Monthly Archives: February 2015

2015 Eagle Mountain Tree & Shrub Sale

You can get some great deals right now on seedling trees and shrubs. This is through the Utah Association of Conservation Districts. Look for the link to the Timp-Nebo/Alpine Tree Sale. Bundles of 5 are priced from $10 to 17.50. They won’t ship so you’ll have to pick them up – somewhere in Utah County – it doesn’t say where. Orders will be available April 17th or 18th. When I checked the site, this is what was available, but they are sold first come first serve.

Evergreen Trees
Colorado Blue Spruce, Atlas Cedar, Mugo Pine

Deciduous Trees
Littleleaf Linden, Siouxland Cottonwood (cottonless), Amur Maple, Eastern Red Bud, Thornless Honey Locust

Shrubs
Dwarf Almond, Cotoneaster, Chokecherry (½ tree, ½ shrub), Common Purple Lilac, Common Privet, Redosier Dogwood, Forsythia, Buffaloberry, Nanking Cherry, Siberian Pea Shrub

We are going to try the Amur Maple, Nanking Cherry, Purple Lilac, Forsythia and Mugo Pine. We’ve had great luck with Mugos. We had one Forsythia that didn’t do great, but we are going to try it again in a spot with more sun.

Russian Sage

Russian sage thrives in the heat, tolerates poor soil and is resistant to deer and pests. It looks good with succulents and ornamental grasses. When we were planting I stepped on one of the 3″ plants we bought and broke it down to a 1/2″ stem with a single leaf. It didn’t bother it one bit. By the end of the summer that plant was full-size like the rest. It grows great int the rocky, alkaline soil in Eagle Mountain. Sounds good right?

Here is why I’ll never plant it again. It spreads. It sends roots out 20-30′ to pop up a new plant and it just won’t die. It is nearly impossible to remove from a yard. You’ve been warned.

russian_sage

Russian sage with purpler flowers. Also in the photo, Artimis Powis Castle, and an ornamental grass.

  • Height: 3-4′
  • Width: 3-4′
  • Sun: Full sun
  • Flowers: Summer
  • Low water requirements

Ornamental Grasses

So far any ornamental grass we have put in has thrived with little to no maintenance at all, with one exception – Compact Pampas Grass. In the fall or early spring you will need to cut most of the grasses down to the ground. Our large ones we wrapped with twine before cutting to make clean up easier.

Feather Reed Grass ‘Karl Foerster’

  • 5 Ft Tall
  • 2-3 Ft Spread
  • Full Sun
  • Zones 5-9

Compact Pampas Grass ‘Pumila’

This was a gorgeous grass but it was not a perennial here in Eagle Mountain. It didn’t last the first winter.

  • 4-5 Ft Tall
  • 2-4 Ft Spread
  • Full Sun
  • Zones 6-10

Miscanthus ‘Little Dwarf’

  • 3-4 Ft Tall
  • 2-3ft Spread
  • Full Sun
  • Zones 5-9

Blue Fescue “Elijah Blue’

  • 8-10 inches tall and wide
  • Full Sun to Partial Shade
  • Zones 4-8

Dwarf Blue Leaf Arctic Willow

The Arctic Willow grew well in Eagle Mountain. You can prune and shape them to keep the size down, but it will make you work for it for a few years.DETA-428

Don’t let the dwarf name fool you. I’ve listed the sizes here according to what we saw in our yard. They are always advertised in the 3-5′ range, but it isn’t uncommon for them to be much larger.

  • Sun: Full to partial
  • Height 5-6′
  • Width 5-8′
  • No flowers

Mockorange

I love this plant. It suffered in a highly windy area, all the flowers were gone with one gusty day. We moved it to a more protected area and it grew much better. The smell of this plant is so good! It does not require much care other than the wind protection. We didn’t have any disease issues in 4 years.

  • Botanical Name: Philadelphus x virginalis
  • Height: 6-7′
  • Spacing: 4-6′
  • Spread: 4-5′
  • Sun/Shade: Full sun to partial sun
  • Color: White blossoms
  • Foliage: Ovate 3 inch medium green leaves
  • Blooms: May – early June

Rose Glow Barberry

Barberry-roseglow

Rose Glow Japanese Barberry can grow up to 5′ tall and 4′ wide, but it is a slow grower. It will need water weekly or more often in the heat.

  • Height: 5′
  • Width: 4′
  • Full Sun

Pros

  • Pros: Deer Resistant.
  • In a mild winter they will keep many of the leaves and berries so you can have some winter color.

Cons:

  • Thorns – sharp thorns.

Canadian Chokecherry

Canadian_Chokecherry_tree

I loved this tree in the spring time. The smell and colors and big white lilac type flowers were awesome. Always the first plant to start to bud and bloom in the spring. The end of the spring though, the leaves start to turn from green to red. Which I love that it is not green all summer and adds another color to my other green plants, but the leaves look dried up and almost dead all summer and fall. It quickly becomes one of my least favorite plants and I get excited for the leaves to fall off. If it hadn’t been right in my walkway I might not have minded so much but everyone had to go past it to get to the front door.

  • 20-30 Ft Tall
  • 18-25 Ft Spread
  • Zones 2-7
  • Full Sun Partial Shade
  • Flowers in Spring