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Phlox are preparing their first flush of blossoms. Cut back |
THOUGH I KNOW that it has
The flowers appear at the terminal ends of branches above masses of fernlike foliage, and they are undeniably handsome, and especially welcome along roadsides, where they provide as much color and interest in July as the redbud and dogwood do in April and May.
For some reason, mimosa is one of those trees that most gardeners never get close to, and by keeping their distance they miss much of the charm of the tree, for the flowers are scented, with a delicate perfume that is yours for the sniffing. You must get close enough to savor that scent, though, for it does not waft around on the breeze as many scents do. It seems to prefer staying closer to home, and though one can occasionally recognize its aroma from afar, a close encounter of nose and blossom will be pleasant enough to make you seek it out again and again this year, and in future years.
Mimosa roots easily, and, given the opportunity and space, can grow into a fine small tree 20 feet or more tall, with a spread equal to its height. One of its problems in the landscape is that it produces seedpods of some size, generally at least 6 inches long, and that it produces them in great quantities.
The pods often persist in hanging on the tree, drying up and shrinking as they age, which does little for the appearance of the tree. When they do drop, they can be a cleaning problem, but they are fertile enough to ensure the continued appearance of the tree in the wild, while in the garden they are easily controlled.
One of the names for the tree is silk-tree, for reasons I do not understand, but the leaves do play around in the wind, and the appearance might be described as silky, I suppose. The leaves are one of the major problems of the tree, for they are a favorite of webworms, which often attack them in the Fredericksburg area.
Though they are not as unattractive as the locusts that the worms devour early, they are noticeable as their leaves disappear, especially since each leaf is of some size and the skeletal stems are obvious when deprived of their green cover. Mimosas are said to suffer from fusarium wilt, but I have not noticed this problem in our area. Normally, when it does occur, the wilt will kill the tree to the ground. The tree then tries to rejuvenate itself by suckering, and the result is not exactly desirable.
Still, I like the mimosa, and appreciate the fact that its seedlings, which are plentiful, will transplant easily. It has been around since the early 18th century, when it made its way from central Asia to European and then American gardens. It has made itself at home here, and our roadsides and gardens are the more attractive for it.
Another of the trash trees, or maybe trash shrubs, is the rose of Sharon, and I admit that for a very long time I, too, saw little value in either growing it or allowing the plant to grow when it showed up in the garden. It will show up if there is an adult anywhere near, for it is just as determined to spread itself as is the mimosa.
Rose of Sharon can be trained to a single stem, but normally it is a clump-former that is a background shrub except when it is in bloom. Part of its value is the number of colors in which it appears. I am partial to white, or white with a colored center, but the shrub also flowers in red, purple, violet and combinations of these colors. Some of the blue-purple-violet flowers seem a bit washed-out to me, but I let them be.
It is a member of the hibiscus family, and though a great many varieties produce flowers only 2 inches or so across, it can also produce giants of 4-5 inches across. Its flowers are five-petaled, and its seed is produced in pods that split into five parts and persist over the winter. I leave these on shrubs, for I think they add winter interest, but the plant blooms on new wood, so I shear them back in early spring. This is not absolutely necessary, and the shrub, which will produce new growth, will still flower.
It is said to be a favorite of the Japanese beetle, but I have had no problem with it in my garden, and it seems to suffer from none of the diseases or other insects that it is said to be susceptible to. A native of China and India, it was introduced to the west at the beginning of the 17th century, and has, like the mimosa, made itself at home.
The one area tree just beginning to burst into full blossom is most definitely not thought of by anyone as a trash tree, and that is the crape myrtle. We are lucky that it finds our climate acceptable, but Zone 7 is just about as far north as it grows happily.
Crape myrtle leaves are small, but colorful, all year long. They begin life by emerging in colors that range from yellow-green to purple, evolve to medium green during the flowering season and in fall show fine yellow to red colors. Flowers range from white with yellow centers to pink, purple and red, and there are enough cultivars to provide anyone with a color he likes.
I must admit that I have never met a crape myrtle flower I did not like, but I like the bare tree just as much as I do the blooming one. Its method of growth and its exfoliating bark give it such year-round interest that I would grow it only where it is safe from pruning shears. Pruned trees will still flower, and at whatever height one desires, but to lose the beauty of the bark and growth pattern is to me unthinkable.
TONY P. WRENN of Fredericksburg is a lifelong gardener. He welcomes questions from readers and will try to answer them in his column. Contact him by mail at The Free Lance-Star, 616 Amelia St., Fredericksburg, Va. 22401; by fax at 373-8455; or by e-mail to his attention at
Email: gwoolf@freelancestar.com.
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Many garden plants are reseeders that will pick their own sites, but there is no reason to leave siting to the plants' desires, for seed gathering is an old and honorable garden activity. Just now, the larkspur in my garden is dry and ready to gather, which is |
