ONE OF US IS GETTING OLD, EITHER ME OR THE STEWARTIA. That realization struck this morning when I glimpsed its flowers from my bedroom window, something that wasn’t possible from that distant vantage point in all the years before. Either it has reached a height or I’ve reached an age where things are starting to come into sharper focus. If you haven’t read it, here’s a profile of one of my favorite small trees, Stewartia pseudocamellia.
THE LECTURE that he’s been giving for a number of years is not-so-subtly called “Kill Your Lawn.” Ecological horticulturist Dan Jaffe Wilder knows that starting over and creating an entire native habitat instead of a lawn isn’t for everyone. But Dan just wants to grab our attention and get us to start to make some changes at least in the way we care for the turfgrass we do want in our landscapes. And maybe give up a little square footage of it to some other kind of more diverse planting, too, like the wild strawberries (Fragaria virginiana, inset). Alternative, more eco-focused styles of lawn care, along with some lawn alternatives is what he and I talked about on the podcast. Dan is Director of Applied Ecology at Norcross Wildlife Foundation in Wales, Massachusetts, and its 8,000-acre sanctuary. He’s also co-author with Mark Richardson of the book “Native Plants for New England Gardens.”
(Stream it below, read the illustrated transcript or subscribe free.)
It’s such a lovely tree. Although reputed to be slow growing, my 4 year old little one is leaping up and growing quite rapidly. It won’t hold onto its heavy flowers in the rain, though, and mostly I enjoy the shattered blooms on the ground: http://laurries.blogspot.com/2010/06/shattered-hopes.html
What a beautiful flowering tree. I’m inspired to take a ride to my local nursery and enjoy it in person.
Welcome, More is More Mom. It is a favorite; understated but very graceful. I suspect you will like it even more in person. :) See you soon!
My in-laws have a Stewartia and its blooming lovely right now.
Is it hard to establish? Maybe I am getting it confused with Franklinia alatamaha?
What a lovely bloom; clean and delicate.
xo,
WHP
p.s.: I received the book: it’s fantastic. Thank you!
Mine bloomed this week too. It was a transplant from a generous gardening friend (I seem to have a few of those) who decided she didn’t need it anymore, MUCH to my benefit. I hadn’t planned on it flowering this year, so it was a great surprise!
I adore mine but I must have been in a daze of ignorance when I planted it 12 years ago cause it’s at the end of one of my garden beds and two feet behind it is a 20 ft cliffi! What was I thinking? Not much room for the roots to spread. It is healthy and quite floriferous, but alas, only 7 ft by 3ft at it’s widest. Do I dare move it is what I ask every spring.
May I ask Margaret how tall and wide your stewartia is now, and how many years since it has been planted? I’d love to plant one near our fence to screen a neighbor’s aesthetically challenged plastic shed. Your blog is a favorite of mine, thank you.
Welcome, Jeni. I bet it’s 10-12 feet wide at the base now and 20ish feet high. It has been in the ground at least 10 years, from a 5-foot balled-and-burlapped plant (in other words, it was field-grown, not container-grown originally).
I suspect it will get to 30 feet high and maybe 15+ wide here; in the wild, I have read it gets to 40 by 20, but you so rarely see full size in a garden setting.
@Madeline: I think you can do some pruning artfully, eyeballing each move you consider, but don’t cut back branches halfway as if it’s a hedge. It’s much better to remove a branch, I think, than to chop it off halfway — that will disfigure the tree. So you may end up without some of your lower branches entirely if the tree is in a too-tight spot. Hmmm…
And keep in mind: as above in response to Jeni: The tree will get 15 or 20 feet wide in time. Uh-oh. Are you sure it it in a spot where there’s enough room for what’s to come?
I just planted two small Stewartias this week. Where is the fast forward button? I would love to see them big.
Also, somewhat related is http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0pvmTp_eYM
Cheers!
My Stewartia flowered this spring for the first time in the ten years it’s been in the garden! It is planted in a spot where it looks great when colored up in the fall, but is barely noticeable now — and thus I almost failed to see the blooms.
Last year,after reading about your best 5 small trees, I ran out last Summer and found a Stewartia here in Lakeville, Ct. l. It is doing well but no blossoms on mine??? Will it take time to bloom..years? benjia
My little stewartia died this spring. It was a seedling I got from Seneca Hill Perennials. First the heat brought it out of dormancy, then it got socked by some hard freezes. It tried to put out a second set of leaves, and we had another hard freeze. The. End.
I hate to see things or living things as such coming to an end. But that is life, we just have to accept the fact that not all are permanent. The only permanent thing in this world is change. At least we still have the memory to live by, just like the memory of your lovely tree which bears flowers that is adorable.
Welcome, Rose Gold. How true! Nothing lasts. Thanks for visiting, and see you soon again.
My 9 month old stewardia was off to a slow start . It was bare until late May and just over the last few weeks it established many new green shoots starting from the bottom and edging upward every day. It was about 75% and I returned home today from a barbecue to find my landscapers had butchered it. the cut off all the top shoots of the tree-crew cut and cut two primary limbs about halfway. These carrying limbs were both on the right side of the tree. It is a lopsided shrub now. My baby that I have been watching, watering, and fussing over is now a mutant. I am sick.
I went to the landscaper’s home ( a dear family friend) crying and asked why? His response was he cut all the dead branches to establish new growth.
From everything I have read, you dont cut primary branches, you don’t give haircuts (cutting the tops of), you don’t cut summer blooming trees in the summer just when they are a bout to bloom. All those “dead” branches were growing beautiful new shoots. Th shape of the tree was lovely with wispy shaped branches. they are now blunt cut stalks. I am so upset… just beside myself over a tree. I can’t even look at it as it now is deformed. Just needed to vent.
Hi, Anna. So sorry for your tree. Sounds as if it was experiencing a lot of dieback up top, and starting to push new growth from the roots — which plants in trouble often do. It doesn’t sound as if it would have outgrown the dieback…but their “pruning” doesn’t sound very intelligent, either. Obviously they don’t know what the tree’s shape/habit is meant to be or they would not top it.
Again, if all the green (live) growth was coming from the roots, and only these new shoots from below were healthy/green, it was in big trouble already…but still.