Kalmia culpa

I just received my order from Forest Farm (Pines & Firs) and realized that I forgot to place an order for Mountain Laurel. I have no experience growing Kalmia, but would like to give it a go. Since they'lll be planted in front of Fothergilla 'Mount Airy', I'm looking for the best of the dwarf or compact plants. I'm assuming they'll be rampant growers (might as well think positive) and I don't want them to block out the other shrubs in this area. Some of the choices I've come up with are Elf, Little Linda, Minuet, Nathan Hale, Tiddlywinks, and Tinkerbell. While I'd prefer not to ship long-distance this late in the game (I'm thinking of going with 'Little Linda' from Song Sparrow), my goal is to get the best plant and I'm open to suggestions. Does anyone have experience with any of these they could share, or maybe others I should be considering?

Bob

They're all so beautiful, and all so impossible to grow here. I've got a "Minuet" that is plodding into its third year. Hasn't grown, but hasn't died. That's all the insight I have to offer.

Scott

What's this new species Kalmia culpa?

;-)

Scott--I'm hoping they're just as difficult as Daphne, which has been an easy shrub for me to grow. For whatever reason they've thrived from my benign neglect.

Resin--I've finally found a woody plant that you're not familiar with. :)

Hi Bob. I am a big fan of mountain laurels. They are not the easiest plants to grow, especially if you are not in their native range or have essentially identical growing conditions. They want acid sandy soil, adequate moisture especially while transplanting and in the first few years, and even when you do everything right, you may still fail. In my old garden I grew them on top of alkaline clay in raised beds made of sand, sawdust, peat, and compsted pine bark, and that does work. Their root systems are shallow, so raised beds do seem to work if your soil conditions are not suitable. My new garden has acid sandy soil with abundant oaks, and that is what they want in the midwest. They seem much happier. Annual mulching with shredded oak leaves is great for them.

I would think you might have hardiness issues. They grow naturally north into Massachusetts, NH and VT, maybe even S Maine I think. But many of the named selections will be from farther south and may not be fully hardy for you.

If I were you, I would call Broken Arrow Nursery in CT (many of the named selections come from that Nursery) and ask them if they have liners of wild grown plants from northern New England. Those plants are much more likely to survive in your climate than plants of southern provenance. They may also have a good idea of which named selections might be hardier. They mail order liners.

Of the cvs you mention, Elf and Tiddlywinks are especially good small leafed forms. Little Linda is really nice also because it is one of the red-budded forms. One of the great things about some laurels is that they have an especially long showy season because they are very attractive in bud -- many people would even think they are in "flower". Tiddlywinks also has showy buds. Many of the large-leafed forms are showy in bud and flower too. My favorites are Yankee Doodle, Peppermint, and Raspberry Glow.

If you are going to try them, I would suggest ordering several because it is likley that one or more may not make it. But they are worth the effort for me, and certainly are among the hardiest broadleaf evergreens to try in cold climates.

David,

Thank you for the helpful information. I've got an e-mail into Broken Arrow as you've suggested and hopefully they can steer me in the right direction. I don't know why, but I thought they had stopped shipping.

I like the advice you've given to purchase more than what I may initially need. Now thats advice I can use! The reason I'm cautiously optimistic about these is that my soil is sandy and acidic (5.9). They'll be planted in the best soil I have, but still very well drained. I think their cultural needs are close to Fothergilla, which are doing well on this site. I fell in love with Mountain Laurel while vacationing in NC last summer and vowed to give them a shot. Thanks again.

Bob

Broken Arrow did stop shipping for a while but started again about 2 years ago. Mostly they ship liners and not the full range of what they grow (which is pretty amazing, worth a trip there sometime for a woody plant nut...).

It sounds like you do have good conditions for them. Pine bark and leaf mold added to the sand will help, since they like moisture as well as good drainage (the old oxymoron, "moist, well-drained soil..." -- who has that?).

Be warned that they are slow growing too -- liner sized plants will take quite a number of years to make a good display. In Michigan we used to be lucky and have a great grower of laurels and rhodies on Lake Michigan, and you could get 3' plants from her for a song practically. The laurels she had for sale were nicer even than those at BAN and a fraction of the cost -- big, robust field grown plants too. But she stopped growing laurels because the public "did not like their inherently irregular shape" (Huh??? That's much of the charm...). If you can find field grown plants they seem to transplant and do better than those grown in containers.

Hi Bob,
Rice Creek Gardens sold a Mountain Laurel for many years, but it rarely blossomed in this area. Not the easiest plant to grow, as has been noted above, but in the right spot, you never know... The woody growth is hardy, but the flower buds are usually not. Give it a go and let us know what happens.
Thanks,
Mike