I purchased these sweet shrubs to remind me of my Grandmother. Gram was a Spanish lady who loved to tie a sweet shrub in her linen handkerchief in the morning so she had it to smell all day. As a child, it was my job to go pick her a shrub each morning during their blooming season and help her tie it in her hanky. There are several different kinds of sweet shrubs and not all have a fragrance. The last one shown here is a "Michael Lindsey" which is very sweet.
Memories are forever!
I have added the open flowers to this blog along with a comment about them below. These plants are true survivors.
Just wanted to keep a record of the different combinations in some of the pots we have here at the farm this year.
The long boxes have the little hybrid petunia Petchoa called Terracotta and the silver on the ends just to add some color.
The six large pots have Lantana, Petunia and Pledtranthus Coleus.
This plant is so special I just must add it to my blog. It is different from the pussy willow we all know in several ways. The bushes are beautiful and remain green during the warmer months, when the leaves finally fall off the stems are a beautiful burgundy color. You can see that in the photo below.
The catkins come in a burgundy color, turning coal black and then they seem to bloom and get a bright green. Hopefully the pictures will show you want I am trying to explain.
They are easy to grow and propagate. The starter plants are also on sale when available at JBsPlants.
The plants grow into lovely bushes and become a very pretty addition to any lawn or garden area. The plant can grow to be 8' or more if not prunned. They are hardy in Zone 4a to 8b. They like full sun or partial shade They bloom in late Winter, early Spring. The foliage is deciduous.
This is one of the sweetest smelling plants I have ever raised.
Some sources call it a cousin to the gardenia. It is a wonderful house plant and adapts to all types of conditions in the different homes. I think it is one of the best house plants you can have. It is strong, easy to take care of and it blooms its little heart out. It does rest, but not for long. The flowers look pinkish when beginning to open, but are really white when in full bloom with a yellow center. They bloom in little groups and are so sweet smelling.
I am going to try to propagate this one very soon. I am really waiting for it to stop blooming.
This plant is Hardy for Zone 6 according to the experts, but I will not take the chance and I have it on the South Deck in full sun. It blooms from Spring to Fall. It is moved to the bird room in the house in the Winter. I feel sure many people in the Southern states have this one in their gardens. If they don't they should.
The foilage on this species is different from other gardenias. It is an attractive narrow beautiful shade of green. The plant if planted outside can grow to be three feet tall. My plant is in an 8 inch pot at this time in full sun with plenty of water. It wil get a little over a foot tall when mature. I bought it as a starter in a 3" pot. It has been knocked down by the wind, beaten up by the rains and it still survived all that and shows a new bloom every day.
