Latin for Gardeners: November 2021

November’s Native Maryland Plant
Itea virginica L.
(eye-TEE-ah ver-JIN-ih-kah)
Common Name: Virginia Sweetspire

Most of Maryland’s native shrubs work hard during the seasons, many of them going almost unnoticed as they provide habitat, shade, and erosion control - and then there’s Itea virginica.  There are few shrubs that provide such year-round interest as this adaptable native plant that is most commonly sold as a cultivar.   

Itea’s leaves appear in early spring, followed by draping racemes of star-shaped flowers that bloom in June, attracting a diversity of pollinators. In fall the leaves turn a maroon or bright red that contrast well with the many fall yellows or evergreen plants in a landscape. Its flower heads dry on the shrub and persist through the fall and winter – continuing to provide textural interest. The attractive structure and the numerous height cultivars available make it suitable for a natural landscape or a more formal one. 

In my garden I use Itea spp. as mulch along a dry riverbed, under a Blackgum (Nyssa sylvatica), and as a tall hedge in the back of a moist shady area - the more sun it’s provided the more brilliant the fall color. Its dense, spreading habit provides significant weed suppression and erosion control and it’s very low maintenance.

As you’re out enjoying the cooler weather and walks in your community, look for Virginia Sweetspire, it’s a staple garden plant for many good reasons. If you haven’t planted one yet, maybe now is the time!

~ Alison Milligan – Mstr. Gardener/Mstr. Naturalist/Mstr. Watershed Steward

Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional (CBLP)

aligmilligan@gmail.com

Latin for Gardeners: October 2021

October’s Native Maryland Plant
Salix nigra Marsh.
(SAY-liks NY-grah)
Common Name: Black Willow

The Chesapeake Conservation Landscaping Council (CCLC) has designated October as the first annual ‘Riparian Buffer’ month¹; the month to raise awareness and promote the sustainable practice of riparian buffers – it could not have come at a better time.  Forested riparian buffers are one of the best ways to protect our waterways; they prevent erosion, reduce flooding, provide habitat for wildlife, create recreational opportunities, and filter pollutants. The last two ‘State of the Bay’ report cards² graded the Bay a D+ and in 2022 we’ll have our next report.  I for one am anxious that it may dip into failing grade status, it’s hard coming back from an F, and even harder to imagine what it will mean for life in the Bay.  It will take everyone’s effort to prevent this, but as Master Gardeners and Watershed Stewards, we know how to do it!  Riparian buffers will play a major role.

My plan is to engage with my community, to plant a Salix nigra and other trees, along the shores of the river closest to my home, the Severn River. I’m aware that this tree is often used in riparian buffers, ‘areas of vegetation near a stream, usually forested, that shade and protect that stream from the impact of adjacent land use.’ Salix nigra are excellent at stabilizing embankments, they provide valuable habitat and are an early pollen source for pollinators. I’ve often seen them along the Baltimore-Annapolis trail where I ride my bike, it’s nice to stop and observe the wildlife that lives there. Planting trees in the fall is a wonderful way to spend a morning and planting a keystone³ species makes it even more rewarding. 

If you’re not able to plant a riparian buffer perhaps you’ll still be able to plant a tree at home or in your community? Hopefully a canopy tree that can provide shade over an impervious surface, maybe even a keystone species that supports biodiversity in a big way.  Whichever you choose, don’t let this October go by without being a part of the solution. So much life depends on it!

’ - https://www.chesapeakelandscape.org/riparian-buffer-month/

² - https://www.cbf.org/about-the-bay/state-of-the-bay-report/index.html

³ - A genera that ‘form the backbone of local ecosystems’ – Doug Tallamy, Nature’s Best Hope

~ Alison Milligan – Mstr. Gardener/Mstr. Naturalist/Mstr. Watershed Steward

Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional (CBLP)

aligmilligan@gmail.com

Latin for Gardeners: September 2021

September’s Native Maryland Plant
Silphium perfoliatum L. var connatum
(SIL-fee-um per-foh-lee-AY-tum var kon-NAH-tum)
Common Name: Cup Plant

