Products

Low. Summer dormant. (See H&M)

Hardiness

Zones 5–8

Gray foliage.

*

Tricyrtis is a small genus of woodland lilies from the Himalayas and eastern Asia, and this plant, almost certainly Tricyrtis formosana, carries the whole strange charm of the group in a single late-season flower. The botanical name joins the Greek treis, three, with kyrtos, humped or swollen, for the three little nectar sacs that bulge at the base of each bloom, a detail worth crouching down to find. The species epithet formosana points to Formosa, the old name for Taiwan, where these toad lilies grow on shaded, humus-rich slopes. The common name is the odd one: garden lore holds that hunters of the Philippine forests once rubbed the flowers' juice on their hands to make frogs and toads easier to grab, and the freckled, amphibian mottling of the petals has kept the name ever since.

Hardiness

Zones 6–9

Light

Part Shade / Full Shade

Height

2–3 ft.

Spread

1–2 ft.

Bloom

White

Plant type

Perennial

Tripterygium regelii is a big, rambling, almost vine-like shrub from the temperate woodlands of Japan, Korea, and Manchuria, closely related to the celebrated thunder god vine of Chinese medicine. The genus name is a piece of plain description: from the Greek treis, three, and pteryx, a wing, for the papery three-winged fruits that hang in pale green clusters after flowering. The species honors Eduard von Regel, the nineteenth-century botanist who directed the St. Petersburg botanical garden. The English name, Regel's threewingnut, keeps both the man and the winged nutlet in view.

Hardiness

Zones 4–7

Light

Full Sun / Part Shade

Height

20–30 ft.

Spread

20–30 ft.

Bloom

White

Plant type

Vine

Traditional use

pain relief, immune support, reproductive health

Medium sized, trunked palm with glaucous blue fan leaves. A hardy but slow growing palm that is rare in cultivation in the U.S. but much sought after by palm collectors. Cordoba Province.

Hardiness

Zones 8–9

Wheel Tree is a large evergreen shrub or small tree native to eastern Asia. It is very uncommon in cultivation in the U.S. though it is a relatively hardy evergreen of distinctive tiered habit and foliage that stands out among other evergreens. Plant in shade or semi-shady site with moist acid soil. Said to become a sizeable tree in the Orient and may do so here with time. Bright green flowers in spring have stamens with arrangement like spokes, hence the name Wheel Tree.

Hardiness

Zones 6–8

Height

20–30 ft.

Spread

8–10 ft.

Bloom

Gold

Apparently resists adelgid. (See HIL)

Hardiness

Zones 6–8

This rare Hemlock from Yunnan Province in China was originally received from the Arnold Arboretum in Massachusetts. It had been obtained from China but was not expected to be hardy in Massachusetts. It proved to be very well adapted to semi-shady situations here in the Deep South where it has become a dark green graceful pyramidal tree. Woodlanders has probably been the first U.S. nursery to offer this tree.

Hardiness

Zones 8–9

Height

30–40 ft.

Spread

18–25 ft.

Three inch container.

Tulbaghia violacea, the plant gardeners know as society garlic, is a clump-forming perennial from the summer-dry grasslands of southern Africa, ranging from the Little Karoo through the Eastern Cape to KwaZulu-Natal. The genus honors Ryk Tulbagh, the eighteenth-century Dutch governor of the Cape of Good Hope, while the species name violacea simply means violet, for the color of the flowers. The common name is a small joke: the leaves carry a clear garlic scent, but a gentler, more sociable one than true garlic, said to be polite enough for company.

Hardiness

Zones 7–10

Light

Full Sun / Part Shade

Height

1–2 ft.

Spread

1–2 ft.

Bloom

Purple

Plant type

Perennial

Traditional use

respiratory support, digestive health, immune support

Tulbaghia violacea 'Variegata' or 'Silver Lace' is an attractive variety of Tulbaghia violacea (which see) with white margined leaves.

Hardiness

Zones 7–10

Height

10–12 in.

Spread

8–10 in.

(See HRT)

Hardiness

Zones 8–10

Ugni molinae, the Chilean guava, is a small evergreen shrub of the myrtle family, native to the temperate forests of Chile and adjoining southern Argentina. Gardeners of an older generation will know the plant as Myrtus ugni, the name the shrub long circulated under. The genus name Ugni comes straight from uñi, the Mapuche word for the plant, while the species honors Juan Ignacio Molina, the Jesuit naturalist who first chronicled the flora of Chile; in the plant's homeland the shrub is simply murta or murtilla.

Hardiness

Zones 8–9

Light

Full Sun / Part Shade

Height

3–6 ft.

Spread

3–4 ft.

Bloom

White

Plant type

Shrub

Very early reddish flowers on medium-sized trees with corky bark. Small leaves. (See DIR)

Hardiness

Zones 6–9

Tolerant, graceful, to 40 feet. Mottled bark. Excellent tree. Do not confuse with U. pumila. (See DIR, GCA) Casts moderately dense shade.

Hardiness

Zones 5–9

Bloom

Yellow

California Laurel or Myrtlewood is a medium size dense evergreen tree with glossy leaves and rounded habit of growth. The leaves have a strong pungent odor when bruised. Grown as an ornamental tree in Oregon and northern California. The beautiful wood is valued for fine woodworking and is sold in many places in southwestern Oregon. Little-known in the southern U.S. but well worth trying here.

Mexican Buckeye is a deciduous small tree or large shrub has pink flowers in spring before the compound leaves emerge. When in flower it suggests Redbud (Cercis). The fruit consists of three marble size poisonous seeds in woody capsule. It is an adaptable large shrub for sun or semi-shade. It is soil tolerant if soil is well-drained. This native of Texas and Mexico is not related to the true buckeyes (Aesculus) but to the Soapberries (Sapindus).

Hardiness

Zones 7–9

Height

12–15 ft.

Spread

10–12 ft.

CAUTION. A striking shrub (tropics) or possibly a perennial in the Nettle family. Large bold heart-shaped leaves and showy clusters of white berries on purple stems close to the main stem. This vigorous and bold plant reportedly planted as a trespass deterent in Central America should not be planted where contact with the stinging hairs could inflict painful reactions to unintended victims. Tucuman Province.

Hardiness

Zones 8–9

Bold foliaged shrub (tropics) or perennial in the Nettle family. Sometimes known as ãFlameberryà for the abundant and showy very small orange berries held in clusters close to the main stem. May have some ãstinging nettleà qualities but much less than U. baccifera. From rich moist forest environment. Tucuman Province.

Hardiness

Zones 8–9