Lilium ‘Big Brother’

Lilies are in bloom all over campus. Lilium ‘Big Brother’ gets its name from the large flowers that grow anywherefrom 6 to 12 inches across. It can reach four to six feet in height. The flowers bloom in mid-summer and attract butterflies.

This lily is found thriving in the Theresa Lang Garden of Fragrance among lower shrubs. The soft, creamy-yellow of the flower is eye-catching as are other additional accents of yellow scattered throughout this bed. The perennial’s sweet smell and architectural structure with strikingly large flowers make it a showstopper.

‘Big Brother’ can be found in zones 3-8 and prefers well-drained soil with full to partial sun. This is a great cultivar as it has a sturdy stem that, more often than not, won’t require staking. Cutting the stalks down to a few inches above the ground helps winterize the plant and adding a mulch layer to protect it during colder months is recommended. Photo Credit: L. Whitacre

Acer griseum

On a rainy summer day, the bark of the Acer griseum looks especially attractive. The tones of reddish-orange in the bark become more obvious among the shades of warm brown. A grouping of paperbark maples can be found on the northeast side of Sharples Dining Hall. Originally from Central China, this species was first brought to the Arnold Arboretum in 1901 by E.H. Wilson.

This small, slow-growing tree reaches 20 to 30 feet in height and 15 to 25 feet in spread at full maturity. These deciduous trees are low maintenance and prefer full sun to partial shade. They do well in moist, well-drained soils and are sensitive to drought. The exfoliating bark paired with the placement of several paperbark maples, make the area surrounding Sharples Dining Hall remarkable. Come fall, the foliage turns shades of red and orange which, I imagine, is one of the few times attention is taken away from the beautiful bark. Photo Credit: L. Whitacre

Zantedeschia ‘Florex Gold’

Zantedeschia ‘Florex Gold’ is a plant with an elegant yellow flower; it is found in one of the beds in the Isabella Cosby Courtyard. It is placed among a variety of textures of other herbaceous green foliage, so the vibrant color of this vase-shaped flower is hard to miss. It can be planted in spring once the soil warms up and it blooms during mid-summer.

Also known as calla lily, this tropical species is native to South Africa in the Araceae family. The large arrow-shaped leaves are spotted allowing light to pass through them. Zantedeschia can reach 12 to 18 inches in height and prefers rich, well-drained soil in full sun. It also does well in containers. This is a perfect tropical feature in a sunny border or container and makes great cut flowers as well. Photo Credit: L. Whitacre

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By Isabell Newlin, Good Food student worker

Elm Street, which runs by the President’s house and the Good Food Garden, is lined with sugar maples. If you have walked down this street in the past few weeks, you might have noticed a couple of blue bags hanging from the trunks. This winter a few of us (Swarthmore students) tapped three of these maples, and we have been boiling the sap down to make syrup.

Equipment used to collection the sap. photo credit: B. Dair

To tap a maple you need a drill (7/16 in), a spout, a mallet, and a bucket. As the days get warmer and temperatures rise above freezing, the difference between day and night generates pressure in the roots of the maples and their sap runs up from the roots into the trunk and branches.

Drill a hole about two inches into the tree and tap the spout into it with your mallet. Angle the drill upwards at a very slight angle so that gravity will draw the sap down into your bucket. At the end of the spout is a hole, to catch the sap is coming upwards from the roots. There is a hook on the spout on which to hang a bucket, or bright blue bag. In the Delaware Valley, the sap often starts running at the beginning of February, when it first gets up to 40 degrees F.

The amount of sap we get each day varies a great deal. When it is warm, more than a gallon; when it is below freezing, very little. Sugar maples, Acer saccharum, have the highest concentration of sugar in their sap, but you can make syrup out of the sap from silver maples, Acer saccharinum, and black maples, Acer nigrum, too.

Blue bags used to collect sap. photo credit: B. Dair

We have collected about 20 gallons of sap over the past two weeks, which as syrup is very roughly 1/30^th its original volume.

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The Scott Arboretum’s Wister Education Center and Greenhouse which opened last fall, recently received gold LEED certification for new construction from the U.S. Green Building Council. The award – which identifies the Center as a “pioneering example of sustainable design” – is the culmination of an effort that began during the earliest stages of the project.

