growing successfully in the Delaware Valley area of Pennsylvania for some time. If you garden north of here, I suggest you try the plant anyway because we really don’t know how much cold it can take. Planting in a protected location is often recommended, and all the plants I have seen are in protected spots, but I don’t know if this is necessary. Mine are more exposed than other local plants so we will see.

Finally, height and width estimates range all over the place with a consensus probably being 6′ by 6′. However, the Chanticleer specimen in the sun is much lower and tighter while Charles Cresson’s shady specimen is taller and looser. One thing is clear though: you won’t regret adding edgeworthia to your garden.

If you are growing edgeworthia, please leave a comment describing your experience with it, especially if you are from an area north of the Delaware Valley.

Carolyn

If you would like more information on edgeworthias, please read my more recent post, Edgworthia Update, and the very helpful reader comments, by clicking here.

Nursery Happenings: Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is a retail nursery located in Bryn Mawr, PA, specializing in showy, colorful, and unusual plants for shade. The only plants that we ship are snowdrops and miniature hostas. For catalogues and announcements of events, please send your full name, location, and phone number (for back up use only) to carolyn@carolynsshadegardens.com. Click here to get to the home page of our website for catalogues and information about our nursery and to subscribe to our blog.

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2012 Fall-blooming Camellias

Posted in Camellias, evergreen, Fall, Fall Color, Shade Shrubs with tags Ackerman hybrid camellias, Camellia 'Autumn Spirit', Camellia 'Snow Flurry', Camellia sasanqua 'Long Island Pink', Camellia x 'Ashton's Ballet', Camellia x 'Polar Ice', Camellia x 'Survivor', Camellia x 'Winter's Fire', Camellia x 'Winter's Joy', Camellia x 'Winter's Rose', Camellia x 'Winter's Snowman', Carolyn's Shade Gardens, cold hardy camellias, fall-blooming camellias, william ackerman on December 2, 2012 by Carolyn @ Carolyns Shade Gardens

The fall-blooming camellias are flowering in my garden, pictured above is ‘Winter’s Joy’. I planted this camellia last fall, and it bloomed all through our mild winter. This year it is once again loaded with buds and began blooming in October.

For the past two falls, I have written posts on fall-blooming camellias, shrubs that have quickly become favorites in my garden. Who can resist their tough nature, glossy, evergreen leaves, tidy habit, and, best of all, large, elegant flowers from September through December? To read my posts, click Part One, Part Two, and Part Three.

‘Winter’s Snowman’ was planted in spring 2011 in dense shade and bloomed sparsely last fall. This year it is well established and has been covered with flowers since October.

I only have four fall-blooming camellias in my garden: the two pictured above plus ‘Elaine Lee’ and ‘Winter’s Darling’. My desire to showcase some new varieties on my blog gave me a great excuse to venture forth and visit the camellia collections of two great gardeners, both located in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. I spent two glorious afternoons obsessing on camellias with Charles Cresson, whose garden you have visited many times on my blog, and with Keith Robertshaw, a diehard camellia collector and one of my nursery customers.

‘Snow Flurry’, which I have shown you before in the Cresson garden, is having a banner year this year.

The weird weather patterns we have been experiencing have had one good result, camellias are blooming early this year with an abundance of flowers. I usually find it very difficult to photograph a full camellia shrub. When I step back far enough to get the whole bush in the photo, the flowers lose their impact even though they look great in person. That was not a problem on my recent trip when cultivars like ‘Snow Flurry’ were bursting with flowers as you can see in the above photo.

‘Snow Flurry’ is the earliest to flower of the cold hardy fall-blooming camellias selected by William Ackerman at the US National Arboretum in Washington, DC. It is at the top of the list for additions to my garden.

‘Autumn Spirit’ is another cold hardy camellia that blooms early and has produced a plethora of flowers this year. Early bloomers are desirable because they are guaranteed to bloom even if we have an early winter that freezes the buds on the late bloomers.

‘Autumn Spirit’ was selected by the North Carolina nursery Camellia Forest for its intense color, early bloom, and cold hardiness.

I have featured all four of the camellias shown above in my previous posts. However, my visits to the Robertshaw and Cresson gardens did yield seven new cold hardy camellias that I haven’t seen before. If you combine these with the approximately 20 cultivars profiled in my 2010 and 2011 posts, you will have a pretty comprehensive reference library of camellias suitable for the mid-Atlantic area of the US. Here are the new candidates:

‘Survivor’ is another Camellia Forest introduction producing an abundance of single white flowers in early fall. If you are in an area north of the mid-Atlantic, you might want to try this very cold hardy camellia which survived -9° F (-22.8° C) in the Camellia Forest Nursery garden.

