I live near a small botanical garden that houses an amazing array of ornamental plants, including a significant collection of rhododendrons. The majority of those plants are grown with great deliberation and care, but one of the most amazing seems to have sprouted of its own volition near a boundary fence. Over the course of … Read more
“Ampelopsis” sounds like something out of a children’s book. I can imagine a large, lumpy monster—possibly friendly, but definitely massive. Ampelopsis brevipedunculata is a monster, but not of the animal kind. Better known as porcelain berry or Amur peppervine, it is a non-native vine that grows rapidly, spreads like wildfire and dominates everything in … Read more
I have just done battle with a formidable opponent—one that is tenacious, heavily armed and fully equipped to go on fighting for decades. This enemy of civilized horticulture has no scruples, guiding ethos or any closet-bound skeletons that would make it susceptible to blackmail. It is, in short, Rosa multiflora, occasionally known as “the Japanese … Read more