“I feel a real sense of pride that the educational and horticultural work of the Arboretum is housed in a way that exemplifies beautiful and sustainable design and a sensible use of resources,” says Scott Arboretum Director Claire Sawyers. “While we aim to inspire good gardening efforts at a grassroots, regional level, this building demonstrates the Arboretum and College also aim to inspire careful stewardship of the planet as the ultimate garden.”

View into the Terry Shane Teaching Garden from the Wister Center. photo credit: R. Robert

“I am very pleased to extend my congratulations to Claire and her team for working so diligently to make the Wister Center a model of green design,” adds President Rebecca Chopp. “Our community is increasingly enriched by the excellent work and care that this facility fosters.”

Metasequoia glyptostroboides shingles on the Wister Center. photo credit: R. Robert

Construction and design of the 5,200-square foot structure – including a classroom, exhibit areas, greenhouse, and support space – focused on innovative energy efficient green building techniques. One technique is the reuse of Metasequoia glyptostroboides (dawn redwood) trees that were cut down during the construction of Alice Paul Hall. The harvested trees were made into shingles that were used for almost a third of the Center’s siding. Another  technique involved the use of concrete containing fly ash, a byproduct of coal-fired power plants that is usually dumped in landfills.

Light tubes and fluorescent bulbs line the hallways of the Wister Center. photo credit: R. Robert

The building also uses an energy-efficient lighting system. The design opens the building to daylight as much as possible using large windows and “light tubes” that bring light down through the ceiling. Energy-efficient fluorescent bulbs are controlled by occupancy sensors and a building-wide timing system. A green roof is planned and storm water runoff is directed into a cistern used for watering plants surrounding the building.

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Sundials are a popular garden ornament. Pierre S. du Pont placed one in his Longwood Garden. Michigan State University’s 4-H Children’s Garden asks children to stand at the center of their sundial and use the shadow of their raised hands to see the time. The class of 1895 placed a sundial on Parrish Lawn in 1905 in memory of their classmate, Howard White Jr. (1875-1903) here at the Scott Arboretum.

Sundials make a great conversation piece and often an attractive focal point in the garden. As you can see from the images, the students at Swarthmore College have historically loved the photo opportunity the sundial provided. Bob Thompson, known as the Cookie Messenger on campus and a daily Arboretum Assistant at the Scott Arboretum, was one of the many Swarthmore College students who had his photo taken with his buddies at the sundial. Last year, Thompson undertook a research project to investigate this sundial which had stood on Parrish Lawn for decades. He discovered that Howard White Jr.’s sundial was removed because of pathway reconfiguration in 2006 and was being stored under the bleachers alongside Skallerup Track. In honor of Thompson’s 92^nd birthday, the Arboretum returned the sundial to the grounds of campus for the next generation of students to enjoy.

Selecting the best location in your garden to create an attractive point of interest with a sundial is a design consideration. The style of your sundial dictates the type of garden setting it should be placed. The sundial given to the College by the class of 1895 has a formal appearance with its stone pedestal. Because of this formality, the Collections Committee of the Scott Arboretum chose the location in front of Pearson Hall.

This area has perfect symmetry with four permanent containers on the upper level and two rectangular garden beds on the lower level where the sundial was placed. Another important consideration is the fact that this area receives sun all day. Placing the linear sundial in this location simply fit within the formal design of this part of the building landscape.

When selecting the ideal spot for your sundial, consider how the style of the sundial will dictate the garden design and, of course, consider the sun exposure. The second sundial found on campus appears on the side of the Kohlberg Hall alongside the Cosby Courtyard. This large sundial mounted on the building is a dramatic piece accented by a Taxodium ascendens. Visit the class of 1895’s sundial outside of Pearson Hall and the large sundial on the wall of Kohlberg Hall to experience how a sundial adds to a garden.

