Category Archives: Horticulture Reports

Oregon Native Plant: Eriogonum umbellatum

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Plant Name: Eriogonum umbellatum
Common name:  Sulphur Flower Buckwheat
Plant type: Herbaceous Perennial
Height:  ½’ – 1’
Spread: 1’ – 3’
Bloom Time: May – September
Flower Color:  Cream or Yellow
Exposure: Sun, Part Shade
Soil Requirements:  Gravelly Soil
Water Needs: Low
Attributes:    Leaves are green above and gray-woolly beneath.  Flower clusters occur on 6-9 in. stems. The cream to sulfur-yellow, tubular flowers fade to orange or red.  Flowers are showy & fragrant. Drought- tolerant

Note:   This is an exceedingly variable species with many different varieties & subspecies, and this adds to the difficulties of identification in a complex group of similar western species. Because the species is so variable, it is especially important to choose material from a habitat that matches your site.  Propagate by thickly planting seed; does not transplant well due to long tap root.

Uses:  Attracts butterflies, native bees, & birds. Native Gardens; Rock Gardens; Pollinator gardens; Dry rocky slopes.
Native to:  California, Oregon, Western US & Canada
Oregon Native:  YES
USDA Hardiness Zone:  4 – 8

Find seeds through native seed growers: Klamath-Siskiyou Native Seeds, and  Plant World Seeds

Report by: Viki Ashford,
Photo 1 by: Carlotta Lucas
Photo 2 by: Klamath-Siskiyou Native Seeds

Horticulture Report: Lewis’ Mock Orange

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Plant Name:  Philadelphus lewisii
Common name:  Lewis’ Mock Orange
Plant type:       Deciduous Shrub
Height: 5’ – 10’
Spread:   6’
Bloom Time: Late May- July
Flower Color:  White with Yellow Anthers
Exposure: Sun to Part Shade
Soil Requirements:  Thrives in most garden soil
Water Needs: Low Moisture
Attributes:   Showy Fragrant Flowers; Broadly arching; Attracts Butterflies & bees; Deer Resistant; Use as a Hedge
Note:   Prune after bloom
Uses:  Hedge, Native Garden, Pollinator Garden, Cottage Garden, Perennial Garden
Native to: British Columbia to Northern California
Oregon Native:  YES
USDA Hardiness Zone:  4 – 9  ( Blizzard Mock Orange hardiness 2B-3)

Submitted by: Viki Ashford, Ashland Garden Club

Oregon Native: Hooker’s Fairy Bell

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Plant Name: Disporum hookeri
Common name:Hooker’s Fairy Bell
Plant type:Perennial
Height: 1’ – 3’
Spread: 2’ – 3’
Bloom Time:Late Spring
Flower Color:White
Exposure: Partial to Full Shade
Soil Requirements: Average to rich in organic content
Water Needs: Moist
Attributes:Fall red berries; Flowers attract native bees & other pollinators; Ground-feeding birds eat berries.
Uses: Deep Shade Gardens, Native Gardens, Forested areas, Slopes, Pollinator Gardens
Native to: Washington/Oregon
Oregon Native: YES
USDA Hardiness Zone:4b – 8b

Report Submitted by: Viki Ashford

Black Lace Elderberry

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Plant Name:  Sambucus nigra ‘Black Lace’
Common name: Black Lace Elderberry
Plant type:  Deciduous Shrub
Height:  72” – 96”
Spread: 72” – 96”
Bloom Time: Spring
Flower Color:  Pink
Exposure: Full to Part Sun
Soil Requirements:  Moist, Acidic to Alkaline Soil
Water Needs: Average
Attributes:  Pink Flowers contrast with Purple Black Foliage.  Berries.  Fall Interest.  Deer Resistant.
Note:  Good in Wet Soil.  Prune immediately after Bloom.  Fertilize in Spring with Granular Fertilizer.
Uses:  Potted Plant Specimen; Hedge.
Native to: Europe, Northern Africa, Southwestern Asia
Oregon Native:  NO
USDA Hardiness Zone:  4a – 7b

Report submitted by: Viki Ashford

Oregon Native: Red Baneberry

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Plant Name:  Actaea rubra Common name:  Red Baneberry Plant type:  Perennial Herb Height: 1.3’ – 2.6’ Spread: 1′ Bloom Time:  Spring-Summer Flower Color:  White Exposure: Part to Full Shade Soil Requirements:  Tolerates variety of garden soils with moisture. Water Needs: Low to High Attributes:  Deer Resistant; Shade Garden Plant with Red Berries NOTE:   Berries are POISONOUS, but not to birds.  Plants don’t flower until third year. Uses:  Bank Stabilization, Shade Gardens, Native Gardens Native to: North America Oregon Native:  YES USDA Hardiness Zone:  3-8 Report submitted by:  Viki Ashford Photo by: Julie Makin, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Horticulture Report: Coffeeberry

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Plant Name: Rhamnus californica ‘Eve Case’
Common name: Coffeeberry
Plant type: Evergreen Shrub
Height: 6’ – 8’
Spread: 6’ – 8’
Bloom Time: Spring
Flower Color: Greenish White
Exposure: Sun or Shade
Soil Requirements: Will grow in most soils
Water Needs: Low Water Needs; Drought Tolerant
Attributes: It has dark green leaves on reddish stems. After flowering, berries follow that are first green then red and finally black when ripe. Fast growing shrub. Fairly deer resistant.
Note: High summer heat may cause fronds to brown by mid to late summer, particularly if good soil moisture is not maintained and/or plants are grown in too much sun.
Uses: Attracts Pollinators; Larval food source for Swallowtail Butterfly
Native to: North America
Oregon Native: NO- Native to California
USDA Hardiness Zone: 6-10

Report by: Viki Ashford

Photo /upload.wikimedia.org: Taken by Brofri [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]