Tupelo, A Honey of a Tree

Tupelo, also known as Blackgum, is among the first trees to show fall color. Summer leaves are a pretty, shiny green. In autumn they turn fiery red, which you may have deduced from cultivar names like ‘Red Rage,’ ‘Wildfire,’ and “Firestarter.’ A few leaves will have yellow, orange or purple highlights. In spring, the nectar-rich flowers are a butterfly favorite but blooms are so small they are unnoticeable to humans. In late summer, female trees produce deep blue or purple fruit, a treat for turkeys, songbirds, bears, opossums, and raccoons. Honeybees produce a high quality, pale honey from Tupelo nectar.

Tupelo (Nyssa sylvatica, pronounced NYE·suh sil·VA·tuh·kuh and mispronounced by me 100% of the time as NISS-ah) are native to the eastern US, and are hardy in zones 3 through 9. They prefer a moist, acid soil in full sun, but are adaptable to wet or dry locations, are wind- and salt-tolerant, are fire resistant, and will withstand some shade. They grow in sand, clay or silt soils.

While deer may nibble the tender new shoots in spring, they leave mature trees alone. The straight species and older cultivars may suffer from leaf spots, but this does not seem to harm the tree. ‘Red Rage’ and ‘Green Gable’ cultivars are resistant to leaf spot problems.

These are slow growers but can be induced to speed thing up by the addition of water and fertilizer. Mature height is typically 30 feet with a 20-foot spread, but in favorable habitats they may reach 90 feet or more. Tupelo Tower™ is a narrow cultivar, only 15 feet wide at maturity. A weeping cultivar is available, as is a variegated form, but I have not found those in local nurseries. A super-cool cultivar, ‘Zydeco Twist’ has gnarly, contorted limbs that make one think of Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick, an unrelated plant.

Although leaves can be confused with those of common Persimmon (Diospyros) trees, Tupelo limbs emerge from the trunk at a 90-degree angle, which (along with their dark, blocky or ridged bark) makes trees easy to identify in winter. Tupelo leaves are clustered on short, smooth limbs, “spurs.” Persimmon leaves are not shiny, and occur all along the length of the limb. Tupelos have a tap-root structure that means they transplant best when young.

Brilliant fall color

Tupelo fruit

The beginning of autumn color change

Elderberry (Sambucus)

Along partially shaded roadsides, Elderberry is putting on its summer show. Elderberry, Sambucus canadensis (pronounced sam-BYOO-kus can-uh-DEN-sis) is an American native that thrives in moist soils but will survive in wet or dry locations, acidic to neutral soils, full sun to mostly shade. It seems to prefer areas that have previously been clear cut, such as under power lines. Mature plants grow up to 12 feet tall and 12 feet wide. This deciduous shrub is hardy in zones 4 to 9. It is very heat tolerant. If suckers are not removed, shrubs spread by underground runners to form dense thickets. Birds, especially quail, like to nest in their branches.

Flat-topped clusters of white Elderberry flowers are favored by bees and butterflies. The flowers are followed by blue-black berries. According to Texas A&M University, up to 45 species of songbirds eat the fruit, as well as deer and other mammals. Berries are toxic to humans if eaten raw but once cooked can be enjoyed in jelly, pie, or other desserts. Do not allow horses to eat any part of the plant. Both flowers and fruits can be used to make elderberry wine. I’m told that it is delicious, but I can’t get past the toxic-when-raw issue.

Aside: In the delightful play or movie Arsenic and Old Lace, elderberry wine conceals the poison used to permanently relieve unsuspecting visitors of loneliness. A couple of movie versions exist. I recommend the 1943 release, directed by Frank Capra and starring Cary Grant. It is set on Halloween night, but is an enjoyable watch any month of the year.

Plant breeders have elevated the desirability of this common roadside plant by introducing non-green foliage varieties. Proven Winners offers Black Lace® Elderberry a finely cut plant with pink flowers against purple-black foliage. Affordable price, fast growth, and undemanding nature makes it a great alternative to Japanese Maple. I managed to walk away from Black Lace®, but I simply couldn’t resist another Proven Winners introduction, Lemony Lace® Elderberry. Its finely cut, chartreuse foliage looks fabulous in a grouped planting or standalone. Both these Lace cultivars are smaller (5 feet for Lemony Lace® and 8 feet for Black Lace®) than their wilder cousins, which means they could be grown in containers. The reduced size comes at a cost. They are less heat tolerant, and only recommended as far south as Zone 7. Both are “deer resistant.” We shall see…

Elderberry flowers and buds

Elderberry shrub growing on an uncultivated roadside

Check out the color and texture of Lemony Lace — Be still my heart!

