Featured plants in the Lou!
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Garden-Lou visits the Columbia Bottom Conservation Area Sunflower Fields
Bees love them, birds love them, but what the Missouri Department of Conservation people didn’t realize, is that people love them too! Sunflowers have to the happiest flowers on the planet. Just look…
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July Tree of the Month-American Linden
The American linden, or basswood tree, Tilia americana, is one of our largest native shade trees. Naturally found on slopes, at the base of bluffs, or along streams, when planted in a park-like…
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July Shrub of the Month-Bottlebrush buckeye
Native to the south and eastern regions of St. Louis, bottlebrush buckeye, Aesculus parviflora, tolerates the soil and weather extremes of St. Louis well. Add to that the large, showy flowers, shade tolerance,…
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July Perennial of the Month-Russian sage
Spring is over, the heat and drought have arrived, and many gardens are starting to show some wear and tear. After the peonies, iris, and other Act I seasonal favorites, Act II begins,…
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June Perennial of the Month-Cranesbill geranium
In 2015 Geranium x cantabrigiense ‘Biokovo’ was voted Perennial Plant Association’s Plant of the Year. Even without the title, gardeners have loved this perennial for years, and I can’t imagine my garden without…
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June Shrub of the Month-Elderberry
If ever there were a Cinderella story in the plant world, it would have to be Sambucus canadensis, more commonly known as elderberry. This native was considered a weed by the average Joe…
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June Tree of the Month-Japanese tree lilac
Perhaps you’ve noticed an unusual tree along streets or in parking lots with huge creamy-white flowers? This relative newcomer is Syringa reticulata, commonly known as Japanese tree lilac, and it’s not your grandmother’s lilac.…
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May Tree of the Month-Fringe tree
The redbuds are done, the dogwoods are fading, and the magnolias are long gone … time for one of the most underused trees to shine-the fringe tree, Chionanthus virginicus. Fringe tree is a…
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May Shrub of the Month-Weigela
Remember when every well-landscaped yard used a purple-leafed barberry shrub? (Usually planted right next to a globe blue spruce or a yellow-tipped conifer) Plant lovers wanted that beautiful burgundy color, but like most…
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May Perennial of the Month-Iris
The fleur de lis is a stylized iris flower, and so this month, we pay homage to the symbol of St. Louis-the noble Iris. Iris flowers symbolize power, with the three parts representing…
