Easter Floral Treats at Powell Gardens

Spring has returned to Powell Gardens much to the delight of gardeners who can now play catch up with such a phenomenally early spring (caused by a few weeks that felt like summer!).  Enjoy the predicted seasonal temperatures in the 60's while they last!  It also makes the flowers last much longer and plants at Powell Gardens are showing a glorious array of flowers and fresh green foliage perfect for an Easter-time stroll.

The Visitor Center's terrace garden beds are full of fresh, springtime flowers blooming in colors and patterns worthy of the art world's finest masterpieces.  Here Pansies and 'Ruby Perfection' cabbage create a gorgeous composition of cool colors on the South Ramp that leads toward the trolley stop.

Most of our Kales are in full bloom!  They were planted last fall and survived the winter and have bolted into gorgeous bloom.  The flower buds taste delicious too: like a broccoli with a touch of honey (the flowers own nectar).  This is 'Winterboor' Kale near the entrance to the Heartland Harvest Garden's Menu Garden.

It's hard to believe how early the lilacs are flowering this year!  Here's the lovely cultivar 'Wonderblue' which is a classic lilac (Syringa vulgaris) with a fragrance we all love.  This lilac is part of the blue and yellow color scheme to the Menu Garden -- a lilac in an edible garden?  You bet, edible flowers though they tasted best when they first opened and are now a bit bitter.

Peonies are another "May" classic garden flower already in bloom.  This is a Tree Peony but some of the early herbaceous varieties are also in bloom in the Perennial Garden!

And YES, even roses in bloom already!!!  Here's a Rugosa Rose (Rosa rugosa) in bloom in Heartland Harvest Garden's Apple Celebration Court.  The scent of these old fashioned roses brings me back to childhood memories in Iowa.

Some of our plants' flowers get no respect!  Look at these -- yes, the gold and pink in this picture are conifer flowers.  This Tanyosho Pine (Pinus desiflora 'Umbraculifera') is in bloom in the Conifer Garden north of the Visitor Center. The golden yellow are the male pollen cones and the pink tips to the new growth "candles" are the female cones which will mature into more familiar pine cones.

Missouri's state tree started blooming in March this year and the beautiful bracts surrounding the tiny flowers should hold through the weekend.  Dogwood blossoms might be the most beloved flower of springtime in Missouri and are putting on a wonderful show at Powell Garden this year.  This is the cultivar 'Cherokee Brave' which is a super pink-flowering selection.

Nope, not Gardenia but the lovely, 'Springtime Double' Dogwood (Cornus florida 'Springtime Double') in bloom.  Look for this gem along the Dogwood Walk just before its hairpin curve around the Swamp White Oaks.

The Weeping Dogwood (Cornus florida 'Pendula') has the oddest, pendant flowers, many of which look like Chinese lanterns.  We do not recommend this dogwood because it just doesn't look right after its leaves emerge (it always looks dry or impacted by herbicides!) but does look nice in the winter landscape.

The Azaleas are starting to set the woodlands ablaze in the Rock & Waterfall Garden (usually the last week of April or first of May).  Here a mass of fiery scarlet 'Stewartsonian' Azaleas light up the garden.

The Yodogawa Azalea (Rhododendron yedoense) is in bloom with its double purple flowers -- this was the favorite of the late Andy Klapis who donated the original masses of azaleas in the Rock & Waterfall Garden.  His spirit lives on with me every time I see these beautiful shrubs in bloom.  The Korean Azalea is the wild form of this azalea but it has a varietal name because the Yodogawa Azalea was described by Western Science before the wild Korean Azalea. Japanese Gardeners have known and grown this beauty for centuries.

We have just a few American native Azaleas but they have an awesome fragrance and delightful and exquisite forms (though are not so overall colorful as the Asian azaleas): here's a selection of the Piedmont Azalea (Rhododendron canescens 'Varnadoe's Phlox Pink' growing along the path in the Rock & Waterfall Garden.

Like a purple snow, the Oriental wisterias currently adorning the Perennial Garden arbor are beginning to fall. This is the Texas Purple Wisteria (Wisteria sinensis 'Texas Purple') which should have some flowers holding through the weekend.  I could run this blog with many, many more images of the current floral display at Powell Gardens -- currently in bloom with mid-late spring flowers throughout the grounds.  Come walk the gardens and enjoy these springtime treasures and experience our benevolent spring.

