I am hoping to plant a few Asian plants for my elderly aunt's garden near Anchorage, AK which I believe is Zone 2. (Neither of us are gardeners so I am hoping to find plants that are hardy and do not require much work.) She loves the look of Japanese gardens. Can anyone suggest a vibrant green moss, bamboo, pines/maples, or flowers that might survive the winters but not be a burden for an older person to tend. (I tried to look for plants through the Hokkaido U. botanical garden site but could not find the information.)
I really wish the Devonian Botanic Garden in Edmonton had a plant list available from its Kurimoto Japanese Garden - that'd be the perfect resource. Maybe send them an email and see if they can supply it?
Anchorage is considered to be USDA zone 4, which is great! Whether your aunt lives in zone 4 depends on how far from Anchorage she lives, and whether she is closer to or farther from the ocean. A USDA hardiness zone map is available at: http://www.usna.usda.gov/Hardzone/alaska.html, and an article about the climate of south-central Alaska is at: http://www.alaska.com/about/weather/story/4481284p-4775749c.html. Since your aunt lives "near Anchorage," it will definitely help to know exactly where so that you can pinpoint the exact hardiness zone. It is important because if she lives in zone 3b rather than 4, if will further narrow the choice of plants to choose from, such as which maples and conifers. Let us know, but we can start with the assumption of zone 4.[FONT="] [/FONT]
Re: Zone 2a - Asian Garden She lives in zone 2a, the Mat-su Valley (quite windy there.) Thank you both for your kind replies.
Is there any way that you both can get to the Garden Fair at the Alaska Botanic Garden on June 24 or 25? They are having a nursery sale at the Fair, and they could assist you with plants hardy to zone 2. Check out http://www.alaskabg.org/gardenfair.html. According to Van Gelderen, et al., Maples of the World (Timber Press 1994), the following maples tolerate zone 2: Acer caudatum ssp. ukurunduense, Acer spicatum, Acer tataricum ssp. ginnala, and Acer negundo. The latter two maples should be fairly easy to find; both tolerate the strong winds of southern Idaho with fall color scarlet and yellow, respectively. From www.highcountryroses.com: The species roses Rosa acicularis (purple-pink flowers and red hips), Rosa glauca (pretty bluish foliage and flowers), and Rosa rugosa rubra (fragrant flowers, hips, fall color) are hardy to zone 2. If there are moose, elk, or deer who wander about, then you will need to stay away from plants in the Rosaceae family, e.g. roses, crabapples, cherries, etc. If you type zone 2 as search words here on the forums, there are a few threads on the subject with suggestions such as specific species of larch, spruce, and birch.
