Things are looking up (Wednesday Vignette)

Last weekend, I took a trip down my back slope to do a little watering and decided that the area I've been wringing my hands over since we moved in 6 years ago wasn't looking too bad at all.  Of course, it's spring and spring tends to sugarcoat things.  Flowers can divert attention from an area's deficiencies.

Before we take in what's looking up, let's start by looking down.

This is the view from the upper section of the cement block stairway my husband built to provide easier access to the lemon tree at the bottom of the slope.  The area to the right of the stairway is still weedy and rife with bare spots created when last summer's horrific early heatwave burned everything up but it's filled in some.  The harbor, partly screened by fog, is just visible in the distance.

Here's a look back up in the opposite direction.

The color provided by flowers is more readily visible from this direction

Our winter rains gave everything a boost, from the Agave attenuata at the bottom of the stairs to the prostrate rosemary growing in the upper section to the fig tree and artichoke in between

There's a LOT of floral color and even fruit and vegetables, as the following collage shows.

Plants of interest include: Top row -  an artichoke complete with chokes, Bignonia capreolata, and Carpenteria californica
Middle row - Centranthus ruber, Eschscholzia californica 'White Linen', and Euphorbia 'Dean's Hybrid'
Bottom row - Lots of lemons! (still not quite ripe), Oenothera speciosa, and Pelargonium 'White Lady'

Even the area formerly occupied by a massive Yucca elephantipes is looking pretty good, although I think I may have over-planted there.

The 3 Pittosporum tenuifolium 'Silver Magic' we planted as a fence of sorts between our property and that of our neighbor to the south is finally filling in.  The California poppies are on the wane but I'm allowing them plenty of time to self-seed this year.  Most of the Calla lilies are done blooming and the plants are beginning the slow process of dying back but the Centranthus ruber that self-seeded last year are providing alternative floral interest.  The Ceanothus arboreus 'Cliff Schmidt' I planted 2 years ago from a 4-inch container is hidden by other foliage here but gaining girth and could eventually reach 15 feet tall.  (Last year I considered it a goner.)

But the thing I was most happy about and the focus of this week's Wednesday Vignette, is this:

Romneya coulteri aka Matilija poppy and California tree poppy, planted last spring, is blooming for the first time

The huge flowers are often likened to fried eggs, which I think denies their beauty.  The plants are said to be hard to establish but, once established, hard to control.  It's native to Southern California and said to be beloved by birds, bees, and butterflies.  I look forward to it spreading its stems and remain hopeful that I can keep it to a manageable size by cutting it back hard each winter.

For more Wednesday Vignettes, visit Anna of Flutter & Hum.


All material © 2012-2017 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party