Friends of many years in China

Hylotelephium (Sedum) spectabile

First of all, let me acknowledge the enormous privilege of travelling to Central China with the International Dendrological Society (IDS). I have been on trips with rock gardeners, perennial garden enthusiasts, cactus and succulent lovers--you name it. The IDS leaders and participants possessed a special passion, and a level of expertise that was humbling. As the season progresses, and as I sift through the hundreds (thousands?) of images I captured, I hope to do justice to the extraordinary woody plant richness we encountered in future blog posts. But why not start out with some old friends--what friend is as old and familiar as 'Indian Chief', 'Autumn Joy' or the other selections of what we all knew as Sedum spectabile for decades?

We saw this again and again in the QinLong and Daba mountains of Central China in September of this year--looking pretty much identical to what's sold at your local garden center.

If anything, the color was even a tad brighter in the wild populations than the older selections in gardens, like 'Indian Chief'. Although this is not a rare or otherwise "choice" plant for plant snobs, most any serious perennial gardener must have one tucked somewhere. I have several--although the annoying mule deer that think my garden is theirs love to chomp off the flowers. Have I ever told you how fond I am of venison?

Esther Kraak and Buddleja davidii

Even more widespread and abundant than the formerly Sedum, the common butterfly bush of our gardens originates precisely in these mountains of Central China. Here one of the very knowledgeable participants from Netherlands is showing off a bouquet she plucked along a trail we followed. The next frame shows these close up.

Of course, this Buddleja has a reputation for being terribly weedy in Maritime climates. We don't have any issues with it seeding in Colorado (that I know of) and some years it doesn't even die down very

far. Unfortunately it does need regular water to grow and bloom well. Oh well! You can't do everything.

I was charmed looking at the flowers up close.

We saw this gorgeous pine everywhere in Central China. I recall finding it quite a few times in Yunnan as well--I-Naturalist indicates that most of its range goes from Shanxi to Yunnan--with a fascinating concentration in Taiwan as well. I first saw this around the turn of the Millennium in a private garden in Moscow (Idaho), I was so charmed I made sure we obtained one for Plantasia, where we now have a superb specimen 30 or more feet tall that produces the relatively huge cones with delicious seed. We found people harvesting seed of this in Daba the Shan range.

A wildcrafter on the Daba Shan range demonstrating how the pine seed is extracted from the cone.

Adrian Bloom

I first met Adrian when he was on a lecture tour to the USA. I recall I drove him to Mount Goliath and we wandered down the trail surrounded with ancient Bristlecone pines (Pinus aristata). What a pleasure to spend two and half weeks with a Horticulture hero (and a friend of many years).