What's in Bloom
Bloom Highlights
Campsis radicans ‘Flamenco’
Flamenco Trumpetcreeper
Campsis radicans is found at the edges of moist woodlands and in fen-like thickets of the eastern parts of North America from the Great Plains in the west through the Great Lakes region and New England to the north and the Gulf and Atlantic coasts in the south and east. This multistemmed vine is semi-woody, and if given a structure to cling to, it can grow up to 40 feet. The bright green stems mature to produce scaly, light brown bark and bear leaves oppositely. The distinctive, glossy, dark blueish-green leaves are pinnately compound with seven to eleven leaflets. The leaflets are elliptical to oblong with deeply serrate margins. From the terminus of each stem, a cyme-like cluster of flowers is produced and blooms in waves from late June to early September. The reddish-orange flowers are tubular with five red, fused sepals; five long, rounded, orange petals; five long stamens that are fused to the inside of the floral tube, and two pistils. This cultivar is noted for its bold red and orange flowers. The genus name is derived from a Greek word kámpsi, meaning “bending,” in reference to the bent stamens. The specific epithet comes from Latin, meaning “stems that take root.”
Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Brido’
Snowflake Oakleaf Hydrangea
Hydrangea quercifolia is native to the southeastern United States from Arkansas and North Carolina in the north, southward through the southern coasts of Louisiana and Florida, where it is found in the understories of hardwood forests and along stream banks and ravines. This deciduous shrub has an irregular, mounding habit with upright stems that do not branch very much. Young shoots produce oppositely arranged leaves, while mature stems produce light brown bark that exfoliates. The leathery, green, oak-like leaves are pubescent and ovate with three to seven lobes with serrate margins. Like most Hydrangea, H. quercifolia has showy, sterile flowers and small, insignificant, fertile flowers. The sterile flowers have four to five large, petal-like sepals with small, round petals and up to ten stamens that appear like a button at the center of each flower. The floral parts of the fertile flowers are fused together in distinct whorls. This cultivar is noted for its dense panicles of double flowers and attractive autumn foliage. The genus name is a compound of the Greek words hýdor meaning “water” and angeíon meaning “vessel,” since the capsule fruit is cup-shaped. The specific epithet means “with leaves like Quercus (oak).”
Hypericum kalmianum ‘Gemo’
Gemo Kalm’s St. Johnswort
Hypericum kalmianum is native to the Great Lakes region of the United States and southern Canada where it is found on sand dunes, rocky shores, and in moist meadows. This deciduous shrub is multistemmed with an erect, mounding, highly branching habit. Young stems are bright yellow-green and ridged, but they become smooth as they grow before maturing to produce light reddish-brown bark that is papery and exfoliates in strips or sheets. The blueish-green leaves are produced oppositely and are linear to oblong. The upper shoots terminate in corymbs or compound corymbs of three to seven yellow flowers. The flowers comprise five lanceolate sepals, five round petals, and numerous stamens around five fused pistils. After the flower fades, the sepals persist as red, showy, capsule fruits develop. This cultivar is noted for its compact habit and small, profuse flowers. There are two possible etymologies of the genus Hypericum. Some say it is a compound of hyper meaning “above” and eikon meaning “image,” because these plants were used to adorn pictures and icons to keep evil away. The specific epithet honors Pehr Kalm, who was the Swedish botanist and student of Carolus Linnaeus who introduced this plant to Europe.
Melanthium virginicum
Bunchflower
This plant is native to the eastern United States from Iowa and Texas in the west to Long Island, New York, and Florida in the east, where it is found in mesic prairies and fens, in wet open woodlands, marshes, and swamps, and along stream banks. This rhizomatous bulb forms small colonies as it grows and spreads slowly. Each bulb produces a basal rosette of narrow, arching, grass-like leaves that are green, slightly glossy, and deeply veined. In late June through mid-July, the bulbs produce a tall floral scape that terminates in a dense panicle inflorescence of many greenish-white flowers. Each flower has six white, ovate tepals with a basal claw, a green midvein, and a bright green nectar gland near the base. The six stamens have white filaments and black anthers. The pistils are white, fused, and produce a capsule fruit. The genus name comes from the Greek words melas meaning “black” or “dark” and anthos meaning “flower,” since the flowers of many plants in this genus turn black as they fade and die. The specific epithet means “from Virginia” in reference to its native range.
Nymphaea odorata
Fragrant Waterlily
This plant is native to a large portion of North America east of the Rocky Mountains and parts of the Caribbean and Central America, where it is found in the still waters of ponds, lakes, and swamps, growing where the water is no more than 6 feet deep. This herbaceous perennial forms colonies through branching rhizomes. In summer, the underground rhizomatous structures produce long petioles that unfurl leaves as they break the surface of the water. The floating leaves are round or elliptical with a deep cleft that cuts to the center of the leaf where the leaf stalk attaches. The tops of the leaves are covered in a waxy cuticle that makes them waterproof, while the undersides are reddish-purple. The same underground rhizomatous structures produce long floral stalks that terminate in large, floating, fragrant flowers. Each flower has four greenish-purple sepals, many white to pink petals that are semi-fused at their base, and numerous bright yellow stamens around a variable number of fused pistils that produce a berry-like capsule fruit under the surface of the water. The genus name is a Latinization of the Greek name for this plant, nýmphaía, which is closely related to Nýmphē, the minor ancient Greek deities who personify aspects of nature. The specific epithet means “fragrant” in Latin.
Spigelia marilandica ‘Little Redhead’
Little Redhead Spigelia
Spigelia marilandica is native mainly to the southeastern United States from southern Missouri and southern Maryland in the north, southward to central Louisiana and the panhandle of Florida, where it is found at the edges of swamps, in woodlands, and along the banks of wooded streams. This herbaceous perennial forms clumping mounds of foliage. The slender, green stems have flushes of red and are smooth, unbranching, and upright. Each stem has four to seven pairs of oppositely arranged, sessile leaves that are glossy, green, and ovate to broadly lanceolate with smooth margins. Stems terminate in a one-sided, arching raceme with three to twelve upward-facing, tubular, trumpet-shaped flowers. The flowers have five small, lanceolate sepals, five fused petals that are red on the outside and yellow on the inside, five stamens, and two fused pistils. These flowers are attractive to native hummingbirds. This cultivar is noted for its sturdy, erect stems, and compact growth habit. The genus name honors Adriaan van den Spiegel, who was a Flemish anatomist and botanist. The specific epithet means “of Maryland.”