What is your flavorite blooming yard shrub & why?

[Peanut]

it grows wild here, haven't seen any on this property but there is lots of it on our other place. guess i'll have to transplant some of it here.

Calycanthus floridus - eastern sweet shrub. My gmother had them when I was a kid. I don't see them growing wild any more. I saw one at nursery a few years ago, probably can be ordered online. They do smell nice.

 

[The Innkeeper]

Roses, wild and domestic in all their forms. Why? Never thought about it, I have loved roses for as along as I can remember even as a child

 

[Peanut]

Roses, wild and domestic in all their forms. Why? Never thought about it, I have loved roses for as along as I can remember even as a child

There are a dozen or so native species of wild roses in north america. I find them sometimes. I call all of them Rosa carolina, who knows without a dna test . They have 5, sometimes 6 petals here in the southeast. They have a sweet smell but different than the ones at the florist.

 

[joel]

I also like Fragrant Tea Olive Tree, Daphne odora, & Fragrant Honeysuckle January Jasmine Sweet Breath Of Spring Sweetest Honeysuckle.

 

[LadyLocust]

Not sure if they are considered shrubs or bushes, but I like the old fashioned ones: lilacs, crepe myrtle, mock orange and flowering quince.

 

[Weedygarden]

Not sure if they are considered shrubs or bushes, but I like the old fashioned ones: lilacs, crepe myrtle, mock orange and flowering quince.

I know lilac, but have no idea what the others look like.

 

[joel]

 

[joel]

 

[joel]

 

[LadyLocust]

I know lilac, but have no idea what the others look like.

Well, I hopped over to see if I could find some images: evidently those who take pictures of their flowers only take pictures of absolutely beautiful full flowers! Crepe Myrtle is a sweet pink, mock orange is like orange blossoms and smells wonderful (ours are just trying to open) and flowering quince is a reddish flower on a reddish-brown stem.

 

[LadyLocust]

I had no idea there were so many varieties!!!! Mine is/was not that full when it bloomed, but was up the mountain so a little lower growing season than it probably prefers.

 

[Amish Heart]

Peonie and Hydrangea
Both are beautiful

 

[joel]

I had no idea there were so many varieties!!!! Mine is/was not that full when it bloomed, but was up the mountain so a little lower growing season than it probably prefers.

If you remove the bloom heads as they fade, new blooms will flower, therefore lengthen the blooming season.

 

[Peanut]

I had no idea there were so many varieties!!!! Mine is/was not that full when it bloomed, but was up the mountain so a little lower growing season than it probably prefers.

@LadyLocust @joel Crape Myrtle is old medicine. About half of the people in the Philippines with type 1 diabetes don't use insulin. Before each meal they drink a little cup of tea made from Crape Myrtle leaves. It contains a chemical that controls the rate at which our bodies absorb carbohydrates. Hence, no sugar spikes. I know its used in several other SE asian countries but I have never heard the numbers by percentage.

 

[Pearl]

Love my lilac bushes! When they bloom in the spring I can't pass by without sticking my nose out for a wiff!

 

[Neb]

The Princess has me growing some lilacs to be deployed.... somewhere.

I like Rose of Sharon and this thing that grows in front one of the rental properties.

Ben

 

[LadyLocust]

@LadyLocust @joel Crape Myrtle is old medicine. About half of the people in the Philippines with type 1 diabetes don't use insulin. Before each meal they drink a little cup of tea made from Crape Myrtle leaves. It contains a chemical that controls the rate at which our bodies absorb carbohydrates. Hence, no sugar spikes. I know its used in several other SE asian countries but I have never heard the numbers by percentage.

I had no idea - am trying to sprout a start. Will have to wait and see. That is a cool thing to know especially with the rate of diabetes on the climb like it is.

 

[Peanut]

Crape Myrtle is, for the most part, a sub-tropical plant. I've read about a species from Japan. I've seen it as far north as TN, don't remember seeing it further north. I just checked the net, there are varieties that grow in zone 8.

 

[LadyLocust]

Crape Myrtle is, for the most part, a sub-tropical plant. I've read about a species from Japan. I've seen it as far north as TN, don't remember seeing it further north. I just checked the net, there are varieties that grow in zone 8.

