Recent visitors to the garden were enthralled by several plants, but two sweetshrubs (Calycanthus) caught their eyes. The large flowered ‘Aphrodite’ (Calycanthus ‘Aphrodite’, below) blooms a few weeks later than native species that faded two weeks ago, and with multiple buds it continues to flower weeks longer. My dysfunctional nose does permit me to comment on its scent, but its vigorous growth and significantly larger flower distinguish it above others.

The second sweetshrub drew attention despite its lack of flowers that faded several weeks ago. ‘Burgundy Spice’ ( Calycanthus floridus var purpureus ‘Burgundy Spice’, below) is limited in popularity due to its rarity in the marketplace, but in bloom or not its veined, dark leaves are glorious. After its second spring, I’ve misjudged its vigor, so while a few lower branches have required pruning already, I look forward to what will soon be a large mass of burgundy leaves that hold their color though the heat of summer. To my colorblind eye, the flowers barely contrast with the leaves, but no matter, this sweetshrub is marvelous while others are unremarkable after flowering.

While one sweetbay magnolia (Magnolia virginiana, below) grows tall with barely a bloom in the dry, deep shade beneath the huge bigleaf magnolia (Magnolia macrophylla), a second in damp ground and part sun flowers abundantly. Its scented flowers are typical of magnolias, though smaller than most. When a significant increase in rainfall several years ago saturated much of the lower, rear garden for months, large hollies and a witch hazel were lost. Results of the replanting have been mixed, but the sweetbay thrives in the moist ground and I think I’ve finally latched onto a combination of shrubs that will satisfactorily fill this space.

The Goldenrain tree (Koelreuteria paniculata, below) is plainly obvious to visitors walking down the driveway. I almost wrote that it is painfully obvious, since the thousands of seedlings annually were once a huge problem, though in recent years the heavy shade moderates the quantity of volunteers. No doubt, the tree is lovely in flower, but it is also regularly plagued by branches that die to litter the ground beneath.

Years ago, I gave a try to see if any of the calla lilies were cold hardy enough to make it through our winters. While the flowers of Zantedeschia aethiopica (below) are not showy, the initial plant has survived and seeded into another ten thick clumps across the sunnier portion of the garden. Several have been weeded out, and if a better choice comes along I’ll pull any of the callas out in a heartbeat, but I enjoy the large leaves even if the flowers aren’t much.