No More Nibbling

A stag in the moonlight looks stately, a doe is beautiful, and a fawn adorable, but to a gardener who has had his or her prize plant eaten to nubs, a deer can be heartbreaking. Fortunately, there are many deer-resistant shrubs that thrive at Smith Mountain Lake. Following are a few recently introduced hybrids of tried-and-true plants worth adding to your garden not only because deer avoid them, but because they offer multi-season beauty.

Sambucus Black Lace
    Distributed by Proven Winners, a company dedicated to seeking out and marketing plants that have been tested to perform well in most parts of the country, the Black Lace elderberry shrub is indeed a winner. The purple-black, feathery foliage is a good substitute for Japanese maples, and sets off the pale pink saucer-sized flowers that open in spring. Shiny black berries grace the plant in fall. Harvest them before the birds do and make elderberry wine or jam. Plant Black Lace in full sun in a space where it can grow to its full 8-foot height and width without pruning. You’ll be rewarded with a stellar specimen plant with a graceful, airy form in a striking color.

Rhus typhina Tiger Eyes
    Tiger Eyes is a spectacular version of the staghorn sumac with a long season of interest. The deeply cut, lacy leaves begin as a vivid chartreuse, maturing to a bright yellow that then morphs to scarlet-orange layered over yellow for a luminous show in autumn. Young twigs are a fuzzy deep pink that stand out in striking contrast to the yellow, fade-proof foliage. A dwarf variety, Tiger Eyes grows 6-8 feet tall and wide. For the brightest foliage, grow it in full to partial sun in moist, well-drained soil. While it can be trained as a single-stemmed shrub or tree, it is prone to sucker, creating a small thicket of tall trunks. This characteristic makes it excellent for hill stabilization and as a cover for birds and wildlife.

Syringa Bloomerang Purple
    Aptly named, the Bloomerang Purple lilac flowers profusely with its lavender-purple blossoms in spring, takes a rest during the summer heat, and then makes a comeback in autumn, continuing its fragrant floral display until frost. A compact, mounded shrub that achieves a 5-foot height and width at maturity, it has good resistance to powdery mildew, a problem that plagues many lilacs.  It works well as a specimen plant, as part of a foundation grouping, in a perennial or mixed-shrub border and in containers.  Feed with a slow-release fertilizer in early spring and remove spent blooms to encourage reblooming.

Buddleia Lo & Behold ‘Blue Chip’
    Butterflies and hummingbirds love Buddleia Lo & Behold ‘Blue Chip’ and so will you.  Another excellent Proven Winners introduction, this is a dwarf butterfly bush that stays under 3 feet tall in a mounding form. It starts producing fragrant, purple flowers in mid-summer and continues blooming non-stop until first frost. It needs neither pruning nor deadheading, and is prized for its drought resistance. Use it in containers, as a ground cover, a low hedge, or as a component of a perennial border. Plant it in full sun in soil with good drainage.  

Hibiscus syriacus Lil’ Kim  
    Another perpetual bloomer that attracts bees, butterflies and hummingbirds, the Lil’ Kim Rose-of-Sharon is a knockout. A miniature that is supposed to top out at 3-4 feet, in my Smith Mountain Lake garden it grew closer to 8 feet tall.  The 3-inch pure white flowers are accented with a bright red eye, and persist for three days before falling instead of the typical one-day flower cycle of most Rose-of-Sharons. If needed, prune in late winter or early spring, and feed with shrub fertilizer in early spring for best flower performance.

Loropetalum chinensis ‘Purple Diamond’
    One of the new dwarf Chinese fringe flower shrubs, ‘Purple Diamond’ matures at about 5 feet tall and wide in a mounding form with arching branches. The intense purple foliage of this evergreen shrub stands out in the garden, giving year-round interest. A member of the witch hazel family, in spring it is heavy with pink fringe-like blooms that stand out in pleasing contrast to the deep purple foliage. Flowers continue to appear sporadically throughout the summer and into autumn. An easy-to-grow plant in the right spot, choose an area with partial shade in fertile, slightly acidic soil. It makes an excellent background to bold perennials and annuals, is a gorgeous accent mixed with other ornamental shrubs, and works well as a foundation planting or in a container.

More to try
Kolkwitzia amabilis Dream Catcher Soft pink spring flowers and soft yellow foliage that glows all summer

Weigela florida ‘Eyecatcher’ Electric yellow and green variegated foliage with rose-red, tubular flowers    

Caryopteris incana ‘Sunshine Blue’ Bright gold foliage and amethyst blue flowers in fall

Deutzia gracilis Chardonnay Pearls Bright yellow foliage that in spring is almost hidden by the pearl-like buds that burst into star-shaped flowers

Catriona Tudor Erler is a freelance garden writer, photographer and speaker who divides her time between SML and Charlottesville. She is the author of nine garden books, including “Design Ideas for Home Landscaping,” “Poolscaping: Gardening and Landscaping Around Your Pool and Spa,” and “Complete Home Landscaping.”

It’s contest time!

Focus your cameras and send us the best shots of your home’s garden or landscape for a chance to win Laker Media’s fourth Lovely Laker Landscape Contest! The champ will be featured in the July/August 2011 issue of the Smith Mountain Laker and will win $1,000 in credit to spend on plants, landscaping materials, services or anything else available at Lakescapes Nursery. Entries will be accepted April 15 through June 1. That’s earlier than in past years, so start snapping away! For complete details, log on to www.smithmountainlake.com/homes.