Bill's Picks for August

Clethra Summer Sweet (Clethra Alnifolia): 

This plants name says it all it gives a fragrant abundance of cinnamon spice fragrance in you’re summer garden.  Most will tolerate sun to shade with varied heights of white and pink flowers that bees, humming birds and humans love.  This plant will naturalize but can be contained easily in the landscape.  The yellow fall foliage is a bonus!

Purple Leaf Birch (Betula Populifolia): 

I really like this tree, grown as a clump, in a summer garden with yellow foliage plants and hot colored perennials (purple, red, yellow, etc.).  The purple-red leaves against the mature, white bark makes this a stunning specimen.   

Cone Flower (Echinacea):

For a summer garden these plants are a must!  With their long bloom time and wide range of colors (pink, yellow, orange, red, white, etc.) all they need is some good sun and a little dead-heading and they will perform all summer long and well into the fall.  Some of the new varieties are really exciting!!

Bill's Picks for July

Bill's picks for July:

Hydrangea (Anomala, Arborescens, Macrophylla, Paniculata, etc.):

These beauties cover a wide range of placement in your landscape with size, sun exposure, and length of bloom.  Colors of pink, blue, white, etc., can add a blast of long changing bloom to your gardens.  Some of my favorites are “Twist-and-Shout,” “Limelight,” “Quickfire,” “Hydrangea Vine,” as well as the old stand-bys.  There are so many varieties coming out as well as the tried and true—hydrangeas are an excellent choice for any landscape. 

Katsura (Cercidiphyllum Japonicum):

This is a wonderful specimen tree with two-tone coppery heart-shaped leaves that seem to dance in the summer breeze.  I have found this to be a hardy, versatile tree which becomes quite large over time (60’ tall X 50’ wide).  If you were limited on how many trees you could have this would be one of my first recommendations.
(pictured here in all its fall glory)

Hyssop (Agastache): 

This fragrant plant will provide color all summer long and into the fall with spikes of blue/lavender flowers.  I love just brushing by it with its licorice scented foliage when working in the garden.  If you cut back lightly mid-summer it will reward you with a whole new flush in the fall.  An added bonus:  Bees and butterflies love hyssop!

Bill's Picks for June

Golden Vicary Privet (Ligustrum Vicaryi):

 I have become very fond of this plant over the past few years both in my garden as well as observed in other peoples landscapes.  It has fragrant sweet small white flowers against bright yellow foliage.  This plant makes a great lower hedger or a stand by itself.  It prefers full-sun for the best foliage color but I have this on the northwest side of my house and it does quite well.

Dogwood (Cornus Florida, Chinensis):  

These are truly a multi-seasonal tree with variations of key-lime flowers turning to white then to pink followed by red fruits.  Some varieties exfoliate their bark as they age.  These trees are great lawn specimen and will blend well in the wood-line border with part sun.  “Kousa” is one of the industry standards and I have become very fond of the variegated foliage of “Kousa Wolf Eyes”.   
 

Clematis:

I think a clematis can fit into any landscape. The varieties of color, size, and bloom time are endless.  I have several varieties in my garden that bloom from late spring well into the fall.  Some varieties bloom early then rest and bloom again.  I’m particularly fond of some of the smaller bell shaped forms.

Bill's Picks for May

Here are some of my favorite harbingers of spring, when the plants seem to be telling us it’s time to awaken, with all their beautiful, bright colors of yellow, orange, lavender, pink, etc. Combining these with spring blooming bulbs like crocus, daffodils, tulips etc. can make you’re landscape come alive!!

Quince (Chaenomeles speciosa):  This is a great, old fashioned plant.  It has loads of blooms all over the bush and comes in many different colors—red, orange, pink, and white.  I have noticed that it is also a plant that small birds like to congregate in for protection; so planting one near your bird feeders would be ideal.  For those who like to make jellies and jams, quince has always been one of my favorites!

                                                         Shad Bush (Amelanchier):   

This is a hardy small tree with interest for all seasons.  The tree produces catkins which open into profuse white blooms in spring.  Persistent fruit for wildlife in summer.  Stunning foliage of yellow/orange and red in the fall.  The trees leafless structure and nice gray bark is set off nicely by the winter landscape.

Lily-of- the-Valley (Convallaria Majoralis):  When these emerge in the spring with their sweet fragrant blooms I love to give them as gifts in tiny vases.  I have used these as a wonderful ground cover along driveways and embankments, for erosion control.  Lily-of-the-Valley mixes well with both bulbs and plants that emerge later.

Bill's Picks for April

Here are some of my favorite harbingers of spring, when the plants seem to be telling us it’s time to awaken, with all their beautiful, bright colors of yellow, orange, lavender, pink, etc. Combining these with spring blooming bulbs like crocus, daffodils, tulips etc. can make you’re landscape come alive!!

Forsythia:  When I think of spring this plant is probably the first to come to mind with its bright yellow flowers.  Combined with all the other colors forsythia lets us know spring has arrived.

   





Pagoda Dogwood (Cornus Atteniflia): This small tree has become one of my favorites with its small star-white blossoms, dark berries (that the birds love), and dark burgundy fall foliage. It is a nice choice for a small tree either in a perennial bed or naturalizing along a wood line. I have found it to be quite versatile tolerating both shady and sunny locations—an under used tree.






Lungwort (Pulmonaria):  An  early spring gem!  Silver dappled leaves offset vibrant, irredesent pink or purple blossoms.  Perfect in shady areas where the silver markings can really glow!

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Bill's Picks For February

AS&L's nursery manager, Bill Kennie, has some special picks for February--these plant are sure to cheer the winter landscape.

Elm (Ulmus):  There has been a big push to reintroduce the elm back into the landscape with most of the new varieties showing very good resistance to Dutch Elm Disease.  My family's farmstead has a very old specimen which has a long straight trunk and a contorted canopy...it is really a tree that offers interest for all four seasons.  I truly hope this tree will be used much more in the future.

Dowood (Cornus Alba, Sericea, etc.):  When I think of winter interest for shrubs this one comes in mind first. There are so many varieties of these hardy shrubs with colorful stems; red, yellow, orange, etc.  Against the backdrop of snow make these plants stand out in you're winter landscape.  Varieties range from dwarf to variegated foliage--dogwood offers blossoms for the bees, and berries for the birds.  These plants can find a home in any landscape--additionally, they are great for naturalizing an area.

In the Northeast, I'm sure many of us don't think of perennials for winter interest, but there are really many to choose from--especially for wildlife.  I have seen many perennial gardens left to go to seed making a perfect refuge with abundant food for wild life and birds.  Here are a few good choices.

• Coneflower (echinacea)
• Black-eyed Susan (rudbeckia)
• Holly Hock (alcea)
• Sedum (stonecrop) --pictured
• Lavender (lavendula)
• Japanese Spurge (pachysandra)-an evergreen ground cover
• Grasses (most varieties)