CHAPTER 13
MINIATURE WOODLAND GARDENS AND PLANTS
For ten years we lived within the boundaries of New York City in a big, old house that occupied more than a third of the squared, bare eighty-by-hundred-foot lot. Now we have a smaller house, and the gardenable land is completely surrounded by woodlands where native plants grow as they please. In both places we’ve had small woodland gardens; and no matter how pleasurable our other plantings, we’ve loved these best.
If your idea of a pretty garden centers around statuesque delphiniums, precise rows of roses, bold splashes of boisterous color, you may call insipid what we find enchanting. But if your senses respond to the fresh, sharp aroma of moist woods soil, the whispering of trees, the patterns of cool shadows, the shy delicacy of the spring beauty, or the gnome-like pomposity of a Jack-in-the-pulpit, be sure to have at least a tiny woodland garden, whether you have to create a spot for it or have it naturally. Once established, it gives more refreshment for less care than any other garden I know.
NATURALISTIC DESIGN
Here, of course, there is no place for classic or contemporary formal design. The single purpose is to create, or re-create, a small section of the woods with the shade, humus, and other environmental conditions woodsy plants can’t live without. The essence of the tiniest planting—even a colony of trillium at the foot of a spreading evergreen—is its naturalness. It doesn’t look planted, it belongs; it’s been there all the time. And it looks natural, of course, because it’s been planned that way.
Planning a woodland garden for the informal landscape is simplified by the fact that you begin with what you have—a shaded spot (preferably shaded by trees that drop needles or leaves, to enrich the soils) where hot, dry summer winds can’t parch the plants. There may be a natural stream, rocks, a slope, a hollow; or a place to put a rustic bench, rotting log, small pool—a focal point harmonious with the naturalistic theme. Or the size, shape, or contour of the garden may make it the object of interest without additional accent.
I know of one design that began with pruning a stunted sapling to reveal its bonsai-like lines, another that featured the trunk of a rheumatic, old, lightning-shattered evergreen. A soggy, low spot can be planted as a bog and backed up by rocks and shrubs. A brook can be coaxed to make space for a small, hummocky island. The narrow, meandering, stepping-stone path through the sharp point of our land invites you to take a walk in the woods.
Originality has challenging freedom in creating a woodland garden for level, regularly shaped grounds. You may replace the ubiquitous pachysandra in the needle-carpeted shade of a tall pine tree with native plants. Or use one of those difficult areas such as the angle of a hedge, wall, foundation or shaded patio; an unused corner of the property; the space underneath an overhanging bay window.
We used a useless area, about six feet wide and less than thirty feet long, between our city house and the property line, shaded not only by a few straggling pines but also by the house next door. There was a path, a pool, and a little bench. This was the last place I visited before I left for work in the morning, and the first when I came home at night. Somehow, the flower face of a bloodroot with a shawl of unrolling leaf around its shoulders had added piquancy in the city, where building banished the wild flowers a hundred years ago. The bloom of the first lady-slipper was a noteworthy triumph; the green of the ferns seemed specially fresh and mossy; the blue of the bottle gentians was almost unbelievable.
CLEARING THE SITE
Even when we planned that metropolitan oasis, there were a few existing features we carefully kept—a valiant, five-leaved woodbine to train over the rail fence that kept out the trampling feet of the neighborhood small fry; a scrubby shrub I never managed to identify, which had voluntarily masked an ugly cellar window; a few precious patches of moss.
A wild garden in New York City
In Connecticut, of course, the area was almost completely overgrown, mostly by poison ivy. After that was cleared away, undesirable undergrowth was removed, leaving a rock here, a dogwood or azalea there. Baring the ground let us see more clearly what we had to work with.
A wild flower grows in New York City: bloodroot
When the ground is cleared, the designer makes a final decision about permanent features such as steps, path, pool, bog, bench. You might make a mental note of the place where an old tree stump might be artfully installed, when you find one, or where a dead branch might fall and make a background for some small plants. Of course, these are all kept carefully in scale and harmony. A path should be narrow and not sharply defined, perhaps just a series of barely matched flat stones. Steps are not conspicuous, but made to look as natural as possible.
SOIL
The next is the most laborious but most vitally important part of the procedure—supplying suitable soil. Woods plants grow naturally in soil so rich in humus that it will hold many times its weight in water. Season after season the trees drop leaves, needles, twigs, and branches that decay and maintain the high level of humus, which contains micro-organisms that help sustain the plants. In our area and in most other woodsy sections, forest soil is very acid. But the loam in a cleared area adjoining the forest may contain little or no humus, and may not be nearly acid enough for the native plants growing a hundred feet away.
