moss rose
Portulaca grandiflora
A classic maintenance free annual with fancy rose-like blooms all summer. Often self-seeding in garden … Continued
browsing: heirloom garden plants
Heirloom gardens were planted in a time when folks didn’t coddle plants. Some were grown for food and medicine while others were planted for enjoyment. Many were brought along with settlers from faraway lands, while others were found in the native landscape and moved closer to home.
Many of us remember plants from our grandmother’s gardens. The list below includes plants to recreate these charming vintage landscapes.
black cherry
Prunus serotina
This native ranges from southeastern Canada through the eastern US, and west to Texas. White … Continued
gray-headed coneflower
Ratibida pinnata
Native plant that thrives in dry woods, prairies and along railroad tracks and roads. Composite … Continued
Mexican hats
Ratibida columnifera
Round, dense, fine foliage is covered with 1″ blooms of yellow, red and bicolor flowers … Continued
‘Crimson Cherry’ rhubarb
Rheum x hybridum
Produces multitudes of red-blushed green stalks and is the best cooking rhubarb. Sweeter and milder … Continued
staghorn sumac
Rhus typhina
Grows in any well-drained soil in full sun to part shade. Tolerant of urban conditions. … Continued
gooseberry
Ribes uva-crispa/hirtellum
Gooseberry cultivars can be American or European. Fruit from the American cultivars are smaller but … Continued
pasture rose
Rosa carolina
Two to three-inch wide bright pink flowers with yellow centers open in early summer on … Continued
black-eyed Susan
Rudbeckia hirta
Huge 3-4″ deep yellow blooms with dark brown eye cover this black-eyed Susan from late … Continued
orange coneflower
Rudbeckia fulgida
This adaptable native occurs in both dry and moist soils in open woods, glades and … Continued
wild petunia
Ruellia humilis
Tubular, bell-shaped, petunia-like flowers up to 3″ long open from May to October on drought-loving … Continued
‘Nekan’ blue pitcher sage
Salvia azurea ssp. pitcherii 'Nekan'
Showy large flower spikes of sky blue in late summer and fall. The perfect color … Continued