Another camellia in addition to ‘Survivor’ for gardeners who prefer single flowers, ‘Long Island Pink’ is also valued for its large highly polished leaves. Although it is a cultivar of C. sasanqua, which is generally considered tender, ‘Long Island Pink’ was selected for cold hardiness from a Long Island, NY, garden.

‘Polar Ice’ is a cold hardy Ackerman hybrid with anemone form flowers blooming in November and December.

‘Ashton’s Ballet’ is an Ackerman hybrid with rose form double flowers blooming in November and December. It has a compact form and makes a beautiful garden specimen.

I am cheating by putting this camellia in the post because you can’t buy it. It was an Ackerman seedling given to Charles Cresson but never introduced to the trade. The flowers are huge, gorgeous, and pure white. I think we need to lobby to have it named!

The Ackerman hybrid ‘Winter’s Rose’ is unusual. It is a semi-dwarf that grows very slowly and densely with small leaves and flowers, making a great patio plant. If you don’t have much room, this is the camellia for you.

‘Winter Rose’ has an abundance of small delicate shell pink flowers from mid-October to early December. Charles Cresson pointed out that although the plant is exceedingly hardy, the flowers freeze easily.

‘Winter’s Rose’ seems to be the favorite among commenters so I thought I would add another photo.

‘Winter’s Fire’ was present in both gardens and is the most intriguing camellia that I saw during my visits. The flower color is very unusual, a beautiful mix of red, pink, and coral with contrasting white splotches. While Keith and Charles both stated that the white was caused by a non-harmful virus and both plants displayed this coloring, I could find no mention of this on the internet.

[Thanks to reader Alisa Brown for answering my question about ‘Winter’s Fire’. Variegation in camellias caused by a virus is not considered part of the official description of the flower. You can read more about this by clicking here.]

William Ackerman, who selected ‘Winter’s Fire’, characterizes it as having “spreading growth with a weeping habit.” In the Robertshaw garden, it was growing like a groundcover. This photo is taken from above. I would love to try it cascading over a wall.

This is one corner of the Cresson garden showing ‘Snow Flurry’ on the left and the unnamed white Ackerman plant on the top right intermingled with several other large camellias. Though it may be hard at first to get used to such big gorgeous flowers in November, as you can see they make for a beautiful fall landscape.

My annual fall camellia hunt is over with seven new specimens bagged. Now I have a year to determine where I will continue my search next fall. If you know of any local public or private gardens showcasing camellias please let me know.

Carolyn

Nursery Happenings: Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is done for the fall. Thanks for a great year. See you in spring 2013.

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The Maine Coast in Late Fall

Posted in Fall, Fall Color with tags Carolyn's Shade Gardens, Casco Bay Maine, Cliff Island Maine, fall colors, massing plants, native landscapes, native plants, Portland Maine, winterberry holly on November 23, 2012 by Carolyn @ Carolyns Shade Gardens

The dramatic fall color of red maples has been replaced with the more subtle color of American beech. All the photos in this post were taken in and around Cliff Island, Maine, US, located off the coast of Portland in Casco Bay.

I have gotten a lot of comments in person and on line about how much everyone has enjoyed my posts from Maine. To read my post The Maine Coast and see photos in summer, click here. I was there again at the end of October so I thought I would show you the coast at a very different time of year.

The bay is empty of boats.

The mooring buoys are stacked on the shore.

The summer cottages are closed.

This is the house where the movie The Whales of August with Betty Davis, Lillian Gish, and Vincent Price was filmed.

The ocean loses its benign summer look.

The cliffs for which Cliff Island was named.

The landscape of Cliff Island changes too. Gone are the wildflowers blooming everywhere and even the colorful leaves on the deciduous trees. The palette narrows to the blue sky, gray fog, green conifers, brown grasses, white bark, red berries. Everything is more subtle yet every bit as beautiful.

Cattails and winterberry holly

winterberry holly

The paper birches glow against the clear blue sky.

In the fall, I am able to focus on the big picture. And I have found that the larger landscape contains a design element that comes to the forefront in the stark vistas of fall. No dotter of individual plants here and there, nature is the queen of massing. She uses broad bands of color to achieve spectacular results. I try to imitate this in my garden in Pennsylvania by planting in large swathes and allowing vigorous plants to self-sow. Of course, the results aren’t as spectacular as this….

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I am truly blessed to have access to this gorgeous native landscape. I am glad I can share it with you on my blog. This post was supposed to be up in time to wish you all a very Happy Thanksgiving so it will have to be belated.

