The Whistling Gardener

by Steve Smith

Steve Smith is owner of Sunnyside Nursery in Marysville, located at 3915 Sunnyside Blvd., and a respected local expert on all things horticultural. You can reach Steve at 425-334-2002 or by e-mail at info@sunnysidenursery.net.

Time for yet another installment of my Boring Yard Buster series. As we move further into the fall season there are fewer and fewer plants that are actually blooming, so the real interest is starting to be generated from foliage, twigs, berries and some late fall color. Here are some stars that caught my attention in my garden today.

TREES: Not a whole lot blooming but one particular shrub/tree that is in full bloom right now is the Strawberry Bush/Tree, Arbutus unedo compacta. This is a delightful evergreen shrub or small tree that can grow to 12 feet tall and is covered with cream colored drooping bells and, if you are lucky, some round orange fruit from the previous season's blooms. This plant is related to our native Madrona and is a nice contrast to the coniferous evergreens that populate our gardens.

Speaking of evergreen trees, I have a stunning Southern magnolia D.D. Blanchard in a pot that has large shiny leaves whose undersides are a warm dark brown with a felty texture. There are several cultivars available to the gardening public including Teddy Bear and Bracken's Brown Beauty, all of which have this wonderful dark, fuzzy underside of their leaves.

For 2012 look for a new dwarf one called Baby Grand, a very nice smaller version of the big guy that is so popular in the south. I should mention that my potted Magnolia is up against a south facing wall where it will get whatever sun we might see over the winter. If temperatures drop into the low 20s I will move this pot into a protected place like a cold garage or, in my case, a cold greenhouse.

SHRUBS: I found a surprising selection of shrubs that look especially non-boring this time of year. Most are broadleaf evergreens but a couple are deciduous that have either interesting berries or late fall color. Callicarpa has the most incredible purple pearl-like berries this time of year. The shrub itself is nothing to write home about but these purple berries are just amazing. Every garden should find a place for a Beauty Berry.

The other deciduous shrubs that are real standouts now are Winter Hazel, which is slow to turn a bright yellow, and Itea Henry's Garnet (and Little Henry), which will turn a dark garnet color and hold it most of the winter. This is a summer bloomer (with fragrance) with wonderful fall color but otherwise fairly underwhelming. Just the same I think it is worth planting.

On the broadleaf evergreen side are our native Oregon Grape, which is sporting some very dramatic fall color, and the hybrid Charity, which is actually coming into full bloom with its bright yellow flowers that will draw the hummers into the garden. Fatsia, aka Japanese Aralia, is a tropical looking shrub that does best in some afternoon shade and it actually blooms this time of year with some rather exotic looking flowers. This is a bullet proof plant that can be cut to the ground every few years if needed and come back looking fabulous the next year.

Nandina (Sienna Sunrise is my most recent favorite) and Lonicera nitida Baggesen's Gold (box honeysuckle) are both excellent shrubs for fine texture and good winter color. I would be remiss not to mention fall blooming Camellia sasanqua. This camellia is a loose grower that will twine or trail or allow itself to be trained on a trellis or fence and blooms all through the fall and early winter. The flowers and foliage are much more delicate and refined than its cousin, Camellia japonica.

PERENNIALS: One of the more outstanding evergreen perennials for us comes from the Genus Euphorbia. E. characias 'Shorty' always looks handsome for me all winter long with its bluish-green leaves. There are multiple other cultivars as well that come in various shades of purple and a nice blue and white one called Glacier Blue that is a keeper too.

Hellebore 'Ivory Prince' and several of the new niger crosses start blooming as early at late November or early December and retain their attractive foliage, unlike the orientalis varieties. London Pride looks like a Sedum that belongs in sun but it actually does best in shade and is a durable ground cover for between stepping stones or in rockeries. Bergenia is another evergreen perennial that will actually grow in sun or shade and some varieties take on a very attractive burgundy color in winter.

We can't forget the many new selections of Heuchera for their myriad of choices of foliage colors, and we all need to introduce a few more ornamental grasses to our gardens. Morning Light Miscanthus is still my favorite.

There is no shortage of choices for interest in the month of November. Come by and take a look and take a couple of plants home to your garden. You are getting real close to having year 'round interest.

Send me your questions at 425-334-2002 or online at info@sunnysidenursery.net.