Plants of the Week: June 29

Eschscholzia californica

The Scott Entrance Garden is reaching its full glory as the daily temperatures continue to rise. This year we sowed California poppy seeds above the retaining wall in hopes of repetitive emergence in years to come. Of the family Papaveraceae, E. californica is the official state flower of California. The genus was named in 1816 in honor of the Estonian-German botanist Johann Friedrich von Eschscholtz. It is a pleasant plant with highly dissected leaves and bright golden-orange flowers that are borne singly on long peduncles. photo credit: R. Robert

Podophyllum pleianthum

I get lots of questions about this plant; people are attracted to its size and peculiar shape and most of them have never seen it before. Originally named Dysosma pleiantha, it was later lumped into the mayapple genus Podophyllum pleianthum retaining the species designation as well as family classification in the barberry family Berberidaceae. It is commonly known as the Chinese mayapple, and though it resembles its American relative, it has a few distinct features. The leaves are enormous and shiny with lightly serrated edges. They emerge in pairs with a cluster of pendulous, burgundy flowers between them. photo credit: J. Bickel

Clematis ‘Arabella’

The Scott Arboretum is currently participating in a Clematis trail on campus. As they are well into their flowering season, now is definitely the time to see them! I saw this particular Clematis cultivar in the Harry Wood Garden near the Science Center. It is a non-twining C. integrifolia hybrid with upward facing blue-violet flowers. I was especially interested in the juxtaposition of the planting with a large rock behind it; a nice contrast. It is recommended that it be cut back to the ground after it is through flowering so it can flush out and produce more flowers as the season progresses. photo credit: R. Maurer