Plant hunters will find delight at garden marketplace
There are two kinds of plant buyers — those who head to the nursery with a list and a plan, and those who wander in looking for inspiration.
Whichever one you are, you’ll find something different at the Garden Marketplace that is part of the Garden and Landscape Symposium of Western Pennsylvania on April 28.
The marketplace is free to the public and does not require attendance at the symposium. It will be held from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the McKnight Arena at Shadyside Senior School, 423 Fox Chapel Road, Fox Chapel (15238). Free parking is available. The symposium is a fullday event featuring nationally known speakers who share the latest horticultural trends and techniques.
The Penn State Master Gardeners of Allegheny County have chosen these vendors to sell plants and garden items at the marketplace:
Dannaher Nursery will be bringing dwarf conifers, shrubs and choice trees such as Japanese stewartia ( Stewartia pseudocamellia) and ‘Bregeon’ Japanese red pine ( Pinus densiflora). This red pine is suited for foundation plantings or as an accent in a mixed border. Exciting hydrangea cultivars include ‘Mega Mindy’, ‘Little Bobo’, ‘Little Lime’ and ‘Fire Light’.
DJ’s Greenhouse specializes in herbaceous ornamentals for sun and shade. If you’ve never grown barrenwort or fairy wings ( Epimedium spp.), youare missing one of the toughest ground coverp lants for dry shade.DJ’s has nine cultivars of Epimedium in white, yellow, orange, pink or purple.
Lamb’s Ear Farm grows both herbaceous and woody ornamentals. Two hummingbird plants offered this year are ‘Amistad’ friendship sage and Bodacious ‘Rhythm and Blues’ anise sage ( Salvia coerulea). While both are tender in our climate zone, they’d make a dramatic anchor in a container.
Locust Spring Nursery specializes in shade plants, including rare and unusual natives. Two that caught my eye this year are furry Jacob’s ladder ( Polemonium reptans var. villosum) and ‘Pink Pearl’ rue anemone ( Thalictrum thalictroides). Rue anemone is a spring ephemeral, meaning that it will go dormant in summerheat. But the pretty single pink flowers and delicate foliage add beauty to any spring garden.
Sunny Sprouts Greenhouse carries a vast assortment of unique succulents including Aeonium, Senecio and Echeveria. Other favorites include Japanese umbrella pine ( Sciadopitys
verticillata), monkey plants ( Nepenthes spp.) and pitcher plants ( Sarracenia spp.). Pitcher plants survive on a diet of insects and have interesting hollow flowers adapted to ensnare their prey. Most are tropical and best grown in containers, but there are some species which can survive in our region given the proper moist conditions.
Sylvania Natives is a local grower focused on species native to Western Pennsylvania. The dense blazing star ( Liatris spicata) offered by Sylvania was discovered growing locally early in the 1900s at a what is now known as Jennings Prairie. Sedges are hot in the garden world right now, and two worthy natives are seersucker sedge ( Carex
plantaginea) and silver sedge ( Carex platyphylla). Both are semi-evergreen, tolerate part sun to full shade and make distinctive deer-resistant ground covers.
Tree Pittsburgh is a local organization dedicated to the preservation of Pittsburgh’s precious urban forest. Its Heritage Nursery is a wholesale propagation nursery for professionals in the horticultural, landscaping and forestry trades, but you can purchase trees and shrubs for your home garden at the marketplace. Some great finds include bottlebrush buckeye ( Aesculus parviflora) and pawpaw ( Asimina triloba). If you want to plant a shade tree for the next generation to enjoy, try bur oak ( Quercus macrocarpa). Supporting over 200 species of moths and butterflies, oaks play a keystone role in the health of the forest ecosystem and are of major importance in maintaining biodiversity.
Penn State Master Gardeners of Allegheny County will be selling a nice range of stalwart perennials, many dug from their own gardens. Alpha dahlia root tubers will also be for sale at our booth.
Bartlett Tree Services will be giving out tree seedlings and can answer tree care questions. Gardenthemed gifts can be purchased from the Allegheny Highlands Botanical Art Society and Shelly Cubarney Pottery.
The symposium cost is $105 before March 28 and $120 thereafter. For more information, go to www.cvent.com/events/master-gardener-gardenlandscapeevent-summarye8b0a32625084f11a5677815478d80af. This volunteer program supports the outreach mission of Penn State Extension and provides researchbased information on best practices in sustainable horticulture and environmental stewardship. Information: alleghenymg@psu.edu or 412-4823476.