Woody Ornamentals

Coral Bark Willow ('Chermesina') has stunning orange to red bark coloration in winter on its first year stems, so in order to keep it looking its best, this is a Salix which needs to be cut back hard every spring. The summer foliage is the classic narrow green willow leaf we all know, but its color in the winter landscape will really stand out. Originally introduced from Germany. Wet site tolerant.

'Mt. Aso' Japanese Pussy Willow has beautiful bright pink male catkins appearing in March and April.  The fuzzy flowers slowly elongate as they open, ending up almost 2" long by the time the pollen is exposed.  Pussy Willows make great cut branches for forcing in January and February, and 'Mt Aso' is a particularly showy form.  It is named for Japan's largest active volcano.  Cut back the branches to 2' every 2 or 3 years to maintain good catkin production.

PRN Preferred:  The prettiest and most showy of the Pussy Willows.

'Swizzlestick' Corkscrew Willow has twisted, upward-reaching orange-yellow stems that display themselves beautifully in fall, winter and spring. The narrow green leaves are attractive all summer, turning yellow in the fall. Salix 'Swizzlestick' thrives in wet locations and is also salt tolerant. The original plant was found and named by Darryll Probst, who saw it on a roadside and took cuttings. Cut back hard in spring to promote attractive new branches. They also make a great addition to cut flower arrangements.

PRN Preferred:  Really fantastic as winter cut branches, for both color and structure.

'Adams' American Elder is a fruit-bearing native with a long history of use in our country. The green pinnate leaves are borne on long pithy stems which grow in a suckering clump. The flowers are large flat white cymes blooming in June and July, covering the tips of the arching branches. They are followed by purple black edible fruit in August and September. S. 'Adams' was selected by William Adams of NY for the size and quantity of the fruit, which has been an excellent source of wine, jam, and pies. Sambucus tolerates both wet and dry sites, and provides an important source of fall food for birds. It would be more attractive as an addition to the landscape if cut back hard every spring.

Fragrant Valley™ ('SarSid1') Sweetbox is also a very uniform selection from Canada, but its compact, thick habit is much lower growing, and makes a wonderful low evergreen groundcover. Its fragrant white flowers appear in spring over dark green shiny leaves, and its disease-resistant and deer-resistant qualities make it ideal for shady dry sites. 2021 PHS Gold Medal Plant.

Common Sassafras is a lovely small native tree that is hard to find in the trade because of the difficulty moving it B&B. We grow it in containers for that reason, and love its variable multi-shaped leaves. The flowers appear in early April and are an attractive chartreuse yellow, making a show before the leaves appear. The fall color varies from yellow to orange bronze. The root bark has been used traditionally to make an interesting tea or root beer. If you have a mature female tree, be sure to look closely at the summer fruit, which is one of the prettiest we've ever seen, with red pedicels and orange yellow bases on purple fruits, looking like match-sticks. Sassafras is a host plant for various butterflies.  Prefers good moisture and organic matter. Sassafras, like Betula, is a pioneer species, so it performs well in disturbed sites.

The new leaves of 'Sem' False Spirea emerge orange-red, set off by chartreuse yellow older foliage in spring and early summer. Large fluffy white panicles start in July when the foliage has turned a uniform light green. Texture of plant is light and airy with delicate pinnate leaf form. Suckering habit.

'Tor' Birchleaf Spirea is a little-used tough plant with several attractive attributes. The white flowers appear in compact dome-like clusters in May, above increasingly dark green clean foliage. The foliage turns to lovely shades of gold, bronze, and red in fall, and is one of the showiest Spireas by far for fall interest. Our friend, John Story first brought it to our attention for its fall color, and since it is deer-resistant as well as very hardy, it deserves more usage.

'Anthony Waterer' Spiraea has new growth that emerges reddish-purple in spring, turning to light green in summer and wine-red in fall. Flowers are rose-red and bloom for an extended period starting in June. Summer trimming increases the flower show.  'Anthony Waterer' shows good salt tolerance.

Candy Corn® ('NCSX1') Spiraea is a very showy addition to Spring Meadows's Double Play® series.  The foliage emerges in early spring in shades of red, turning to yellow and orange as the leaves mature.  The pinkish purple flowers appear in May and June. If trimmed lightly after blooming, Spiraea Candy Corn® will continue to produce to produce the beautiful contrasting new growth.  Spiraea Double Play® Candy Corn® comes from the great breeding work done at NC State.

PRN Preferred: The multi-colored new growth is even more beautiful than the early summer flowers. Trim after blooming to get a reflush of new growth.

Magic Carpet™ Spirea has deep pink flowers that start in May and continue through summer if trimmed after blooming. The new red foliage ages to chartreuse. It has great fall foliage, in shades of yellow and orange.  Introduced by David Tristram of the U.K.

'Neon Flash' Spirea has rose-red flowers in May through July with new foliage emerging with a purple tinge before turning green in summer. It reblooms well, especially if trimmed after blooming. An improved form of Anthony Waterer, it was introduced by Barry Yinger and Brookside Gardens.

