Although the volume of flowers in my garden always seems spare to me during what passes for winter here in coastal Southern California, I'm usually surprised by just how many photos I manage to accumulate when preparing my Bloom Day post. It's been relatively cold with most of our daytime temperatures in the 50sF (10 to 15C); however, we're not experiencing anything like the icy temperatures affecting large swaths of the US. By comparison to last January, most of the same varieties of flowers are present but the overall volume of flowers appears smaller, possibly due to the lower rainfall this season.
I'll start with the prolific Leucadendrons, whose "petals" are actually colorful bracts, not true flowers.
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| Leucadendron salignum 'Chief' is a very large shrub, at least 11 feet tall and nearly as wide. I'm holding off on pruning it until the "flowers" begin to fade. |
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| I've been cutting stems of Leucadendron 'Safari Sunset' for flower arrangements for the past 2 months and they're still abundant |
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| The "flowers" of Leucadendron salignum 'Summer Red' turn from a blush shade of red to pale ivory as they age |
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| Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder' produces daisy-like yellow bracts surrounding greenish cones |
There are some real flowers putting on a good show.
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| Camellia williamsii 'Taylor's Perfection' (shown on the left and upper right) is hitting its stride. Meanwhile, the noID Camellia sasanqua shown on the lower right is finishing its season. |
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| I cut all the Felicia aethiopica shrublets back a couple of months ago and they've bounded back into bloom this month |
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| The flowers of Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy' are tiny but plentiful |
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| Like Leucadendrons, Grevilleas are another backbone of my garden. Grevillea 'Superb' is the king of the genus in my view. |
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| Clockwise from the upper left, other Grevilleas producing flowers in smaller numbers include: G. alpina x rosmarinifolia, G. 'Peaches & Cream', G. 'Poorinda Leane', G. lavandulacea 'Penola', G. 'Scarlet Sprite', G. sericea, and G. rosmarinifolia 'Dwarf Form' |
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| I have a wide range of varieties of Osteospermum but, so far, most are sporting only a few blooms at a time. Clockwise from the upper left: O. '4D Pink', O. '4D Violet & White', O. 'Berry White', self-seeded variety, O. 'Violet Ice', O. 'Sunburst', and O. '4D White' |
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| The ivy geraniums (Pelargonium peltatum) are blooming here and there |
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| The sweet pea bushes (Polygala myrtifolia) are flowering more each day |
I don't have a large amount of succulents in bloom but I do have some.
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| The bright yellow bloom stalks of Aeonium arboreum are popping up everywhere |
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| Aloe 'Moonglow' is looking especially pretty this year |
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| Aloe vanbalenii x ferox is in full bloom now |
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| The delicate blooms of Crassula ovata (aka jade plant) contrast with the plant's fleshy foliage |
There are some early spring arrivals too.
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| I planted a dozen plugs of Pericallis x hybrida (aka cineraria) 2 months ago and they're almost all flowering now |
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| Clockwise from the upper left, recent arrivals include: Anemone coronaria, Antirrhinum majus, Delphinium grandiflorum, Digitalis 'Dalmatian Peach', noID Digitalis, and noID Narcissus |
I'll conclude my post as usual with the best of the rest organized by color.
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| Clockwise from the upper right: Bauhinia x blakeana, Boronia crenulata 'Shark Bay', Correa pulchella 'Pink Eyre', Cuphea 'Honeybells', Hebe 'Wiri Blush', Pelargonium hortorum, and Persicaria capitata |
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| Clockwise from the upper right: Fuchsia 'Wind Chimes White', Pentas lanceolata (looking more pale pink than white at the moment), Nemesia 'Nessie Plus White', Lavandula multifida, Viola 'Sorbet Neptune' and Salvia rosmarinus (aka rosemary) |
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Top row: Euryops chrysanthemoides, Gaillardia 'Spintop Copper Sun', and Gazania 'Gold Flame'
Middle: noID Gazania, Mahonia x media 'Charity', and Metrosideros collina 'Springfire'
Bottom: Primula vulgaris, Senecio artemisioides, and Viola 'Colossus Lemon' |
Warmer temperatures and a good chance of rain are in the forecast - yay! At present, our total rainfall for the water year (calculated from October 1st) is a measly 3.01 inches.
All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
Blooms here, there and everywhere! So cheery, I'm hoping you do get some rain. It looks like a serious rain, too. The sweat pea bushes, do yours seed all around? I had a couple (part shade) that were well behaved, and another that was in full sun - and that bad boy seeded everywhere! Your aloes are looking great, and the grevilleas. Lovely blooms all around.
