For those that were on the zoom meeting Feb 14th, we are sorry we had some technical difficulties with the video of Eleanor Frye's garden in Chattanooga, TN that Judson LeCompte, PhD had visited. Here is the link https://youtu.be/E0M19-JrM7w

For those that would like to see the entire presentation, it will be on the Youtube Channel Mid to late March.

Thank you,

Jeff

We are excited to announce that the ACS Central Region January 2025 Lecture Series is now available on our YouTube channel! This series features a lineup of expert speakers who shared their knowledge on various topics related to landscape design and conifers. Here’s a summary of the lectures:

Bill Eagleson kicked off the series with a fascinating discussion on the art of incorporating rocks and boulders into landscape design. Tess Park complemented his presentation with stunning conifer pictures that highlight winter interest.

Brian Heinz provided insights into the dwarf conifer collection at Spring Grove and discussed plans to update it with new plants sourced from the greater Cincinnati area and ACS members. He also highlighted the contributions of notable figures such as Randy Dykstra, Bill Barger, the late Doc West, Chris Daeger, Gary Gee, and Byron Baxter.

Tony Reznicek, a polished presenter with a vast body of knowledge, spoke on "Mass Murder in the Rock Garden." Be sure to check out his video.

Dave Dannaher concluded the series with expert advice on pruning conifers. He shared techniques and tips to help you maintain healthy and beautiful conifer specimens.

Don't miss out on these informative and engaging lectures! Head over to our YouTube channel to watch the full series.

Conifer of the Month: Calocedrus decurrens 'Berrima Gold'

Click here to read the article.

Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at  https://www.robertfincham.com/

An alpine area is commonly found in a mountainous area at an altitude near the snow line. The climate is harsh with poor soils causing slow plant growth and all sorts of twisted, misshapen, and dwarf conifers. These plants are not genetically dwarf and if brought down into more conducive conditions they will resume normal growth, provided the conifer survives the transplanting. 

In many areas of the world, the alpine conifers are often tight mounds, a condition due to genetics, such as Pinus mugo v. pumilio, or animal grazing constantly pruning the new growth. This shape is the most common shape in rock gardens, since most dwarf conifers grow in this way. The pines most suitable for a rock garden that grow naturally in this way were covered in my October issue of this newsletter. 

Read the full article here.

Bob's News and Musings. Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at  https://www.robertfincham.com/

Blast from the Past: Jerry Morris

If there was a Hall of Fame for “Broomers”, Jerry Morris would be the Charter Member and first person to be entered. His territory was vast. It mainly included the mountains of the western United States that make up the Rockies and the Sierra Nevada ranges.

Read the full article here.

Bob's News and Musings. Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at https://www.robertfincham.com/

The planting feature known as a ‘rock garden’ takes on many different forms. But the true rock garden is a representation of a alpine area that has been reduced in scale and brought into a home landscape. It consists of rocks (of course), well drained soils, and an assortment of alpine plants suited for the gardener’s part of the country. These alpine plants are mostly herbaceous plants that stay small and/or low and generally produce flowers sometime during the spring or summer.

Read the full article here.

Bob's News and Musings. Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at https://www.robertfincham.com/ .

The twig is called a scion, while the seedling is called an understock. The origin of the term scion can be traced back to its definition as “the descendant of a notable family.” However, the source of the term understock is more evident since it is the lower or underpart of the newly created plant.

Here I want to focus on conifer grafting. I will have comments on deciduous grafting in a future newsletter.

The choice of understock is relatively simple, but some considerations need to be followed. The species of the cultivar must be related to the seedling’s species, and the process of grafting can have various effects on the resultant plant.

Cultivars of Abies (true firs) are compatible with any of the various Abies species of understock. However, the actual selections are restricted to a few species mainly due to availability considerations.

For example, three fir species are most commonly used in North America. Abies balsamea is possibly the most popular species used. The plants created cannot be grown in warmer climates as the roots cannot withstand constant high temperatures and hot sun. Abies fraseri is preferred in the northwest since greenhouses are exceptionally humid during the grafting season, and winters are mild and wet. This species appears to tolerate these conditions better than balsamea. Cultivars propagated on this species can be grown in a broader range of climates.

Read the full article here.

Bob's News and Musings. Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at https://www.robertfincham.com/ .

The Dantsugi he created at Iseli Nursery, which caused the most comment used a fastigiate Larix in the center of a large cedar box with two globose plants at its base. I believe the globose plants were grafted onto lower branches, but they may have been two other plants located in the same cedar box.

When Coenosium Gardens was active, I used to propagate grafted standards and did some experimentation with Dantsugi creations. Once, I grafted ten different dwarf forms of Pinus strobus onto an eight-foot-tall tree that had been dug and set in a greenhouse. I figured it was one way of collecting dwarf conifers on one tree. But, unfortunately, I had to leave it behind during one of my moves.

Read the full article here.

Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at  https://www.robertfincham.com/.

Fagus sylvatica ‘Dawyck Purple’ is a ‘Dawyck’ seedling from 1968. In this case the male parent was a purple beech. ‘Dawyck Purple’ has the growth habit of ‘Dawyck’ with dark-purple leaves. The color remains quite dark through most of the growing season. Its foliage maintains the dark red color well into the summer as compared to ‘Red Obelisk’, which bronzes slightly. However, the ‘red Obelisk’ creates a tighter column as it ages.