Double Play® Blue Kazoo® ('SMSMBK') Spiraea produces dusty blue foliage, with bronzy new growth in spring and early summer.  The delicate white flower clusters are produced in May and June, and make an attractive compliment to the bluish green leaves.  In the fall the foliage of Spiraea media Double Play® Blue Kazoo® takes on attractive shades of red.  A recent introduction from Spring Meadows, this Spiraea would be useful as a colorful low hedge or as a foundation plant.

'Ogon' Spirea has white flowers in March and April, with small narrow bright yellow leaves which turn to bronze in fall, odd but showy. It does best with repeated pruning. The deer resistance is excellent.  This is our favorite Spiraea by far.

Vanhoutte Spiraea is a classic Victorian garden staple, blooming reliably every year is April and May, while adding graceful arching green branches to the landscape in summer.  When in bloom in mass, Spiraea x vanhouttei looks like "a cresting wave of white", to quote our sister Louise Gross.  Blooming on new growth, Vanhoutte Spiraea performs very well to periodic trimming, and can be used to make a tough but showy hedge, as well as a stand alone specimen.  The small leaves are fine textured and very clean.  Resulting from a cross between S. trilobata and S. cantoniensis.

A fast growing shrub with delicate maple-like leaves, Cutleaf Stephanandra makes a very tough groundcover for banks, masses and shady locations. The new growth is bronze, turning to a clear light green. Flowers are an inconspicuous ivory white in June. It is used as a bank stabilizer at UVA.

Korean Stewartia features white Camellia-like flowers which appear in June.  Based on our experience, the flower of S. koreana is more upright and slightly larger than S. pseudocamellia.  Stewartia has exfoliating bark in shades of tan and gray and beautiful burgundy-red fall foliage.  A wonderful plant in all four seasons.

Japanese Stewartia is almost identical to Stewartia koreana in habit and exfoliating back characteristics.  The only difference we have observed is that Stewartia pseudocamellia's lovely white flowers appear somewhat later in June, and are a little bit smaller.  The Camellia-like flowers are accented by showy yellow stamens, and are produced for several weeks.  They are a source of pollen for a number of native pollinators, and are followed by interesting printed brown seed capsules in fall.  The fall foliage is shades of yellow, red and purple, and the patchy multi-colored bark is beautiful all winter.

'Evening Light' Japanese Snowbell is an exciting new color break for this lovely small ornamental tree. The leaves emerge for a glossy purple in spring, followed be graceful hanging white bells. The growth habit is slow, resulting in an upright, vase shaped tree which fits well into small, sunny spots in the garden. When Styrax 'Evening Light' is in bloom, pollinators flock to the fragrant flowers. Found as a chance seeding by Henry Kolster of the Netherlands.

PRN Preferred: The purple spring leaves make a really showy setting for the multitude of delicate white bells.

Magical® Mandy (‘Kolmaman’) Snowberry produces small pink flowers in early summer all along the stems. These are followed by large soft pink berries which resemble pearls. The fruits of Symphoricarpos x Magical® Mandy appear in early fall and persist into early winter, making a showy addition to the autumn landscape. Magical® Mandy makes a dramatic hedge for fall, or can be used as a specimen plant. The heavily berried branches are great in cut flower arrangements. Hybridized by Kolster BV of the Netherlands.

Proud Berry® ('Sofie') Coralberry is an improved version of Amethyst™ Coralberry, bred by Catharina Hoekstra-Arisz of the Netherlands.  This lovely upright shrub produces round neat foliage in shades of blue green, which makes an attractive backdrop for the pink bell-shaped flowers in late summer.  The showy large berries are produced in fall in vivid shades of pink.  The color deepens as the weather cools, and the remaining fruit often provides food for birds in late winter.  Symphoricarpos Proven Winners® Color Choice® Proud Berry® fruits most prolifically after an early spring pruning.

Summer Charm® (‘DTR124’) Pekin Lilac was introduced a long time ago by noted nurseryman Bill Wandell, but is still a great ornamental tree choice. Syringa pekinensis Summer Charm® is a subspecies of Syringa reticulata, with lustrous dark green foliage and lovely creamy white fragrant flowers in June. The panicles take on shades of pale yellow as they age, and they are followed by interesting brown seed capsules in clusters. An added interest comes in winter when Syringa Summer Charm® has amber exfoliating bark and a neat upright oval habit.

'Ivory Silk' Japanese Tree Lilac has creamy white flower clusters in June that are displayed on top of dark green lustrous foliage. Makes a lovely, summer-interest small tree. Bark on the branches is an attractive reddish-brown in winter. An introduction from Sheridan Nursery of Ontario, Canada. We grow them treeform only.

Proven Winners® Color Choice® Bloomerang® Dark Purple ('SMSJBP7') Lilac is a compact rebloomer, producing purple flower clumps in late spring and then again in late summer to early fall.  The fragrant flowers are plentiful, attracting butterflies and pollinators.  The leaves are small and neat, without the foliar problems of French Lilacs, and Syringa x Bloomerang Dark Purple can be pruned to make a neat, showy hedge as well as being used as a specimen.