(Kuster's Feather Cycad)

Bearing large, glossy, palm-like leaves on arching, spine-free petioles, this low-growing cycad makes an elegant addition to tropical gardens and greenhouses. It is a rare endemic of cloud forests in a small area of the Sierra Madre Oriental Mountains in Tamaulipas, Mexico.

The long, feathery, rich-green leaves are spirally arranged atop a short, swollen, trunk-like stem. The numerous, narrow, blade-shaped leaflets are soft and pliant when new, becoming leathery and rigid with age. New leaves...

(Chinese Redbud)

Larger in leaf and flower than eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis), this Chinese native makes a beautiful shrub or small tree for sun or light shade. The bright purple-pink pea-flowers cluster along the upright gray branches in mid-spring, before the large, glossy, heart-shaped leaves emerge. Abundant green seedpods follow the flowers, maturing to brown. The leaves turn dull yellow in fall.

Less cold hardy than eastern redbud, Cercis chinensis shares its preference for well-drained,...

(Avondale Redbud, Chinese Redbud)

When 'Avondale' came onto the scene, its small size meant that the beauty of the Chinese redbud would fit spaces and gardens too small for the species. A deciduous shrub or small tree native to China and Japan, Cercis chinensis is found thriving in a wide range of growing conditions. One aspect of its beauty lies in its leaves: rounded hearts that hang gracefully from fine, reddish stems. They are held on the upright gray branches of a vase shaped shrub or multiple-trunk tree.

The gorgeous...

(Chinese Redbud, Don Egolf Redbud)

Larger in leaf and flower than eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis), this Chinese native makes a beautiful shrub or small tree for sun or light shade. The bright purple-pink pea-flowers cluster along the upright gray branches in mid-spring, before the large, glossy, heart-shaped leaves emerge. Abundant green seedpods follow the flowers, maturing to brown. The leaves turn dull yellow in fall.

Less cold hardy than eastern redbud, Cercis chinensis shares its preference for well-drained,...

(California Redbud, Western Redbud)

The drought tolerance and intense color make western redbud a top notch tree for dry gardens. It is native to the hill country of California, Arizona and Utah where the dry season can result in no rainfall for as long as six months a year. It prefers conditions from the toe of west facing foothill exposures to middle elevations. This prized member of the dry garden is a multi-stemmed tree in the wild, branching off a large underground woody crown. Its distinctive large heart-shaped leaves are often...

(Chain Flowered Redbud, Pendulous Redbud)

Having the pretty heart-shaped foliage common among all redbuds, this species is unique with its pendent clusters of light pink flowers in mid-spring. Chain flowered redbud is an attractive decidious tree from western China that has a rounded canopy, pretty as a dual-purposed specimen flowering and small shade tree in the landscape.

The grayed sandy brown bark of the branches becomes less interesting in mid-spring once the pastel pink flower buds and glossy light green new leaves emerge. Leaves...

(Cereus, Night-blooming Cactus)

While grown for its nocturnal flowers, Cereus aethiops displays an attractive bluish stem with starry black spine clusters. It is native to central South America, primarily in northern Argentina, but also into nearby southern Brazil and Paraguay.

This upright, columnar cactus rarely branches and has clusters of long black spines. There are no leaves, but the attractive green-blue, eight-ribbed stem photosynthesizes sunlight. In winter or in intense sunlight, the stem blushes lavender...

(Cereus, Night-blooming Cactus)

White to lavender, trumpet-shaped flowers grace the skeletal stems of Cereus albicaulis. It is native to eastern Brazil, especially in the state of Bahia, although relatively rare in the wild. It may grow upright, but tends to lean and arch over nearby vegetation.

This shrubby, open and coarse-branching cactus has starry clusters of long gray spines. There are no leaves, but the slender, sprawling light green stems photosynthesize sunlight. Each stem has four or five vertical ribs....

(Cereus, Night-blooming Cactus)

Small white trumpet-shaped flowers grace the skinny, spined stems of Cereus amazonicus. It is native to the arid highlands in the upper Amazon River basin, in Bolivia and Peru.

This tree-like, coarse-branching cactus has starry clusters of short spines. There are no leaves, but the slender, upright green stems photosynthesize sunlight. Each has seven to nine vertical ribs. Its small white flowers are tubular, many petaled and night blooming, though they will remain open up until the...

(Cereus, Night-blooming Cactus)

Small white trumpet-shaped flowers grace the skinny, spined stems of Cereus apoloensis. It is native to the arid highlands from Bolivia and Peru southward across southwestern Brazil into northern Argentina.

This tree-like, coarse-branching cactus has starry clusters of short spines. There are no leaves, but the slender, upright green stems photosynthesize sunlight. Each has seven to nine vertical ribs. Its small white flowers are tubular, many petaled and night blooming, though they...