Spring Blooming Pieris Varieties From Small to the Large

Deer Resistant Shade, Evergreen, Flowering Shrub: Spring Blooming Pieris Varieties From the Small to the Large

In gardening, size matters. It is especially important when planting trees and shrubs, because they are not as easy to dig up and move around once they’ve grown to their mature size. It may be cute in its pot now, but how big will it be in ten years? At Victoria Gardens we love the early spring bloom Pieris shrubs because they have it all. Flowers? Check. Evergreen? Check. Deer resistant? Check! And shade loving? Yes, that too.

Pieris (common name: Japanese Andromedea) has lustrous, delicate evergreen foliage, but when in full bloom you can barely see the foliage beneath the trusses of downward-facing bell-shaped blooms. Pieris is one of the easiest evergreen shrubs to grow as long as it isn’t too wet or too dry. It is highly disease resistant, and besides a treatment of Holly-tone fertilizer in May, the plant is very low maintenance.

Pieris 'Pygmaea': 3- 4’ tall by 3- 4’ wide. This is a very cool Pieris with very fine, feathery leaves. Pinkish buds open pure white in spring.

Pieris 'Spring snow': 4’ tall by 3’ wide. Pink buds open to bright white flowers.

Pieris japonica 'Purity': 4’ tall by 4’ wide. Light green foliage with white flowers.

Pieris japonica ‘White Cascade‘: 4- 5’ tall by 4-5’ wide. Unlike most other Pieris, it will quickly drop any browned damaged flowers allowing fresh new blooms to steal the show. It is a slow grower, generally only putting on about 4 inches of growth a year.

Pieris 'Dorothy Wyckoff': 5’ tall by 5’ wide. Produces reddish-purple buds, which open as soft-pink blooms, and then mature to white bell-shaped flowers.

Pieris japonica 'Variegata': 5’ tall by 5’ wide. This one is best known for the attractive leaves that are green with white margins. Cascading chains of flower clusters are white.

Pieris japonica 'Mountain Fire': 6’ tall by 4’ wide. Brilliant red new foliage turns dark green with maturity, displaying colors ranging from pink, peach, and a spectrum in between. Drooping clusters of showy white spring flowers.

Pieris ‘Valley Valentine‘: 6- 7’ tall by 4- 5’ wide. This shrub is slightly upright and rounded, has brilliant, saturated pink bundles of downward facing blooms, and has the sweetest springtime fragrance.

Tall and thin proportions, just like Vivian Leigh, Pieris 'Scarlet O'Hara': 8 –10’ tall and 4 –5’ wide. Pendulous clusters of white flowers in April. Prominent flower buds all winter. Reddish bronze new growth turns green at maturity.


The hardiest of all Pieris, Karenoma grows quickly to 10' x 6'. Offers upright panicles of white flowers and handsome evergreen foliage year-round.

Pieris 'Summer Hill': 9-12’ tall by 6-9’ wide. Thick, lustrous leaves emerge brick red - excellent branching, fast grower. Features dainty chains of white bell-shaped flowers hanging below the branches in early spring.

Victoria on the Garden Show with Sally Spillane

Listen to the Garden Show podcast on WKZE!

Victoria and Sally talk tools and spring, finally!

http://www.wkze.com/node/3538

We Open Tomorrow !

March 12th: We're open!

March hours will be Mon. - Sat. 9am to 5pm

Sundays 10am to 4pm


Sunday is daylight savings, so the clocks will "spring forward" and with every passing day, we see more and more daylight! To celebrate, we're opening earlier than usual. With the extra daylight, we know you gardeners will be itching to see, smell, and talk plants. Come in this weekend and see the many new varieties of hellebores, pieris, spring blooming bulbs, Magnolias, variegated boxwood, quince, blueberries, and more!



(Pictured above Pieris 'Variegata')

Also, to kick off the season, and to show off our new "Tool Nook" we are having a special sale, for March only, 15% off all tools. We will be showcasing our favorite Japanese tools and Dutch hand-forged tools for planting and weeding. Plus our favorite gloves, pruners, and more!

In March only tools 15% off!

Also don't miss Coffee in The Garden this Sunday. We'll see you there!

March 12th we will be open!

March 12th we will be open!

March hours will be Mon. - Sat. 9am to 5pm Sundays 10am to 4pm


Sunday is daylight savings, so the clocks will "spring forward" and with every passing day, we see more and more daylight! To celebrate, we're opening earlier than usual. With the extra daylight, we know you gardeners will be itching to see, smell, and talk plants. Come in this weekend and see the many new varieties of hellebores, pieris, spring blooming bulbs, Magnolias, variegated boxwood, quince, blueberries, and more!

