A variety of plants, propagated from our historic properties, are now available for sale at the Gift Shop at Robert Mills. The plants available for sale will rotate throughout the year based on season and availability. As you plan your garden, consider adding some plants from our historic gardens! Plus, all proceeds support Historic Columbia.
Please note: This season's plants are no longer for sale. Visit us during the month of April to see our new selections!
The following plants are currently available for sale at the Gift Shop at Robert Mills during normal Gift Shop hours. Please note that our plant inventory is subject to change and based on demand, some plants may not be available.
Please note: This season's plants are no longer for sale. Visit us during the month of April to see our new selections!
| Name | Price | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Cape Honeysuckle Tecoma capensis |
$10 | Tecoma capensis hails from the South African Cape (east and west) into Natal. Despite being a giant clambering evergreen shrub in warmer climates, where it remains woody, it is a well-behaved, very drought tolerant deciduous perennial for us, surviving our single digit winter temperatures for at least a decade. Composed of upright and arching stems, clothed with campsis-like glossy green foliage, and adorned, starting for us in August with terminal spike of screaming orange flower...up to 20 flowers per spike. Migrating hummingbirds will be sure to stop by for a visit when yours are in flower...as well as bees and butterflies. |
| Herbemont Wine Grape Vitis x 'Herbemont' |
$35 | An unlikely naturally occurring hybrid between the native Vitis aestivalis and the European wine grape, Vitis vinifera. This plant originates as a found seedling here in Columbia in the early 1800s. It was extensively grown by Columbia resident Nicholas Herbemont. Herbemont also made highly acclaimed Rose’ and Madeira type wines from the grape. Historic Columbia offers this plant for sale in limited numbers on an annual basis. |
| Hybrid Passionflower Passiflora x 'Incense' |
$15 | Very fast growing vine to 10-20ft, sometimes longer. This variety is a hybrid between two hardy passion flower species (Passiflora incarnata and P. cinnicata), and as a result, is very hardy itself, surviving temperatures below 0F. Flowers begin in Spring and the vine will flower on and off for most of the Spring and Summer. Flowers attract birds (including hummingbirds) and bees. The flowers are self-sterile, so without pollinators, they should be hand-pollinated to obtain fruit. Flowers are followed by yellow, 1-3" fruit with little pulp. Fruits are edible. |
| Mexican Tree Dahlia Dahlia imperialis |
$25 | This is an awesome late season perennial. Its bold, tropical-like foliage fills out the back of the border from late spring through summer. In mid-fall, the 5” wide nodding lilac flowers open to show their golden yellow centers. |
| Garden Mum Chrysanthemum x 'Miss Gloria's Thanksgiving' |
$10 | This old fashioned garden mum is named after plantsman Jenks Farmer’s mother, Gloria. It is tough as nails and a reliable performer late in the season. |
| Gold Doubloon Cape Jasmine Gardenia jasmenoides ‘Ogon no Hana’ |
$15 | Without a doubt, this is the most incredible variegated Gardenia of all time. On top of this, it has double fragrant flowers which measure between 4.5-5" across. The leaves are also the largest of any Gardenia that I have seen. Overall, this plant is a "traffic stopper!" For best foliage color, plant it where it gets at least a half day of full sun. We don't know why, but for some reason we don't have near the problem with white flies that we have on green-leaf varieties. |
| Florist's Mum Chrysanthemum x Shaman's Vision |
$10 | A stunning success from our “Florist Mum” collection, Shaman’s Vision features 2-3” double white “spoon” form flowers. This cultivar has proven fully winter hardy for us. |
| Small Leaved Flowering Maple Abutilon sp. 'Ab 1607' |
$10 | This “Flowering Maple”, a member of the Hibiscus family, is constantly in flower from late spring to first frost. Easily root hardy, the stems and leaves of this plant will also persist through most of our winters. |
| Smooth Barked St. John's Wort Hypericum lissophloeus |
$15 | This rare tree-like hypericum native to a limited area in the Florida Panhandle is a graceful evergreen to 10 feet with needle-like leaves and outstanding copper-colored exfoliating bark. Native to sandy soil that is well-drained or occasionally flooded on the slopes and margins of sink hole ponds. In time, it resembles a miniature weeping willow with golden flowers! |
| Scuppernong Grape Vitis rotundifolia 'Triumph' |
$20 | Extra-large and juicy! These vigorous vines produce large clusters of bronze-pink muscadine grapes. Fruit is excellent for fresh eating with its cool, sweet crunch. Ripe fruit may develop a slight reddish hue on the sunny side. A cross between Fry and GA 29-49. Introduced in 1971. Disease-resistant. Heat-tolerant. Ripens in August and into September. Self-pollinating. |
The above selections are just a small portion of the wide variety of plants cultivated on four of our historic properties. Visit our Garden Database to find exactly what you're looking for.