Up the river is about zone 5 which might explain why it wasn't as prolific as in the pictures shown.

 

[joel]

The Princess has me growing some lilacs to be deployed.... somewhere.

I like Rose of Sharon and this thing that grows in front one of the rental properties.

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View attachment 67115


Ben

This thing is a Rhododendron from the family Rhododendron.
Some call it the Great Rhododendron, the wild White Rhododendron is all over N.C. & much of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

 

[hashbrown]

I've always been a a big fan of lilacs, it's not spring until I smell them.

 

[ButtercupKid]

Liliacs are a favorite of mine. Ours just opened up a few days ago. It is heavenly smelling them. I wish they bloomed a lot longer then they do. We have lavender, white maroon, pink, deep purple lined in white and a white with a pink blush.

 

[joel]

Liliacs are a cool weather plant, it is to hot for the hybrids, down here in South.
I remember seeing one years ago, but not lately.

 

[Alaskajohn]

When I lived in the south, it was Azaleas, Crepe Myrtle and Forsythias.

In Alaska it has to by Lilacs.

Extending beyond scrubs and bushes, the true gems in Alaska are the wonderful plants including Fireweed, Poppies and a million others wonderful plants that blossom naturally each summer. My wife has all the names down pact, and I have to trust her to know which are the best to eat or make into teas. I just get to enjoy them. God forbid I step on one, as I will hear from the wife about it.

 

[Peanut]

@LadyLocust This one's in my yard. They can get 8 inches in diameter/25-30ft tall. For people who use them as shrubs its common to just pull them up every 15-20yrs and start over. They get so big they start to buckle sidewalks in town.

 

[Neb]

Liliacs are a favorite of mine. Ours just opened up a few days ago. It is heavenly smelling them. I wish they bloomed a lot longer then they do. We have lavender, white maroon, pink, deep purple lined in white and a white with a pink blush.

Speaking of incredible smells...

When English walnut trees are putting on new growth in the spring the young leaves are a reddish color and have an incredible scent. It smells a lot like the incense that is burned in Roman Catholic services for special occasions like Christmas.

Every time I walk them I have to stick my nose in and enjoy the scent.

I have imagined the nosey neighbor peeking through their blinds saying "Look Gladus, the neighbor is snorting the tree again!"

Ben

 

[Amish Heart]

Ha Ha.
I like Rose of Sharon, too. We have one in our yard, the bush is about 7 feet tall. It's just budding right now.

 

[Peanut]

If I ever put a shrub in the yard it’ll be this one, Monks Pepper. I think it’s beautiful and honey bees love it. Of course it’s medicinal but with a funny history. It’s native to southern europe. Who knows when it first got the reputation but from ancient times up through the middle ages it was thought to dampen a man’s libido.

Throughout europe monks ground up the berries and sprinkled it on their food, thinking it cut down on “urges”, hence the name “Monks Pepper”. Modern herbalists know this plant actually helps a woman’s fertility. It’s now commonly used for that purpose.

The above is funny but the really funny part…

This photo was taken in a neighbor’s yard. I kept a few hives of bees on their farm one year. The lady of the house asked me about her beautiful shrub, wanted to know if it was medicinal. I figured out what it was and its history. The next time I was there I told her about it.

This couple had 7 children under the age of 10, there were 2 sets of twins. Upon learning its purpose the lady said “This shrub has to go!”, "We don’t need that here". It disappeared shortly thereafter, they owned a backhoe!

 

[ellie]

I have an old fashioned lilac. Besides it's beauty, the smell is amazing. The last plant my dad bought me before he died. It was 4 years old when I moved. I dug it up and took it with me. That was 8 years ago. I now realize I probably can't take it with me so for the past couple of years I try to start a few from it. I will be able to have bushes from it when I get back to the country.

How do you start new ones from old lilacs?

 

[Patchouli]

@Pearl I didn't know lilacs grew well in Texas! my heart!
@Peanut we had two nice Vitex (chaste tree, monk's pepper) at one of our houses here in Texas.
Crepe Myrtles grew fine in Maryland, Eastern Shore and central Maryland. We had an older one at our last house there. I have one in the yard here in Texas.