Carolyn

Nursery Happenings: Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is done for the fall. Thanks for a great year. See you in spring 2013.

60 Comments »

November GBBD: What’s Peaking Now

Posted in evergreen, Fall, Fall Color, hellebores, snowdrops with tags Acer palmatum, Acer palmatum Shishigashira', Arum italicum 'Gold Rush', Arum italicum 'Pictum', Arum italicum 'Tiny Tot', Camellia x 'Winter's Joy', Carolyn's Shade Gardens, Christmas rose, Cyclamen hederifolium, fall colors, fall stars, fall-blooming camellias, fall-blooming cyclamen, fall-blooming hellebores, Galanthus 'Potter's Prelude', Galanthus elwesii, Galanthus reginae-olgae, Helleborus niger 'Jacob', Helleborus niger 'Josef Lemper', Italian arum, Japanese maple on November 15, 2012 by Carolyn @ Carolyns Shade Gardens

This Japanese maple, Acer palmatum, of unknown origin broke off in the ice and snow in January 2011. For a photo of it then, click here. It has recovered beautifully with an even more interesting habit.

I have said before that no matter how much I try to enjoy it, November is not my favorite month. As I wander around, all I see are plants dying back, work to be done, and time running out. Last year wasn’t too bad because we had a long warm fall with beautiful weather and plenty going on through the middle of November. I even called my Garden Bloggers Bloom Day post “Prime Time” (click here to see the show). This year most gardeners in the mid-Atlantic US agree that fall colors on many plants have been muted and gardens have gone by early. Even September and October contained few of the clear, crisp, and sunny days we look forward to, and then along came Sandy.

A seedling Japanese maple along my front walk.

Despite the bad fall, there are plants in my garden right now that make a stroll outside worthwhile. What is it about them that so attracts me? It is that these plants are reaching their ornamental height right now. They are not just re-blooming or showing a few flowers on a plant that really peaked earlier like asters or phlox, and they are not producing lovely fall color on a woody that I grow just as much for its flowers like hydrangea or viburnum. November is the month when they reach the top.

The Japanese maples that seeded around this London plane tree produce a variety of fall colors from yellow to orange to red.

In this post I re-introduce you to some of the plants that show their best side in November and December. I have written about many of them before, and I will provide links to those posts. However, I wanted to gather these plants together here to provide a complete reference of fall stars to use during your spring shopping trips.

‘Shishigashira’ is a gorgeous Japanese maple that just starts to turn in mid-November. It will eventually become a solid orangey red.

When all the other trees have shown their colors and lost their leaves, Japanese maples are just starting to turn. Every time I go outside I grab my camera to take one more shot of their eye-catching color. I think it is their prime ornamental characteristic, especially because of its timing, even though I also appreciate their fine branching structure, delicate leaves, and variety of habits.

Fall-blooming hardy cyclamen, C. hederifolium.

The white and pink flowers of hardy cyclamen.

Fall-blooming hardy cyclamen is dormant in the summer and re-emerges in the fall. To get all the details, click here to read my recent post on this unusual but easy to grow plant. For the purposes of this post, what makes it so desirable is that November is its peak when its leaves are fully emerged and provide a stunning backdrop for the flowers.

The basic Italian arum, A. italicum, sometimes called ‘Pictum’.

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‘Gold Dust’ Italian arum has much more distinct markings with gold veins.

The leaves of ‘Tiny Tot’ Italian arum are about one-third the size (or less) of the species and very finely marked.

Italian arum’s life cycle is very similar to hardy cyclamen: it goes dormant in the summer and comes up fresh and beautiful to peak in the fall and through the winter. It makes a great groundcover, and you can read more about it by clicking here.

Giant snowdrop, Galanthus elwesii.

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A giant snowdrop with unusually long outer segments (petals).

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‘Potter’s Prelude’ giant snowdrop, G. elwesii var. monostichus, is just starting to open in mid-November.

I couldn’t write a post this time of year without mentioning fall-blooming snowdrops. Although we think of snowdrops as blooming in March, there are several species that bloom in the fall, including G. reginae-olgae, which blooms in October and is done now. Also the giant snowdrop, whose flowers are quite variable, blooms for a long period from November to February so I have included some photos above. But the king of fall is ‘Potter’s Prelude’, a very robust and vigorous snowdrop that blooms reliably in November. For more information, click here to read my post on fall-blooming snowdrops.

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Christmas rose ‘Josef Lemper’, Helleborus niger

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This photo was taken today—as you can see ‘Josef’ Lemper’s’ October flowers have gone by, but a whole new crop of buds are preparing for November.

