May Blooms in my Georgia Garden: Climbing Hydrangea

Climbing Hydrangea
 at Shady Gardens Nursery

There's nothing more beautiful right now than the lacy blooms of our Climbing Wild Hydrangea. Decumaria barbara is known by several different common names. You might know it as Wood Vamp, but it is our native Climbing Hydrangea.

Decumaria is a deciduous vine native to the Southeastern United States. Climbing Hydrangea is truly in the Hydrangea family. (Don't confuse this plant with another sharing the same common name. Hydrangea anomala petiolaris is not native to the United States but originates in Asia and blooms a little later in the season.) Decumaria barbara clings to its support with aerial roots, and it will attach itself to a tree or wall without any additional support.

Lacy  clusters of fragrant white hydrangea-like blooms smell just like fresh honey. Blooms appear in late Spring or early Summer on climbing vines. Decumaria makes a fast-growing groundcover too, but it will not bloom unless allowed to climb. Blooms are solely fertile and smell wonderful.

This easy to grow native vine is not invasive and can be allowed to climb a tree with no danger of it smothering the tree as wisteria does. The delicate aerial rootlets won't harm your tree or wall. 

Plant Native Climbing Hydrangea in shade. Decumaria barbara appreciates protection from hot sun and will bloom in full shade. It enjoys moist soil and naturally occurs in the wild on the banks of streams and rivers. It will grow very quickly in rich soil if watered regularly.

Climbing Hydrangea is a good addition for wildlife in woodland gardens. The thick vines provide good cover and nesting sites for birds and small mammals. The fragrant flowers attract butterflies and other pollinators. 

Decumaria barbara is native to Georgia woodlands but can be grown anywhere in USDA Zones 7-11.

April Blooms in my Georgia Garden: Wild Honeysuckle, Lonicera sempervirens

Lonicera sempervirens
Red Trumpet Honeysuckle

A spectacular vine blooming in our garden in April is the native American Honeysuckle Vine, Lonicera sempervirens. I'm not talking about the very invasive Japanese Honeysuckle that permeates the air with it's strong fragrance and chokes out everything in its path. We don't love that one. Lonicera sempervirens is a well-behaved native vine not often seen growing in the wild. 

The most popular is called Red Trumpet Honeysuckle, so named for its Red tubular flowers that attract hummingbirds. This is a coral red, which is why it is also known as Coral Honeysuckle.

Lonicera sempervirens, unlike Lonicera japonica, is NOT invasive, and should be planted instead of the very invasive Japanese Honeysuckle. Although Red Honeysuckle is not fragrant, hummingbirds will flock around it all summer long. 

Lonicera sempervirens 'John Clayton'

Lonicera sempervirens 'John Clayton' is a yellow-flowering form named after John 

Clayton, the colonial botanist who discovered it

 growing on the grounds of a 17th Century church in Glouchester, Virginia. 

Lonicera sempervirens is a vigorous yet non-invasive flowering native vine that hummingbirds love. Evergreen in most of the Southern states, Lonicera sempervirens blooms almost year round. I've seen blooms on ours in December here at Shady Gardens in west central Georgia. 

Red Trumpet Honeysuckle, Lonicera sempervirens, is one of the best hummingbird magnets I know of, with its large red tubular flowers that come almost year round in my garden. (We've had a few blooms on our plant in January here in West Central Georgia!) 

Our native honeysuckle flowers during the summer on last year’s growth. A few bright red berries will appear, but this plant doesn't sow itself all over the garden and nearby woods like Japanese Honeysuckle does. 

Grows 10-20' in length and prefers sun. Usually grows naturally in the woods, but flowers much more heavily when grown in full sun. 

Indigenous to the South, this vine can be found growing in woodlands across much of the region, but it is not invasive. It won't gobble up your whole garden like the white flowering Japanese honeysuckle does. 

Trumpet honeysuckle has a long blooming season that starts in late spring and continues sporadically through the summer. It will grow in shade but bloom will be more profuse and foliage will be more lush if grown in full sun. 

Give honeysuckle a fence, trellis, or arbor to climb. The supple vines need to wrap around something so they can pull themselves up off the ground. Honeysuckle grows in any well-drained soil, has few pests, and is fairly drought tolerant. It thrives in containers or in the garden. 

Hummingbirds and butterflies love the nectar-filled trumpets, and songbirds eat the juicy fruits left by the spent flowers. If you need a flowering vine that is easy to grow, try this one. It will make you happy, and the wildlife will love you for it. 

Even if you don't live in the South, you can grow Lonicera sempervirens in your garden, since it is hardy in USDA Zones 4-11.

Find a spot in your garden for Red Trumpet Honeysuckle and the hummingbirds will visit you all summer long.

July Blooms in my Georgia Garden: Campsis Radicans, Trumpet Vine

Hummingbirds love the trumpet shaped bright orange blooms of Trumpet Vine. Campsis Radicans, known as Trumpet Vine, Trumpet Creeper, or as my parents call it, Cow Itch, is a beautiful native plant common in the Eastern United States.

Trumpet Vine blooms with large orange/red trumpet flowers that are a favorite nectar source for hummingbirds and other pollinators. It is for this reason that most gardeners grow Trumpet Vine.

This native vine makes a showy focal point on an arbor, fence, or in a tree. It climbs by attaching itself to masonry and wood, but doesn’t do the damage that some other vines will.