When a miniature woodland garden is planted in a wild, woodsy spot, the soil is probably suitable, and the trees will probably keep it that way. Then, you simply use plants that thrive naturally where the amount of available light, and the composition of the soil, are the same or similar. Otherwise, you need to prepare the soil thoroughly and deeply—a minimum of eight inches, and up to eighteen inches for small native shrubs.
You’ll need incredible quantities of leaf mold, very old manure, or composted leaves and grass. Over humus-poor soil, spread a layer of at least six inches, and mix it in by digging the soil and turning it over several times. At the same time, remove matted roots, stones, and other unwanted obstructions to planting. For a very small garden, you may find it simpler to remove all the soil to a depth of twelve to eighteen inches, and replace it completely with humus and leaf mold brought in from the woods or purchased for the purpose. Leaf mold, by the way, is the layer of partially decayed leaves immediately under the top layer of whole leaves; humus, in the next layer down, is more completely decayed. Don’t buy humus from door-to-door salesmen offering “big bargains.” This is a racket the police and Better Business Bureau are trying to extinguish. Buy only from a nurseryman you can trust.
While you’re conditioning soil, make sure there is good drainage. Only bog plants will grow with their roots in muck or standing water. You may need an initial layer of fine gravel or course sand. Raising the surface of the garden will also help.
If you think that the importance of suitable humus-rich soil is either exaggerated or overrated, think also of this: With the type of light and humus (usually acid) in which they grow naturally, woodland plants will settle down contentedly in your garden and establish families and colonies that increase every year. If you don’t provide it, they’ll get homesick and pine away. Not only that, but once they’ve made themselves at home, they’ll require practically no care. They don’t want to be cultivated, fertilized, weeded, watered, mulched, or given special protection in winter, as long as there are trees that drop leaves. The most you might have to do will be making sure the leaves aren’t blown away, or, if there are no trees, lugging in leaves from somewhere else.
PLANTING
Although plants are chosen for any garden according to light, soil, moisture, and other cultural requirements, woodland plants permit less leeway than most others. This is a matter of ecology, defined as “the total impact of the environment and the plant’s accommodation to it.” Some delicate plants are, of course, less adaptable than other more rugged species. Check catalogues, reference books, and other sources to learn all you can about each plant before you plant it.
A quick word about shade. There is full shade, or deep shade, created all year by evergreens, walls, or buildings. And there is woodland shade created only in summer by deciduous trees. The hill near our house where rattlesnake plantain, pipsissewa, and pink lady-slippers grow is dark and cool in summer, but bright in spring, fall, and winter when the trees are bare of leaves. This is an important distinction.
In the interest of conservation—American wild flowers are threatened not only by bulldozers but also by thoughtless, criminally careless humans—private woodland gardens often become the home for plants dug from the wild. Last fall, one of my dearest friends methodically moved dozens of maidenhair ferns into a tiny bit of woods on her property to save them from extinction when their fronds were being picked in bunches to fill out bouquets. But this is conservation only when the plants are transplantable (a number of the most precious species are not) and are moved to quarters with growing conditions to their liking. Otherwise, they might as well die where they are.
In digging woodland plants, always dig deep and take as much of the surrounding soil as possible, and disturb the roots as little as you can. Protect the transplants against drying sun and wind until they are set in their new homes. If you can dig them with the roots intact, you can take most plants at any time during the growing season. The safest times are immediately after flowering or during fall dormancy.
Unless it is a matter of conservation, I never dig woodland plants. I buy them (they’re surprisingly inexpensive) from a local nursery or from several mail-order specialists. The nursery plants are pot-grown, and even fussy types transplant without loss. By mail they arrive bare-rooted—in early fall for all but the summer and fall varieties—but crisp and lively in their packing of moist sphagnum moss. Sometimes they even start to send out new roots and sprouts en route. If I can, I get mail-order plants into the ground before dusk on the day they arrive. Soil around transplants is kept moist and mulched with leaves until they take hold.
Years ago some suppliers collected the plants they sold, and some sources of slow-spreading types were completely devastated. Today, I believe, specialists grow their stocks of woodland plants, either under glass or in woodsy nurseries. They’re doing more to preserve these native treasures than to annihilate them.
