Yea
I went on a hike once, and saw at least 20 small plants on that one hike.

Eleutherococcus sieboldianus 'Variegatus' 10/2021 five-fingered Aralia- (Japan Native) Variegated five-fingered Aralia, Mature size: 8x8', Greenish white umbels in spring, white margin leaves, USDA Hardiness Zone 4-8, Michigan Bloom Month 6c, In Garden Bed N4,12 for 30 MONTHS (Dog). Planted in 2019.

AKA Acanthopanax sieboldianus. Missori Botanical Garden: 'Variegatus' is more compact than the species, typically maturing to 6-8' tall, and features striking variegated foliage in which the palmate leaves (leaflets to 2" long) are bright green edged with white.

Note: Franz Philipp von Siebold, 19th century German botanical Japan researcher

Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Additional photos of this plant from 2019, 20, 21:

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A very pretty plant. What's inside the frost cover?

porkpal said:A very pretty plant. What's inside the frost cover?

It's Picea orientalis 'Spring Frost', mainly to keep the dog away...

Used it for winter protection last year, probably not required this year.

Syringa x laciniata 10/2021 Cut Leaf Lilac- (Cut leaf lilac) Cut Leaf Lilac, Mature size: 7x7', Pale lavender, USDA Hardiness Zone 4, Michigan Bloom Month 5b-, In Garden Bed N4,13 for 30 MONTHS (DigDog$10). Planted in 2019.

Digging Dog Nursery: Few purple blossoms have so inspired people to lend their name to a particular tint: heliotrope, lavender, violet, and of course, lilac. Distinguished by its uniquely shaped dark green leaves, this elegant Chinese native fashions a graceful mound of lacy, deeply cut foliage and 3 in. long, loose panicles of fragrant, single, pale lavender flowers.

Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Additional photos of this plant from 2019, 21:

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This shrub suckers a lot. If it finds a "happy place" it will take over... In the location in the photos, I have had to work to keep it in check.

Myrica pensylvanica 'Bayberry' 10/2021 Northern Bayberry- (US East Coast Native) Northern Bayberry, Mature size: 8x8', Yellowish green (male), USDA Hardiness Zone 3, Michigan Bloom Month 5, In Garden Bed N3,12 U2 k1,5 for 6.5 YEARS (cold). Planted in 2015.

Missouri Botanical Garden: Myrica pensylvanica, commonly called bayberry, is a dense-branching deciduous shrub with a rounded habit which typically grows 6-10' tall. Native to North America where it is primarily found growing along the eastern coast (including seashore) from Newfoundland to North Carolina. Narrow, broadly oblanceolate, leathery, glossy, grayish-green leaves (to 4" long) are dotted with resin and aromatic when crushed. A mostly dioecious shrub (male and female flowers appear in separate catkins on separate plants). Neither catkin is showy, with only the male flowers displaying color (drab yellowish-green). Flowers on female plants, if pollinated, are followed by attractive clusters of tiny, grayish-white fruits in late summer which usually persist through the winter, but are not particularly showy. The fruits are covered with an aromatic, waxy substance which is used to make bayberry candles, soaps and sealing wax. Fruits are attractive to birds. Genus name is derived from the Greek name myrike for tamarisk.

Dense-branching deciduous shrub with a rounded habit which grows 6-10' tall. Native to North America eastern coast (including seashore) from Newfoundland to North Carolina. Suckers. MSU Karen Gentry Suggestion. Tolerates poor or even wet soils.

Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Additional photos of this plant from 2015, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21:

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Frank, I am thoroughly enjoying your shrub tutorial. I hope you keep it up!

Me 2!!

Abelia mosanensis 'SWEET EMOTIONS' 10/2021 Abelia- (Timothy D. Wood, 2012) Korean Abelia Fragrant Abelia, Mature size: 6x6', Glossy green leaves, dark, reddish-pink flower buds, pink flowers, USDA Hardiness Zone 4-9, Michigan Bloom Month 5-6, In Garden Bed U2,4,1 for 4.0 YEARS (Hirts). Planted in 2017.

Abelia mosanensis 'SMNAMDS'. Developed by Timothy D. Wood from Spring Meadow Nursery, Grand Haven, Michigan in 2012. Compared to the species, it is more uniform, has darker colored buds (dark rosy pink) and is more fragrant (sweet jasmine). It's hardy down to -30 F, which would be zone 4. A Proven Winners selection. Attractive seed heads. Orange fall foliage. Semi-evergreen. Tradename is SWEET EMOTIONS®

Pruning them during the middle of the growing season can kill stems and reduce their ability of the withstand winter cold. So, prune in early spring.

Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Additional photos of this plant from 2017, 19, 21:

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Ginkgo biloba 'Jehoshaphat' 10/2021 Ginkgo- (Spring Grove Arboretum, Cincinnati, OH) Dwarf Ginkgo aka Ginkgo biloba 'Spring Grove', Size at 10 years: 2x3', Green Foliage, Insignificant flower, USDA Hardiness Zone 4, Michigan Bloom Month -, In Garden Bed S3,1,0 for 7.3 YEARS (MSU). Planted in 2014.

Dawes Arboretum: A selection of a witches'-broom found at the Spring Grove Arboretum in Cincinnati, OH. Growth is very slow and it is an extremely dwarf form, forming a short, broom-like specimen with a somewhat globose to bun shape with little lateral branching, consisting instead of shortened, spur-like appendages. The name refers to a character in Par Lagerkvist's book The Dwarf. A Dawes Arboretum Introduction.

