The Cary Awards are awarded from the Worcester County Horticultural Society and Tower Hill Botanical Garden. Plants are chosen for their hardiness and multiseason interest. Visit their website www.caryaward.org for previous year winners and photos. You could do an entire landscape with the winners, which also happen to be some of Rolling Green's favorites, too.
Fragrant Sumac
Rhus aromatica ‘Gro Low’
Large-scale ground cover with pest and disease resistance, fruit for birds, and fabulous fall color. In leaf it looks similar to Poison Ivy with its glossy trifoliate leaves, but it is non-vining and (fortunately!) without the irritating oil that causes blistering and itching. Mature plants grow 18-24" high and up to 8' across. Spreading by rooting suckers, it eventually forms large colonies making it suitable for holding steep slopes. Fragrant Sumac is native to eastern North America.
The cultivar ‘Gro Low’ was introduced by Synnesvedt Nursery, Glenview, Illinois. Yellowish flowers occur in May. In the species, male catkins and female flower clusters may occur on the same or separate plants and unfurl before the shrub leafs out. ‘Gro low’ is a female cultivar and is graced with clusters of red berries which may hold well into the winter if not devoured by birds and small mammals. Plant ‘Gro Low’ in full sun and well drained soil to bring about the
best growth.
Hardy to Zone 3.
Golden Hinoki Falsecypress
Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Crippsii’
First introduced by Cripps and Sons in England in 1901, is a beacon in the winter landscape. It is an elegant, colorful evergreen tree reaching 15' tall and 5' wide in 10-15 years. This moderate to slow growing evergreen prefers to be planted in full sun to partial shade in rich soil. Frond-like sprays of foliage are bright gold at the tips and on the upper surface, shading from chartreuse to deeper green in the interior portion of the plant.
This Hinoki Cypress is beautiful all year, but especially in winter, when planted in front of a darker background so that the golden foliage stands out. Prunings are also enticing in winter wreaths and floral arrangements.
Hardy in Zones 4-8.
Three Flowered Maple
Acer triflorum
A small tree well suited to modern landscapes. Among its fine attributes are outstanding bark, disease and pest resistance, and intense fall color. Hailing from Manchuria and Korea, this compact tree makes a distinctive rounded specimen growing 20-30' tall and wide. Its common name comes from the clusters of three greenish-yellow flowers which occur in spring. The flowers, which are inconspicuous, are followed by typical maple-like winged samaras. The clean green foliage, in leaflets of three, is pest and disease free and casts a dense shade beneath the tree. Autumn and winter bring on the attributes for which the tree is usually grown – leaves turn brilliant hues of orange, red, yellow and purple. Unlike most trees and shrubs, Three Flowered Maple will exhibit beautiful, though slightly subdued, autumn color even in the shade.
In the winter months the warm glowing tan and umber bark flakes and peels in vertical strips, providing an interesting winter aspect. Full sun and rich, well-drained soil will contribute to the best growth and fall color; plant in full sun or filtered shade. Avoid excessively wet conditions. First introduced into cultivation in 1923, this unusual maple is still under used, perhaps because propagation is challenging.