The best of all sources is by propagation—seeds, cuttings, division of wild plants—because you’re not only increasing the population, but you’re also starting with plants that from babyhood are accustomed to your growing conditions and don’t have to make difficult adjustments. Even though it may be slow, this is the only method for a number of nontransplantable species.
If the garden contains shrubs that will serve as background for small, shy woodland plants, that’s fine. If it doesn’t, you may want to plant some (these, too, are available by mail), because few native woods plants are spectacular enough to make a big display of their own. And because woods plants are modest, they’re best planted in colonies a half dozen or more of one species, not in mixed colors or varieties. Set the groups in the foreground, where they’re easy to see. Allow plenty of space between groups for natural increase without crowding. Arrange more striking, tall, spiky plants here and there to add the interest of accent, just as you would in a conventional flower bed.
Care after planting includes the expected careful watering, and keeping the plants moist and shielded from heat and wind until they are growing on their own. For their first winter, you may want to supplement the natural mulch of leaves with salt hay or something similarly light and airy, held in place by chicken wire or branches. This mulch must be removed extra early for early-flowering species. By their second season the plants should be ready to be watered by rain, and fed and protected by trees, without your help. Don’t fiddle with them, pull off leaves or seed pods, or move them about unless you must.
PROPAGATING WOODLAND PLANTS
These are, of course, hardy perennials. Except for seeds, propagating methods are much the same as for cultivated types. It is important only that, if possible, you find out what is the most effective (often, the only) way each plant can be reproduced. If you can’t track down this information, try several ways at once. In general, those with masses of fibrous roots can be divided immediately after flowering. For upright and branching types, you can usually root stem cuttings in a frame or propagating box. If everything else fails, try layering. You can’t lose anything by it.
Seeds are planted the minute they are ripe, in a cold frame—or in flats that can be set in the cold frame—in a finely sifted mixture of equal parts of loam, woods leaf mold, and coarse sand. For varieties adapted to extremely acid soil, use half as much coarse sand as Michigan peat, without soil. For added insurance, acidify the planting mix with leaf mold or peat, or neutralize it with lime, until the pH is somewhere near that of the soil the plant grows naturally in.
Set the flats in shade and keep the soil moist, and leave the seeds to their own devices, summer and winter, until they germinate. Some species take two months, some take two years. After germination they are handled exactly like other perennial seedlings, except that the only safe fertilizer is very weak liquid manure at very infrequent intervals. Tender types should be grown in pots until they are fully mature, before they’re set out in the garden.
PLANTS FOR WOODLAND GARDENS
Aquilegia canadensis Ranunculaceae Columbine
Although the native Eastern columbine can grow two feet tall, it seems to stay closer to six inches in my woodland garden and on the banks that line our Pine Tree Road. The clover-like leaves, and characteristic columbine flowers with yellow sepals and knobbed red spurs, are scaled down proportionately.
CARE. Poor, dry soil, acid (strong to neutral). Fertilizer promotes growth that is too rank. Full sun to three-quarter shade.
PROPAGATION. Seed.
SPECIAL USES. Woodland planting, bank planting.
Arisaema triphyllum Araceae Jack-in-the-Pulpit
The pulpit stands eight inches tall or more, curving up and over the stiff preacher-like spadix in late spring. The divided leaves also exceed true miniature size. But prim Jack spreads himself slowly enough to allow him entry to all but the very tiniest woodland garden; and his comical dignity is not to be dispensed with.
CARE. Humus-rich soil, moist. Shade or light shade.
PROPAGATION. Tuberous roots.
SPECIAL USES. Wild gardens.
Asarum Aristolochiaceae Wild Ginger
In the Northern part of the country this is a deciduous plant, while in much of the South it retains its kidney-shaped leaves. Its purplish flowers are somewhat hidden under the foliage. There are three general types.
canadense—Eastern wild ginger.
caudatum—Western wild ginger.
shuttleworthi—Mottled wild ginger (native of Virginia and South).
CARE. Rich soil, moist. Shade or partial shade.
PROPAGATION. Division.
SPECIAL USES. Wild gardens, ground cover.
Asplenium Polypodiaceae Spleenwort (Fern)
Lilliputian, native evergreen fern with deeply cut fronds.
platyneuron—ebony sweetheart—Eight-inch feathery fronds with brownish-purple stems in tidy circles. (Needs acid soil.)
trichomanes—maidenhair spleenwort—Thick, closely clustered three-to five-inch fronds with crowds of little one-inch leaflets on black ribs. Plant it sideways, its roots in a rock crevice, with leaf mold and a touch of lime.