ReplyDeleteYes, the sweet pea bushes self-seed like crazy! In my case, in both sun and shade. Luckily, the seedlings are easy to pull out. I saw the plants for sale at my local garden center today and thought "I'll never need to buy that plants again."
DeleteThe rainstorm keeps edging a tiny bit further into the future but it does look like it should provide a decent soak; however, my fingers remains firmly crossed.
Aloe 'Moonglow' is so lovely! Between you and Hoov sharing photos of it I've definitely got a crush going on.
ReplyDeleteDenise gave me 3 divisions of Aloe 'Moonglow' a few years ago. Two are planted next to each other but I'm not sure where the third one went - it's either on the back slope or in the street side bed. I'm not sure I'll be identify it until it flowers as I have a few noID Aloes but, if I get some divisions of my own, I'll save one for you!
DeleteThe more I follow your blog, the more I realize you have varies collection, such as Leucadendrons, Grevilleas, Osteospermums and Aeoniums. Similarly, I find that if a plant does well in my garden, I move in the its relatives, because one can't argue with success. (I had recently planted my 21st Hellebore :-D)
ReplyDeleteAloe with orange blooms are my favorite: the wide shot of Aloe vanbalenii captures a similar orangey hue in one of your Leucadendrons on its right: perfect!
Chavli
I do collect families of plants, Chavli - or I guess I should say plants in the same genera, although a lot of mine belong to the Protea family. I started to collect both hellebores and daylilies after initial successes with both; however, in both of those cases, that seems to have been a temporary fluke :(
DeleteYou have so many great plants. I am curious about the sweet pea shrub. I just ordered Lathyrus vernus from Far Reaches Farm. I wonder if there is a relation? It looks similar.
ReplyDeleteI think the similarities between your plant and mine are limited to their flowers' appearance, Phillip. Lathyrus vernus is in the Fabaceae family, while Polygala myrtifolia is in the Polygalaceae family and the former perennial hails from Europe and Northern Asia but the sweet pea shrub is native to South Africa. I'd love to find a Lathyrus that self seeds as freely as my Polygala!
DeleteThanks Kris! I also meant to add that I planted two Felicia aethiopica last summer but I'm sure they are toast now.
ReplyDeleteMaybe they'll surprise you!
DeleteLovely!
ReplyDeleteFingers crossed for rain.
It's looking good so far but best not to count our chickens yet, HB! I've become superstitious when it comes to rain forecasts.
DeleteThanks for sharing! I can't even imagine having that many blooms and thriving plants this time of year. I would love to have all of them, but I really wish I could plant Camellias...just a little too cold here. I might try a potted one again, and bring it indoors during the winter.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if Camellia sasanqua might due better for you, Beth. They bloom earlier than Camellia japonica and related hybrids here, before winter gets its coldest.
DeleteA wonderful flower-filled post to warm me up on this frigid day! I esp. love the leucadendrons and your collection of grevilleas, they hold their own in the garden. Cineraria was one of the first plants I bought in high school. The vibrant flowers were amazing to me. A very short-lived plant as I recall, ha!
ReplyDeleteHope you get a few showers this week. Eliza
I've been looking for the taller cinerarias but they seem to have all but disappeared, at least when it comes to the varieties sold as plugs in inexpensive 6-packs. I've noticed some in very large pots, though - for more money of course.
DeleteWhat a beautiful post, Kris. I really enjoyed looking at all of your colourful plants and flowers, and I recognise so many as they grow here as well. I don't seem to have any luck with geraniums though, for some reason unbeknown to me! I love the colour of your fuchsia. I have just one, in a hanging basket in a shady position on my front veranda, which is currently struggly with the heat.
ReplyDeleteI love fuchsias myself and I keep trying to grow them here, mostly unsuccessfully, Jo. The 'Windchimes' plant was an impulse buy last year, which has surprised me with continuous blooms. Although I had good luck with fuchsias in general in my former garden just 15 miles north of our current location, they've behaved more like annuals here. But I keep trying to grow new selections ;)
DeleteThat Senna artemisioides is pretty neat. Lots of great color in the grevilleas too.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, that Senna isn't vigorous, Jerry. It blooms on schedule each year but the plant itself has remained relatively dinky (at least based on its stats). It may have been stunted due to crowding by other plants.
Delete