Quiz? What is one of the easiest plants to grow with gorgeous flowers that bloom from early spring to mid-June? Answer: A Lenten rose or a Christmas rose named so because it normally blooms during Lent. The Latin name is Hellebore. Once the plant is mature, it can produce 50 or more flowers each season. The blooms are 2-3 inch in size. It is a shade plant and blooms in a variety of rich colors from an almost black to ivory. They make a luscious border for ferns and hostas. They are deer and rabbit resistant. Our nursery is carrying 7 varieties of the Hellebore. Pictured below are five varieties.
First Kiss Pennys Pink Lenten Rose Photo courtesy of Monrovia Nursery
Cascade Picotte Lenten Rose Photo courtesy of Monrovia Nursery
First Kiss Moondance Lenten Rose Photo courtesy of Monrovia Nursery
Ivory Prince Lenten rose Photo courtesy of Monrovia
Winter Jewels Black Diamond Lenten Rose Photo courtesy of Monrovia Nursery
Are you reminded of your grandmother when you see a bridal wreath blooming? They are blooming all around La Crosse presently. If you want to be reminded of years ago or just have a comforting feeling, get one now while they are in stock. This is an old-fashioned shrub that is becoming more and more popular.
Wow, we got some beautiful plants in this week. The PJM rhododendrons are amazing, and so are the purple gem and pink treasure rhododendrons. To top that off, the ivory prince lenten roses we just got in have lots of buds and blooms. Never before has this plant arrived so beautiful as this year. Then there are magnolia shrubs, blue ribbons bush clematis that have buds, coral bells and others. Following are images of some of the plants.
Nothing says spring is here like pussy willows and forsythias. The Northern Gold Forsythia was introduced way back in 1979 in Canada. This shrub grows 6-8 ft high and has a spread of around 5-7 ft. It is very hardy, Zone 3-8. This shrub has outstanding flower color and bud hardiness. If you are looking for a smaller forsythia, we have Gold Tide Forsythia, which only gets about 2-3 ft. tall and 3-4 ft. wide. This shrub is hardy in zone 4-8. Forsythias look amazing if you plant them as a large, sprawling screen. If size is a concern, then you should prune the larger ones back to about 2 feet right after flowering. Plant these shrubs as they will put a smile on your face in spring when they bloom.
Photo Courtesy of Baileys Nursery – Northern Gold Forsythia
Landscape shrub of the year by Proven Winners. This shrub is for you if you are looking for a small shrub with low-maintenance, has brilliant fall color, and provides fruit for the birds. In spring there are loads of white flowers, glossy green foliage in summer followed by black fruit, and then an intense red foliage in autumn. Lo-Scape is a tough, tolerant tidy little mound of glossy green foliage. It grows to about 12-24 inches tall and 18-26 inches wide. Grows in part sun to sun and hardy in Zones 3-9, in wet soils or dry soils. If you wish to prune this shrub, do so immediately after blooming. Native
Although the species tend to flower biannually, Snowdance™ flowers well annually and begins flowering at an earlier age than the species. It has exceptionally heavy bloom with large, fragrant, creamy white flower clusters in June. Lustrous dark green foliage is slightly larger and darker than the species. Snowdance grows as wide as it is tall with attractive, shelved branching. A pest- and disease-free lilac tree, it is ideal for residential and park use and is equally attractive as a specimen as it is in group plantings. Selected by Rod Bailey for its remarkably heavy bloom.
For those of us who remember the sweet wonderful fragrance of our mother’s or grandmother’s mockorange, here is a new plant to try. This mockorange is 5-6′ tall and 4-5′ wide. It boasts 2″ double flowers borne in clusters that bloom abundantly in spring and then again in summer. Its flowers are pure white and deliciously fragrant. If you close your eyes and think about this mockorange, you will probably be able to smell it.