CARE. Soil acid or neutral according to variety. Leaf mold. Shade.
PROPAGATION. Division.
SPECIAL USES. Terrariums, rock gardens, wild gardens.
Camptosorus rhizophyllus Polypodiaceae Walking Fern
Small native evergreen fern, hardy from Canada to Georgia. Its name comes from the fact that the fronds are pointed on the ends and root on contact with the soil. It prefers to creep around limy rocks.
CARE. Lime-bearing soil, shade, dry. Hardy.
PROPAGATION. Root division.
SPECIAL USES. Terrariums, rock gardens, wild gardens.
Claytonia virginica Portulacaceae Spring Beauty
When the leaves of the forest trees are barely ready to break out in early spring, this lovely little plant is already in full bloom down on the ground. It makes colonies and even mats of precious white flowers which are tinged and streaked with pink and scarcely a half-inch across. But before the trees are in full leaf the spring beauty has gone back to sleep and disappeared, flowers, five-inch grass-like leaves, and all.
CARE. Woodsy soil, moist, shady or semishady.
PROPAGATION. Tubers.
SPECIAL USES. Rock gardens, bog gardens, swamp planting.
Clintonia Liliaceae
Woodsy plants spreading out into colonies by underground rhizomes. The leaves are rather broad, and thin and glassy. The little lily-like flowers are held atop stems above. The berries that follow are blue, blue-black, or black.
borealis—broadlily—Nodding, greenish-yellow flowers on seven-inch stems in May. Berries are blue, a half-inch long.
umbellata—Leaves lightly fuzzy; purple-spotted white flowers in clusters; shiny black berries.
uniflora—Western native with one precious flower per stem (one and a half inches across), berries bright blue.
CARE. Rich, humusy, acid soil. Shade or partial shade. Moist.
PROPAGATION. Division of roots in spring.
SPECIAL USES. Rock gardens, bog planting.
Convallaria majalis Liliaceae Lily of the Valley
This fragrant ground cover is a favorite for under trees and other shady spots. Perhaps it spreads too fast for very small gardens. The oval, lily-like leaves are lasting, but not evergreen. The dangling flowers, all on the same side of the stem, are like scalloped petticoats. Unless you need a ground cover, try one of the fancier and less robust varieties, such as rosea, with light-pink flowers that fade to near-white in the sun. Or try flore plens with double white hoop-skirts.
CARE. Garden soil, shade, moist, hardy. Persists for years and doesn’t have to be touched. If you want to increase your planting, dig and thin every three years.
PROPAGATION. Division of small bulbs.
SPECIAL USES. Ground cover, forcing in February and March.
Coptis trifolia Ranunculaceae Goldthread
This tiny bog plant, only four inches high, has three-way clover-like leaves and tiny white waxy flowers. It creeps and spreads by means of thready yellow roots.
CARE. Humusy, peaty, sandy, and decidedly acid soil. Plant needs a cool, moist location and will not survive warmth and dryness.
SPECIAL USES. Bog planting.
Cornus canadensis Cornaceae Bunchberry, Creeping Dogwood
This is a real dogwood, but a very miniature one. The stems standing about six inches high are encircled by a whorl of rich green leaves. Above are the up-facing flowers (in May), like elves wearing white ruffs. The clusters of red berries are as gay as Christmas, in August. After taking a year or so to get settled, the plants spread out into colonies or clumps.
CARE. Rich woods soil, highly acid, damp, but with drainage. Shade, cool location. Takes several years to get established. Needn’t be disturbed once settled. Can be transplanted if large chunks of sod are lifted with it.
PROPAGATION. Separate clumps when dormant. Seeds from ripe berries will germinate the following spring.
SPECIAL USES. Bog planting, ground cover.
Cryptogramma crispa Polypodiaceae Parsley Fern
This is a small alpine fern with clusters of six-inch evergreen fronds so finely cut and frilled they could garnish a standing rib roast in place of parsley. Don’t overlook this one when next planning a terrarium.
CARE. Peaty, dry soil. Hardy.
PROPAGATION. Division.
SPECIAL USES. Rock gardens, terrariums.