From Spring Grove Cemetery & Arboretum, Cincinnati, Ohio. Beautiful yellow fall color. Best with full sun exposure but adaptable to a variety of growing conditions including high pH, moisture and wind exposure. Grafted 5/10/2009 by Jon Genereaux, MSU Hidden Lake Gardens. Looks quite good in 2019.

2020 Note: In good shape in 2020. Had some dead branches that I trimmed out. At 6 years old, it is somewhat V shaped and measures 4 feet tall and wide.

Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Additional photos of this plant from 2014, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21:

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A very attractive plant! Do the females produce the rather disgusting fruit of the common ginkgo?

A named, vegetatively propagated, clonal plant is an exact replication of the original witch's broom mutated growth. It will be either "male" (staminate flowers) or "female" (pistillate flowers) - as the parent, not both, or changeable, unless there is further mutation. I believe this clone is a male form - but do not know that for a fact. Review of online descriptions I can find do not say.

The Spring Grove Cemetery witch's broom is well known to us horticultural geeks of the Ohio River valley region. Spring Grove Cemetery is a 700+ acre dreamland of wonderful plants, dating back to its founding in 1845 - one of the earlier extensions of the rural landscape cemetery movement which began in Boston at Mount Auburn Cemetery about 1838. An anchor in the Ohio River valley region, Spring Grove is known also as an arboretum and recognized as such by APGA (previously AABGA). I drop in there every time I am visiting or passing through Cincinnati.

Did I say I really like Spring Grove...













...not sure what is left to be said.

porkpal said:A very attractive plant! Do the females produce the rather disgusting fruit of the common ginkgo?

Yes. The female fruit is known for its stink. So, most of the nursery trees sold are male.

@ViburnumValley tell us about that last photo.

I could make up just about anything, and you'd have to believe me.

Pinus bungeana 'Jigsaw Puzzle'...

No, I looked it up. Your reply matches several sources. Thanks.

Berberis 'Concorde' 10/2021 Barberry- (Dwarf) Japanese Barberry, Mature size: 18x18", Deep purple, USDA Hardiness Zone 4-8, Michigan Bloom Month 5b, In Garden Bed R1,2,2 for 4.1 YEARS (Lowes,). Planted in 2017.

Berberis thunbergii 'Concorde'. Monrovia: A petite barberry with deep maroon-purple foliage that becomes even more intense in the fall. Small yellow flowers may be followed by a few bright red berries. This variety produces little to no viable seed, making it a great alternative over others. Perfect size for edging as a small hedge or for containers. Deciduous.

Big box item. Dwarf with deep-purple leaves in spring that hold their color through the summer and turn red in fall. One of the darkest purples. Rounded shape.

Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Additional photos of this plant from 2017, 18, 20, 21:

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Taxus x media 'L.C. Bobbink' 11/2021 Yew- (cuspidata x baccata) Anglojap Yew, Size at 10 years: 6x6', Non -flowering, dark green foliage, USDA Hardiness Zone 4-7, Michigan Bloom Month -, In Garden Bed T1 for 9.0 YEARS (Lowes,). Planted in 2012.

Chicago Botanic Garden: This cultivar matures into a rounded shape of 7' by 7'. Female plants produce red, fleshy, single-seeded fruit instead of cones (these are poisonous). This is a cross between Japanese yews (T. cuspidata); and English yews (T. baccata). It prefers average, medium moist, well-drained soil in full sun to part shade, but can tolerate a wide range of soils as long as drainage is good. It can also tolerate full shade and considerable pruning.

Big Box item. Not much info. It is rounded like most of the other yews that I have. Looks like the x media cross is called anglojap. Planted in 2012. Darker shade in winter.

Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Additional photos of this plant from 2013, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 21:

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Hibiscus syriacus 'Purple Pillar' 10/2021 Rose of Sharon- (Van Aart, NL 2015) Rose of Sharon or Althea, Mature size: 10x2', Purple, USDA Hardiness Zone 5-9, Michigan Bloom Week ISO WW41, In Garden Bed U2,2,5 for 3.1 YEARS (Bluestone). Planted in 2018.

Hibiscus syriacus Purple Pillar® 'Gandini Santiago' was developed in the Netherlands (PP25568, 2015). Its claim to fame is that it has a pyramidal plant habit (2-3 ft. wide and 10-16 ft. tall). The flowers are pinkish violet with a large red-purple eye. The initial blooms are double while later blooms are single. It is a Proven Winners© selection.

Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Additional photos of this plant from 2018, 19, 21:

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Picea abies 'Pendula' 11/2021 Norway- (Weeping Spruce) Weeping Norway Spruce, Size at 10 years: 15x4', short needle, USDA Hardiness Zone 3, Michigan Bloom Month 5-, In Garden Bed H2,5b for 10.5 YEARS (MSU,). Planted in 2011.

Michael A. Dirr: 'Pendula' may be the generic name for a number of weeping types. No two are exactly alike, but all tend to splay their limbs in a wild, often awkward, weeping configuration.

Can be allowed to grow horizontal or trained up or on a fence. This one is from Iseli Nursery in OR. 12in. growth per year. -30 F. Full sun. Planted in 2011. Orginally trained up. Now coming back down. Planted in 2011.

Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Additional photos of this plant from 2011, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21:

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