Redbuds are lovely small trees: sturdy and adaptable, with rosy-pink spring flowers. Their size – 20’ tall or less – also makes them an excellent landscape choice when you don’t have the room for a larger tree. 

Redbud flowers appear in early spring, cloaking the bare branches in small sweet pea-shaped blooms. The flowers are followed by beautiful heart-shaped leaves in a variety of colors, depending upon variety (see below). In general, redbuds prefer full sun and well-drained soil, and are relatively drought tolerant when established.

Redbuds are also pollinator friendly and even relatively deer resistant. The one place where they can get a little picky is that they don’t like to have their roots disturbed. When planting a redbud, avoid loosening the roots before transplanting – the less root disturbance they have, the happier they are!

Here are some of the redbud varieties Shooting Star generally has available: 

‘Oklahoma’: Oklahoma is one of the most heat tolerant redbuds we carry. Intensely red-pink buds open to a bright magenta pink. New leaves have a coppery tinge that matures into a dark, glossy green. Mature trees can get to be 20’ tall by 25’ wide.

‘Merlot’: Merlot’s emerging foliage is a stunningly deep purple that contrasts beautifully with their bright rose-colored flowers. Mature leaves retain a bronzy purple coloring that turns bright yellow in fall. Mature trees are 18’ tall by 20’ wide, with a nice rounded canopy.

Western Redbud (Cercis occidentalis): This is our local native redbud. Anyone who has driven down I-5 into Redding in the early spring has noticed these tough beauties growing on the hillside. Western redbud is extremely drought tolerant and also tolerates heavy soils better than other redbuds. Slow growing; 15’ tall and wide.

Teucriums – also known as Germanders – often get overlooked when folks are planning their gardens, and here at Shooting Star Nursery we’re on a mission to change that! 

If you’re not yet familiar with Germanders, this is a great time to get acquainted. These versatile evergreen groundcovers and subshrubs thrive in full sun, are drought tolerant and deer resistant, and are absolutely beloved by pollinators (maybe because their flowers smell like honey!). 

All Germanders will take well to light shearing throughout the year, making them good candidates for a low, formal border. In fact, this feature made them extremely popular as border plants in formal Elizabethan knot gardens. 

Shooting Star regularly carries the following varieties of Germander:

Gray Creeping Germander (Teucrium aroanium): Narrow soft gray foliage with pinkish-purple flowers; 2-3’ tall by 1.5 – 2’ wide. Both foliage and flowers are fragrant. See photo above. 

Wall Germander (Teucrium chamaedrys): Glossy dark green leaves topped with small spikes of rosy lavender flower. Shear after blooming to help maintain shape. 1-2’ tall by 2-3’ wide. Photo on right. 

Dwarf Wall Germander (T. chamaedrys ‘Prostrata’): Same coloring Wall Germander, but plants only reach 6-8” tall by 18” wide at maturity.

‘Summer Sunshine’ (T. chamaedryas ‘Summer Sunshine’): New leaves are golden green, darkening to chartreuse later in the season; rosy purple flowers; 6-8” tall by 12-18” wide. Photo on left.

Being a local native plant, Mahonias can take both our winter wet and summer dry, and can be very drought tolerant once established. Their thick leathery leaves and spiny edges also make them unpalatable to deer.

Most species of Oregon Grape are evergreen, but still turn a rainbow of colors in the fall and winter, giving them more interest than your average evergreen shrub. Spikes of cheerful, fragrant yellow flowers emerge early in spring and turn to blue-black fruit that are edible but more appealing to birds than humans. Most varieties spread via underground runners and make a nice colony, so best to give them room to shine and do their thing! 

The ones we use the most here in the Rogue Valley are:

Mahonia aquifolium (Oregon Grape) - This is the taller species of our native Oregon Grape, getting to 6' or more and spreading by underground runners. They look best as a mass planting in a native woodland situation and perform best in shade, but will take some sun. Can be pruned hard if getting too leggy and will quickly fill in. Mahonia aquifolium is resistant to oak root fungus - it's a great plant to grow under native oaks, as it also doesn't need much water. 

Mahonia aquifolium 'Compacta' (Compact Oregon Grape) - Pictured above left. This variety will stay about 2' tall  and makes a nice, broad colony. New foliage is glossy and becomes matte with age. This plant always looks good, staying full to the ground and cheering up the dark days of winter with its bronzy red winter color.

Mahonia repens (Creeping Mahonia) - This native has a spreading habit and will get about 2-3' tall. It tolerates more sun the the taller Oregon Grape, as well as growing well in part shade, and is very drought tolerant. Its leaves are usually more matte than the upright Mahonia but get the same yellow flowers and blue fruit. Great choice for mass groundcover or under oaks.

