October 2017 Plant Profile: Apium graveolens var. rapaceum
UW Farm is now harvesting celeriac, also known as celery root - a great addition to your rotation of fall root food...
July Plant Profile: Hydrangea integrifolia
Originally posted July 1, 2014 An evergreen hydrangea?!! You betcha! There are very few evergreen vines for gardeners in the Pacific Northwest, but this gorgeous gem from Asia is becoming more readily available and it’s simply one of the coolest flowers you’ll ever get to witness opening. From plump, peony-like buds, they begin to slowly crack open, a froth of fertile flowers begin to form and over the course of a few days, a flat umbel “lacecap” begins to form. ...
April 2017 Plant Profile: Corylopsis pauciflora
Corylopsis pauciflora, the buttercup winter hazel, is one of the most charming plants in the witch hazel family. It features unique and colorful leaves, attractive and lightly fragrant flowers, fall color and is a good size for smaller gardens. It is the smallest and most compact growing member of the genus. The genus name means resembling (“opsis”) the leaf of a Corylus, or common hazel (though they are not related). ...
March 2017 Plant Profile: Corokia cotoneaster
Corokia cotoneaster may not be the first plant that you notice in the landscape, but it might be the plant keeps your attention the longest. This plant’s divaricate branching (having branches of wide angles) and its tiny dark evergreen leaves give it a sparse and angular look which is not a common sight among the green gardens in the Pacific Northwest. ...
February 2017 Plant Profile: Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Jelena’
Hamamelis x intermedia ‘Jelena’ has long been one of the most popular of the hybrid witch hazels. Flowers appear as a bright copper-orange from a distance. Closer inspection reveals a bicolored flower, being reddish at the base but changing to more of an orange yellow at the tip. Although it has relatively little scent compared to the intoxicatingly fragrant Hamamelis mollis, it is prized for its flower color. ...
January 2017 Plant Profile: Chimonanthus praecox
Very fragrant, early flowering wintersweet will make you smile. Experience it for yourself in the Arboretum's Witt Winter Garde...
August 2016 Plant Profile: Dierama pulcherrimum
Spectacular Angel’s fishing rod shines in the summer garde...
April 2016 Plant Profile: Brassica oleracea
Is that flowering kale still edible? UW farmers say "of course!"...
March 2016 Plant Profile: Abies grandis
Our native grand fir ... "is usually left in the forest to make music and distill incense."...
January 2016 Plant Profile: a Study on Sticks in the Witt Winter Garden
Get thee to the Arboretum's Witt Winter Garden and glory in the bare naked plant...