Plant of the Week: Pugster® Buddleia

 

Small but mighty.

 

The name Pugster® is a nod to those cute little dogs with the heavy breathing and googly eyes. Pugster® Buddleia don't have the Darth Vadar sound effects of a pug, but they are charming and sturdy, just like the dog.

The exceptionally thick stems of Pugster® Buddleia give them superior winter hardiness in the northern part of their zone. Butterfly bush often struggles in colder climates, and the thicker stems of these new plants will come through winter better than the thin stems of other varieties.

Pugster® Buddleia come in four colors: Blue, Periwinkle, Pink, and White. All are hardy to USDA Zone 5 and grow about 2' tall and wide. They are strong rebloomers, and like other Buddleia will do best in full sun.

This is the butterfly bush for northern climates.

 
Thick, sturdy stems make Pugster® Buddleia a good choice for colder climates. Cold, wet winters are really hard on butterfly bush, and the thicker stems are better able to live through cold and snowy winters.

In the northern parts of its range butterfly bush may die back to the ground and perform more like a perennial than a flowering shrub. We recommend early season rather than fall planting in these areas. Cutting it back in later winter will help to maintain a nice full habit. Pugster® Buddleia have a nice bushy habit and dense branching so is a good looking plant when others can be rangy.

Those of you in milder climates may want to look at the Lo & Behold® Buddleia. These plants are low growing and bushy rebloomers, like Pugster®, but are permitted for sale in Oregon and Washington State.

 
Got questions about butterfly bush? Check out the ultimate guide to butterfly bush. Yes, it's a real thing, and yes, it's the ultimate. Have a great holiday weekend!

Plant of the Week is written by Jane Beggs-Joles 

Plant of the Week: Sonic Bloom® Weigela

Sonic Bloom®

Sonic Bloom® Weigela was selected for their outstanding flowering - both in spring and in summer. These plants have the heaviest rebloom we've seen on a weigela. They flower in spring along with the rest of the class, then reward gardeners with waves of repeat blooms until frost. 

The Sonic Bloom® Weigela come in three colors: Red, Pink and Pearl, which is a white flower that turns soft pink. All get 4-5' tall and wide and will grow in full sun. This is important: they are hardy to USDA Zone 4.

Like other reblooming forms of traditionally spring-blooming plants, the Sonic Bloom® Weigela flower on both old and new wood. Trim them immediately after flowering as you would an old-fashioned variety, and don't prune them in fall.



Plant of the Week is written by Jane Beggs-Joles

   

 

 

 

Plant of the Week: Bloomerang® Lilac

Back at ya!

That's what a boomerang does, right? You throw it and it comes back. Same thing as Bloomerang® lilac. It flowers, and then the flowers come back. OK, so maybe not as fast as a boomerang returns from walkabout, but certainly later that same season.

Bloomerang® lilacs bloom in spring like regular Syringa and then go through a rest period before blooming again in late summer. They will flower through fall, often flowering right up until frost.

Just as there is some skill to throwing a boomerang, you do need to pay attention to how you grow Bloomerang® lilacs. Trim them immediately after the spring bloom so the plant has time to produce the new growth with new flowers on it. They are cold hardy to USDA Zone 3, and do best in full sun.

Lilac love.

 
Lilacs are beloved by many, both gardeners and non-gardeners. Many of us have happy memories of cut lilacs perfuming the house in spring. When I was young we had a cat who would hop up onto the counter (bad kitty!) to sit next to the vase and breathe in the sweet perfume of our lilac bouquets. She liked it so much that she didn't chew on the leaves like she did on houseplants.

Maybe cats like lilacs. Laura's cat visits her as she plants a Bloomerang® lilac in this latest Garden Answer video. If you haven't watched the Garden Answer videos, please do. They're a great way to get people excited about gardening and inspired to do some garden center shopping.

For a really fragrant lilac, check out the Scent and Sensibility™ Pink variety. It reblooms, although not as strongly as the Bloomerang® varieties. Its fragrance, though, is out of this world. Walking through our greenhouse you can smell them before you see them and it's delightful.

 
Perhaps cats like lilacs because they have similar cultural requirements. Both like sun and hate wet feet.