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Several years ago I bought a plant of Browallia americana, amethyst flower, to grow in a container. This beautiful shade loving annual has a lot more grace than the typical dwarf version that is popular at garden centers. According to local plantsman and garden blogger Gary Keim (http://planetplant.net/) there are two forms of Browallia americana. One reaches 3 feet tall with cobalt-blue flowers and the other form, which is the one I have in my garden, is shorter reaching only 18 inches tall with azure-blue flowers and a white eye. Gary likes to combine them with dahlias and the fall blooming Anemone x hybrida. He feels that the airy aspect of the Browallia contrasts nicely with the bolder foliage and flowers of the aforementioned species.

At the Arboretum, we used Browallia americana in our summer containers found in the Scott Entrance garden, Terry Shane Teaching Garden, and Cosby Courtyard. Since my original container planting at home, Browallia americana now serendipitously pops up in the garden every year. This year it came up under an outdoor garden table where there is also a seedling of Heuchera villosa. Today both are in full flower. The blue of the Browallia makes a striking combination with the white spikes of the Heuchera villosa.

Browallia americana can often be found through mail order nurseries that specialize in unusual annuals like Annie’s Annuals (www.anniesannuals.com) or through a seed exchange such as the Mid-Atlantic Hardy Plant Society’s exchange (http://www.hardyplant.org). Once you procure it you will never have to plant it again.

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By Paul Tukey

Are you like so many gardeners who find themselves spending too much time on lawn maintenance? Are you becoming more conscious of the amount of time, chemicals, and gasoline that are required to keep a well-maintained lawn? There are lots of alternatives to the traditional ways of lawn care including building better soil, using organic fertilizers, allowing clover to grow, using biological controls against garden pests, and finding alternatives to gasoline powered tools.

In The Organic Lawn Care Manual, Paul Tukey takes the reader through the entire process of creating a more environmentally sustainable lawn. He includes a Natural Lawn Care Calendar that explains the process of caring for this kind of lawn throughout the year. The most important information Tukey provides is a detailed explanation of the transition process from a chemical-dependant lawn to a toxin-free, natural lawn. This book is a wonderful way to begin the process of having a healthier lawn and garden, complete with step-by-step instructions, first-hand advice, and instructional photographs. This book is available at the Scott Horticultural Library.

Are you interested in changing the way you look at your lawn? Register now for our Lawn Alternatives For the Real World Workshop on November 8th taught by Larry Weaner. Between this workshop and the above book, you’ll never look at lawns the same way again.

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In 1985, the world renowned plantsman, JC Raulston travelled to Korea on a collecting trip sponsored by the United States National Arboretum. Among the hundreds of seeds that were collected was a seed of the Korean sweetheart tree, Euscaphis japonica.

In 1993 the Scott Arboretum received a package of plants from JC Raulston of the North Carolina State University Arboretum (today know as the JC Raulston Arboretum.) One of the small plants in that box was a seedling of Euscaphis japonica. We grew the plant in our growing area until 1998 when it reached sufficient size to be planted at the south end of Beardsley Hall.

Today, this small ornamental tree is about fifteen feet tall with an eight-foot spread. The grey colored bark has white striations which give it some winter interest. The leaves are pinnately compound which give it an interesting textural quality. But the fruits are really why you would grow this plant. In late summer the clusters of heart-shaped fruits ripen. They transform from green to pink to red. In early to mid-October they split open revealing a tiny, shiny, black seed. The seeds don’t immediately fall out but sit within the red seed cases adding to the ornamental look of the plant.

This tough tree can grow in a variety of soils, but will thrive and fruit best in full sun.

This tree is still relatively unknown in American gardens, however, there are some nurserymen who have collected seeds. Perhaps, it is just a matter of time before this becomes a popular ornamental tree.

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The most common color of Heuchera seen in the garden is a deep purple. Breeders have released several different tones and textures of this purple foliage. Known for having the darkest foliage of the Heucheras, H. ‘Obsidian’ provides a great contrast color in your shade garden. H. ‘Midnight Rose’ flaunts purple foliage speckled with bright pink spots. H. ‘Plum Pudding’ displays foliage true to its cultivar name: a plum color.

Breeders have also gone beyond the purple foliage. They have released attractive colors like H. ‘Ginger Ale’. The foliage is ginger color with pink coloration on the undersides of the leaves. The ginger then fades to tan as the summer progresses. These tones combine well with most plant colorations.

