thegardendude 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🇵🇸 on Nostr: Had a customer come in today who wanted to replace some mountain laurel that had died ...

Had a customer come in today who wanted to replace some mountain laurel that had died after a few years in his yard (context: this is in the coastal plain of Virginia, definitely outside the preferred habitat of mountain laurels). The ones we had in stock had been cut back because they were looking rough from the heat and humidity. I explained that Kalmia grows much better in the higher elevations of the Piedmont, in almost rocky soil; but he insisted he wanted to replace several that had gone kaput. Even after me telling him they struggle outside the mountains in this part of the country. I would have offered up Pieris or Clethra as alternatives, both very shade tolerant and less temperamental in zone 7 heat. #plants #landscaping