Cypripedium Orchidaceae Lady-slipper, Moccasin Flower
This is the fabulous earth-growing orchid that is native to many parts of the country, with culture varying accordingly. The broad, long fresh leaves fold around the stem at the base. The flowers have a lip inflated into a pouch and are in various colors.
acaule—Northeastern native with dusty-pink flowers. Requires dry, sandy, woodsy, intensely acid soil, full shade. Difficult to transplant unless taken with a large amount of soil. Attempt it only after flowering, or in October. Don’t cover crown more than a half-inch. No good method of propagation is known.
calceolus pubescens—Fuzzy yellow lady-slipper from moist, wooded hillsides of the North and mid-South. Not difficult to transplant and easy to grow. Likes dappled shade and slightly acid, humusy soil.
candidum—Small white flowers marked and veined with brown and purple. From limy, marly bogs. Needs moisture and shade.
CARE. Soil, moisture, and shade as described above.
PROPAGATION. Division when dormant.
SPECIAL USES. Rock and wild gardens. Can force.
Dalibarda repens Rosaceae Dewdrop, False Violet
Precious little creeper, pretending to be a violet, with two-inch heart-shaped leaves on long stems and five-petaled, half-inch white flowers in July. A native of the Northeastern section.
CARE. A sheltered spot. Rich woodsy soil.
PROPAGATION. Seeds and division.
SPECIAL USES. Woodland and rock gardens.
Epigaea repens Ericaceae Trailing Arbutus
Flat evergreen creeper with overlapping hairy stems and bright-green oval leaves. In early spring it has white or pink phlox-like flowers, not very large but interestingly fragrant. Although it is usually cultivated in shady, protected spots, it can thrive in hot dry areas.
CARE. Humusy and very acid soil, sandy, with leaf mold. Good drainage. Moist. Don’t dig wild plants which are difficult to transplant. Use pot-grown plants.
PROPAGATION. Cuttings. Seed if strictly fresh.
SPECIAL USES. Wild gardens, rock planting.
Erythronium Liliaceae Adder’s-Tongue, Trout Lily, Dogtooth Violet
A very large clan of bulbous wild flowers native to many parts of the country. All species have the marks of family resemblance—two leathery basal leaves, often beautifully marbled, and miniature lily flowers nodding from the tops of central stems in spring. Height, usually six inches.
albidum—Leaves may be matted or not. In the East flowers are white, in April.
americanum—Best-known Yankee with marbled leaves and bright-yellow flowers in April.
californicum—fawn lily—Mottled leaves, creamy or pale-yellow flowers. (From California, of course.)
dens-canis—dogtooth violet—European emigrant with green leaves splotched with brick red; flowers are rosy purple. Also available in white and other colors.
grandiflorum—Giant of the family, plain leaves, golden flowers in clusters. The variety parviflorum has the most midget flowers. Western.
hendersoni—Mottled leaves, dark-centered purple flowers. Western.
revolutum—Western with brown-blotched leaves, purple-tinged white or lavender flowers. The variety johnsoni has rosy-lilac flowers, white in the center.
tuolumnense—California with unmarked chartreuse leaves, large deep-yellow flowers.
CARE. Woodsy soil, not especially acid, with leaf mold. Drainage. Moist, never hot and dry. Winter mulch.
PROPAGATION. Seeds, offsets (from underground stolons).
SPECIAL USES. Rock gardens, woodland gardens, forcing.
Goodyera pubescens Orchidaceae Rattlesnake Plantain
This terrestrial herb is a close relative of the most glamorous of orchids and bears no resemblance to a reptile or the weed that is part of its common name. On the woodland floor you will come upon it as a flat cluster of durable, oval, deep-green leaves with gleaming-white veins that cross and recross in a delicate pattern. Perhaps you will find it in bloom with tiny whitish flowers on tall spikes.
CARE. Woodsy acid soil, with humus. Slightly damp. Cool. Shade. North side of a glacial ridge is ideal.
PROPAGATION. If possible, buy section of root from dealer who specializes in woodland plants and seeds. Pick sparingly in the woods, by breaking off section of rhizome with rootlets and plant. New plant will appear in about one month.
SPECIAL USES. Terrariums, woodland gardens.
Hepatica Ranunculaceae Liverleaf
Six-inch evergreen plants that shed their old leathery leaves for new after the blue-lavender (or pinkish-white) flowers fade and fall in May.
acutiloba—Sharp-lobed hepatica, distinguished by the points on the lobes of its leaves. (Needs alkaline soil.)
americana (triloba)—Round-leaved hepatica with dainty flowers on stems upholstered with silky hairs. Leaves maroon in winter
CARE. Not too acid soil. Full shade. Drainage. Not difficult to transplant but needs time to get established. Plants in the woods best dug in the fall.
