Plant of the Week and a Mother's Day Giveaway!

I think I can safely say it's spring! Okay, yes, we had a blizzard last Sunday, but that's all in the past. The last lumps of snow are melting (I actually spent a little time scooping handfuls off my daffodils that were just ready to pop before the storm) and I just finished deadheading my hydrangeas and pulling out the spent canes. It's exciting to see all the buds waiting to bloom - very soon now!

Speaking of hydrangeas... ya' know, they make a great Mother's Day gift. In fact, what have you gotten for your mom this year? Nothing yet?

Never fear...I have a way that you can win an excellent gift for her, (or maybe for yourself, you deserve something special too!) just in time for the holiday.

Click this link to enter by May 1, and you could win Lorraine Ballato's book Success With Hydrangeas: A Gardener's Guide plus a Proven Winners® ColorChoice® hydrangea, shipped from Great Garden Plants, directly to your mom's home! It's a $50 value, free to one lucky winner.


Lorraine is an Advanced Master Gardener and like me, a hydrangea lover. In her book she gives tips for knowledgeable and novice gardeners alike on how to grow this favorite garden shrub. Each of the thirteen chapters covers the whys and wherefores in easy-to understand language with nearly 150 photos and illustrations. I got one for my mom last Mother's Day and she loves it!

Don't want to leave it up to chance? You can order a signed copy of Lorraine's book right on her website and get it shipped in time for Mother's Day!

Now, that's enough talk about moms - how about sons? This week Jane writes about the spectacular Seven Son Flower, that we call Temple of Bloom®.

Enjoy! - Natalie

Temple of Bloom® fall color

All Bark, No Bite.

For many years Heptacodium was the cool indie band of the horticulture world. It had passionate Heptacodium
fans, but they tended to be people who were pretty deeply into the plant scene. But now it is ready to go mainstream.

Don't be mad about it. This isn't like when your favorite band sold out and all of the sudden there were Tiger Beat teenagers at the show. This is a case of a really nice plant finally getting the recognition it deserves.

We selected Temple of Bloom® because it's a compact plant that blooms earlier than the species and also has more colorful bracts in the fall. It's colorful, but in a cool, indie-band kind of way.

It will grow 6-10' tall as a multi-branched small tree. Give it a try - it's a nice change from the expected flowering cherry or crabapple.

Heptacodium, aka Seven Son Flower, is a small tree with a pleasant habit that's ideal for residential yards and other smaller spaces.

The plant produces fragrant white flowers in late summer. We had a beautiful specimen outside of our old office and when it bloomed it was surrounded by bees. And since the flowers were above our heads we could just watch the bees without getting in their way.

When it's done flowering the red bracts are showy well into fall and in winter the distinctive bark is very appealing. It is hardy to USDA Zone 5 and will grow in full sun or partial shade.

Heptacodium is just one of many trees and shrubs with really appealing bark. Our own Plant Hunter, Tim Wood, recently wrote a wonderful blog post about bark. I encourage you to read it. It's both entertaining and informative, and made me feel a little better about coming back from vacations with pictures of bark on my phone.

Nice size, year-round interest, generally trouble-free. No wonder it's ready for a major label release!

Plant of the Week is written by Jane Beggs-Joles