During September, historically Maryland’s wettest month, I visit the ten rain barrels in my yard frequently - removing any debris from their screens and doing my best to drain them before the next storm.   Two years ago, I planted what I thought was the straight-species Silphium perfoliatum in front of the three 65-gallon cascading barrels above; the plants were a surprise gift from my friend, a notably experienced and excellent gardener.  They were already big plants with well-established roots, so I had high confidence they’d succeed being replanted. I knew they would flower best in full sun and that they could be aggressive spreaders so I sited them where they could ‘dress up’ my rain barrels and be somewhat contained.  So far it appears this is a case of ‘Right Plant, Right Place’ as well as a case of ‘Wrong Plant, Wrong Place’.

Let me explain. The plant has flourished, its natural habitat includes road-side ditches and disturbed sites; it has also proven worthy of its common name - Cup plant. In May its meristems (young growth) are fully emerged, and the large serrated and sessile leaves have already formed a cup that captures rain and provides drinking water for bees and birds.  The hairy stems are one characteristic that set this species apart from the straight-species and how I identified this plant as var connatum. i.e. the ‘wrong plant’. I’ve read it’s native to the mid-Atlantic states, but lists disagree on whether that includes Maryland.

Silphium spp. have a long bloom period and provide an abundance of flowers for pollinators. Their seed heads are enjoyed by birds in the fall. They are highly adapted to endure extreme weather and inhospitable site conditions – as they’ve shown in my garden where they’re in a highly exposed location, susceptible to wind and disturbance.

When accepting plants from friends or neighbors I’d like to offer a note of caution. In my experience, most people give plants from their garden because they have an excess of them – they do it in good faith and in friendship, never intending to do harm. However, frequently the ‘gifted’ plants are aggressive, non-native plants that can displace native plants – in the past I’ve been offered Daylilies (Hemerocallis spp.) and Lily-of-the-Valley (Convallaria spp.), two plants I know better than to plant due to their invasive nature. I’m always hesitant to accept plants as a gift, I have limited space in my yard, I give preference to certain plants, and I try my best to only plant natives.  I’ve been impressed with this Cup plant; it’s shown itself to be adaptable and very attractive to pollinators – combined with its water-storing ability I find it the perfect blooming companion to my rain barrels.

~ Alison Milligan – Mstr. Gardener/Mstr. Naturalist/Mstr. Watershed Steward

Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional (CBLP)

aligmilligan@gmail.com

Latin for Gardeners: July 2021

July’s Native Maryland Plant
Delphinium exaltatum
(del-FIN-ee-um eks-all-TAY-tum)
Common Name: Tall Larkspur

July is our hottest month, a time when I prefer to ‘look but not touch’ my garden – it’s just too darn hot! Yet I want my garden to look great, full of color and blooming profusely so I can attract hordes of pollinators and observe them up close or at a distance. Delphinium exaltatum is one plant that exceeds my summer-blooming expectations both in flower-bearing and pollinator attraction. 

Thinking back a few years, I remember that I almost did not buy this species, mainly due to its very tall stature. I recall seeing this plant in my youth, along woodland borders and on roadsides in New England.  Today the biggest threat to roadside Delphinium is habitat loss, mainly due to physical disturbance, widening roads and the severe clearing regimen that severely impacts this and many other plants’ ability to flower or set seed.

Choosing to plant Delphinium in my landscape helps to sustain its population and guarantees that I have a tall blooming flower in the back of my beds that draws in butterflies and hummingbirds as well as a variety of bee species. Because it prefers cooler nights, I planted it where it receives only morning sun and where it is protected from strong winds.  The flower color ranges from white to lavender to purple and as its name implies, it is much taller than the earlier blooming and also native, Dwarf Larkspur (Delphinium tricorne).  

I find the structure and silhouette of this plant particularly captivating, and as to its stature, I’ve determined that many of my favorite perennials are very tall, excellent pollinator plants and often endangered; it’s up to me to plant them, to promote them and to support them however and whenever necessary – they reward me and pollinators many times over.

¹ A tapering, sometimes curving projection.

~ Alison Milligan – Mstr. Gardener/Mstr. Naturalist/Mstr. Watershed Steward

Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional (CBLP)

aligmilligan@gmail.com