Reflecting on Redbuds

The native Eastern Redbuds (Cercis canadensis) began blooming at Powell Gardens on March 19, 2012 and have held well through March 28th and into today.  They usually begin peak bloom around April 10th at Powell Gardens so this was an early event this year and it has been spectacular!  Redbuds reflect our spirit of place better than any other flowering tree as they are native to our site.  Redbuds in flower hold well in our edge of the Great Plains location being wind and frost resistant as well as lasting for at least 10 days even in warm weather -- way longer than any crabapple, serviceberry and most other flowering trees.

Here's a panorama looking towards the Visitor Center from the road between the parking lots.  The redbuds and whitebuds (Cercis canadensis 'Alba') are really putting on a show!

The walk from the parking lot to the Visitor Center is lined with Redbuds and Whitebuds -- someday it should create a tunnel-like experience, shading visitors as they walk from the parking lot to the building.

Redbuds look beautiful when growing like they would in nature: in masses at the edge of a woods.  Their flower color is the perfect compliment for the yellow-greens of new foliage and less showy flowering trees like the tall Black Oak (Quercus velutina) blooming in this scene.  Look for this composition between the Rock & Waterfall and Perennial Gardens.

Redbud's flower color actually is a blue-pink and looks fabulous against a blue sky and the perfect compliment for yellow-greens like the pin oak (Quercus palustris) on the right side of this image.  Blue flowering plants also look beautiful beneath redbuds including native wildflowers like Virginia bluebells, Jacob's Ladder, Woodland Phlox, Butterfly Violets, and Crested Iris.

Flowering Crabapples (Malus cultivars) were also in bloom this week and this picture from the Perennial Garden shows: from left to right, a red-flowering 'American Masterpiece' crabapple, then a white 'Donald Wyman' crabapple and then a Redbud blooming beyond.  Redbuds unique color CLASHES with red-flowering crabapples and pink or red-flowering dogwoods.  Plant a white-flowering one to transition between these colors.  Redbuds also clash with orange and red brick so be mindful of your landscape use of redbuds!

Redbuds go well with all colors of lilacs like this Mount Baker lilac (Syringa x hyacinthiflora) in white but blue or purple-flowering lilacs make beautiful compositions with redbuds.

Sunsation Magnolia is a later blooming "yellow" flowering magnolia.  I think it is one of my favorites for its complex colors from lime to pink with various shades of yellow.  It works exceedingly well in a planting with redbuds.  Look for Sunsation Magnolia beside the Visitor Center trolley stop.


Here's and 'Oklahoma' Redbud (Cercis reniformis or C. canadensis var. texensis) which blooms a bit later with rosier colored flowers.  Oklahoma Redbud was selected from the Arbuckle Mountains of Oklahoma and is exceedingly heat and drought tolerant with much more lustrous leaves than a typical redbud.  This species or variety is found wild in Southern Oklahoma through Texas but is hardy here.

The Chapel's fountain (and the whole Chapel landscape) contains some of our best displays of Redbuds.  Most of the Redbuds around the Chapel are Whitebuds (Cercis canadensis 'Alba') which is a cultivar that was originally found in the wild in Missouri.  There is a newer cultivar 'Royal White' that is a bit hardier found in Illinois.  It is hard to tell the two cultivars apart!

This photo is not touched up!  It's Tennessee Pink Redbud growing on the walk to the Chapel.  This redbud has cherry pink flowers and was a real stunner this spring.  Appalachian Red is another cultivar with zippy, almost red-pink flowers.


This pinker Redbud is the older cultivar 'Rubye Atkinson' and is missing the blue overtone typical of redbuds.  Look for this tree over near the Chapel Walk.

This pearly-pink Redbud is the cultivar 'Pauline Lily' and is a lovely, softest pink.  Look for this tree near the Chapel trolley stop.

The redbud flowers are currently waning but some are still in lovely flower. (The picture is from the Chapel trolley stop looking towards the woodland walk to the Chapel.)  The Flowering Dogwoods will open fully this weekend as will our Oriental wisterias on the Arbor in the Perennial Garden.  Make sure to walk the Dogwood Walk from the Visitor Center to the Island Garden and over to the lakeside arbor in the Perennial Garden as it is rare for our wisterias to be so completely loaded with their purple, pendant and exceedingly fragrant blooms.  Come celebrate the beauty of our landscape filled with spring-flowering trees!

