Pat Howell

The Colors of Autumn: Chapter 2

September 2002

For a Crayola-box display of reds, burgundys, and yellows, and some brilliant orange thrown in for good measure, plant a Fothergilla, or better yet a collection of Fothergilla. They are dazzling, capable of commanding the attention of even the most horticulturally jaded. Year-round beauties, these versatile shrubs deserve a place on the list of remarkable plants, super plants, plants everyone should be growing, using and enjoying. Fother-gilla create enough high-octane color to take your breath away. 'Nuff said?

The genus Fothergilla is represented by two species, F. gardenii and F. major. F. gardenii is the smaller of the two, typically topping out at 3-4 feet, and is wonderfully showy even when not in bloom. The 1- to 2-inch-long terminal spikes of white stamens are reminiscent of small bottle brushes, and emit a fabulous sweet scent for up two weeks in late April or May.

Summer foliage is deep blue-green on the upper surface and silver grey below. The yellow-orange-magenta fall colors in each leaf are exciting. Named after John Fothergill, an English physician who introduced many plants into cultivation. It's a vigorous, suckering shrub, easy to care for in your garden.

A shrub happy in the shade is Clethra alnerfolia (Summersweet or Pepperbrush). It's an upright, suckering deciduous shrub that blooms freely for 4 to 6 weeks in summer, with very fragrant, fluffy white, bottle-brush spikes. Dark brown seed pods, resembling peppercorns, remain until spring. Lustrous, leathery, deep green leaves turn bright yellow for several weeks in fall. It spreads slowly by underground stems. In winter, cut back oldest wood at the base. Clethra requires moisture to thrive and resents summer drought. Plant one near the kitchen door and throw dishpans of rinse water on it. It's one of the few summer-flowering shrubs that bloom in the shade, and it's a favorite source of nectar for bees, butterflies, and moths.

Another colorful shrub, this one preferring a slightly sunny spot, is Itea virginica, ("Henry's Garnet" or Virginia sweetspire). Itea is the Greek name for willow, describing the fall of the branches. "Henry's Garnet" is a choice selection from the campus of Swarthmore College/Scott Arboretum. It was discovered by Mary Henry and named for the college's color. A small shrub, 3'-4', with loads of long, white fragrant flowers and dark reddish-purple fall color. Itea prefers moist soil.

Last, but definitely not least, is the Rhododendron schlippenbachii; possibly the most delicate and beautiful of all azaleas when the soft pink, fragrant flowers cover the shrub in May. Three to six flowers are present in each 2-3 inch diameter inflorescence. The flowers open just as the leaves are expanding; the foliage is dark green in summer, developing subdued yellow, orange, and red tints in autumn. It can grow 6 to 8 feet high and wide. It looks fragile and does actually need woodland shelter if its flowering is not to be spoiled by late frosts. There is no adequate way to do justice by the written word to the beauty of this plant.

A splendid creature (so named by the late garden writer, Henry Mitchell) for the front of your shrub border is creeping Plumbago (Ceratostigma plumbaginoides) which bears electric gentian-blue flowers the size of a nickel from late summer till mid-November. Plumbago will grow in dry shadeÑa boon to most of usÑand will grow in dry spaces if it's watered. (Most flowers will not grow in dry shade no matter how much you water.)

The plumbago is happy in full sun, but will bear as much shade as a lily of the valley. The more sun, the more beautiful its leaves in the fall, when they turn rich tones of crimson. But however obliging the plant is, it does not smother weeds. Do not plant it expecting it to form a weed-proof carpet. The only plant Easy Gardener has grown that really does not allow weeds to come through (and which is handsome enough to use in a garden) is the little tribe of epimediiums, or barrenworts.

If you have a patch of land beneath old oaks and maples, and do not want grass (treeroots abhor grass because it obstructs their breathing, and it won't grow well anyway, so why bother?), consider patches of plumbago, barrenwort, lungwort (pulmonaria), purple bugleweed (Ajuga) and periwinkle (vinca minor), making each patch eight feet wide, say, and let them fight it out.

Beneath this mat, you could plant such bulbs as might have a chance of coming up through it in the spring. Nothing could be expected to rise through the barrenwort, but the other plants are not so dense, and such daffodils as "February Gold" would be good for 15 years or so. So would the Spanish squills or wood hyacinths (Scilla campanulata). The delicate wild crocuses are not so reliable and neither is the blue star-flower, Ipheion uniflora, which takes drought and shade, but not dense plant cover over it. But consider the Ipheion for many other spots in your shade garden, as it is a terrific bulb.

What wonderful things a garden can do all by itself, and what endless pleasure it provides as it makes its seasonal changes.

Community Resource: Takoma's Gardening email group has over 100 members and is open to everyone. Giveaways, advice and news of gardening events are posted. To join, write to harristakoma@erols.com.

Pat Howell is a Takoma Park gardener and landscape designer/contractor, and welcomes comments, advice, suggestions. She is available for handholding and answering questions through Deephaven Landscapers.