I realize that I cannot keep planting perennials and bulbs - too hard to keep up with the weeding over time. So I have begin planting shrubs in earnest. They take up a lot of room and a wheelbarrow full of mulch can be thrown down underneath a shrub pretty easily. Here are the shrubs I planted in 2011 and 2012, note that they are very small - some no more than a stick - but in two years they will be very big. Patience is the key. In this posting I am not including the shrubs I planted along the Boardwalk which include Kerria japonicas, Oakleaf Hydarangeas, Sweetspires, Bottlebrush Buckeyes, Camellias, and False Indigo:
In the above photo: I planted these two shrubs in November of 2011. They are Pink Cloud Kolkwitzia amabilis, given to me by my mother. They have a weeping shape. They get quite large, and they are covered with pink flowers in the spring. I don't know of anyone that has this shrub growing in their yard.
In the above photo the large tree-like plant is Almond Verbena which I planted in the spring of 2012. I have this growing near the front door because it has a heavenly scent. Really fine. This winter I will trim it by half to make it more full and shrub-like. Left unchecked it will get very tall. Almond Verbena is a very fast grower.
Above - this is Harlequin Glory Bower. It is a suckering shrub. I planted this shrub / small tree in October of last year. I dropped it and broke it in half when I was planting it. I stuck the tiny little twig in the ground hoping I hadn't killed it. One year later it is as tall as I am. It blooms pink flowers in the fall and makes extremely interesting seed pods that are bright blue and red. This shrub is deciduous and spreads from suckering roots - kind of invasive.
So, in the above photo I have 3 Dwarf Flowering Almond shrubs (Prunis glandulosa 'Rosea') growing. I planted these in November 2011. These are more slow growing than the shrubs in the other photos above , but I think they will be really beautiful in a few years. In the spring they flower lots of small pink fully double flowers all along the upright branches.
Above I am growing two Altheas - one is still too short to be seen above the blue salvia to the left. The Althea on the right is a double red. The Althea that cannot be seen is a Satin Marina which is a single blue flower with a red throat. Altheas are deciduous. They can be pruned in the winter to keep them more shrub-like, or they can be left to grow into a small tree. Altheas are summer bloomers. They bloom in the heat of the summer - August. I planted both of these in February 2012. Altheas were very popular plants at one time, but Crepe Myrtles have far surpassed them in popularity. Now, I think Altheas are thought of as old fashioned plants, but I prefer them to Crepe Myrtles because they are not as common nowadays.
The shrub in the photo above is Snowball Viburnum - barely visible next to the trellis, I'm afraid. I planted it in December 2011. It was a stick when it arrived from an online order I placed with Martha's Secret. It is healthy, but it has a long way to go before it is impressive. Viburnum Macrocephalum Sterile is a slow growing deciduous shrub. It makes large balls of white flowers - large like a mop head hydrangea. It will be very pretty one day.
In the photo above I am growing several shrubs. In the foreground I have a Pearl Bush which I planted in October 2011. Pearl Bush is deciduous and blooms pretty single white flowers in the spring. All along the flower bed I have planted some Altheas that I rooted from cuttings. They are just twigs right now, so they cannot be seen in the photograph. White singles, lavender doubles, and a lavender single with a pink throat and a white single with a red throat. I probably shouldn't have planted them in the ground until after the winter. Well, you have to be tough to make in my garden.
Above are two Spicebushes (Lindera benzoin). I planted these in September 2012. As do all the others, these will get quite large. They are turning yellow because it is autumn. Spicebush is not particularly attractive, but it is the larval food for the Spicebush Swallowtail butterfly which I find appealing. And they like a bit of shade. So this is the perfect spot for them I should think. The leaves are very fragant when crushed.
Above is a Kerria japonica alba. I planted it in October 2012. This shrub is unusual because the flowers are white and they are single. The double yellow is what is commonly spotted in southern country gardens. The branches are arching. The plant is deciduous, but the branches stay a pretty green throughout the winter which gives this shrub some winter interest. It blooms in the spring.
Above is a Sassafrass tree, but it can be grown as a large shrub if pruned. It has very pretty fall coloring as you can see from the leaves beginning to turn red. This was a popular herb in the old days. Rootbeer is made from the Sassafrass tree.
Above is Madame Isaac Pereire. This rose gets quite large. I am pegging it which means I am fastening the branches to the ground so the eyes will beak all along the branches. It will bloom more profusely. It is a once a year bloomer. The flowers smell really wonderful. Memorable scent.
Above is a shrub I'm very excited about. It is Orange Flowered Sweet Olive (Osmanthes fragrans auranticus). Sweet Olives are evergreen and, yes, they get quite large. Their scent is really wonderful. I planted it right next to the back door and the kitchen windows so that the scent can be enjoyed inside the house as well as every time anyone exits the house. This variety blooms orange flowers, the common variety blooms cream colored flowers. So this one is quite unusual.
Above is a Purple Vitex. There is another one growing right next to this one. I planted both of these in May of 2012. I babied them through the summer, but I know they will be fine now. Vitex leaves are palmate and have a very fine silver cast to them. Good shrubs in the landscape. Vitex are deciduous.
Above is my second purple Vitex.
Above is a Banana shrub. Banana shrubs are evergreen. They bloom flowers that smell like ripe bananas. They are classic southern passalong plants. I planted it in September 2012. I saw it in Buchanan's Nursery. It was small and therefore cheap - only $10 - so I bought it. My hesitation was that they like acidic soil. My soil is alkaline. But for $10 I'm willing to give it a try.
The shrub in the above photograph is a Sweet Olive. This is the common Sweet Olive. It has tiny cream colored flowers that are heavily scented. It is evergreen. I planted it in September, it was already large when I bought it.
Above is a pink flowered Vitex. The pink flowering Vitex is uncommon. I purchased it at the Bulb and Plant Mart in October 2012.
Above is Limelight Hydrangea. I've been working hard to keep it watered this year. I planted it in the spring of 2012. It will make it, but it has struggled a bit this summer.
This sad looking little shrub is a Sweetshrub 'Venus' (Calycanthus 'Venus'). It is rare, and I'm sure not seen around these parts. I'm excited about it. The flower is a very pretty white. Scent among sweetshrubs is variable, so I can't wait until it blooms to see if I got a good one.
That's all of the shrubs I planted around the house in 2011 and 2012. They are all treasures. Over the summer of 2013 I will have to hand water them again, but after that they will be pretty independent unless we have an extended dry period. My garden is still maturing, and these shrubs are an important part of the evolving look of the garden. I'm very happy about its progress.
