It is mid-November in Maine, and it has been nice to be out in the gardens this fall. Once we get everything cleaned up from the growing season, we can see the holes in the designs. And, you know, wherever there are holes, means that we need to get in new plants. Yes! Itsaul plants in Alpharetta Georgia is one of our favorite places to shop for garden hole fillers. 😉
Have you started receiving your 2013 plant catalogs? I have started to read through them, but I feel guilty for not being out there in the garden and enjoying this beautiful fall. This is Maine, though. Which means that winter will come, and she (or he) will be wicked. When those days are upon us, those days when you feel like you are floating on the ground as you try to walk over the crunching frost below, I will then be able to comfortably immerse my horticultural desires into all of the plant catalogs and online offerings within the confines of my warm office.
I have to admit that I am a bit impatient to see the newest plants and, on occasion, will look through different nurseries’ online offerings for what they have coming down the pike.
ItSaul Plants – Specializing in New and Hard to Find Plants
One small nursery that has burst onto the scene in recent years is ItSaul Plants.
Two brothers, Bobby and Richard Saul, are constantly breeding and releasing tough and interesting new plants. They began their operation over 20 years ago in the Atlanta, Georgia area. They now have a plant breeding company and a wholesale nursery.
The plant offerings on their website are limited, but they are unusual and one of a kind. I am amazed at the number of good, new plant introductions that they are bringing to the market. They sell their plants in plugs for other nurseries to finish growing and sell to the public, so you cannot buy directly from them unless you are a retail nursery or grower.
The ItSaul Echinacea Group
Brighter and more saturated coneflower colors.
Chasmanthium latifolium ‘River Mist’
Variegated Northern Sea Oats
I cannot pick just one plant from their site, but I want to try one of them. Here are some of my favorites, including:
– ItSauls’s entire group of new Echinacea (above) are introductions which feature wild colors (coneflowers have naturally been a pale purple) and larger flowers. Some of the newer Echinacea cultivars from other breeders have gotten a bad rap as they did not last long in the landscape. These selections should be tougher in the eastern US with our humid summers. ItSaul is a source for Echinacea ‘Harvest Moon’, ‘Solar Flare’, Echinacea ‘Jupiter (my favorite), E. ‘After Midnight’, Crazy White and many others as part of their Biy Sky Echinacea Collection.
– Chasmanthium latifolium ‘River Mist’ “variegated northern sea oats” – If you have grown northern sea oats before, then you know that this native plant is relatively easy to grow and will self seed in good soils. This variegated introduction should be a real focal point in a border or slightly shady setting. I think I have an area along a fence where this would work perfectly.
Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Big Daddy’
Can hydrangea flowers ever be big enough?
Acer palmatum ‘Ryusen‘. and Kniphofia ‘Echo Mango’
A weeping Japanese maple and a large flowered yellow-orange Kniphofia.
– This fastigiate, weeping Japanese maple named Acer palmatum ‘Ryusen.’ This may be one of the wildest looking plants that I have seen in a while. There is an area in our Children’s Garden where I think this will be spectacular.
– Kniphofia ‘Echo Mango’ – I have always liked yellow flowered Kniphofias. This new introduction promises to have larger flowers and a darker yellow-orange color.
– Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Big Daddy’ – I am a sucker for big flowers and if this plant flowers as big as it is in the photos, it will be a wonderful introduction to the garden. We have many different Hydrangea at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, and this cultivar may be a great addition to our collection.
These are just a few of the plants that I will be trying in the garden during the next year. What about you? Which nurseries (and plants) are you excited about buying from in the coming year? – Rodney
More Interesting Plants and Nurseries:
Photos: ItSaul Plants, Wayside Gardens
As a grower and owner of a retail garden center and organic perennial nursery, I can highly recommend the newly released ItSaul Echinacea ‘Solar Flare’. We grew it for our retail center and trialed it in our display gardens and it was outstanding. The large blooms are stunning. Very vigorous grower.
Thank you, Lorraine for the recommendation. We will definitely try E. ‘Solar Flare’ in the gardens.