YEW DELL GARDENS
Plant picks for your home and garden, recommended by the top plant experts in the region
Written By: Dr. Paul Cappeillo
Photos by Yew Dell Gardens
For the home gardener, choosing the best plants can be a bit overwhelming. Each year, nurseries, universities, and marketing companies introduce hundreds of new plant selections, all touted as the best. Don’t forget social media is now a hub of conflicting information on what’s ideal for our region’s environment. Where does the home gardener turn to cut through all the noise?
Thankfully, there’s a list- the Theodore Klein Plant Awards.
Since 1999, a group of the region’s top plant pros representing Yew Dell Botanical Gardens, the University of Kentucky, local nurseries, design professionals, and other experienced professionals across the region sort through a gigantic list of nominees and based on their collective experience, pick the winners to be promoted to the gardening public.
Housed on Yew Dell’s website, the list of Klein Award winners run the gamut from trees and shrubs to groundcovers, evergreens, herbaceous perennials and vines. And because the award is based on plant performance around Kentucky, you can be sure that they are all well adapted to the regional climate. So, no matter how you garden or what style landscape you prefer, there are selections that will help you be more successful.
Plant Photos by Theodore Klein Awards
Shade Tree
Peking Lilac – Syringa reticulata subsp. pekinensis Great Wall® (‘WFH2’), Beijing GoldTM (‘Zhang Zhiming’) A tough and durable Asian native that is best known for masses of white, fragrant flowers in early summer, and mahogany-colored, peeling bark. Easy to grow in a wide range of soils. Beijing GoldTM offers creamy yellow flowers while Great Wall® was selected for upright, uniform growth and vigorous bloom set.
Cold Hardiness Zone 3-7 Size 25-35 feet tall Light Requirements Full Sun Flowering Time Summer Kentucky Native No |
Small Flowering Tree
Magnolia ‘Sunsation’ One of the latest yellow-flowered magnolias available, this hybrid of a native Kentucky species tends to miss the frosts that hit most spring-blooming magnolias. Spring branches are covered with large, fragrant, yellow blooms with pink/green basal highlights. It grows to form an upright 25-40’-tall tree with light gray bark. Plant in full sun and water through dry spells.
Cold Hardiness Zone 5-8 Size 25’-40’ Light Requirements Full Sun Flowering Time Spring Kentucky Native Hybrid of Kentucky native M. acuminata var subcordata and two Asian species |
Korean Spice Viburnum – Viburnum carlesii ‘Select S’ (Sugar ‘n SpiceTM), ‘Compactum’, ‘Aurora’
This dense-growing shrub is best known for intensely fragrant flowers that start dark pink/red in bud and open to white. Slightly fuzzy, medium green summer foliage turns to shades of wine, red and orange. Drought tolerant once established and easy to grow. ‘Compactum’ grows to 3’-4’ tall and wide with smaller, white blooms. Sugar ‘n SpiceTM was selected for smaller but more numerous blooms. ‘Aurora’ has very deep red flower buds and is an RHS Award of Garden Merit winner.
Cold Hardiness Zone 5-9 Size 4’-6’ tall and wide Light Requirements Full Sun/Light Shade Flowering Time Spring Kentucky Native No |
Korean Pine – Pinus koraiensis
This uncommon evergreen grows to about 60’ tall with a loosely upright, pyramidal outline. Four to five-inch-long, blue/green needles are fine and in texture and provide a soft feel to the entire plant. Plant in full sun in all but very dry or very wet soil and it will reward with years of mostly trouble-free growth.
Cold Hardiness Zone 4-7 Size 60’ Tall Light Requirements Full Sun Flowering Time N/A Kentucky Native No |
Little Blue Stem – Schizachyrium scoparium ‘Standing Ovation’
This outstanding native grass forms 3’-4’ tall masses of fine textured, strongly erect foliage and summer clouds of seedheads that last well into winter. While many Blue Stem forms have a hard time standing up in the garden, ‘Standing Ovation’ stands tall all through the season. Incredibly drought tolerant and pest resistant. Best in masses where its blue/green summer foliage and purple/blue fall display look best.
Cold Hardiness Zone 3-7 Size 3’-4’ Tall Light Requirements Full Sun Flowering Time Summer Kentucky Native Yes |
Woodland Phlox – Phlox divaricata ‘Blue Moon’, ‘May Breeze’
This well-behaved, spreading groundcover forms loose mats of fine-textured foliage that is covered with lightly fragrant, blue/lavender to rose/pink flowers in spring. Fairly drought tolerant once established, the only care needed is an occasional cut back to refresh foliage in mid-summer. Deer resistant and easy to grow. ‘May Breeze’ is an excellent selection with white flowers that can age to a pale purple. ‘Blue Moon’ is generally considered one of the best blue selections.
Cold Hardiness Zone 4-7 Size 1 foot tall Light Requirements Part Sun/Part Shade Flowering Time Spring Kentucky Native Yes |