A Peachy Keen Landscape

The Powell Gardens' landscape will near its peak of spring this weekend, the earliest since 1987 from gardener's recollections--certainly the earliest in the 16 springs I have lived here. The Daffodils/Narcissus have been simply spectacular and the early flowering trees have been a breath of fresh springtime colors dancing across the gardens. The Heartland Harvest Garden's peach trees were simply a great joy to witness and we photo documented the entire collection because each variety has flowers that are either showy or not so much.  This information is valuable to edible landscapes that want to balance beauty and productivity!


Here is the Peach Court in the Heartland Harvest Garden with its collection of almost 30 varieties of Peaches (Prunus persica and Nectarines var. nectarina).  A few of the best cultivars are repeated on different rootstocks, smaller "semi-dwarf" rootstock closer in on the spiral and on "standard" rootstock where they will grow larger to full size on the outer ring of this garden.


This a Stark 'Saturn' Peach which has some of the showiest, rosy-pink flowers.  17 of the Peach and Nectarine varieties have similar showy, rosy-pink flowers.  Saturn Peach is a flat "doughnut" peach from Northern China that does very well in our climate and the peaches are funny looking but delicious!


Here's a closeup of a 'Stark CrimsonGold' Nectarine that fits the category of beautiful, showy-flowering peaches and nectarines.


This is the classic Missouri 'Redhaven' Peach which you can see has much smaller, carmine pink flowers that are much less showy in the landscape.  We still recommend this variety for its superior peaches but in an edible landscape it looks even better mixed or paired with the showier flowering varieties.


Here's a closeup of 'Reliance' Peach which depicts a variety with less showy, carmine pink flowers.  I actually split the less showy varieties into two groups: 11 with less showy carmine pink blooms (which included 'Reliance') and 10 varieties with the least showy carmine pink flowers (which included 'Redhaven' above).  Most of the hardiest peaches with both extreme cold and frost tolerance have the less showy type flowers but 'Saturn' is an exception to that rule.


A very few peaches and peach hybrids have beautiful, showy soft pink flowers.  This is our "Wilbur Kephart Indian" Peach, which is a family heirloom that was brought from Tennessee where Wilbur's forefathers found it growing wild (Wilbur is an 80-something local farmer, historian and Powell Gardens volunteer).  Peaches are actually from China but traveled to Europe on the Silk Road, then via the Spaniards to the New World.  The Native Americans quickly adopted the plant and spread it northward into Tennessee where it was already growing by the time settlers arrived. Think of the journeys this plant made! 


The "Hardy" Almonds also have this beautiful soft pink bloom.  This is the 'Reliable' Almond (Prunus x amygdalo-persica) which gets its hardiness from peaches as it is actually a peach-almond cross.  It does produce dry fuzzy fruit with edible almonds in the pits.  DO NOT EAT THE PITS OF REGULAR PEACHES as they are poisonous.  True Almonds (Prunus dulcis) have white flowers and we have several new varieties hybridized in Russia that are doing well.  Look for both 'Reliable' and 'Hall's Hardy' Almonds in our Vineyard.


The mid season Magnolias are currently in full bloom throughout the gardens.  Here is Ann Magnolia in full bloom in the Courtyard on the north side of the Visitor Center with a sculpture by the late Mary Kay Powell on the bench below the Powell Memorial plaque.  Ann is one of the "Little Girl" Magnolias bred at the National Arboretum as hybrid crosses between Star and Lily Magnolias in an effort to get the frost resistance of Star Magnolia and the later bloom of Lily Magnolia.  The best ones are named and we have 'Betty,' 'Jane,' 'Pinkie' and 'Randy' in other parts of the garden.


Here are the darkest flowering magnolias currently in bloom at the garden. This is the 'O'Neill' Lily Magnolia (Magnolia liliiflora) growing by the Visitor Center trolley stop. WOW is it vivid this year and seems to be deeper colored the warmer it is.  Most varieties are just the opposite and are paler in warmer weather.


Look at this spectacular Magnolia blossom!  This is a new cultivar called 'Toro' and is a hybrid with Missouri native Cucumbertree (Magnolia acuminata).  It has HUGE flowers and is very hardy through zone 4. Look for Toro Magnolia blooming on the east edge of the Perennial Garden along the path to the Trigg Building.


