Regional Picks: Summer Standouts – Southern Plains

1. Little Henry®Virginia Sweetspire

Name:Itea virginica‘Sprich’

USDA Hardiness Zones:5 to 9

Size:2 to 3 feet tall and wide

condition : Full sun to fond nicety ; moist , more or less acidic soil

A dwarf rendering of ‘ Henry ’s Garnet ’ , Little Henry ® Virginia sweetspire is excellent for create people of color , from pure white blossoms that flow from late spring into former summertime to rich unripened leafage that release flare red in autumn . It excels in borders , brightens woodland garden , and add together drama to containers . It can also be mass as a tall ground cover . Compact size and drought tolerance make minuscule Henry ® improbably versatile . Prune after heyday because flowers form on old woodwind instrument .

2. ‘Cloud Nine’ Switchgrass

Name:Panicum virgatum‘Cloud Nine’

Zones:5 to 9

Size:6 to 7 foot improbable and 2 to 3 feet wide

Conditions : Full sun ; fair to dampish soil

‘ Cloud Nine ’ switchgrass induce a dramatic focal full point with its superb vase build , faint metal blue leaf , and golden plumes that emerge in summer and remain through wintertime . It ’s spectacular when illumine by sunlight , and it dance in the slightest breeze . ‘ Cloud Nine ’ is drought broad and excellent for mass planting . Cut clumps back to the land in late winter or early spring , and avert overwatering .

3. Sunshine Blue®Caryopteris

Name:Caryopteris incana‘Jason’

Zones:5 to 11

Size:2 to 4 feet tall and broad

Conditions : Full sun ; dry to average , well - drained stain

Vibrant and sunny , this shrub has favourable foliage that holds its color throughout the summer . Vivid , amethyst blue flowers erupt from late summer through fall , when many other plants are past their prime . Caryopteris may die back to the ground in Zones 5 and 6 but will send out up new development in spring ; dieback will not dissemble blooming because caryopteris flowers on new wood . Prune in former bounce to remove dead Grant Wood or to exert the industrial plant ’s size in southerly gardens . A utilitarian plant in wry , cheery domain , Sunshine Blue ® caryopteris adds color and contrast to any garden and is drought tolerant once established .

4. Cup Plant

Name:Silphium perfoliatum

Size:6 to 10 feet tall and 3 to 6 feet wide

This native heavyweight ask attention . daze daisylike yellow flowers place upright improbable above the foliation from July through October . The coarse leaves are meld in pairs along the stem to form cups that collect water . Goldfinches and other birds drink from the cup and are also fond of the plant ’s seeds . The mass of cupful plant is impressive and restrict its use to large gardens . A tough industrial plant of the tall grass prairie , it can spread out by rhizome or cum . Allow loving cup plant life plenty of room , and carve up it in spring as needed .

Kimberly Toscano is consumer horticulturist at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater , and innkeeper of the television computer programme Oklahoma Gardening .

exposure : Bill Johnson , Steve Aitken , Jerry Pavia

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Regional Picks: Summer Standouts - Northeast

Regional Picks: Summer Standouts - Midwest

Regional Picks: Summer Standouts - Northwest

Regional Picks: Summer Standouts - Southern California

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