PROPAGATION. Seeds, division of roots.
SPECIAL USES. Woodland gardens, colonies.
Houstonia Rubiaceae Bluets, Quaker Lady
This is an enchanting wildling with grass-like leaves and flowers less than a half-inch across in the shape of four-pointed stars. It is a very profuse bloomer throughout the spring and early summer.
caerulea—Northeastern favorite with leaves in tufts about an inch high. Flowers are blue or lilac, often fading to white in the sun. Seeds itself willingly.
purpurea—Larger than miniature, and native from Maryland to Georgia. It makes a soft evergreen foliage mat, and in July has purple flowers, several per stem.
serpyllifolia—creeping bluets—The stems stretch out to ten inches or more with little half-inch teardrop leaves. Sky-blue flowers.
CARE. Loamy, acid soil with peat. Moist. Part shade.
PROPAGATION. Division. Some varieties are self-seeding.
SPECIAL USES. Rock and woodland gardens.
Lemna minor Lemnaceae Duckweed
This tiny one is often called the “smallest known flowering plant.” A floating plant that has quarter-inch leaves (actually the body or “thallus”), it has hair-like rootlets and flowers so small one needs a magnifying glass to see them. In the fall the plants sink to the bottom of the pond, to rise again in the spring.
CARE. No attention is needed.
PROPAGATION. None necessary. Increases naturally.
SPECIAL USES. Dish-garden pools, rock-garden pools, fish food.
Lycopodium Lycopodiaceae Club Moss
In prehistoric times this was a towering tree; now it is a moss-like poor relation of the ferns, bearing needle-like leaves and spores instead of flowers.
clavatum—running pine—Slowly but steadily the stems creep over the woodland floor, sending up four-inch stems at lax intervals, each with several spikes packed tightly with needle-like leaves.
complanatum—ground cedar—The stems trail faster and more sturdily, the erect branches dividing and spreading out to a lacy green fan.
lucidulum—shining club moss—Trailing stems turn upright at the tips and are covered completely with glassy, dark-green “needles.”
obscurum—ground pine—Christmas trees in miniature about six inches tall and popping up from stems that creep about underground.
CARE. Rich, woodsy soil, not especially acid. Shade, moist.
PROPAGATION. Cuttings. Division of roots at joints.
SPECIAL USES. Terrariums, ground cover.
Mitchella repens Rubiaceae Partridgeberry
This native creeper bears the popular partridgeberries widely used to fill “Partridge Bowls” at Christmastime. It has glassy green leaves which are close to the ground with the berries beneath them. In the springtime it has fragrant, fuzzy white flowers. (Note to those who hunt the berries in the woods: pick from the tallest plants and do not tear up the roots.)
CARE. Rich woodsy soil, not especially acid. Drainage. Shade. Cut back to encourage branching. Transplants easily.
PROPAGATION. Divide rooting stems.
SPECIAL USES. Rock gardens, terrariums, woodland gardens.
Mitella Saxifragaceae Bishop’s Cap
For shady rock and wild gardens here is a saxifrage-like plant with mounds of heart-shaped leaves and spires of finely fringed flowers on tall stems.
breweri—Pacific Coast native with deep-green leaves and whiskery yellow-green flowers (in May and June).
caulescens—Also from the Pacific Coast. More dainty, and more difficult.
diphylla—East Coast native with eight-inch flower spikes on taller stems. White flowers (in April and May).
CARE. Rich woodsy soil. Drainage, shade.
PROPAGATION. Seeds.
SPECIAL USES. Rock and wild gardens.
Garden in the landscape in the finest tradition—it features Azalea macrantha basaminæflora, Juniperus radicans, and Calluna County Wicklow. (Atlantic Avenue Nursery, Inc.)
Podophyllum peltatum Berberidaceae May Apple
The May apple, a native of much of the country, is actually too large for most small wild gardens, but find a place for it if possible. In spring it is fascinating to watch the stumpy stems push up through the ground and the foliage slowly unfold to wide flat leaves. Then come gold-centered white flowers and finally the “apple” in chartreuse and nearly two inches long. (It is edible only when fully ripe.)
CARE. Rich woodsy soil. Shade, or partial shade.
PROPAGATION. Root division.
SPECIAL USES. Wild-garden planting.
(Additional plant listings suitable for woodland gardens can be found in Chapter 15.)