2023 was a busy year in the garden

I started to compile a summary of all the projects I tackled this year (several with the generous assistance of my husband) but I gave up trying to identify them all.  However, I did make a list of many of the most prominent ones.

Last January, it was all about pruning back my largest shrubs.

Agonis flexuosa 'Nana' recovers well from even severe pruning; however, its new growth is dense, which promotes insect problems that disfigure the foliage.  I'd hoped that last January's pruning would be good for at least 2 years but the foliage looks bad again, perhaps because I failed to spray it with Neem oil at regular intervals.  Last January I pruned Leptospermum 'Copper Glow' and Leucadendron 'Chief' as well but the only issue with those plants is that nothing can stop them from shooting sky high.

Beginning in February, I began removing a variety of plants I identified in a post on January 27th.

Didelta 'Silver Strands' had lovely foliage and bright yellow blooms but it spread out of control in my back border.  As I didn't have a convenient spot to transplant it, I tried taking divisions, which were only nominally successful.  I finally filled its former space with Cistus landifer 'Blanche' in October (shown on the right). 

Duranta 'Gold Mound' got much bigger than it was supposed to.  After we removed it, I planted a Leucospermum 'California Sunshine' there (shown on the right).  It's supposed to grow 4-6 feet tall by 4-6 feet wide.  I'm hoping to keep it to the lower end of that spectrum.

Jacaranda 'Bonsai Blue' (shown left at its worst) was a candidate for removal.  Instead, I pruned it hard.  It still didn't bloom but it did look much better and it shot up in height again following the tropical storm in August.  It's starting to drop its leaves now but I'm going to give it another spring to produce some blooms.

The Lavandula angustifolia planted around the faux bird bath in the cutting garden looked scruffy and was removed.  I planted 3 Didelta 'Silver Strands' divisions there as shown in the middle photo.  Only one survived and, as self-seeded Dichondra is taking over the area, I'll try replanting the Dildelta in the succulent bed slated for renovation later this winter.

My husband removed the bower vines (Pandorea jasminoides) that came with the house from the front arbor.  We've elected to leave it bare to let the contents of the large containers below stand out.

I'd planted swaths of Sesleria 'Greenlee's Hybrid' in both the back and front gardens.  Over the years the ornamental grass got increasingly scruffy.  In the back garden (shown right), I filled the area with a variety of succulents.

Not much got done during the middle of the year.

Echiums are tip-pruned but eventually they get woody.  After over 8 years in the ground, this Echium candicans 'Star of Madeira' was well beyond its prime.  Luckily, I found a good-sized replacement in a 2-gallon pot.  I'm not sure it'll bloom this spring but I'm hopeful it'll offer a good showing in 2025.

Even though fall wasn't particularly cool this year, project activity stepped up as I began my end-of-summer cleanup and prepared for fall planting.

I have to say I loved the "wall" of Aeoniums planted next to the Acacia 'Cousin Itt below Leucadendron 'Pisa' when the display was at its best (as shown on the left).  But everything was looking overgrown and sad this fall so I cut back the Acacia hard and pulled most of the Aeoniums.  A variety of smaller, low-growing plants are working to get themselves established (right).

Three of my Agaves produced bloom stalks in 2023 and all eventually came down.  I harvested a dozen-plus bulbils produced by Agave 'Blue Glow' (shown on the left).  Agaves are generally monocarpic but the 'Blue Glow' hasn't declined so it remains in place for now.  It even has large pups growing out its right side.

While doing a general cleanup of my north-side dry garden, I dismantled the terracotta "bird bath" planter to allow Agave ovatifolia to stand out.  I planted the bowl portion with Dutch Iris bulbs and it currently sits under the Leucadendron 'Pisa' in the back garden.  The urn portion now sits in a bed in the front garden.

One of 2 remaining Auranticarpa rhombifolium shrubs that originally comprised part of the hedge running along the street died.  My husband removed it.  It still awaits replanting.  I took cuttings of Echium handiense to plant there, along with an Agave 'Mediopicta Alba' that needs moving.

The Echium webbii in the back garden (left) turned woody in just 4 years time.  I pulled it out and replaced it with another one in a 4-inch pot.  It's more than doubled in size in just 3 months.

Psoralea pinnata (aka Kool-Aid bush) was scruffy when it bloomed this year and didn't look any better afterwards.  It's another shrub that wants tip-pruning, which means it gets woody over time.  I haven't replanted the area (right) as I need several hours to cut back the ivy that spreads relentlessly up the back slope into the main level of the garden.  A neighbor told me Psoralea self-seeds but I haven't seen any sign of that.

There were 6 roses planted along the curved walkway adjacent to the garage when we moved in.  Once drought conditions grew more difficult and the ornamental pear tree grew to shade the area much of the year, they struggled.  One sad example is shown on the left.  I finally threw in the towel and removed all of them, replanting with more drought and shade tolerant plants, which have yet to fill out.  The urn portion  of the "bird bath" planter formerly in the north-side garden ended up here too.

My fall cleanup was facilitated by handing off Agave bulbils and succulent cuttings to a local representative of the local Cactus & Succulent society.

I didn't keep any of the Agave vilmoriniana bulbils when I cut down the stalk in July as I still had some of variegated ones harvested from a friend's agave in 2022.  However, I harvested enough bulbils of Agave mitis 'Multicolor' in July to fill 2 flats to give away, keeping only a handful for myself.  Agave 'Blue Glow' produced far fewer bulbils.  I kept a half dozen and gave another 6-pack in addition to the flats, a large Agave 'Blue Flame' "pup", and a mix of other succulents to the Cactus & Succulent society representative in October.

December was more about planting but I did squeeze in a couple of final projects.

I removed the Agave attenuata 'Raea's Gold' that was crowding the Aloe vanbalenii x ferox next to it in the back garden.  The Agave mother plant was finally potted up to develop roots earlier this week.

The 2 'Cousin Itt' Acacias planted in the southeast corner of the back garden got a thorough pruning for perhaps the first time since they were planted in 2012.  I planted 3 of the pups of Agave attenuata 'Raea's Gold' along the hidden pathway behind the Acacias.

January 2024 will probably kick off much as January 2023 did, with pruning efforts.  I need to work off the two pounds that Christmas sweets contributed to my waistline.  But first, Pipig and I have yet another trip to the vet today.

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