Jenkins Arboretum, one of the region’s oldest remnants of the once continuous eastern forest, quietly resides in Devon, Pennsylvania for all to enjoy and admire. It nurtures a large collection of native deciduous azaleas, hybrid rhododendrons, perennial wildflowers and ferns.

In the Arboretum’s goal to educate the public on the advantages of using native plants in the landscape that thrive in southeastern Pennsylvania, Jenkins Arboretum has created its Green Ribbon Native Plant® Selections. Every spring, the Arboretum Horticulture Committee and staff select three native plants (a tree, shrub, and fern or wildflower) that are grown in the Arboretum which should work well in residential and commercial landscapes.

A native plant is defined as a species existing in eastern North America prior to European settlement. Native plants tend to be more hardy and resilient to environmental conditions since they have evolved and adapted to grow in the region. They are also aesthetically pleasing and offer great ecological value for a diversity of insects, birds, and animals in all landscapes.

The Redbud Tree, is also known as the Easter Redbud, and sometimes as the Judas Tree because it dates back to biblical times. It is a small deciduous tree that produces an abundance of purple blossoms in early spring. It has large heart shaped leaves in the summer with long seedpods in the fall. Redbud trees have a yellow fall color. These trees are effective as a single specimen, in groupings, in shrub borders and especially in woodland situations. It survives both full sun and shade in many soil types. It grows rapidly reaching a mature height of 20-30 feet with an equal spread. This family includes six species including 'Forest Pansy', a cultivar with dark red-purple leaves; 'Royal White' bears a profusion of pure white flowers; 'Silver Cloud' has irregularly white variegated foliage and grows strictly in shade; and texensis 'Oklahoma' which has waxy, glossy, rich green leaves with rounded tips and dark wine-red flowers.

Keep redbuds vigorous through routine fertilization and regular watering as they can suffer severely from environmental stress. Plant in the final location when young as older plants resent transplanting. Redbuds can be bothered by scale insects, weevils, caterpillars, whiteflies and leafhoppers. Leaf spots, blights, downy mildew, canker, dieback and Verticillium wilt may occur. Redbuds at Jenkins Arboretum have not had any significant problems. The pink patchwork of color along woodland edges makes the redbud well suited for the periphery of your property.

The oakleaf hydrangea is a deciduous, mound-forming shrub with attractively peeling, orange-brown bark and deeply lobed green leaves. It is a coarse plant, which provides interest in all four seasons. Most plants are four to eight feet tall but can reach twelve feet. It is wider than it is tall with an upright, irregular profile. With the proper placement, it will become a favorite performer in your garden. Oakleaf hydrangeas prefer moist, well-drained soil, full sun to partial shade. It is best to mulch to keep the roots cool. Huge panicles of white flowers, sometimes 10 inches long, adorn the plants with peak bloom in early July. As flowers age, they turn pinkish in late summer and tan in the autumn. Plants in more sun will provide spectacular red-purple and orange fall foliage.

In winter, the deep cinnamon brown bark looks outstanding against the stark winter landscape. It becomes even more attractive as the mature bark exfoliates. Liabilities for this plant include lack of winter hardiness. Plant parts are poisonous and deer seem to like it. It is best used in shrub borders, mass plantings, to add textural variety, for naturalizing or as a foundation plant.

This is not your everyday pachysandra that is being promoted for use as a shady ground cover. Pachysandra procumbens has many exceptional features that set it apart from the more familiar variety found in our garden centers. The biggest difference can be seen in the foliage; procumbens has a flat mottled gray-green leaf. The plant is clump forming with very loose whorls of coarsely toothed, ovate to rounded leaves. The leaves often take on a purple coloration, especially in the winter and early spring.

The pinkish-white flowers appear in dense spikes on each side of the stem base in March/April generally as the foliage appears. The fruit is a 3-locular capsule with 2 seeds per locule. Procumbens is a great ground cover for partial to full shade in organic, moist, well-drained soil.

It may exhibit some dieback after a hard winter in exposed areas, while it will remain evergreen and lush in more protected spots. Slugs and snails may cause some damage but it generally is disease and pest resistant. Pachysandra procumbens deserves much wider use, especially in naturalizing situations. Its soft mounds do not aggressively invade companion plants.