Often overlooked by Florida residents, Walter’s Viburnum is an excellent hedge choice for several reasons. But first, let’s answer the burning question: “What’s up with a plant named Walter?” Well, Walter’s Viburnum honors a colonial botanist named Thomas Walter (1740-1789). This English-born planter described the species in his catalog of South Carolina flowering plants, Flora Caroliniana. Today most folks think a guy name Walter discovered the species. But we digress. All we know is Continue Reading
Pitch Apple:Should Be Pitched as a Tree or a Shrub?
Let’s say you have a sad little bare area in your Bradenton landscape and think a playful ornamental would liven things up a tad. A tree sure would be nice, but on the other hand, what about a shrub or two? Allow us to pitch the Pitch Apple – a paddle-leafed plant that can be either. Also known as an Autograph Plant, this showstopper is native to Florida and can be used as a wide-spreading, densely foliated shrub or trained to grow into a tree. Why the nickname? Because the leathery leaves Continue Reading
Purple Prince Plant: New Southwest Florida Royalty
A new player on the scene and a “prince” at this year’s FNGLA Florida Flower Trails, Alternanthera “Purple Prince” is already holding court as a low-maintenance king of the landscape. The purple prince plant's name comes from its majestic coloring: evergreen leaves that are burgundy or dark purple, contrasting with a rosy purplish red on the undersides. Like diamonds on a crown, small white flowers dazzle the eye, blooming from fall to early winter in the state’s warm southwest Continue Reading
Brunfelsia shrub: A beautiful tongue twister
Brunfelsia pauciflora ‘Floribunda’ -- say that three times! Nicknamed “Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow,” the brunfelsia shrub blooms profusely with pansy-like, fragrant flowers in Southwest Florida landscapes until the end of summer. Native to Brazilian woodlands, it burgeons a deep violet, turns to lavender and then white all in three days; hence its moniker. The ‘Floribunda’ variety stays a bit more compact than her cousins. A member of the Nightshade family, all parts of brunfelsia are toxic Continue Reading