The Christmas rose ‘Jacob’ begins a month later that ‘Josef Lemper’. Its buds are just beginning to reach up beyond the leaves.

‘Josef Lemper’ and ‘Jacob’ Christmas roses are also stars in my November garden, producing pure white 3 to 4″ wide flowers set off by smooth evergreen leaves. Fall is their season, and they produce copious amounts of flowers to cheer up dreary November days. For more information on fall-blooming hellebores, click here.

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Fall-blooming camellia ‘Winter’s Joy’ produces its first two flowers but look at all the buds to come.

The last photo is a teaser because of course fall-blooming camellias play a huge part in my November garden. As with the other plants profiled, they are not just hanging on into November but instead come into their own then. Look for an upcoming post featuring my camellias and my recent visit to the garden of a customer who also loves camellias.

All these plants (except the single flower of ‘Josef Lemper’ Christmas rose) are pictured blooming in my garden right now so I am linking to Garden Blogger’s Bloom Day (“GBBD”) hosted by May Dreams Gardens where gardeners from all over the world publish photos of what’s blooming in their gardens.

Carolyn

Nursery Happenings: Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is done for the fall. Thanks for a great year. See you in spring 2013.

37 Comments »

Natural Bridge, Virginia

Posted in garden to visit, native plants with tags Carolyn's Shade Gardens, Natural Bridge Caverns Virginia, Natural Bridge Virginia on November 4, 2012 by Carolyn @ Carolyns Shade Gardens

Natural Bridge in Virginia

My son Alex is a senior at Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia. In early October, when we attended parents weekend, we decided to take in some of the local sites. We had a wonderful visit to the Natural Bridge and the Natural Bridge Caverns just off Interstate 81 about an hour north of Roanoke in the heart of the gorgeous Blue Ridge Mountains. I highly recommend a stop if you are in the area.

You enter the gorge where the bridge is located down this steep stairway through the woods (or you can take a shuttle bus).

The Natural Bridge was created when an underground cavern, carved by Cedar Creek, a tributary of the James River, collapsed and left behind a span of its rock roof 215 feet high and 90 feet wide. It is the kind of mammoth natural site that we normally only find in the western US. The bridge is so big and substantial that Route 11, the state highway, runs across the top of it, and you don’t even notice the road.

The trail to the bridge is lovely and runs along Cedar Creek, a tributary of the James River.

The Natural Bridge is not only a natural wonder, but it is also a very significant historic site. It is on the National Register of Historic Places and has been selected from that list of 65,000 to be one of only 2,430 National Historic Landmarks. The Natural Bridge was a sacred site of the Monacan Indians. In 1750, it was surveyed by George Washington for Lord Fairfax, the owner of the original Virginia land grant of 1649. In 1774, it was purchased by Thomas Jefferson as part of a 157 acre parcel acquired from King George III for 20 shillings. Jefferson built a log cabin retreat there and entertained many famous guests.

When you see the Natural Bridge with people in front of it (bottom middle), you get an idea of how gigantic it is.

Like Niagara Falls, the Natural Bridge has been a tourist site since the late 18th century. An inn was built in 1833, and today there is an on site hotel. The property has always been privately owned and remains so today. With tourist dollars a motivation for private owners, the surrounding area is somewhat degraded by unrelated attractions, including a wax museum, live butterfly exhibit, toy museum, and an extensive gift shop. However the bridge area remains pristine, and the bridge itself is spectacular. My photos taken on an overcast and dreary day do not do it justice.

Route 11 runs along the top.

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The rock walls that line the gorge are very beautiful.

Along the trail we saw a lot of mostly native flora and fauna (I don’t know the exact IDs so no labels except the bird is a great blue heron):

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When we were there, we also toured the Natural Bridge Caverns, the deepest caverns on the East Coast. I didn’t take any photos, but the caverns were as spectacular as the bridge and well worth a visit.

Carolyn

Nursery Happenings: Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is done for the fall. Thanks for a great year. See you in spring 2013.

46 Comments »

CAROLYN'S SHADE GARDENS

Snowdrop Articles on Carolyn’s Shade Gardens Blog

New Snowdrops for 2013

A Longwood New Year’s Eve

A White Christmas

December 2012 Garden Bloggers Bloom Day

A Shrub for All Seasons: Edgeworthia

2012 Fall-blooming Camellias

The Maine Coast in Late Fall

November GBBD: What’s Peaking Now

Natural Bridge, Virginia

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Click image to see Carolyn’s photos in The New York Times

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