Friday, November 11, 2022

Fall plant shopping trip

A friend and I made our biannual trip north to shop for plants last weekend, visiting three of our favorite garden centers in Carpinteria and Santa Barbara.  While I didn't come home entirely empty-handed, my purchases were relatively light this time.  That's at least partly attributable to the supply of plants I accumulated during the summer months and only planted out as temperatures dropped, as well as all the areas I recently filled with bulbs.

Most of my photos were taken at our first stop, Seaside Gardens in Carpinteria.  My photos focused primarily on Seaside's expansive demonstration gardens.

My friend and I were greeted by the garden center's cat, Oreo, as soon as we got out of the car

The Cottage Garden was exploding with blue-flowered Salvias and a few roses

Serene scenes from the Grasslands area

Even in November, the South African section was colorful, courtesy of Leonotis leonurus and Kniphofia

Protea 'Pink Ice' was in bloom too

The Succulent Garden always looks good.  I immediately noticed all the Agave gypsophila 'Ivory Curls' and assumed they'd been planted since my last visit in February but, after checking my prior photos, it seems the plants were there, albeit noticeably smaller.

Clockwise from the upper left: A mass of Agave bracteosa (squid agave), Agave attentuata (foxtail agave), and a closeup of Agave gypsophila 'Ivory Curls'

A variety of Aloes on the left and a closeup of new-to-me Aloe eminensis, which I understand is a tree aloe now classified as Aloidendron eminens

Other succulents that caught my eye included Euphorbia caput-medusae, Myrtillocactus geometrozans, and Pedilanthus bracteosa

This is my only photo from the South American Garden and the light wasn't favorable but I had to take notice of the fact that this Russelia equisetiformis (firecracker plant) is always in bloom

 

Although my focus was on the demonstration garden, I did a thorough round of the nursery as well.

Like the demonstration gardens, the nursery is organized by the plants' areas of origin.  I agonized a little over the Asplenium antiquum 'Hurricane' (a rarer variety of bird's nest fern, upper right) but ferns in general aren't happy in my garden so I passed.  I noted the perfect specimen of Mangave 'Tooth Fairy' (lower right) and can only hope my tiny specimen will look like that someday now that it's been freed of its small pot.


After a lunch break, we visited Island View Nursery, also in Carpinteria.

This photo of a noID Tillandsia was the only one I took during this stop.  The flower spike was large and very fragrant.  When I posted this photo on Instagram, people who know more about Tillandsia than I do thought it might be Tillandsia straminea.

 

Last up was Terra Sol Garden Center in Santa Barbara.  It's small but often packed with unusual plants.  I took no photos at all there, mainly because time was growing short and I was focused on plant shopping.  My biggest score was a selection of foxgloves.

Foxgloves aren't at all unusual but they had Digitalis 'Dalmatian Peach', which isn't always easy to find.  I brought home 3 peach, 2 purple and 1 white variety, all in the 'Dalmatian' series.  One is already planted in a barrel in my front garden (with large river rocks to deter the blasted raccoons) and 2 are in one of the raised planters in my cutting garden.

 

I bought a few other plants at our first two stops as well.

Island View had a 1-gallon Agave parryi (left) for $12!  (My friend bought a 1-gallon Mangave 'Lavender Lady' for $10!)  I also brought home the Begonia conchifolia var rubrimacula on the right.

My Seaside purchases were more mundane, a handful of small succulents and 2 Lotus berthelotii (one shown here planted near another I planted last year).  This Lotus is commonly used as a hanging plant but I like to use it as a groundcover.

 

That's it from me this week.  I hope you enjoy a wonderful weekend.


All material © 2012-2022 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party


14 comments:

  1. Looks like you had a great outing even if you didn't buy a lot of new plants. The drive to Santa Barbara is always nice, esp. if the traffic cooperates.

    I've never been to Seaside Gardens in the fall; looks like a great time to visit!

    Mangave 'Lavender Lady' for $10 in a 1-gal is insanely cheap!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Even though I already have 3 'Lavender Lady' Mangaves, I thought about buying another! They had a few others but those were also varieties I already have.

      Delete
  2. That tillandsia bloom spike is gorgeous! I am so amazed by people who know tillandsia.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's particularly hard to judge a Tillandsia's identity before it blooms, Loree, at least from my point of view.

      Delete
  3. Fun times! The South American garden (and the entire property) looks beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Should your travels ever take you to that area, Beth, the demonstration gardens alone are worth a visit.

      Delete
  4. Looks like a fun day! Lovely that you have a ‘planty’ friend to nursery hop with. Those display gardens look great, particularly the succulent garden. And any nursery with a resident cat is worth a visit in my book 😉

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My friend isn't actually all that "planty" but she tolerates my interest, enjoys the drive up Santa Barbara way (where we were once both undergrads), and she buys the occasional plant here and there. She focuses on photographing gardens, which is why a stop at Seaside is always on our agenda.

      Delete
  5. Even if your plant haul was small, you made friends with a nursery kitty, which to me at least, makes the entire trip that much better.
    I loved the photo of the Grasslands area and that of the Protea bloom: what a stunning shade of (ice) pink!
    Lotus berthelotii looks very soft and airy, and I like your unconventional use of it.
    chavli

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oreo was a very friendly cat, who displayed a clear understanding that she was the nursery's official greeter ;) Even without flowers, I loved those grassland shots for their sense of calm. As to Protea 'Pink Ice', I came home and gave my own plant a talking to. I had it in a large pot for 2 years (my bad) but I planted it out in December 2018 and, while it's obviously doing better now that it's in the ground, I think it's time for it to produce a bloom.

      Delete
  6. So nice to see these beautiful gardens, Kris. This time of year for you is akin to our spring! Eliza

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Autumn is often called SoCal's second spring, Eliza ;)

      Delete
  7. Have to concentrate for Aloiampelos and Aloidendron. When they were all aloes I could remember!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can't keep the new classifications straight either, Diana. But, if you remember the old name, you can usually find the new one.

      Delete

I enjoy receiving your comments and suggestions! Google has turned on reCAPTCHA affecting some commentator IDs so, if you wish to identify yourself, please add your name to your comment.