First-rate foliage

When flowers fade into the background during the fall season, foliage is allowed to stand out.  It's a great time to take a closer look at it so I did.   I wanted to share the highlights, as well as a few problems.

With their sculptural good looks, many succulents are worthy of admiration.

I planted a variety of Aeonium cuttings below a strawberry tree earlier this year.  The reddish color of  Aeonium 'Jack Catlin' looks particularly striking when backlit by the sun.

I have several Aeonium 'Mardi Gras' rosettes in a bed adjacent to the front door walkway.  This variety doesn't pup much but I noticed that the one on the right has developed another rosette in the middle of the first one.

Agave 'Joe Hoak' and the squid agaves next to it (Agave bracteosa) have grown dramatically larger this year but they complement each other nicely

Agave ovatifolia (aka whale's tongue agave) always looks good.  I got stabbed several times pulling leaves out of its folds and still didn't get all of them prior to taking this photo.

My original Mangave 'Lavender Lady' is on the left.  The one on the right, planted 2 years ago, is quickly catching up in size.

The rain also contributed to a growth spurt on the part of Mangave 'Red Wing', planted earlier this year

But succulents aren't the only plants that warrant notice.  There are a lot more.

With summer's heat finally gone and a bit of rain, Acanthus mollis has returned in 2 areas.  These plants never died back entirely in my former garden but they routinely do so here.

The Acacia cognata 'Cousin Itt' in the front garden (left) are looking especially fluffy.  Those in the back garden look good when viewed from the front but they're in serious need of a cleanup in the rear.

Carex 'Feather Falls' rebounded after being eaten to the ground by rabbits this spring.  The Coprosma repens 'Everglow' next to them have done better in this spot than the small-leafed Coprosmas anywhere else in the garden.

A year or 2 ago I couldn't walk into a garden center without finding Centaurea 'Silver Feather' but I haven't seen any since.  I wanted another to balance out the 2 I have in the front garden but I guess I'm going to have to get it by taking cuttings.

Cordyline 'Can Can' wasn't happy planted in the ground but it's adapted well to growing in a pot

Dasylirion longissima (aka Mexican grass tree) is getting crowded out by its neighbors but it seems happy enough.  I still can't get the bermuda grass weeds growing at its base out without getting stabbed.

Hebe 'Purple Shamrock' is getting a little woody but I love it

I've planted a lot of Lomandra in my garden as a grass substitute.  These are some of the clumps of Lomandra 'Platinum Beauty' scattered about the garden, which glow beautifully in the right light.  It's also neater than my Mexican feather grass (Nasella tenuissima) and doesn't self-seed.  I'm thinking of using it as a replacement in a couple of areas.

There are 5 Phormium 'Maori Queen' in my front garden.  These are 2 of them.  The only care they require here involve cleaning out the dead leaves at the base 2-3 times a year.

Ruscus hypoglossum (aka spineless butcher's broom and mouse thorn), planted in 2014, was uncovered when I cut back the Acacia 'Cousin Itt' in the front garden.  This is another great plant for dry shade.  Flower emerge from the middle of the cladodes (aka "fake leaves) in late winter.

We still don't have much in the way of fall color but then it's never plentiful.

This Acer palmatum 'Sango Kaku', planted on the east side of the garage, reliably turns color each fall but another one that gets less shade usually drops all its leaves in late summer.  Japanese maples here want protection from intense afternoon sun and high winds.

The 'Fuyu' persimmon tree (Diospyros kaku) also develops fall color but warm temperatures have delayed it some this year.  In contrast, the 'Hachiya' persimmon usually drops its leaves before they color up much.

I promised to share some problem cases too.

Agonis flexuosa 'Nana' has developed a bad infestation of what I think may be scale this year.  It's happened before and usually requires a hard pruning of affected branches and treatment with Neem oil to control.

Aloe vanbalenii x ferox and the Agave attenuata 'Raea's Gold' next to it are crowding each other.  I think moving the agave is probably the answer - I just need to figure out where.

I clearly planted Leucadendron 'Ebony' too close to Leucadendron salignum 'Chief', which I never expected to get so massive.  Leucadendrons reportedly don't deal well with being moved so I'm planning to try some cuttings that I can plant elsewhere if they take, perhaps in the empty spot previously occupied by the Psorlea pinnata we removed a few months ago.  

That's it for this week.  By way of an update to those of you who expressed concerns about my cat, Pipig, although the radiologist thinks cancer is probably a factor, we remain hopeful.  She's rediscovered her heating pad and it seems to offer comfort, which is helpful at least for now.

All material © 2012-2023 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party