Bay Laurel Garden Center - SHRUBS
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Rhamnus alaternus 'Variegata'
Pyracantha berries |
Rhamnus alaternus and Rhamnus alaternus variegata Pyracantha graberi or Pyracantha 'Victory'. Provide colorful berries in the fall and winter. Grow to about 12 feet; they are evergreen: their biggest drawback is sharp thorns. The plants are long-lived. The berries are very useful as decorations during the holidays; birds like them as well. Ligustru japonica (Japanese privet), Ligustrum Texanum (Texas privet) and Ligustrum 'Nobili' (Noble privet) and Photinia fraseri are all excellent choices and can be pruned into symetrical shapes. |
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SHRUBS WITH SHOWY FLOWERS |
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Cistus purpureus
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FOR SPRING CISTUS: (Rockrose) These are understandably popular in the North County. Somes oustanding characteristics include drought tolerance, long life and relative deer resistance. The basic colors are pink - albeit many shades, and white. The lowest growing variety is Cistus salvifolius. Cistus 'Sunset' is a hybird with vivid neon pink flowers and it makes a great ground cover, growing about 3 feet high and up to 10 feet wide. 'Bennett's White' is a handsome white flowered variety with a particularly attractive leaf; it grows 5 to 6 feet tall. And the giant of the genus is 'Blanche' as it can reach 10 ft. A hybrid which adds color to the garden, regardless of its flowers, is Cistus |
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CYTISUS: Commonlly called 'Broom.' Recent introductions have made this shrub veriy appealing to our customers. Most dramatic are 'Lena,' red and yellow flowers and 'Mahogony', the name is it's color description. 'Moonlight' is a lovely delicate shade of yellow and 'Lilac Time' has lavender-pink flowers. Cytisus require very little maintenance; they need very minimal water and pruning and are not attractive to deer. |
 Coleonema pulchellum |
COLEONEMA pulchellum or 'Breath of Heaven' is a charming, wispy plant with very small pink flowers. It blooms a bit during the summer but it's best show is in spring. The winter of '07 with temperatures in the teens down to 10 degrees wiped out most of the plants in the North County. Most years, however, it survies nicely and is considered to be quite deer resistant. The species, pulchellulm grows 4 to 6 feet tall. The compact form reaches only 3 feet and although not quite as showy this variety can be a good choice when a shorter plant is needed. In recent years the even lower growing variety with golden tinted leaves has become quite popular; 'Sunset Gold' does best with some afternoon shade in our area and is used mostly for it's foliage color. |
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Syringa - LILACS Loved for their wonderful fragrance, lilacs are a good match for out climate; they appreciate the low winter temperatures. We sell four or five varieties during the bareroot season, but bring in many others when the plants are in bloom. Folks from the South County can grow the Descanso Hybrids such as Lavender Lady and Angel White since they have been bred for warmer cimates. An unusual and charming lilac, a Korean type, is Miss Kim; this plant reaches only 5 to 6 feet the flowers are more delicate and tend to bloom later. Lilacs do best with full sun; if pruning them, do so right after blooming to ensure flowers for the next season.. |
 Philadelphus |
Philadelphus - This is an old fashioned shrub with wonderful fragrance. The white blossoms have lovely colored stamens. Philadelphus is a deciduous shrub growing 4 to 6 feet tall - a very good foundation plant. |
 Viburnum tinus |
VIBURNUM Several good varities for our area. Viburnum tinus 'Robustom' and Viburnum 'Spring Bouquet are among the earliest blooming spring shrubs. They both have flat head of pink buds opening to white and later forming dark blue berries. The first can grwo to 10 or 12 feet, the latter 4 to 6. They are evergreen and require minimum water. |
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SUMMER BLOOMING ABELIA - Abelia grandiflora has arching stems 6 to 8 feet tall and produces small white bell-shaped flowers in summer. The varietiy 'Sherwooddii' is 3 to 4 feet tall and has lavender flowers and darker green leaves. 'Kaleidoscope' is only 2 to 3 feet tall with varietgared foliage and white flowers is summer. The leaf color tends to darken in colder temperatures. |
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BUDDLEIA - Commonly called 'Butterfly bush' can reach 8 feet. The various colors are purple, lavender, pink, white and yellow - a variety called 'Honeycomb.' Buddleia has several dwarf forms - 'Nanhoensis' is a lavender example. The variety 'Lochinch' has very furry gray leaves with long lavender racemes. All the Buddleias perform best if they are pruned severely before spring growth begins. The flowers are fragrant and contain an unusual bright orange eye. Needless to say, butterflies love them! Two lovely new dwarf varieties have been added to Buddleias. |
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Lagerstroemia -CRAPE MYRTLE These shrubs are a great favorite in our area as they adapt so well to summer heat. The plants normaly grow as multi-stemmed shrubs but are often trained to become standard trees. The height varies greatly from 20 feet 'Cawtawba' to 3 ft - Chica Pink or Chica Red. Colors range from light pink, dark and true pink, lavender, purple, watermelon red, white and the latest color - 'Centeninnal' which is an almost bright true red - and very popular last year. Crape myrtles need only minimum water after they are well established. An added bonus with many varieties is great fall color. |
SHRUBS FOR SHADE |
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 Abutilon |
ABUTILON: (Flowering maple) Abutilons display flowers of white, yellow, pink, red and apricot. Dwarf varieties are only 3 ft. tall; others can grow to 6 feet. The flowering maples are just a bit marginal for the North County, but will survive most winters with some protection, ie under the eaves of a house |
 Aucuba Mr. Goldstrike |
AUCUBA japonica Although Aucuba is purely a foliage plant, it can be very useful in the shade. The most widely used varieties are variegated. One of the most handsome is 'Mr. Goldstrike' grown by Monrovia Growers. This evergreen plant is a slow grower eventually reaching 4 to 6 feet. |
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CAMELLIAS: Their handsome, dark green leaves provide a great background in the shade; the spring flowers can be spectaular. Camellia sasanqua is generally shorter with smaller leaves and flowers. It blooms earlier; many of the flowers have single petals. These varieties are particularly suited to Oriental gardens. The japonica camellias have some single flowers as well, but many are doubles in shades of white, pink, rose and red. Camellias prefer an acid soil; you can add either peat moss or Azalea-Camellia planter mix to your soil. Azaleas, Gardenias and Rhododendrons also prefer this type of soil; however, they are all more difficult to grow in our area because of climate and soil. |
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CHOISYA ternata This is a very low maintenance plant requiring little water and greatly appreciated for its deer resistance. Fragrant white flowers appear in the spring; the variety 'Sundance' has new leaves that are a more chartreuse shade; they are a nice contrast in the shade but this plant tends to be somewhat less vigorous. |
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FATSIA japonica Grown strictly for its foliage, Fatsia adds a very tropical look to the shade garden . |
| HYDRANGEAS: The two most popular types we sell are "Mophead" the old-fashioned large flower with a rounded flower head and "Lacecap"" the flowers are relatively flat and open in stages. They all bloom for a long period in the summer. A dwarf variety 'Pia' is a good choice for smaller gardens/spaces. Hydrangeas thrive on good soil and constant moisture. | |
