Wills Perennial Garden
Marsh Spurge
Euphorbia palustris
Beautifully sculptural and semi-evergreen herbaceous perennial that grows up to 48″ tall and wide. The milky sap is toxic to the skin and also creates rabbit and deer resistance. Native to Europe and Western Asia, and cold hardy in zones 5 to 8. Does not like to be transplanted, but prefers to find its own place in the garden by seeding out.
Carell Woodland Sculpture Trail
Frostweed
Verbesina virginica
Common wing-stemmed wildflower with a unique winter characteristic. During freezing temperatures, water in the stem freezes and expands, rupturing the stems. The expanding ice forms long thin ribbons that take unique and interesting form. During the warm season, frostweed is an essential source of nectar for many species of insects.
Photos by Andrew Bruckse Photography
Shomu-en, Japanese Garden
Zoysia Grass
Zoysia japonica
A dense, creeping warm-season grass that turns a calming straw color when dormant. Native to the coastal regions of Asia, Australia and various island throughout the pacific. Also referred to as Japanese carpet grass. Very tolerant of heat and high traffic.
Burr Terrace Garden
Bloodtwig Dogwood
Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’
Multi-stemmed and spreading shrub with intense winter color is spectacular when featured with an evergreen backdrop, as it is planted in front of the Cryptomeria in the Burr Garden. Smooth yellow stems topped with red twigs grow to 5-6′ in height. Prefers full sun to part shade.
Robinson Family Water Garden
European Filbert
Corylus avellana ‘Contorta’
Also called Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick, this deciduous shrub is a point of striking winter interest with its contorted, spiraling branches and long, dangling catkins.Carell Dogwood Garden
Fragrant Wintersweet
Chimonanthus praecox
Medium to large, vase-shaped shrub featuring fragrant, clear yellow flowers 1” in diameter from December through January. Grows in Zones 7-9 and prefers full sun to part shade.
Herb Study Garden
Atlas Cedar
Cedrus atlantica ‘Glauca Pendula’
Columnar, weeping form of this garden favorite. Pendulous branches are clad in clusters of bluish green needles and bear upright barrel-shaped cones. Grows to 3-12’ tall and wide. Prefers full sun.It may be January, but there is much to see in the gardens this time of year! Read all about this month’s featured plants, and be sure to keep an eye out for the labels throughout the gardens to see if you can find them.
Howe Garden
Sweetbay Magnolia
Magnolia virginiana var. australis “Green Shadow”
Graceful evergreen to semi-evergreen tree that tolerates wet feet and clay soil. Features cup-shaped, sweetly fragrant white flowers in mid-spring. Grows to 35 feet tall.
Martin Boxwood Gardens
American Boxwood
Buxus sempervirens
Evergreen shrub used as a hedge or landscape specimen, growing to 15 feet tall and wide. Prefers evenly moist, well-drained loams and full sun to part shade. A true workhorse in the winter landscape.
Bradford Robertson Color Garden (Arches)
Fountain Grass
Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘National Arboretum’
Ornamental grass with graceful form that adds winter interest in its structure, movement and sound. Features attractive bottle-brush style blooms that persist as seed heads.