Also, to kick off the season, and to show off our new "Tool Nook" we are having a special sale, for March only, 15% off all tools. We will be showcasing our favorite Japanese tools and Dutch hand-forged tools for planting and weeding. Plus our favorite gloves, pruners, and more!

In March only tools 15% off! Including our favorites, like this Japanese planting knife.



We are so excited about this season. We have expanded our Deer resistant shade and Deer resistant sun sections to offer you more amazing plants that you don't have to grow behind a fence!

We have also rearranged the interior of the garden shop to make it easier for you to find what you need. We've introduced a "Tool Nook" where we are showcasing our favorite tools.

We've missed you all winter! Stop by and say hello to us... and spring!

Victoria Gardens
1 Cottekill Road (the corner of Rt. 213 between Rosendale and High Falls)
Rosendale, NY

victoriagardens.ny@gmail.com

Plant Profile: Pieris japonica 'Valley Vallentine'

Pieris (common name Japanese Andromedea) are a species of shrubs that have everything. They are evergreen, low-maintenance, flowering, deer resistant, and shade loving. Pieris thrive where Rhododendrons mights get ravaged by the deer or where sun-loving evergreens might suffer from lack of light. Varieties range in size from 3 to 4 feet tall and wide to 9 to 12 feet tall and 6 to 7 feet wide, so be sure to check the mature size of what ever variety you bring home!

'Valley Valentine' is a medium-large scale Pieris, growing 6 to 7 feet tall and 4 to 5 feet wide. This shrub has brilliant, saturated pink blooms and the sweetest springtime fragrance.


PIERIS JAPONICA 'VALLEY VALENTINE'

DEER RESISTANT SHADE PLANT - LOW MAINTENANCE
zone 5
6' - 7" tall and 4' - 5' wide
blooms: early spring





The downward-facing cascades of flowers attract bees and other pollinators. Some of the first flowers in the landscape, Pieris shrubs are often "a-buzz" with busy bees, starved from the long winter.

Plant Profile: Spireae thunbergii ‘Ogon’ (Spirea 'Mellow Yellow')

Spireae thunbergii ‘Ogon’ (Spirea 'Mellow Yellow')





The wispy spreading branches of the 'Ogon' are covered with thousands of tiny white flowers in early spring - and last for a few weeks - just before the showy golden yellow leaves appear. And in the fall, the foliage color is almost psychedelic - shades of gold, rusty red and orange.



(Forgive the blurry image, but above is Spirea 'Mellow Yellow' turning colors in the early fall and below is the final fall show!)



Grown in sun or shade, drought-tolerant, and all-around tough plants - all varieties of Spirea are the kings of low-maintenance plants. We joke that you just can't kill these shrubs! However, a good shearing after the 'Mellow Yellow' is done blooming will keep the shrub compact and neat looking (The flowers bloom on old wood so try not to prune it in the summer or fall.)



If you leave the shrub unpruned, it has arching, wispy branches covered with fine textured chartreuse foliage in the summer, and the shrub will reach 3 to 5 feet tall and wide.

It attracts butterflies, bees, and other pollinators.


SPIREA 'MELLOW YELLOW'
DEER RESISTANT SUN PLANT - DEER RESISTANT SHADE PLANT -
LOW MAINTENANCE - BLACK WALNUT TOLERANT
zone 4
3' - 5' tall and wide
blooms: early spring

Plant Profile: Primula polyantha 'Francesca'

PRIMULA POLYANTHA 'FRANCESCA'

DEER RESISTANT SHADE PLANT - LOW MAINTENANCE - -WET TOLERANT - CLAY SOIL TOLERANT
zone 5
4' - 6" tall and 6' - 8' wide
blooms: early spring to early summer (and sometimes beyond)


Primula polyantha 'Francesca' exceeds all expectations in the garden! This delicate, diminutive and fragrant primrose blooms and reblooms:

Plants that were in the shade and well watered were still blooming in August - outstanding for any plant, but especially for a primrose. 'Francesca' has unusual ruffled flowers of lime green with a yellow center and make a stunning companion plant to Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola' and other chartreuse shade plants.

Our grower says, "Native to bogs, moist meadows and woodlands, they are perfect for damp or poorly drained soil. Try under a rain downspout, next to your water feature, pond or stream. With adequate moisture, it also performs well in a border."

Primrose in general are so wet-tolerant that they can even be planted in stream beds. The garden at Inisfree has some stunning mid-stream plantings - well worth the visit.