Continued Fall Color

While the native trees are just starting to turn colors in Southern Maryland, one tree is already showing its stuff in the front yard.

This Parrotia persica, or Persian Ironwood, started changing color two weeks ago. Like a parrot, it is flashy and a show-off. The leaves first fade from green into yellow, like those at the top of the photograph at the left.  Then, the yellow transforms through shades of orange to a deep red.  Since the leaves start changing at different times, there is a full range of colors that can be found once the process begins.  This particular tree was bought at the Friends of the National Arboretum Garden Fair several years ago at a 30 inch sapling.  As you can see, it is now over seven feet tall, and has a distinctive shape.  There is no central trunk, and if pruned differently it would have multiple trunks.  Side branches start growing out horizontally, then bend upwards, somewhat like an umbrella that has been blown inside-out.  At first I was worried that there was something wrong since I could not find any good pictures of the trunk-branch shape.  But I like it now.

Once established it has earned its common name of "ironwood" since it is very drought resistant, and shows no vulnerability to insects or disease.  It received little additional water this last hot, dry summer.  It didn't seem to care, while other trees suffered die-back.

Other plants that are continuing to bloom are the Agastaches.  The are two different varieties side by side in this photo.  The one on the left, which is shorter in size and a slightly grayer foliage color is "Acapulco Orange" while the other is "Orange Flare." I thought I was getting two different, though similar, colors between these two varieties, but the only distinction is the height and shape of each plant.  Let this be a warning to never trust a catalog picture to be accurate, especially if the colors in the photo have been increased in intensity.  I won't say which nursery these came from because I have not had a lot of success with the plants from it.  Part of the problem may be that the nursery is located in the Southwest, and the plants have not adjusted to the difference in climate.  I will be curious how these handle the winter, and come back in the spring.