garden Archives | Marek Landscaping

Plant of the Week: Calopogon tuberosus

Justine — Fri, 20 Mar 2020 16:29:49 +0000

Plant of the Week! This isn’t a spring-blooming plant, but we could all use some bright flowers right now. The Grass-pink is a native orchid found in high-quality bogs, fens, and wet meadows. It grows a single long, linear leaf and a raceme of 2-15 magenta (or rarely, white) flowers. It is a small but beautiful plant. Many pollinators visit the flowers, including bumblebees, halictid bees, beetles and butterflies. However, the flowers don’t provide the insects with any resources: instead, they trick them with pseudo-stamens. Bees are the primary pollinator because their weight on the flower causes the hinged lip of the flower to collapse into itself, attaching pollen on the back of the bee. If the bee makes the same mistake with another Grass-pink, the same mechanism will cause the pollen to contact the stigma, resulting in pollination. Start looking for the flowers in mid-June, but please don’t pick them! Grass-pinks are rare in some states as habitat loss and over-collecting have caused populations to decline.

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Plant of the Week! Wisconsin’s Hepaticas

Justine — Fri, 06 Mar 2020 16:14:17 +0000

Plant of the Week! It’s a little bit early now, but soon we will be seeing native ephemeral wildflowers emerging from last year’s leaf litter. One of the plants you might be lucky enough to encounter is Hepatica (Anemone acutiloba or A. americana). The two species here in Wisconsin are Sharp-lobed Hepatica and Round-lobed Hepatica, the main difference being the bluntness or “pointy-ness” of the three lobes of the leaf. The first thing you might notice about this plant, other than the beautiful delicate flowers, is how furry it is! Dense, downy trichomes cover the plant and are very noticeable as it first emerges. This protects the plant against the cold and wind. Another fascinating characteristic about this wildflower is how it reproduces: The capsule that holds the seeds also contains an oily structure that attracts ants. The ants take the seed capsules to their nests, essentially planting the seeds as they do. Start looking for this spring species in high quality woodlands next month.

Flowers can be white, light pink, or blue

The plants are densely covered in furry trichomes to help protect it against cold, windy weather.

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Plant of the Week: Parthenosissus quinquefolia

Justine — Tue, 18 Feb 2020 17:48:25 +0000

Plant of the Week! It’s everywhere- you might even have it in your yard without realizing it. Parthenosissus quinquefolia, Virginia Creeper, is a widespread and aggressive woody vine that grows over the ground, up trees, and on flat surfaces, including buildings. It’s often considered a weed, particularly when the vines climb up and cover trees, where they can outcompete the trees for sunlight. However, Virginia Creeper is also a cultivated plant and even has some cultivars. The leaves turn bright red in the fall, and its berries are eaten by birds (though poisonous to humans). If you like the look of Virginia Creeper’s relative, Boston Ivy (Parthenosissus tricuspidata), give this native alternative a try.

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Plant of the Week: Wisconsin’s Native Aralia

Justine — Thu, 30 Jan 2020 17:13:41 +0000

Plant of the Week! New year, new Perennial of the Year! If you haven’t heard, Aralia ‘Sun King’ has been named 2020’s Perennial Plant of the year by the Perennial Plant Association. It’s fast-growing, hardy to zone 3, and has bright gold foliage, making it an attention-getting plant, to be sure. Here at Marek Landscaping, we prefer ‘Sun King’s’ Wisconsin native relatives, Aralia racemosa, Spikenard, and A. nudicaulis, Wild Sarsaparilla. Both are herbaceous plants in the ginseng family. Spikenard can be used in the garden like a shrub, albeit one that will die back in winter, as it grows 3-5′ tall and wide and has large, pinnately compound leaves that lend it a course texture. Wild Sarsaparilla is a bit smaller, only reaching 2′ in height. Both have clusters of small white flowers followed by small round fruits that ripen to dark purple.

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Plant of the Week: A Brief History of Invasive Barberry

Justine — Thu, 12 Dec 2019 16:49:19 +0000

Plant of the Week! A brief history of the invasive Barberry. Two types of Berberis sp., Berberis vulgaris (Common) and Berberis thunbergii (Japanese) have escaped cultivation and caused damage to crops and native species for generations. Common Barberry is native to parts of Asia and was brought to the United States with European settlers in the 1600’s. It was a popular plant for its use as a hedge, producing fruits that were made into jam, and a yellow pigment that was used as a dye. By the 1900’s, however, Common Barberry was wreaking havoc on America’s wheat crops by acting as a host for a stem rust that affects grasses. From 1918 until the late 1970’s, the Barberry Eradication Program worked to kill the plant: over one million shrubs were killed in Minnesota alone. Meanwhile, Japanese Barberry, which first appeared in the US in the 1800’s, was being promoted as a rust-resistant alternative. Unfortunately, this plant also escaped cultivation, and is still a big problem in natural areas. Barberry is still sold in nurseries, including varieties that are said not to produce seed. However, reversion is not an uncommon occurance in plants, meaning that eventually even some of these “sterile” varieties might be able to produce seed in the future. The safest practice is to avoid Barberry altogether. Native alternatives include Glossy Black Chokeberry (Aronia melanocarpa var. ‘elata’), a native currant (Ribes spp.), or American Cranberrybush Viburnum (Viburnum trilobum).

