Height: 1.2 m (4 feet)
Spread: 1.2 m (4 feet)
Bloom: Large, pink, globe shaped heads June to Frost
Exposure: Full sun to part shade
Foliage: large medium green leaves
Pluses: long bloom, winter interest
Finally, a pink aborescens hydrangea is here. Until now, all aborescens have been white with the best known being Annabelle.
Invincibelle Spirit in July 2012. This specimen was planted as a very small (8 inch tall) start in 2010 and is already well established.
Aborescens hydrangea are stunning performers. Blooming all summer they grow in almost any soil type and are virtually pest free. In our zone 5 garden all that is required is that they are cut down in the spring to about 1 foot, just above a strong bud.
Invincibelle Spirit (sometimes known as Invincible Spirit) provides that and more. With deadheading, it will continuously put on new pink blooms from early summer until frost. The blooms first open deep pink, eventually fading to a soft dusty rose. The blooms vary in size significantly on one plant. While Annabelle produces consistently large white blooms, Invincibelle blooms range from large (about 7 inches) to smaller (about 3 inches). I think faster deadheading may increase the size of later blooms but I kind of like the bright pink mixed with dusty pink so I tend to leave mine on longer. Invincibelle loves heat and tolerates dry weather. While you do not have to deadhead this hydrangea, I do in order to encourage more larger bright pink blooms later in the season.
Garden Locations: Pool Garden
I am sad to say my 6 year old Carol Mackie Daphne, planted in 2005, succumbed to what I believe was root rot this past spring. Despite not disturbing the roots and only pruning out damaged wood, my once thriving Carol Mackie started showing signs of branch wilt in 2010. By 2011 the damage was quite severe with almost a third of the inside branches having been pruned back. My thoughts were to attempt to save the shrub by pruning it back severely and hoping for fresh new growth. However when I reached down for a branch this spring, it came completely off the base of the shrub with barely a pull.
A picture of the base of a branch showing signs of root rot.
Our past two springs have been rather wet and the location in my front bed receives a lot of water from underground drains from our downspouts. Hence in a wet year the soil here stays very moist, not the ideal conditions for Carol Mackie in spring.
Luckily I was prepared and planted a second Carol Mackie in our back garden in 2010 so I am still able to enjoy it’s lovely scent and beautiful foliage. This location is much sunnier and drier so I hope that bodes well for a longer life.
Carol Mackie Daphne in the new garden in spring 2012 (2 years old)
Attracted by the bright and cheery lime green foliage, I picked up two Monterey Cypress Wilma Goldcrest at my local grocery store just before Christmas 2011. I thought their bright green fern like foliage would look particularly attractive on either side of our mantle, already decked out for Christmas.
Wilma Goldcrest was discovered in the 1980s as a sport of Goldcrest. It is a dwarf evergreen conifer, typically growing to a height of 2 meters (6 feet) and about 30 to 60 centimeters (1 – 2 feet) in width. Wilma’s foliage is a bright chartreuse green and has a fern like texture. Unfortunately for me it is hardy to Zone 7 (-12C to -17C), much warmer than my zone 5 climate, although some say it may survive to -25C (-10F). The good news is that Wilma Goldcrest makes a good container plant.
My plans are to repot my two specimens in spring and place them in urns on our front walkway. If they survive their first transition outdoors I will bring them in again in the fall, allowing them to once again brighten our fireplace for the winter.
Monterey Cypress Wilma Goldcrest just after purchasing in 2011
Hemerocallis Salieri
Height: 90 cm (36 inches)
Bloom: early season
Colour: Huge, very deep red-purple blooms with green throat.
Another of my favourites. The blooms sit very high (truly close to three feet), are absolutely huge, there are loads of blooms, not much more you could ask for. Beware picking off dead flowers after a rain though, the colour stains everything!
Hemerocallis Ruby Stella
Height: 45-60 cm (18-24 inches)
Bloom: Midseason, repeat bloomer. Extended bloom.
Colour: Bright red small flowers with yellow throat.
About the same time as I planted some Pardon Me, I put in some Ruby Stella. They are remarkably alike, almost impossible to tell apart. Hmmm, hope I haven’t mixed the two up!
Ruby Stella is the ruby red version of Stella D’oro. A long season bloomer the blooms are on the small side but very bright.
Hemerocallis Rosy Returns
Height: 45-60 cm (18-24 inches)
Bloom: Very early, repeat (constant) bloomer
Colour: Raspberry pink with yellow throat.
Rosy Returns is one of the longest bloomers I have seen. It starts in early June and blooms until frost. The only disappointment is that the blooms are set too low in the foliage and the foliage gets rather ratty looking by mid-summer which takes away from the blooms. It produces a ton of blooms on plants that grow in size very quickly but my preferred constant bloomer would definitely be Purple D’oro.
Hemerocallis Regal Heir
Height: 55 cm (22 inches)
Bloom: Midseason, repeat bloomer
Colour: Lavender purple star shaped narrow petals with yellow green throat.
I have this planted with Heuchera Marmalade and the colours complement each other beautifully. I have not noticed that it has rebloomed for me though, either because of our colder climate or because this area gets afternoon shade.
Hemerocallis Purple D'oro
Height: 45-60 cm (18-25″)
Bloom: Midseason, repeat (constant) bloomer
Colour: Lavender blooms with yellow throat and ruffled edges.
Several varieties of continuous blooming daylilies have been introduced over the past few years. In addition to the traditional Stella D’oro I have Happy Returns (light yellow), Rosy Returns (pink) and Purple D’oro (lavendar). Of the pinkish varieties I like Purple D’oro better than Rosy Returns as the colour is more intense and the blooms are a little higher over the foliage although it does not start blooming as early. Blooms start mid-season and continue through summer with sporadic blooms still appearing in September. Blooms are abundant with each scape having between 15 and 20 individual flowers.
Hemerocallis Purple D'oro scapes can have up to 20 individual flowers each making it a long season bloomer
Hemerocallis Pardon Me
Height: 45-60 cm (18-24 inches)
Bloom: Midseason, repeat bloomer
Colour: Small burgundy (ruby) red blooms with greenish yellow eye.
A miniature daylily with small (2 – 3 inch) blooms in bright cranberry red. The scapes are loaded with blooms and with deadheading Pardon Me will rebloom. I mass planted this at the edges of some of my beds in 2006. Even in their first year they did repeat bloom and were very showy even though the flowers are small. I am interested in seeing how they do in their second year.
You can see the mass of blooms on each scape of Hemerocallis Pardon Me
Hemerocallis Pandora's Box
Height: 65 cm (28 inches)
Bloom: Early midseason, repeat bloomer
Colour: Rich cream slightly ruffled edges with violet-purple eye and yellow green throat.
A multiple award winner including the Award of Merit in 1987, Pandora’s Box is an early bloomer producing smaller (3-4 inches) blooms. One of my first daylilies and still one of my favourites it performs better in afternoon shade so the colour shows.