Our native woodland wildlfowers are also making their graceful appearance.  Linda Williams took this picture of White Trout-lily (Erythronium albidum) during the nature hike on Sunday on the Byron Shutz Nature Trail.  Actually the best woodland wildflowers are along the first portion of that trail in the oak-hickory woods and include Spring Beauty, Toad Trillium, and Virginia Bluebells.  Our showiest native tree is also going to be in full bloom this weekend: REDBUDS!!!  They normally bloom about April 10th here but opened on March 19th out here this year.  Come see them and all the other floral surprises of spring now in store for you at Powell Gardens.

Last weekend's tours of the Magnolia collections hit the peak of spring bloom on the early-mid "precocious" (blooming before the leaves) varieties but the mid-season varieties will be in peak flower for this weekend.

Peak of Spring in Flowers

Native redbuds and plums paint the landscape of Powell Gardens expressing that our spirit of place is at the peak of spring. This composition of our native Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis) and Wildgoose Plum (Prunus munsoniana -- one of 5 species of local wild plums) welcomes visitors to Powell Gardens just before the gatehouse. Often times we gardeners embrace exotics at the expense of those that originally decorated this land in a new term I am seeing called "contempt for the familiar." The splashes of raspberry sherbet pink-flowering redbuds and fragrant sparkling white-flowering wild plums coloring our landscape make this my hands down favorite time of year. In the Heartland Harvest Garden's edible landscape the gorgeous flowering fruit trees have advanced to the pears taking center stage. We have the biggest variety of pears in public display anywhere around. Kikisui Asian Pear, shown above, has the most beautiful flowers of them all this spring. The ornamental callery (Bradford, Aristocrat, Chanticleer, etc...) pears (Pyrus calleryana) are popular in local landscapes but Powell Gardens has none because they are becoming the next invasive exotic to damage our wild lands. Consider the beautiful Asian edible pears (Pyrus pyrifolia) as an alternate and feed yourself instead of the starlings with the bounty of crisp, juicy pears following their bloom. Pears are known for their upright form and here's a mug shot of Honsui Asian Pear in bloom. You do need two varieties of Asian pears to set fruit and their narrow crowns do not take up much air space and offer unique uses in edible landscape where space is limited. Some of our varieties like this '20th Century' Asian Pear have coppery leaves while they bloom adding a color echo to the centers of the flowers and thus adding to the ornamental appeal of the plant. I am busy trying to keep track of all these details on our premier collection of fruit trees because edible landscaping implies you know the ornamental beauty of a edible plant along with its productivity and garden performance. The Daisui Li Asian Pear may have the most coppery leaves of them all at bloom time. I only had time at mid-day to capture the image so it looks better to the eye than the camera in the now August-like mid-day sun of April. Heartland Harvest Garden Horticulturist Matt Bunch ranked 'New Century' Asian Pear as the best for productivity, flavor and right size fruit in our collection; but noted that for the most part they all were good! This heirloom purple-leaf plum (Prunus unknown hybrid) is a pass along plant from near Liberty, MO and has delicious plums according to Matt Bunch. Its tiny pinkish-white flowers cover every stem and twig making it a bit dazzling looking and a great color with the redbuds on the edge of the Vineyard seen in the background. Remember redbud flowers and young pea pods are edible and a nice addition to a spring salad. I had to include a picture of the arbor at the center of the Heartland Harvest Garden 'Quilt' Gardens because the Clove Currants (Ribes odoratum) continue to grab attention with their phenomenal scent and the Akebia vines (Akebia spp.) growing up the arbors are beginning to bloom. Make sure to take a closer look and the unique flowers of the akebias varying in color from white to purple. (My close up lens is still not fixed so I can't share that with you -- you'll have to see it in person!) The Flowering-Quinces (Chaenomeles spp.) are in full bloom around the gardens and they are not the trash collecting shrubs they were once thought of anymore. New varieties have flowers in double petals and colors from white to blush pink to almost orange and vivid reds. This is the peachy 'Cameo' Flowering-Quince along the dogwood walk. Remember to grow quinces for their fruit as well (if you have at least 2 varieties to pollinate) which make delicious spicy preserves or natural air fresheners if you are not into the culinary experience. The double white 'O Yashima' Flowering Quince that buds greenish and whitens as it opens may be my favorite and look for it near the entrance to the Heartland Harvest Garden. New varieties for the spring plant sale have flowers almost as large as camellias! The late season daffodils are now at peak but other unique bulbs can be observed around the gardens. The interesting Guinea Hen Flower or Checkered Lily (Fritillaria meleagris) blooming in the Rock & Waterfall Garden is a great bulb that does best in a site that is wet in spring.

