Edgeworthia chrysantha is flowering cheerfully despite having had a 5 ton Cedar fall on it (in China Valley)

 

To be totally honest the tree fell "around " the Edgeworthia, that is to say an outline of the area where the tree had fallen would have circumscribed the Edgeworthia. Clearly there was minimal contact between the massive Cedar and the delicate Paperbush. Pretty much everything else within the "crash perimeter" was totaled. It may be my imagination but it seems like the flowers have better color this year: deeper and richer. It could be last year's excellent growing season, recent weather, or even the excellent care it receives here at the USNA, but I like to think that, nearly being crushed was a life altering experience that the Edgeworthia has responded to by stepping up it's game.

I did a little research in an attempt to get a ballpark figure for the weight of the Cedar. I came upon an interesting paper on the size and weight of Loblolly Pines in Northern Louisiana. It was a USDA paper! I've gotta think Cedars weigh, dbh to dbh, at least as much as Loblollies. A 22" dbh Pine, in their study, weighed 5,000+ pounds so our 28" Cedar would very likely have weighed double that

While I have an undeniable fondness for plants that flower from late fall to early spring, and for fragrance, by any measure this plant is a winner. Related to the genus Daphne it has a fragrance worthy of that association. And it grows and flowers happily in fairly heavy deciduous shade.Good plant.

FONA Garden Fair, and more importantly, Plant Sale: an incredible opportunity for the covetous plant geek, or even for regular gardeners

 

This is a chance to buy plants that you read about but rarely see in a Nursery. I got a sneak peek at the plant list and this is going to be like the old ones I remember so fondly. There's some good stuff coming! Over 100 pots of Trillium are on order, of 5? different taxa. Edgeworthia, two varieties, three Daphne selections, terrestrial orchids including Dactylorhiza; I've never seen that offered except through the mail or on-line. Lady's-slippers, pink and yellow and 100 pots of hardy Cyclamen, coum and hederifolia. Heucheras, Hellebores, and Hydrangeas in great numbers including new and uncommon selections. Variegated Cornus controversa, and Davidia 'Sonoma', the Dove tree that flowers in a one gallon pot.. Ten plants each of three different species of Stewartia. And Daphniphyllum, Forhergilla, hardy Gardenias, Rhododendron austrinum, two selections of that wonderful fragrant orange or yellow flowered native azalea. And a hardy Agave. And perennials: Zepheranthes, Rohdeas, Peonies....  And a weeping Parrotia, and Magnolia siebolii. I have to stop but there's lots more. And it benefits the Friend of the National Arboretum. 

And that's just what's in the FONA tent. Like last year there will be a dozen specialty Nurseries offering plants that you can almost never buy off the table. Don't ignore them. They had incredible plants last year and as difficult as it was for me to believe, took many of them home unsold. I did my best but I just couldn't buy everything and I won't be able to this year either. I'm going to need some help.