Sunshine Farm and Gardens: Glick Pick Archives: Disporum maculatum

Sunshine Farm and Gardens

Rare and Exceptional Plants for the
Discriminating Gardener and Collector

Disporum maculatum

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This weeks GP is a little late as it's the season for "Road Shows", we're travelling to a different Arboretum Plant Sale or Gardening Festival almost every weekend. Whew!!!

But let me tell you about one of my best finds, Disporum maculatum.

Although Disporum maculatum has its Northermost range in Southern West Virginia, it is hardy to at least zone 5 and possibly zone 4.

One of the coolest plants to come along in a while, this Southeastern US Native plant sports the creamiest, frilly white flowers in early Spring. The petals are dusted with chocolate speckles in a random fashion. The enclosed picture doesn't do the plant justice.

It’s multi forked stems hold the dark green, glossy leaves in a lovely array on 12” to 30” plants. They are moderately quick to form a 12”-18” clump and make a dramatic statement in a colony.

“Nodding Mandarin”, as it is known to the mountainfolk in the areas where it is native, is a very easy plant to grow if you duplicate it’s natural habitat. Rich moist woodland conditions. What that means in a garden setting is filtered sunlight to full shade and soil amended with organic matter for good moisture retention. A mulch of shredded hardwood bark is appreciated when the Summer dry spells occur.

Disporum maculatum’s foliage is persistent all Spring, Summer and Autumn as long as the soil isn’t permitted to dry out.

Disporum maculatum is a close relative of Disporum lanuginosum, AKA “Fairybells” or “Yellow Mandarin”. Both plants reside in the Liliaceae family and are easy to propagate by division of the rhizome in early Spring or late Autumn or from seed collected from the ripe red berries in late Autumn.

Barry Glick, Sunshine Farm and Gardens
696 Glicks Rd, Renick, WV 24966, USA
Phone: (304) 497-2208
E-mail: barry@sunfarm.com

Last modified February 25, 2020
URL: https://www.sunfarm.com/picks/disporummaculatum-124654.phtml