Plant of the Week: Spiraea x vanhouttei 'Pink Ice'

Hi Plant Peeps. What to choose, what to choose for the plant of the week? So many plants are worthy of a post, as you fellow plant lovers know. 

After much contemplation, I decided to go with this lovely variegated Spiraea. Spiraea x vanhouttei 'Pink Ice.'

This plant is one of the legacies of the now-defunct Fry Road Nursery. It came as a spunky little thing, in a four inch pot or it could have been a plug since I bought a lot of my plants that way back in the day. This one specifically in the year 2009. 

Any plant with "pink" in its name will pique my interest and I swoon over variegated foliage too. I was defenseless against this beauty. 

This is how it looked a few weeks ago as the flower buds were forming. 
 

The little sputnik flower buds, protruding from their bright pink petioles are utterly charming.

Eventually, the pink fades to white, and the little buds open to flossy flowers, attractive to bees.

 And then after a week or so, the petals fade and fall off. 

This picture was taken in 2018

One other nice thing about this plant is that there is lots of new growth at the base. This means that rather than having to deadhead to keep it looking tidy all season, a gardener can cut back the woody stems to the ground. This opens up the plant so the new growth can stretch and grow.

Then, until fall, we are bedazzled with green and cream--with a touch of pink--variegated leaves. Like most, if not all in the genus Spiraea, this one is deciduous so it appears as nothing but sticks in winter. Unlike most Spiraea, however, this one doesn't get that disappointing foliar mildew. (Maybe I'm the only one with this troubling annoyance?)

I've found 'Pink Ice' super easy to grow.  Mine is in dappled shade in the morning and a few hours of sun in the afternoon.

It is about 2 feet and 3 feet tall and wide right now.

Pink Ice Spiraea is winter-hardy in Zones 3-9. See more photos and prose here: Plant Lust

Below is a really crappy photo of 'Pink Ice' in August. 

(PS. I'm not receiving any compensation for these Plant of the Week posts, [unless you want to pay me]. Just having fun, sharing what I love.) 

Thank you for visiting. Go ahead and tell me what you think.

The Middle of July

With many of the garden bloggers posting photos of the Garden Bloggers' Fling, I'm afraid my photos will be kind of boring. Last Friday, however some of my garden peeps and I took a trip to Dancing Oaks Nursery. I didn't take a lot of photos because it was a little toasty but I did get a few shots to share.

Fred and Leonard, proprietors and gardeners extraordinaire have such a full, exuberant garden. I love how they allow things to grow where they want. No fussiness here, just down to earth, awesomeness. The area near the checkout building had a large patch of milkweed (Asclepias speciosa) just finishing its blooming. I was kind of jealous. Here is a photo. 

The milkweed at Dancing Oaks

The milkweed in my garden. Not quite as spectacular but, we're getting there. 

Here is my pink milkweed (Asclepias incarnata 'Cinderella')
Still no monarch butterflies but I'm hoping. 

One of the plants in Fred and Leonard's garden that I've been ogling over for a few years now is Epilobium fleischeri. A relative of the native Fireweed, (Epilobium angustifolium) which I also love and grow in my garden, I love the wispy, airy elegance of E. fleischeri. Plus it's a sun-loving, drought tolerant stalwart. It was growing in several places in their garden. My photos don't do it justice. 

No bees in this photo but trust me, they were all over this plant.

Here's another photo. It doesn't get  more than 3 feet tall and wide. 

A few more clumps of it. Kind of reminds me of Gaura. 

Viewing the garden was an education on winter hardiness. There were a lot of survivors, despite a cruel, plant killing winter. 

Here is a photo I took a few years ago. (Like a dimwit I was too awestruck to get a photo this time.)
Notice the dark foliage on the Eucomis 'Sparkling Burgundy'?
Well, this plant survived temperatures down below zero F last winter.

Here are some photos I took in the hoop house. Look at all the different varieties they sell. 

This cute little butterfly captivated us. Blurry, but you get the idea.
Anyway, after seeing my friend Annie's Eucomis survive and seeing these, I'm going to
be planting some this fall.  

Back in my humble garden:

Check out my happy hollyhocks.
Never have they looked so good. For some gardeners they grow like weeds,
but I have to really baby them. But I'm loving the results.

Phlox ... Darn it. I don't have the cultivar name. 

They're looking good though, aren't they?

My first Dahlia blossoms--pink, of course. 

Rudbeckia 'Cherry Brandy' now in full bloom. 

More Phlox and Galega 

Echinacea 'Pow Wow Wildberry' 

A very happy Clematis 'Polish Spirit' 

And Clemmy 'Ville de Lyon' 

I'm very impressed with this red flowering Agastache I purchased last year.

My blooming Artichoke with Daisy 'Ice Star'
Notice the Pacific Wax Myrtle behind them on the far left.
It died back to the ground but is making good progress recovering.

I love this pink Day lily. I think it's 'Final Touch'. 

 Did you all see the article about Fry Road Nursery on OregonLive? Owner Ann Detweiler talks about her specialty plant--hardy fuchsias. I am so smitten with this genera. All of mine survived the winter and are up and blooming and they'll keep blooming until frost. The hummers love them almost as much as I do. I've purchased a few more plants this year and I'm thinking about going back for a few more. They need to be watered a lot their first year but after that, a weekly watering and a hearty mulch top dressing. 

I didn't write down the name of this variety but doesn't it look good
with the Japanese Forest Grass? 

I showed this one last time. Cool, isn't it? 

Here's another one. 

Love this little bargain annual Impatiens

My Brachyscomb 'Radiant Magenta' is looking really good after I got rid of the aphids.

That's it. Now go check out the Garden Bloggers' Fling photos. 

Let the Games Begin!

HERE IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST, it is officially garden season! This past weekend, the weather was stellar. My buddy Carol and I took a time out from life to visit Fry Road Nursery and came away with some dandy darlings. Then I spent the rest of Saturday and all of Sunday in the garden. It was pure bliss. My house is not very clean but my garden is sure getting in to shape. 

Some of my plants demanded that I take their picture. 

I admit, it was the new foliage on Sobaria sorbifolia that inspired me to buy this shrub last spring.

That, and the fact that I'm a huge sucker for pinnate foliage. 

Many of my sedums seem even more vibrant after our cold winter. Or maybe it's just me.

Magnolia stellata is also a real dazzler this year.  

Between the Magnolia and Lonicera fragrantissima, my nose is very happy. 

When I saw pink-flowered Bacopa at the store last week, I grabbed three 4 inch pots.
In the past I've had difficulty finding it.

Bergenia cordifolia is sending up its pink flower spikes. 

And in the front garden, sweet little Chionodoxa forbesii  "Glory of the Snow"
come back every year. 

~~ Garden Bargains ~~

Last week, my son found me this vintage galvanized livestock trough. We plan to use it for growing veggies. 

And then last Friday, when I went to the Habitat ReStore to buy bricks, I scored two of these heavy cement urns for a song. They weigh about 30 pounds so I didn't get any bricks on that trip. But am I sad? Heck no! 

Spring has sprung and it's the most wonderful time of the year. However, if you're still suffering from winter's grip, rest assured, spring is coming.