Emerald Okra: The Round-Podded Heirloom Bred for Soup Emerald okra is an heirloom variety with an unusual origin. It was bred by a soup company, not a university or a seed house. Campbell Soup Company developed it in the late 1940s and introduced it around 1950, aiming for an okra that would hold up in … Read more

Clemson Spineless Okra: The Variety That Defined Southern Okra Clemson Spineless okra is the most important okra variety ever grown in the United States. It is the variety behind the green, ribbed pods in Southern gumbo pots, fried okra platters, and pickle jars. It was developed in South Carolina in the 1930s and won an … Read more

Nugget Ninebark: The Golden Shrub Bred on the Northern Great Plains Nugget ninebark is a golden-leaved shrub that brings bright yellow color to gardens from the Dakotas to New England. In spring its leaves emerge in a bright golden yellow, then mellow to soft chartreuse and lime green as summer goes on. It is dense, … Read more

There are more types of ninebark shrubs than most gardeners realize, from 2-foot dwarfs that fit in a patio pot to 10-foot giants that can screen a whole fence line. They all go back to one tough North American native. For years it was a plain green shrub that few people noticed. That changed when … Read more

Coppertina Ninebark: The Copper-to-Red Ninebark Born From 2 Famous Parents Coppertina ninebark is a shrub whose leaves change color over the season. In spring the new leaves come out a shiny, glowing copper-orange. By summer they have deepened to a rich red, and on older growth some turn nearly burgundy. That shift comes from its … Read more

Diabolo Ninebark: The Purple-Leaved Shrub That Made Ninebark Famous Diabolo ninebark is the shrub that turned an overlooked native plant into one of the best-selling landscape shrubs in North America. Before it arrived in the late 1990s, common ninebark was a plain green shrub used mostly in windbreaks and conservation plantings. Diabolo changed that with … Read more

Mallow Ninebark: The Drought-Tough Ninebark of the Rocky Mountains Mallow ninebark is the dry-country member of the ninebark family. It is a hardy native shrub of rocky canyons, sunny hillsides, and open pine and Douglas-fir forests across the interior West. Its relatives prefer damp ground: common ninebark grows on eastern stream banks and Pacific ninebark … Read more

Ninebark Identification: How to Recognize This Native Shrub in Every Season Once you know what to look for, ninebark is easy to identify. This native North American shrub combines 4 features that rarely show up together on one plant: maple-like lobed leaves, rounded clusters of small white flowers, puffy reddish seed pods, and bark that … Read more

Pacific Ninebark: The Native Streamside Shrub of the West Coast Pacific ninebark is one of the most useful native shrubs in western North America. It grows along creeks, wet meadows, and woodland edges from Alaska to California. Gardeners in the East know its cousin, common ninebark, mostly through purple- and gold-leaved nursery varieties. Pacific ninebark … Read more

Common Ninebark: A Hardy Native Shrub Grown for Its Peeling Bark and Colorful Foliage Common ninebark is one of the toughest flowering shrubs native to North America. It survives bitter prairie winters, wet stream banks, and dry, rocky slopes with little help from the gardener. For years it was dismissed as a plain woodland shrub. … Read more