Mahonia nervosa (Longleaf Mahonia) - This Mahonia is a little more particular than the other native species; requiring more shade. But it's every bit as drought tolerant as M. aquifolium and M. repens.  The leaves are more stiffly upright and bit longer. Makes a nice low shrub or groundcover - around 2' tall - for a shady, woodland garden.

Among the many spring-flowering trees that grace Rogue Valley gardens, there’s one that stands head and shoulders above the rest in terms of glorious, over-the-top showiness. Lavish displays, huge flowers, intoxicating fragrance - Deciduous Magnolias have it all!

In general, deciduous Magnolias are relatively slow-growing, small to medium-sized trees; ranging in height from 10’ to 25’. Their flowers are a perfect palette of springtime colors: clear white, canary yellow, soft pink, and even a rich purple-red. They bloom from early spring into summer, depending upon variety, and all varieties are deliciously fragrant.

Deciduous Magnolias prefer full sun to part shade, and will grow well in most soils – including clay – but they do need good drainage (plant them on a mound in clay soils). They prefer soils that are rich in organic material, and will benefit from having some compost or a good soil amendment worked into the soil at planting time. One note of caution: Magnolia roots are tender and fleshy. Take extra care when you’re planting them to not injure the roots, and handle them as little as possible during the planting process.

Here's a ‘who’s who’ of the deciduous Magnolia varieties we currently carry here at Shooting Star, arranged by height at maturity.

To 15’ tall:

*Ann: Flowers 3-4” across – reddish purple outside contrasting with pale pinkish-white inside. 10-12’ tall and wide.

*Betty (right): Flowers up to 8” across, reddish-purple outside with a white interior. To 15’ tall and wide.

Leonard Messel: Petals are rosy-purple outside and creamy white inside, flowers 4-6” across. 10-15- tall by 4-6’ wide.

Royal Star (left): Lovely clear white, star-shaped flowers up to 6” across. 10-15’ tall by 10-12’ wide.

*Susan: Flowers 4-6” across, deep red-purple inside and out. 12-15’ tall by 15’ wide.

Vulcan: Huge (10-12” across) magenta-pink flowers. 10-15’ tall and wide.

* Note: Ann, Betty, and Susan are all part of the Little Girl series of Magnolias (a cross between M. stellata and M. liliiflora). They are all compact in stature, and all bloom several weeks later than most other deciduous Magnolias.

15-20’ tall:

Black Tulip (right): Large (up to 6” across) rich purple-black, tulip-shaped flowers. 15-20’ by 6-10’.

Waterlily: Pinkish in bud opening to 5” wide white flowers with lots and lots of petals. 15-20’ by 8-15’.

Over 20’ tall:

Butterflies (left): One of the best yellow-flowered Magnolias. Canary-yellow flowers, 4-5” across. 25-30’ by 10-15’.

Galaxy: Rose-purple flowers up to 10” across. Pyramidal shape – 30-40’ by 20-25’ at maturity.

Rustica Rubra: Saucer-shaped flowers measure 5” across when fully open; rosy-pink outside and white inside. 20-25’ tall and wide.

Wada’s Memory: 7” semi-double white flowers smell like orange blossoms. Strongly pyramidal, 25-30’ tall by 12-20’ wide.

We really, really like Pieris. They’re evergreen, deer resistant, relatively low-maintenance shrubs that grow well in part sun to full shade. They even grow well in containers! In short, they’re pretty versatile plants that come in a variety of sizes - from just 2’ tall up to 8’ tall.

Of all the Pieris varieties out there, though, there’s one that is our hands-down favorite (even though, like parents, we’re not supposed to have favorites...): Meet Pieris ‘Cavatine’.

Cavatine is a gorgeous dwarf variety, reaching roughly 2’ – 3’ tall and wide. The dark green foliage really sets off the abundant spring bloom of white, lightly fragrant bell-shaped flowers that look a bit like lily-of-the-valley. Even when the bloom is finished, the dark green leaves are a wonderful complement to other shade-loving perennials including Heuchera, Aquilegia, Erica, and Hellebore.

Another thing in Cavatine’s favor? It provides year-round interest in the garden. Pale green flower buds appear in the winter, contrasting nicely with the evergreen foliage. Cascades of pure white flowers arrive in early spring, followed by bright red new growth that gradually changes to dark green as the plant matures.

Pieris ‘Cavatine’ is available right now 1-gallon, 2-gallon, and 5-gallon sizes. We’re guessing it will quickly become a favorite of yours too!