Elderberry fruit cluster
Image by EM80 from Pixabay

A typical location to find wild Elderberry: underneath power lines

Turtlehead for a Late Summer Show

Chelone, or Turtlehead, is a fall-blooming perennial that gets its common name from one of two sources. First, the genus is named after a nymph named Chelone who, according to Greek mythology, the gods turned into a turtle because of her refusal to attend the wedding of Zeus and Hera. (Such a snob, that Chelone.) The more modern explanation involves the flower’s similar appearance to a turtle with an open mouth. The blooms have a faint resemblance to snapdragon flowers and can be mistaken, from a distance, for Obedient Plant (Physostegia). My research revealed several possible pronunciations for the genus, from equally respected sources. Take your pick: either kay-LOW-nee, key-LOW-nay, or chee-LOW-nee.

There are six species within the genus. All are native to North America. Chelone lyonii (lie-Oh-nee-eye) is the one widely available in nurseries and at native plant sales. It has a lovely pinkish lavender bloom. Chelone glabra has white flowers. Chelone obliqua has pink-to-red flowers with a yellow or white beard. All three species are cold-hardy in zones 3-8.

Turtlehead flowers in late summer to fall. It demands damp to wet soil. While it may be grown in full sun in the cooler zones, it is happiest with partial shade here in the warm southeast. Too much shade, though, will make it floppy and necessitate staking. Turtlehead will reach heights of three feet or even taller. Pruning early in the growing season will cause branching, result in shorter stems, and reduce the need for staking. Plants spread slowly by rhizomes and can be propagated by division. Spent blooms produce small pea-like seed pods that can be gathered for the generation of new plants. Seeds must have light to germinate, sometimes need cold stratification to break dormancy, and may take several months to germinate. Some plants seem to reseed independently, while their neighbors remain childless. The plants are not invasive. They look great when grown in mass plantings. Keep their water requirements in mind when selecting a location.

Turtlehead flowers are attractive to bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. Deer normally pass them by. (I hesitated to write that sentence, because this morning we had three deer evaluating my specimens like a printed restaurant menu.) Plants are rarely bothered by diseases, but will get crispy edges to their leaves without sufficient water. Blooms stems make long-lasting cut flowers, but the spent petals should be removed to keep them attractive.

A bumblebee visits a Chelone flower

Super Salvia for Autumn

I’ve never met a Salvia I didn’t like. Salvia leucantha, Mexican Salvia, is a star of the autumn garden. This herbaceous perennial grows in zones 7b to 10a. In the cooler zones, top growth is killed to the ground in freezing weather. It will remain evergreen or semi-evergreen in warmer zones. Either plant it in spring to ensure that it has a well-established root system before cold weather arrives or consider it an annual.

Mexican Salvia can each a height of three feet or more, making it perfect for the back of the flower border. ‘Santa Barbara’ is a dwarf form. Flowers occur at the stop of stems, so plants are best situated where shorter plants conceal their lower half. Their lanky structure means that plants may open up in the middle, and may even break in strong winds or thunderstorms. The best way to combat this problem is to prune plants back by half in late May. Onset of flowering may be delayed by a few days, but plants will be shorter and bushier. Don’t prune after mid-July or you risk removing flower buds.

Bloom spikes are either bicolor purple and white or solid purple. The first blooms of the bicolor varieties are sometimes solid purple, with the white appearing in later blooms. The narrow grayish, felted leaves give a hint that it is both heat and drought tolerant. These Salvias prefer a well-drained, neutral to moderately alkaline soil. All varieties attract hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees. Deer and rabbits rarely nibble them.

Salvias have square stems, which is a signal to gardeners that they are easily propagated from cuttings. Plant in swaths for an impressive fall display, especially when paired with yellow or orange flowers.