To learn more about Japanese Barberry or Common Barberry, visit https://www.fs.fed.us/databa…/…/plants/shrub/berthu/all.html and https://www.fs.fed.us/databa…/…/plants/shrub/bervul/all.html. To learn more about the Barberry Eradication Program, check out this article:

Barberry war: Why the USDA spent more than 50 years trying to eradicate this thorny bush in Minnesota

(Thanks Wisconsin First Detector Network )!

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Plant of the Week! Bryophyte Edition! Sphagnum spp.

Justine — Tue, 03 Dec 2019 23:17:39 +0000

Plant of the Week! Bryophyte edition! Wisconsin is home to over 30 species of Sphagnum moss. They occur on wet sites and are the defining species of bogs, forming the substrate both as living, floating mats, and with layers of dead, decaying material making up organic peat soils, which can go many feet deep. This thick layer of peat and growing Sphagnum essentially cuts off the bog from nutrients. The moss also acidifies its environment. These two factors make for low plant diversity within bogs, but the plants that inhabit them are highly specialized, and few are common in other places. Sphagnum moss is of great economic value in Wisconsin: among other uses, it’s a staple component in potting mixes. Harvesting peat and Sphagnum is a controversial practice, however, as it takes years for the vegetation to recover. To learn more about bogs, visit: https://dnr.wi.gov/topic/EndangeredResources/Communities.asp?mode=detail&Code=CPSHR054WIS . For more on Sphagnum, including photos, look here: https://www4.uwsp.edu/biology/courses/plantid/002-Sphagnum.htm . And while you’re there, click around and learn about some other Wisconsin Bryophytes! Go on, you earned it!

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Plant of the Week: Celastrus scandens

Justine — Tue, 26 Nov 2019 21:59:39 +0000

Plant of the Week! We love decorating with plants for the holidays. Their colors and scents bring warmth and memories to our doors, dining tables, and living rooms. But we have to remember to be careful when selecting our favorite botanical baubles. Plants from big box stores are often transported from out of state, potentially accompanied by new pests. Floral arrangements often contain the viable seed heads of invasive species. As if that wasn’t enough, even using native species isn’t always the answer, as it can lead to major impacts on wild populations. One plant that is experiencing such an impact is Celastrus scandens, American Bittersweet. Its berries are beautiful and long-lasting, making them very popular for arrangements. However, demand for the berries has led to a steep decline in wild populations. One way you can help is by buying American Bittersweet from a reputable nursery to plant in your yard. You can even pick your own decorative branches off your cultivated Bittersweet, in moderation, of course! To learn more about American Bittersweet and the problems it’s facing, check out this article from In Defense of Plants: http://www.indefenseofplants.com/…/…/12/american-bittersweet (Photo from In Defense of Plants)

Photo from In Defense of Plants

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Plant of the Week: Acer spicatum

Justine — Sat, 09 Nov 2019 19:52:58 +0000

Plant of the Week! Acer spicatum, Mountain Maple, is a shrub-form maple found in the understory of wet forests, more common in northern Wisconsin. It can also be found on thin soils over limestone or dolomite. It’s a beautiful shrub that forms upright pointed clusters of flowers in June/July. Mountain Maple is very useful for the prevention of erosion in steep areas. When their branches become buried in organic matter, they form roots. In this way a colony can be easily created. Mountain Maple is shade tolerant, but needs some protection from wind and evenly moist soil. To learn more, visit: https://www.uwgb.edu/biodiversity/herbarium/trees/Acespi01.HTM and https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=acsp2

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Plant of the Week: Smilax herbacea

Justine — Wed, 23 Oct 2019 20:37:08 +0000

Plant of the Week! A beautiful and elegant vining plant, Smilax herbacea (Smooth Carrion Flower) features beautiful leaves with wavy margins and parallel veins, globes of white flowers followed by large berries that ripen to dark blue-black, and last but not least, rotten meat-scented flowers! Don’t let that stop you from admiring and utilizing this plant in your landscape. Smilax is just trying to attract its main pollinator, flies. Beetles and bees also consume the pollen and/or nectar, and a variety of caterpillars feed on the foliage. The berries are eaten by songbirds and some small mammals. It’s a unique and useful plant that grows in a variety of soils and full to partial sun. Just maybe don’t plant it near your outdoor kitchen!

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Plant of the Week: Lilium philadelphicum

Justine — Sat, 21 Sep 2019 16:21:34 +0000

Plant of the Week! A stunning forb whose deep orange flowers can be seen from a mile away, Lilium philadelphicum, Wood Lily, is a beautiful addition to a prairie garden. Wood lilies have the largest range of any native lily in North America, covering much of the US and Canada. There are two subspecies, L. philadelphicum philadelphicum is found in the east, and L. philadelphicum andinum tends to be found in the west. Hummingbirds and insect pollinators are attracted to this plant; unfortunately, so are grazing mammals! If you would like this beautiful plant in your garden, they prefer at least partial sun and well drained soil. And always remember to get your native plants from a reputable source!

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