Another unique coloration of foliage is H. ‘Caramel’. The foliage unfurls in an apricot shade. Just as the cultivar name suggests, the foliage changes to gold/caramel with attractive red undersides, similar to the tones of the color caramel.

Someone must have been very hungry when they named heucheras. In addition to cultivar names like ‘Caramel’, there is: ‘Chocolate Ruffles’, ‘Creme Brulee’, ‘Key Lime Pie’, ‘Licorice’, and ‘Marmalade’. A great dessert and one of Andrew Bunting’s favorite Heuchera cultivars is ‘Tiramisu’. The chartreuse foliage has a heavy smattering of brick red coloration that extends out from the midrib of each leaf. The leaves lighten to chartreuse and develop a light silver overlay during summer.

Here at the Arboretum, we have observed that some cultivars last for a long time in the garden and others are rather short lived. For example, cultivars like: H. ‘Velvet Knight’, H. ‘Plum Pudding’, and H. ‘Autumn Bride’ have been in the garden about ten years, while other selections seem to only survive for two to three years. We have noticed that the cultivars of H. villosa are longer lived than other selections. New cultivars of H. villosa which are showing promise are ‘Caramel’, ‘Tiramisu’, and ‘Citronelle’.

You can view Heuchera at the Scott Arboretum in the Terry Shane Teaching Garden, on the north side of Kohlberg Hall, and in the Sibbett Garden. To learn about the abundant offerings of the Heuchera genus, I recommend Heucheras and Heucherellas: Coral Bells and Foamy Bells by Dan Heims and Grahame Ware. This book can be found in the Scott Arboretum library.

If you would like to try H. ‘Caramel’, it is the free plant with advanced registration for Sunset Sippin’: Swamp White Oaks and Whirlwind Wit. Join us for cocktails and friends in the garden on Thursday, June 12 from 6 to 8 pm and take home a Heuchera for your garden. Advanced registration ends today at 3:30 pm.

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Growing under the old tea crabapple are several Arisaema. The Japanese cobra lily, Arisaema ringens native to Japan, China and Korea is grown for both its shiny foliage, as well as its stout, cobra-like flower. The spathe or the “pulpit” is purple and white striped and the interior of the flower is a glossy purple. Towering above the other woodland plants is Arisaema tosanense which comes from the Shikoku Islands in Japan. Reaching approximately 30 inches tall the flowers extend above the foliage. The spathe is a translucent green with evenly spaced white stripes. The tip of the spathe extends over the tip of the flower giving it a graceful and elegant appearance.

We have two selections of Arisaema kishidae. One form has a plain leaf while the other has a silver splotched or “patterned” leaf. This species reaches about twelve inches tall. The spathe has beautiful white and burgundy striping. Growing in close proximity is Arisaema thunbergii subsp. urashima. The leaves reach 15 inches tall but the tight flower head is nestled much closer to the ground. The stout, nearly purple black spathe has a long and curling tip which extends up to 18 inches from the tip of the flower like a long wiry snake.

At the end of the Cunningham house under Stewartia pseudocamellia is the piece de resistance of the jack-in-the-pulpits, Arisaema sikkokianum. The burgundy and white striped spathe twists above the spadix or “jack” which is a striking pure, alabaster white. This, without a doubt, is the most stunning of all the Arisaema.

The Arisaema generally grow best in dappled to full shade in a soil rich in organic matter which does not dry out in periods of drought.

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During lunchtime later that day, Shari grabbed my attention. Lo and behold, there was one of the babies down on the ground under the magnolia. He was bobbing around – not entirely steady on his feet – and both parents were nearby shepherding him carefully. We watched for several minutes as he joined his parents and waddled – really the only term that applies accurately to his motion – out of sight following behind his parents.

It all seemed to happen so quickly -two weeks for incubation and two weeks for maturing enough to fly must have passed, but we all were enjoying watching the little ones in the nest and had hoped to see the first flight.

Now we’ll watch the same tree over the coming months and/or years to find out whether the doves by chance use the same tree, if not the same nest.

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