Other sources include Whitney Gardens, Edelweiss Perennials, and probably many more you can uncover with an online search. You do need to understand, though, that no daphne, at least in my experience, will be evergreen in Z5. Many daphnes, cneorum included, want lots of sun during the growing season. Left unprotected in the winter they will at least lose their leaves and possibly suffer a good deal of stem dieback. Any sort of daphne attempted in Z5 needs protection from sun and wind in the winter. Evergreen boughs put down once winter has arrived are excellent. I've also had good success using permeable fabric held off the plants with twigs thrust into the ground.

in my z5.. fully deciduous ... little or no winter damage ... no winter protection ... full south sun in winter ...

in good fertile soil.. back in suburbia... i lost quite a few ...

out here in the country ... SAND ... havent lost one ...

wet feet will kill Ds .... hopefully others can expand on such ...

ken

We have a spot on the Southeast border of our house that would be protected from cold, westerly, winter winds. I was thinking of trying a Silveredge Daphne. It would be located between two humongous rhododendron shrubs. Do you think it would thrive in that type of Zone 5b location? There is a lot of bark chip mulch there. We have clay soil, so I wonder if I did purchase one whether I should mix a bit of sand into the soil?

isnt sand plus clay = cement???

plant above grade.. imo ....

ken

Uh, it looks like you are right. Boy, I have a lot to learn:. http://www.patwelsh.com/soils/never-add-clay-to-sand-or-sand-to-clay/ 

Daphne burkwoodii types such as Silver Edge have the potential to grow quite a bit taller than 1 foot and will spread horizontally as well. This strain of daphne also has the unfortunate habit of readily splitting, often right down the middle, under the weight of snow. Forgot to mention it in the prior post, but my greatest long term success has been with daphne susannae, also sometimes listed as d. medfordensis. Growing in a trough with an extremely gritty planting medium, it remains evergreen and has unfailingly bloomed each spring for at least 12 years. So, given your clay soil, growing in a container with something like the gritty mix as featured in the container forum may be your best chance for long term success.

this link addresses clay .. ken

https://sites.google.com/site/tnarboretum/Home/planting-a-tree-or-shrub

Since good drainage is pretty much a prerequisite for growing any sort of daphne, I'd question the feasibility and any long term prospects of planting daphne in a heavily clay based soil. As akamainegrower suggests, a containerized planting may be your best bet.

What do you all think about Daphne Mezereum (February Daphne)? I read that it is cold hardy to Zone 4. The person who runs this blog lives in upstate NY. http://www.coldclimategardening.com/2014/04/25/you-need-february-daphne-in-your-early-spring-garden/

Not at all evergreen and a rather ungainly looking shrub (IMO) but a heavy flower producer and fragrant.

I have well-drained soil, so I plant Daphne in the ground. My favorite Daphne is D. x transatlantica 'Summer Ice'. It was the longest blooming plant in my garden (until the voles ate every root on the poor thing one winter) and though it never has a massive number of flowers on it, it has at least some from before the last frost until hard freeze. It kept some, though not all of its leaves in winter, and they have a delicate edge of white. It is considerably larger than a foot, however, reaching about 3' in a mostly shady spot in my garden over the course of perhaps 8 years. It probably gets larger in a warmer zone.

hipster.. you need to perk your soil ... dig a 5 gal hole.. fill with water.. time how long it takes to empty ...

this will tell you how bad you clay is ...

bad clay is all about the lack of drainage ...

start a new post if you want to talk about this... so others with clay can read about it ... its not really a daphne issue ...

ken

Thanks all. I ordered a Silveredge Daphne from Klehm's Song Sparrow nursery. I want to try one, and I figure that if it doesn't grow in the location I have planned for it that it won't grow anywhere here unless potted. It will be protected from the wind in a location that gets part sun and shade. It will have good drainage at the top of a slope, nestled between two large rhododendron shrubs and surrounded by Boston Ivy with plenty of mulch.

To give it its best chance, plant it high, on a bit of a mound to help with drainage. Don't amend the backfill when you plant since in clay that often works like a bathtub.

Sometimes plants defy all the conventional wisdom and flourish in unexpected places and under counter-indicated conditions. Years ago, I remember a nursery receiving a shipment of B&B daphne Carol Mackie growing in what seemed to be pure red clay. Lots were sold and no returns or complaints that I can recall. Perhaps unclehippie's Silver Edge will do just fine. In most cases, however, daphne's need a loose, gritty, usually somewhat limey soil. The speed with which water percolates away is only part of the story. Daphnes need a lot of oxygen around the roots as well as a quick drying environment to avoid root rots.

Daphne mezereum is a tough, nearly indestructable species. As gardengal mentioned, it is not the most graceful of shrubs, but it is highly fragrant and the first thing to bloom each spring. After a cold and dark New England winter, it is always a welcome sight. Get one established and the birds will plant the seeds in the most unexpected places.

unclehippie: When you receive your Silver Edge from Song Sparrow, how about letting us know your impressions? Song Sparrow has a lot of unusual plants and their packing is among the best in the industry. Sometimes, however, what you receive is awfully small for the price paid. All mailorder nurseries really ought to give, as many do, an indication of the plant's size, not the size of container it's growing in.

Thank you all for the tips. I wonder if we should add a little ash from the fireplace to make the soil a bit more limey? I will post a picture of the Daphne after it is planted.

I am also going to try and post a picture of the Georgia Blue Veronica I planted at NHBab's suggestion a few years ago in a ground over thread (if I can find my old post). It has really taken off in its third year! Thank you.

I just wanted to post an update. I received the Silveredge Daphne from Song Sparrow last Thursday. It was packaged very well and is about two and a half feet high. I wanted to plant it right away, but we had a cold spell come through over the weekend with temps dipping into the upper thirties last night.

I ended up planting the new Daphne tonight. I tried to keep the soil from its container as intact as possible. I added a small amount of ashes to the soil, and I built the soil around it up a bit for drainage purposes. Here is a picture of it. Its leaves sort of blend in with some of the ground covering vines. Now, I guess I just need to make sure I water it regularly until it gets established and hope for the best.

Thanks for the update. The daphne looks good - starting to branch out with lots of new growth.