top l.-r. Hypericum, Campsis, Vitex, Reblooming Lilac Bottom l.-r. Clethra, Callicarpa, Abelia, Potentilla

This time of year the first thing people notice in the nursery are the multitudes of perennials in full blazing bloom. Blocks and blocks of color easily gets you off track for what you might really be looking for - summer flowering alternatives to the usual Mophead Hydrangea.  Maybe you have a spot that lacks winter structure and summer color, or a client whose landscape looks great in May but once July comes it turns to shades of green.  Here's a short list of some terrific summer flowering shrubs that you might not have considered.  

• Abelia x grandiflora (Glossy Abelia) White or pink. Long blooming with really nice glossy, red tinged foliage. Zone 6
• Aesculus parviflora (Bottlebrush Buckeye - mentioned last week) Creamy white.  Shade tolerant with same flower power. Give it room - an awesome plant.
• Buddleia (Butterfly Bush) Pink, white, purple. Long blooming, heavy pruning early spring. 
• Callicarpa dichotoma (Purple Beautyberry) Small purple flowers and small, intense purple berries follow!
• Caryopteris x (Blue Mist Shrub) Blue/purple flowers. Purple-Blue flowers blend well in mixed border. Gray-green fragrant leaves, late summer blooming.
• Campsis (Trumpet Vine) Yellow, red. A robust vine with large, hot-colored trumpets - give it room and a strong structure to grow on! 
• Clethra alnifolia (Sumersweet) White, pink. These fragrant flowers are about to bloom now. Plant in moist soil in part shade.
• Hypericum (St. John's Wort) Bright yellow. Interesting flowers mature to persistent red fruit. Long bloomer with blue-green foliage.
• Kerria japonica (Japanese Kerria) Golden Yellow. Sporadic rebloom during summer.  Light green stems all winter - don't pass on this one. Perfect if you have a part shade site. 
• Potentilla fruticosa (Bush Cinquefoil) Yellow, white, pink. Long blooming shrubby plant with small leaves. 
• Rosa (Roses - so many colors!) Besides the Knockout Family, check out the carpet and drift roses.  
• Syringa (Lilac) 'Bloomerang' and its reblooming nicely now!
• Viburnum plicatum t. 'Watanabe/Summer Snowflake' Creamy white. 
• Vitex agnus-castus (Chaste Tree) Purple/blue. Spire-like flowers that are long blooming. Fragrant gray-green foliage. Plant in a protected sunny site, Zone 6.  

Hopefully this will give you some ideas for your upcoming jobs. Stop by and take a look at these summer bloomers soon!

Filipendula rubra 'Venusta'  - Queen of the Prairie

common name: Queen of the Prairie, Meadowsweet
size: 3-5' tall flowers over lower foliage. 
interest: Fragrant plumes of white or pink, nice large coarse foliage
culture: Best in boggy or moist soils in full sun.

time of year: Summer bloomer.
companion plants: 'Chocolate' Joe Pye Weed, Ornamental Grasses, Monarda 'Marshall's Delight', Swamp Milkweed 

F. rubra 'Venusta' (Queen of the Prairie) is a U.S. native that forms an upright clump-forming plant with Astilbe-like inflorescense of hundreds of tiny pink flowers. The bright green foliage is deeply cut and fragrant which makes this a great plant for foliage interest. Attractive for butterflies and beneficial insects, it is a good choice for the natural garden or perennial border. Consistently moist soils in full fun is what it prefers.

F. purpurea 'Elegans' (Meadowsweet) is a European native similar to F. rubra, but is a lower grower, 18-24" with white-light pink flowers reaching above the foliage. Also worth growing for its nice texture.

Deadhead these after bloom to keep them neat or leave the seed heads for the birds.

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Liatris spicata 'Alba'

Looking Good and in Good Supply!

• Achillea millefolium 'Paprika'  (Yarrow) 1ga
• Coreopsis verticillata 'Moonbeam' (Tickseed) 1ga
• Echinacea purpurea 'Harvest Moon' (Purple Cone Flower) 1ga
• Liatris spicata  'Alba' (Blazing Star) 2ga
• Pennisetum orientale 'Karley Rose' (Fountain Grass) 1ga
• Perovskia atriplicifolia (Russian Sage) 2ga
• Rudbeckia hirta 'Autumn Colors', 'Indian Summer' (Black-eyed Susan)
• Sidalcea x 'Party Girl' (Checkermallow) 1ga

Hydrangea x 'Pink Beauty'

Deciduous  

H. x (Preziosa) 'Pink Beauty', seen here, has small pink flower heads and nice red-tinged serrated leaves and stems. Moist soil and shade from hot afternoon sun is best. 3-4' T. Limited.  

H. paniculata 'Little Lamb' is in full bloom with pure white flowers and holding up very well in the heat. It is named for the smaller sized florets that make up the panicle and its compact size, 6-8' T  x 5-6' W. Limited.

H. macrophylla 'Pia ' (a.k.a. 'Pink Elf' ) is a dwarf pink mophead that is looking spectacular in 2 gallon containers! Lush foliage and clean flowers on very full plants. They'll grow 18"T x 24" W.

Oxydendron arboreum (Sourwood) Native tree with graceful white flowers and excellent fall color. 7 gal., 2-2.5".

Broadleaf evergreens 

Boxwood - Full blocks of fresh boxwood. Specimen, hedge, dwarf English. Assorted sizes. 

Rhododendron - Homegrown 3 & 6 gal. All look good - especially 'Boursault' which is light lavender 6 gal. and 'Cunnningham White' 3 gallon. 

Kalmia ' Sarah ' (Mountain Laurel) 3 gal. Also PC grown, this one has deep red buds opening pink growing 4-5' T.   

*NEW*
Bobbex-R Animal Repellent - Keep those rabbits, groundhogs, squirrels, chipmunks and voles away from your ornamentals and flowers. Long lasting, non-burning, and will not wash off in the rain. It comes in both 48 oz. ready-to-use and also in half-gallon concentrate. Check them out soon!   

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BIG TREES!

Have any customers looking for larger material? Take a look at our July 2011 Availability Lists of both Larger Deciduous and Evergreen Material. All material is above ground and on drip irrigation. Please contact one of our offices to confirm availability at each location. Though we will not transport this material to another sales yard, we will gladly deliver to your job site (normal delivery charges apply). Remember to open the PDFs below for the entire list.

Here's a small sampling of some big material:

Acer rubrum 'Sun Valley' 5-6"

Deciduous  

ACER RUBRUM 'SUN VALLEY' 5-6"

BETULA X. ROYAL FROST 14-16' 

CARPINUS B. PENDULA 3-3.5"  

CARPINUS BETULUS  4-4.5"

CLADRASTIS LUTEA  4-4.5"

GINKGO BILOBA PRINCETON SENTRY 4-4.5"

PARROTIA PERSICA 5-6"  

PRUNUS RANCHO 5-6"  

Evergreen

ABIES CONCOLOR 12-14' 

CEDRUS ATLANTICA GLAUCA PENDULA 5-5.5"

PICEA ABIES 16-18'  

 Click below for full PDF lists:

Large Deciduous & Specialty Trees  

Large Evergreen  

Acorus g. minimus aureus

Stay Cool!