The ground flora of the Rock & Waterfall Garden is really kicking into bloom with gorgeous Summer Snowflakes (Leucojum aestivum), various Epimediums (Epimedium rubrum shown) and the hat-like new leaves of native Mayapples (Podophyllum peltatum) interspersed. Now through early May is the peak color of the Rock & Waterfall Garden but it will be another week or so before the azaleas are in full bloom -- and they are looking great for a superior display this year.

The sunny weekend forecast sounds marvelous for a springtime visit to Powell Gardens with temperatures in the low 60's on Saturday and 70F for Sunday. If you've never been here in spring before, you are in for a real floral treat!

Spring Has Sprung!

Spring has really sprung at Powell Gardens and the gardens are giddy with flowering flora. The sights and scents of the flowers are especially captivating after a winter without them in the landscape.

We had a freeze Wednesday morning (29F) and I thought our magnolias would be toast but they were just tight enough in bud to endure and burst forth now with glorious flowers. This is the Galaxy Magnolia (Magnolia liliiflora 'Nigra' x M. sprengeri 'Diva'). The scents of this and some other magnolias are somewhat musky but remind me of my experience-rich childhood and the neighborhood saucer magnolia.

The path by the Trigg Building is now a tunnel of softly sweet-scented Star Magnolias (Magnolia stellata). The star magnolia flowers are a bit disheveled on close inspection but overall wonderful -- they endured hot winds (Sunday), cold winds (Monday), hail and torrential rain!

Magnolia 'Butterflies' (Magnolia acuminata x M. denudata 'Sawada's Cream') is one of the best yellow-flowering magnolias with small waterlily-esque, delightful and musky scented flowers. This magnolia always draws attention at the Visitor Center trolley stop and should be in full bloom this weekend.

The burgundy goblets of Magnolia 'March till Frost' is a complex hybrid ((Magnolia liliiflora x cylindrica) x Magnolia 'Ruby') that does repeat flower a bit all season. It did survive the vagaries of this spring and is gaining rank on my list of Magnolia favorites.

This unassuming shrub in the Heartland Harvest Garden grabbed my attention as I walked by with its phenomenal and alluring aroma. The small yellow flowers of Clove Currant (Ribes odoratum) are a sweet and rich with a clove-like scent. I also remember this shrub from childhood when it bloomed in older neighborhoods of my hometown as I walked home from school. It lost favor from gardeners for many years but now is back in popularity as it produces edible black currants great for preserves and pies (and fresh eating too)!

The plum trees are also in bloom in the Heartland Harvest Garden and just starting to open in the natural areas of the grounds. The HHG has a superb collection of plums ( Plum 'Burbank Red Ace' shown) and their flowers are wonderfully fragrant. I must admit the plum blossom scents took me back to my childhood visiting my Grandpa and Grandma on the farm in Iowa. They grew on the fencerows perfuming the air in spring and Grandma always made a memorable preserve out of the plums and mixed it with apple.

Two plums in particular stand out in our collection: The Shiro Plum shown here grows on the south side of the Learning Shed and has a beautiful spreading crown. Its plums are yellow when ripe and a favorite of Horticulturist Matt Bunch.

Our other favorite is the Toka Plum shown here just south of the corn crib. It is sometimes called the bubblegum plum because its sweet plums have a remarkable bubblegum-like flavor which Matt described and then read that was another name for this plum! This is the plum whose ripening plums are depicted on our set of note cards available to Friends members. If you have room for just two plums, plant Toka and Shiro and they do pollinate each other. We do have many more varieties, each with their own merit and I captured their images for documentation and future reference (but I don't want to put you to sleep looking at them all here).

The Perennial Garden's beds are filled with Daffodils and spring has burst forth throughout Powell Gardens. The weekend sounds like it will be warm and mild and that predicted rains will happen at night! Come explore the fabulous flora now in bloom and may its sights and scents bring back fond memories or create new ones to reflect upon. Springtime is my favorite season with renewal of life in a burst of beautiful optimism for all to enjoy.