When it comes to creating a landscape garden plan, the most difficult thing is often the starting point: selecting the first type of plant. Then, from there, companion plants are selected. The small garden design below was designed using the Tea Olive (Osmanthus fragrans) as a the featured specimen plant. Use the design "as is" or modify it to fit your unique garden space.
Feature Plant Description
As it is the sole survivor of an ancient group of trees that date back to beyond the time of the dinosaurs, Ginkgo biloba is a remarkable tree known as a 'living fossil'. The oldest fossil on record is over 200 million years old. Exceptionally hardy and easy to grow, the Ginkgo tree is capable of living several hundred years. Some specimens in China are thought to be at least 400 years old.
Ginkgo is prized for its tall, distinguished upright habit and its very unusual leaves. The unsual, fan-shaped, green leaves are composed of two or more distinct lobes. In fall, the leaves turn a beautiful, bright golden-yellow hue before falling to the ground. Make sure to purchase and plant only a MALE Ginkgo tree. Not that I have a prejudice bone in my body, but the female produces seeds which, after having fallen to the ground, the fleshy outer seed coat gives off an odor that has been compared to rancid butter and vomit. It's terrible - you wouldn't want that!
Plants Used in Design
Click on a plant below to find pictures and details on its Gardenality Plant File
1 - Ginkgo Tree
2 - Creeping Plum Yew
3 - Color Guard Yucca
4 - Blue Hosta Lily
5 - Flirt Nandina
5 - (Optional) Vinca minor as low, evergreen groundcover throughout
IMPORTANT: Always be sure to check USDA Plant Hardiness Zones for each plant to make sure it will grow in your zone. If a plant will not grow in your zone ask your local nursery and garden center professional to recommend a comparable plant.
