Photo by L.A. Jackson
Now is not only when native trees are showing off their glorious autumn colors, but if you have a mind to, it is also a good time to plant such indigenous pretties in your landscape for future fall spectaculars.
One particular local lovely that always grabs my eyeballs this time of year is sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum). Its drooping, oblong green leaves surrender to the chilling weather and delightfully darken to hues ranging from rich red to sullen burgundy with accent brushings of yellows, pinks and oranges.
Besides being a snappy autumn dresser, sourwood has other attributes that could make it a contender for an addition to your landscape. For starters, unlike other towering native trees, slow-growing sourwood usually tops out at a comparatively modest 30 feet tall, and it can be restrained even closer to terra firma by a late winter pruning every few years.
Sourwood—named for its acrid-tasting leaves—also puts on a summer flower show of small, pale, bell-shaped flowers that dangle from the ends of branches on long, lacy panicles. And, yes, they are the source of the famous sourwood honey. While this obviously means bees are attracted to the blooms, so, too, are butterflies and hummingbirds. And when the flowers give way to small, cream-colored fruit, it’s dinnertime for mockingbirds, cardinals, thrashers, wrens and other flyers on the wild wing.
Being a native understory tree, sourwood prefers a “woodsy” location, meaning it will respond well to sunny morning sites, but some high shade to help block strong summer afternoon sunrays would be beneficial. This is especially true the closer to the coast you garden.
Sourwood should be planted in well-worked, organically rich soil. This type of growing medium assures some moisture will be present for the roots, but it will be free-draining enough not to make muck. And since sourwood has shallow roots, maintaining a broad layer of mulch under the tree is a good idea.
If sourwood is naturally gracing your property now, you probably already appreciate what you have. Gardeners who want to get into the groove with this pretty native can check with local nurseries to see if they might have it or can order one. Sourwood is an easy online find, and here are a few regional e-shops to try: Ty Ty Nursery (tytyga.com), Gardens of the Blue Ridge (gardensoftheblueridge.com) and Wilson Brothers Gardens (wilsonbrosgardens.com).
November in the garden
• While putting away your garden tools for the winter, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to sharpen any blades that were given a workout this summer. But although the temptation is great to just zip the edges on a bench grinder, don’t—because the high heat can cause metal to lose its tempering and become dull faster. Sharpen the right way with a metal broad file instead.
• If you garden in acidic earth and haven’t added lime in a few years, now is a good time to do it because this soil conditioner takes its time to become chemically incorporated into the dirt. Taking a soil test this month will help fine-tune the application rate.
Tip of the month
Butterfly bushes (Buddleia sp.) are popular landscape pretties, but if there is one knock against them, it is that many of the older cultivars can be seedy, on the verge of weedy. To prevent butterfly bushes from scattering their progenies to the hither and yon, now is the time to cut off and dispose of spent flower clusters before the seed heads open, which usually happens in the late fall. However, don’t get too crazy with the snippers—November is not the time for a full-blown pruning. Wait until late winter to cut back your butterfly bushes.
L.A. Jackson is the former editor of Carolina Gardener magazine. Contact him at lajackson1@gmail.com.