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Neoregelia 'Gespacho' was introduced by H. Bullis of Florida without breeder or cross information.
It is believed to be a cross of Neoregelia chlorostica x Neoregelia 'Fireball' by Florida hybridizer Dennis Bryant.
'Gespacho' prefers brite filtered sun reaching 12"-16" across with 2" wide leaves. Grown in the preferred lighting conditions 'Gespacho' will have nice red leaves with yellow green blotches, bands and speckled areas often forming concentric bands.

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Neoregelia 'Sweet Vibrations' is a Chester Skotak hybrid from the cross of Neoregelia carolinae 'Red Variegated' x Neoregelia 'Gespacho'.

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The stem is a darker red. The color of the flower has little to no yellow, compared to the Chasmanthe floribunda.

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My first look at this small tree was in the Van Dusen Botanic Garden in Vancouver, British Columbia in the early 1990's. It is good looking... with a dense branch structure that eventually forms a loosely round crown . The leaves are willow like, 1-3 inches long and covered in woolly gray-green. The blooms in spring are white and attractive, but the form and foliage is the highlight of this tree.
One serious caveat... this tree has a serious problem with fireblight. Pacific Northwest gardeners seem to have the greatest success with this particular tree.
I say that regrettably... I'd love one in my garden.

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Recently (2002) described Pachyphytum with fat, glaucous leaves; rosettes to 2-3 inches; and stems to about 12 inches, often branching at the base. Flowers have a red spot inside each petal. As with other members of the genus, beefy sepals obscure the petals.

From east-central Michoacán. Similar to P. machucae, from northwestern Michoacán, which has bigger leaves and different colored flowers.

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An early, almost heatless cultivar developed by Texas A & M. Grows well here and is great for uses where regular Jalapenos are too hot.

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This strain is a taller selection of the species and can behave as a short-lived perennial according to some Australian growers, flowering for 2-3 years before expiring.

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A well-behaved yet durable evergreen ground cover in our zone 7a yard. It does particularly well on steep slopes (or perhaps few other things do well!) Some of it is in full sun, which does result in moderately bleached foliage. It also grows in full (and dry) shade, though even more slowly than its normally slow rate. The flowers, which bloom in late winter-early spring, are unremarkable, but they have a lovely, honey-like scent.

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It's been over 10 years since I first planted this bulb, and they'd spread into a large clump. After they bloomed last summer, I dug and divided them, spreading them into all 3 "pocket beds" behind the sitting rocks around the back patio. I'm not expecting blooms this year since they can take a year to settle in, but I'm happy to see leaf tips poking up!

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Chinaberries are attractive trees and give a dense shade, but they are invasive and a nuisance here. Their berries are also toxic to livestock.

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This small ornamental crabapple was introduced to the trade in 1947 by Carl Sax. It is considered his finest crabapple introduction. It developed as a triploid... allowing it to breed true from open pollinated seed. The tree was named to honor the daughter of Charles Sargent, first Director of the Arnold Arboretum.
'Mary Potter' is a beautiful crabapple that grows 6-8 feet wide and spreads to as much as 18 feet. Pink buds open to snow white blooms that develop into purple red fruits that are persistent. That is, they stay on the tree into winter... providing food for birds.
Father John Fiala, in Flowering Crabapples, The Genus Malus... notes that 'Mary Potter' deserves to be grown more as a specimen tree. It has a very attractive form, white blooms and red fruit smother the tree with color in spring and again in fall, the fall color is a good, clear yellow and the silhouette of the tree in winter is striking and handsome.

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Heuchera villosa 'Autumn Bride' is a star in my zone 7a garden. It withstands Maryland's heat and humidity beautifully. Other coral bells (not of villosa descent) have not performed as well (and I've tried quite a few). It particularly flourishes in part shade, though it's growing well in full shade. Even in full sun it only has mild scorching. It appreciates being divided every couple of years, though it copes when neglected. Best of all, it attracts bees of all sorts.

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In comparison to other Foxgloves I have grown, I found this cultivar to be a poor performer. It may do better with more shaded and cooler conditions than I was able to provide at the time.

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Another selection that puts on a good display if grown well. I have only grown a couple of plants and so my comparison is limited, but it seems to open a little slower than Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea 'Colossal Excelsior Mix') and lasted longer in bloom than Colossial Excelsior (although if you want an impact statement, the latter does that better).

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This selection puts on a spectacular display if grown well. It tends to open quickly, with much of the main stem open at the same time as well as the smaller side branches before the main stem has finished flowering.

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Apart from the difference in flower color and shape to another common cherry blossom, Prunus x yedoensis, this variety also exhibits a somewhat denser branching habit than that of Prunus x yedoensis, also with denser nodes.

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Intensely glaucous white leaf succulent from Cuicatlán in Oaxaca (southern Mexico), where it grows on limestone. Leaves are plump and relatively long, rosettes to 5-6 inches or so. Stems may grow to 18 inches or more, with a sideways habit. Flowers are pink to pinkish orange, lacking a tube, clasped by large, fleshy sepals.

This species was originally described as an Echeveria in 2004 (though it lacks a corolla tube), then moved to Pachyphytum in 2010 (as it has the characteristic scale-like appendages inside the corolla lobes), then moved in 2023 to a new genus, Jeronimoa, based on DNA analysis showing it is an outlier from Pachyphytum. The CoL has not yet caught up with the latest change.

A desirable and little offered succulent in cultivation, with a few hybrids (surely more to come). Old plants can be spectacular with good care.

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An early green Romaine with compact upright growth. Savoyed leaves. Has resistance to Corky Root (Intermediate) and Tomato Bushy Stunt Virus (High). Note that this variety is under Plant Variety Protection.

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A new variety from Johnnys. Graffiti has been hit or miss for me as too often summer heat comes on too quickly. Purple Moon is listed as almost 20 days earlier, so hopefully it will solve that problem. I have no trouble with white Cauliflower with 70 DTM. Will report back at end of season.

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A blocky green to yellow bell that has TSWV resistance. While it does not hit peppers nearly as hard as it does tomatoes, I am jumping at the chance to trial a bell pepper with TSWV resistance. My vendor suggests this the best replacement for SummerSweet 8610. Let you know at end of season.

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