Here is another set of pictures from Dawes Arboretum. The hillside arbor includes wooden steps to climb up and down a fairly steep hillside incline- it is underplanted with shade loving plants, many hostas and some ephemerals like dicentras.
The upper right is a strong pink purple lilac against the dogwoods display behind. this hillside area deep inside the arboretum shows what many commonly used landscape shrubs look like when full grown. During this visit the air was aromatic with lilacs and viburnums, while dogwoods dominated the visual field with their abundant blooms. Clockwise, below, was an interesting specimen of a weeping and twisted redbud tree. It’s name was “Lavender Twist”.
Dawes has a number of Fothergilla shrubs at the entrance area, near their famous stand of Bald Cypress trees. The photo lower right is of their bloom. Then finally, the lower left is of a barberry bloom. That one surprised me. It was very showy in a pleasant sort of way, with it cheerful yellow balls. This would be blooming with daffodils that are a little late coming on (I have some small buttery yellow doubles that are blooming now that would look very pretty underneath this shrub.)
Sometimes it is difficult to visualize a plant from just words and dry dimensions on a page, and photos don’t tell you all the information, sometimes even distorting your senses. An arboretum does such a wonderful public service for all levels of gardeners, in showing real plants well marked with their names.
Here is a full size picture of that odd little redbud tree:
Be sure to see Gardens in Ohio.