Trumpet Vine looks like a tropical plant but is very easy to grow. It thrives with little care and has low water requirements. It will grow in shade, but blooms better with full sun. It isn't picky about water either. It tolerates wet or dry sites and is very drought tolerant. This plant is not bothered by insect pests or disease.

Trumpet Vine can be grown in most of the United States as it is hardy in USDA Zones 4 or 5 through 10.

Campsis radicans is a very rampant and aggressive vine. If you decide you have time to keep this vine contained, I recommend you grow it in a tree form, as my neighbor does. This makes a beautiful specimen that is easier to maintain. If you prefer to grow it on an arbor, make it a very strong and sturdy one, and let it grow in solitary. It will require some pruning to keep it in check, and having other vines growing with it will make pruning almost impossible. 

Immediately after flowering, remove spent blooms before seed pods develop, or you will have Trumpet Vine popping up in other areas of your garden, probably in the very spot you do not want it.

If you can maintain it and keep it in bounds, you won't regret planting Trumpet Vine when you see all the hummingbirds flocking to your garden.

June Blooms in my Georgia Garden: Climbing Hydrangea

Every time I walk behind the greenhouse this time of year, I notice the distinct fragrance of honey. I wish you could smell it. This honey scent comes from the blooms of the large Decumaria barbara plant completely covering the pine tree it climbs. This fragrant Wild Hydrangea Vine can grow up to 30 feet!

Decumaria barbara is usually referred to as Climbing Hydrangea because its delicate, lacy blooms do look like a white hydrangea bloom cluster, and it is in the hydrangea family. This plant is also known as Wood Vamp, but I have been unable to figure out why. If you know, I would welcome your comments. 

Decumaria is a native vine found growing mostly in the Southeastern United States and can often be found on a hike through the woodland in Georgia. It can be grown anywhere in the South, since it is hardy in USDA Zones 7-11.

Do not confuse this plant with the non-native Hydrangea anomala petiolaris, which is also known as Climbing Hydrangea.

Wild Hydrangea Vine is easy to grow and can be grown as a groundcover or allowed to climb any structure. Like some other flowering vines, this Hydrangea Vine will not bloom unless it is permitted to climb. Its aerial roots will attach itself to anything from a tree trunk to a brick or rock wall, but will not damage the tree or wall in any way.

Decumaria barbara prefers part shade and is one of the few native vines that will bloom in full shade. The fact that it is usually found growing along stream banks indicates that it enjoys moist soil.

The rich green leaves look beautiful all summer and are not bothered by any pests or diseases. I would suggest it to be grown on an arbor or trellis near the patio, but it is deciduous in our climate, so there would be no foliage in winter.

Climbing Hydrangea belongs in the wildlife garden. Birds and small mammals love to hide and build nests in the lush foliage. Butterflies and other pollinators love the flowers.

April Blooms in my Georgia Garden: Week 3

Michelia figo

Banana Shrub, Michelia figo, is a large-growing evergreen shrub in the Magnolia Family. Banana Shrub enjoys shade and regular water. Blooms are highly fragrant and really do smell like bananas. The petals are the color of a banana peel but with a burgundy center. A large bush will fragrance the whole garden and cause your friends to go on a search for the source of the scent.

Calycanthus floridus

A native shrub blooming in my garden this week is Calycanthus floridus, most often referred to as Sweet Shrub, but also known as Sweet Betsy, Bubby Bush, and Pineapple Shrub. Blooms are very fragrant, but the fragrance can vary from one bush to another. Some don't have much of a scent while others will. There's a reddish brown blooming species and a yellow blooming cultivar. The yellow blooming 'Athens' is said to be much more fragrant that the species.

Bignonia capreolata

Crossvine is a vigorous native vine often confused with Trumpet Creeper/Trumpet Vine/Cow Itch, but it's a different plant altogether. Bignonia capreolata is an evergreen vine with orange to red blooms like the flames of a fire. Hummingbirds love it even more than I do. Blooms are fragrant, but we seem to disagree with eachother on what the flowers smell like. Some say they smell like curry, but others insist it's mocha. Crossvine needs a strong support but is not invasive. Native to the Southeastern United States.

Aesculus pavia

Red Buckeye, Aesculus pavia, is my most favorite native tree. This small native tree grows with a shrubby habit and is native to the Eastern United States. It naturally occurs in shady woods but when grown in full sun, the flowers are huge red and yellow spikes that are showy from a great distance. Red Buckeye is one of the first plants to bloom when the hummingbirds return in the Spring. This buckeye is drought tolerant and very easy to grow.

Fragrant Jasmine

Trachelospermum jasminoides is a very fragrant Jasmine that is known by several different common names. Star Jasmine, known as Confederate Jasmine in the Southeast, is an evergreen plant that can be grown as a vine or groundcover. The fragrance is heavenly in late spring when it blooms most profusely, but the plant will rebloom sporadically throughout the summer. Shiny dark green leaves turn red in winter, adding to the year round beauty of the plant. Trachelospermum Jasminoides is often grown as a houseplant where it isn't hardy outdoors, but Confederate Jasmine is hardy in USDA Zones 8 -11. Preferring part to full shade, the Star Jasmine makes a great privacy screen when allowed to climb a trellis or fence. It makes a great container plant too, where it will continue to thrive if it must spend the winter indoors. This jasmine is a moderate to fast spreader, yet it isn't considered invasive. There are no known pests or diseases involving this plant. Confederate Jasmine, or Star Jasmine, would make a beautiful addition to any Southern garden. If you're interested in purchasing this plant, click here.