Visiting Logee’s Tropical Container Plants for Home and Garden
As a serious and passionate gardener, whenever I have the time I always enjoy visiting area nurseries in search of new and unusual houseplants to add to my collection.
Earlier this week, my head gardener, Ryan McCallister, and I took a trip to Logee’s Tropical Container Plants for Home and Garden in Danielson, Connecticut - one of my favorite sources for tropical specimens. Logee’s was founded in 1892 by William D. Logee. William started the business as a cut-flower shop and then expanded it to include begonias and tropical container plants. Over time, Logee’s became well known for its hybridizing achievements in the world of begonias. Today, Logee’s is owned and operated by Williams’s grandson, Byron Martin, and his business partner, Laurelynn Martin. Logee’s offers more than 1500 plant cultivars - most of which are all propagated right in its greenhouses. I have been going to Logee's for many years, and Byron has been a guest on both my television and radio shows. It's always so much fun to visit his greenhouses and to learn about his wonderful plants.
Enjoy these photos.
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- Logee’s is a great source for all kinds of plants – orchids, succulents, fruit trees, exotics, etc. Once Byron took over the family business, he wanted to be sure Logee’s was a place that could provide unusual tropical flowering and fragrant specimens that performed well in pots.
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- I have known Byron Martin and Laurelynn Martin for many years. I visit him at least once a year – and I never leave empty handed. We posed for this quick snapshot – Laurelynn, Byron, myself, and Ryan – all masked for safety.
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- The greenhouses at Logee’s are packed with a large assortment of amazing plants – neatly arranged and organized.
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- 98-percent of all the plants are propagated at Logee’s.
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- This is called Euclinia longiflora. Also called African Tree Gardenia, this rare shrub has long, 10-inch white, tubular flowers from late fall through early winter. The lightly fragrant, creamy-white blooms turn pale yellow as they age.
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- This is Hibiscus sinensis ‘The Path.’ The upright plant is dense with slightly serrated foliage. Its brilliant yellow-edged flowers blend to a rich orange which is often spotted yellow and deep pink. ‘The Path’ is a prolific bloomer and a good sturdy bush.
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- The flowers can be up to seven-inches wide.
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- Golden Fuchsia, Deppea splendens, has gorgeous, hanging clusters of rich yellow blooms, accented by rose calyxes. Discovered in the 1970s in the cloud forests of Southern Mexico, it is now thought to be extinct in the wild. Although it can mature into a large shrub or small tree, it does exceptionally well in containers and can be pruned when needed.
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- Staghorn ferns Platycerium veitchii ‘Lemoinei’ is a beautiful and unique smaller growing staghorn fern. It is easy to grow and does best with direct morning sun and even moisture.
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- Amorphophallus titanum, the titan arum, is a flowering plant with the largest unbranched inflorescence in the world. This titanum is endemic to Sumatra. Its flower is only open for 48-hours and attracts insect pollinators with its stench of rotting flesh. When it blooms the flower produces its own heat to help spread the smell and attract pollinators.
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- Muehlenbeckia complexa ‘Big Leaf’ is a twining, evergreen ground cover featuring larger, round, light green leaves on wire like stems. This wire vine likes any well-drained soil. It will form a trailing mat of foliage and is a good selection for rock walls and containers.
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- Byron also has a growing house dedicated to raising succulents. Here are some growing under a bench. In botany, succulent plants are plants with parts that are thickened, fleshy, and engorged, usually to retain water in arid climates or soil conditions. I am very fond of succulents and have a large collection of my own in my Bedford, New York greenhouse.
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- This Kalanchoe is also growing under a bench. Kalanchoe plants are very thick leaved. Most are kept in containers, but those in areas that can mimic the native land of Madagascar can grow them outdoors. They have deep green, scalloped leaves and when in bloom, clusters of tiny flowers that produce a large blossoms held aloft on tall stems above the foliage.
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- These are grafted Adeniums. Adenium is a genus of flowering plants in the family Apocynaceae first described as a genus in 1819. It is native to Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.
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- Anthurium wendlingeri stands out in any collection. This showy epiphytic anthurium species was described in 1965 based on a living plant originating from near Turrialba, Cartago Province, Costa Rica. It has rippled dark green, almost grey leaf blades reaching more than 25-inches in length.
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- This area is for begonia propagation. The genus begonia contains about 1500 different plant species and hundreds of hybrids. Begonias are native to tropical and subtropical climates, so many specimens are kept indoors as ornamental houseplants. I love begonias and most of mine are from Logee’s including one Byron developed that is named ‘Martha Stewart’.
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- Jasmine is a genus of shrubs and vines in the olive family. It contains around 200 species native to tropical and warm temperate regions of Eurasia and Oceania. Jasmines are widely cultivated for the characteristic fragrance of their flowers.
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- These are the leaves of ‘Black Gold’ Philodendron, Philodendron melanochrysum. ‘Black Gold’ is a vining philodendron that when mature produces long leaves of iridescent black-green with pale green veins. The juvenile leaves emerge with bronze tones. ‘Black Gold’ Philodendron prefers to be grown in warm temperatures and indirect lighting near a window.
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- Philodendrons are fast-growing, easy plants. They range in growth pattern from graceful and vining to bold and bushy. Philodendrons are generally forgiving and will tolerate low light, poor soil, and inconsistent watering.
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- One of Byron and Laurelynn’s major interests is citrus which can be found throughout their greenhouses. This is a multi-variety citrus tree in the “Big House.” Planted in 1964, this tree is showing grapefruit and temple oranges. Many of the citrus plants in my collection are also from Logee’s.
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- Here is a 100-year old kumquat tree with multiple varieties grafted onto it. Kumquats are a group of small fruit-bearing trees in the flowering plant family Rutaceae.
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- I was able to pick a few fruits for tasting including these Kaki persimmons, Diospyros kaki, the Oriental persimmon, Japanese persimmon or simply kaki. It is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Diospyros. Although its first botanical description was not published until 1780, the kaki is among the oldest cultivated plants, having been in use in China for more than 2000 years. It is one of the most loved autumn Japanese fruits and is extremely rich in dietary fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, and many valuable B-complex vitamins.
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- This is a Camellia hybrid. Camellias are large, attractive, broad-leaved, evergreen shrubs that are highly prized for their flowers, which bloom from winter to spring. There are more than 2300 named cultivars registered with the American Camellia Society.
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- This is Camellia ‘Debutant’ which was brought into the Logee’s greenhouse in 1940.
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- Camellia japonica ‘Pearl Maxwell’ has spectacular, soft, shell pink, formal double blooms in mid to late winter.
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- This pink bloom is on a Dombeya wallichii, a spectacular flowering shrub from Madagascar which blooms during the winter season. It has a unique buttery fragrance.
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- And this is Cyphomandra crassicaulis, the tree tomato – a South American delicacy which produces edible, egg-shaped fruits that taste like custardy guavas.
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- If you’re ever in the area, stop by Logee’s Tropical Container Plants for Home and Garden in Danielson, Connecticut – it’s filled with so many wonderful botanical gems. And be sure to check out their web site and catalog – there is something there for everyone.
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