Read the full article here.

Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at  https://www.robertfincham.com/.

During the late 1970’s Al Fordham had told me to visit Dr. Sidney Waxman at the University of Connecticut. When I visited Waxman and had a tour of his facility, I was amazed. There were thousands of witches’ broom seedlings growing in long, straight rows. He had been working with them long enough that he was starting to make some selections.

His first introductions were selections of Pinus strobus. He showed me the original plants of Pinus strobus ‘UConn’, ‘Green Shadow’, ‘Blue Shag’, and ‘Sea Urchin’ and I arranged for him to send me scion wood from all of them. Over the years Pinus strobus ‘Blue Shag’ has become a popular replacement for Pinus strobus ‘Nana’ due to its similar growth rate and improved color. Two of the others, ‘UConn’ and ‘Green Shadow’ have seen limited popularity, possibly due to their faster growth rates.

Pinus strobus ‘Sea Urchin’ is the most dwarf of all Wax-man’s introductions. He found it was more difficult to propagate than the others, but its diminutive size and excellent color made it a popular choice for smaller gardens. Its slow growth rate means that the “quick buck” nurseries will not produce it, but enough of the better nurseries offer it to make it relatively easy to locate. Pinus strobus ‘Sea Urchin’ is a dwarf shrub that develops into a dense, low, bluish mound. It grows about 2” (5 cm) per year, and its foliage is bluish-green with short needles. Each year before the new growth appears, the old needles need to be cleaned out from the interior of the plant. All of the dwarf Pinus strobus tend to trap their old, fallen needles inside the plant which can lead to disease problems.

Use Pinus strobus ‘Sea Urchin’ wherever a bluish cushion is desired in the garden. It is a wonderful choice for a rock garden or a miniature conifer garden or a foundation planting. Do not mix it with larger growing perennials since they will tend to smother it.

Read the full article here.

Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at  https://www.robertfincham.com/.

From 1974 until 2013, I was an avid conifer collector. I had cutting privileges at several arboretums in the Northeast and traded plants with collectors worldwide. At one point, I had over a thousand selections actively growing in my Eatonville Garden. I used my garden to display conifers for enjoyment and show visitors how they grew. The garden, with its many different areas, was a sales tool, a source of propagation material, and a source of beauty with the myriad of shapes and colors found within each section. 

Read the full article here.

Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at  https://www.robertfincham.com/.

Read the full article here.

Bob's News and Musings. Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at https://www.robertfincham.com/.

It was a massive operation, and the collection quickly became world-famous in its new home. It was an opportunity to capitalize on the publicity and begin a conifer society. However, nobody was interested in creating a conifer society at that time. Montgomery and Jenkins were gone, and no individual had replaced them."

Read the full article here.

During the late 1930s, Col. Robert H. Montgomery tried to generate interest in forming a conifer society. He was an active conifer collector who had established a world-class collection at his estate in Greenwich, Connecticut. I believe he came up with the idea after Arthur Slavin reported on the status of cultivated conifers in the United States, which he presented at the International Conifer Conference held by the Royal Horticultural Society in 1931.

Slavin was the Chief Horticulturist in the Bureau of Parks, Rochester, New York. He mentions the extensive collections of conifers at the Hunnewell Estate in Wellesley, Massachusetts (the oldest pinetum in the United States) and the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plains, Massachusetts (the second oldest pinetum) in his report. However, the report focuses on the Highland Park Collection (1896) and the Durand Eastman Park Collection (1912).

Hornibrook was busy updating his classic book on dwarf conifers. Montgomery thought the country was ready for a conifer society, especially since there were over 500 dwarf varieties described in Hornibrook’s new edition. Unfortunately, his call to begin a conifer society generated little interest."

Read the full article here.

Bob's News and Musings. Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at https://www.robertfincham.com/ .

Golden foliage that is shaded will also turn green as more chlorophyll survives to capture more energy from the reduced light level. Golden conifers in the full sun will often become brighter as the chlorophyll level is reduced and may become more sensitive to foliage burn with a reduced growth rate.” 

Read the full article here.

Bob's News and Musings. Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at https://www.robertfincham.com/. 

Read the full article here.

Bob's News and Musings. Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at https://www.robertfincham.com/.

"In the small town of Oelwein Iowa, two brothers, Gary and Tom Whittenbaugh have created a garden that is geographically small but gigantic in all other ways. It is well known throughout the Midwest and visitors are always made welcome.

I have visited Gary and Tom many times over the past forty or so years. I have always enjoyed these visits and marveled at what they accomplished on their small city lot.

Gary is the plantsman, who has always been a strong ambassador for the American Conifer Society. Tom is the artist, who has added many features to the garden to heighten the interest way beyond the plant treasures found in its every corner."

Read the full article here.

Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at  https://www.robertfincham.com/.

Read the full article here.

Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at https://www.robertfincham.com/.

Read the full article here.

Article presented courtesy of ACS member Bob Fincham, and originally posted at https://www.robertfincham.com/.