My plant shopping objectives

I don't like to see large bare spots in my garden and, as there are a lot of those at present, finding suitable plants to fill the gaps is the main driver behind my current plant shopping expeditions.  That's not to say that I don't buy plants at intervals year-round.  I'm a sucker for attractive foliage and the promise of pretty flowers so I'm frequently guilty of buying plants I don't "need" or even have an obvious place to put.

Last Friday afternoon, I headed to Deep Roots in Manhattan Beach.  I used to drop in there fairly often when we lived closer.  Even now it's only fifteen miles away but the trip took over forty minutes, such is the state of traffic in LA's South Bay.  My goal was to find a Leucadendron or some other drought-tolerant shrub with foliage to soften the succulent bed I'm renovating.  Deep Roots has been a good source of such plants in the past.

Overview of the south end of the garden center from the upper parking lot.  I found that Deep Roots still has a nice selection but, like a lot of garden centers in the post-pandemic era, container sizes are much larger and prices are correspondingly much higher.

I dismissed some beautiful plants because they were just too much of a departure from the specifications I had in mind.

I passed by a display of nice Euphorbias paired with splashy Anigozanthos, a very expensive Banksia, and a beautiful Loropetalum that was too pink, too large, and not sufficiently drought-tolerant

I more seriously considered other plants.

My only real objection to Euphorbia 'Miner's Merlot' (left) was that it was sold in a very large pot and priced higher than I'd like to pay for an experimental run.  Leucadendron 'Ebony' (middle) was the only member of the genus I found in a 1-gallon pot but, because it's a coveted variety, it was pricey and I have one 'Ebony' already.  The new-to-me Leucadendron 'Startreuse' (right) appealed to me but I prefer not to start with plants in 2-gallon containers and its price made me swallow hard.

Although I ended up passing on all three of those options, I checked out succulent plants while I was there.  They have a nice selection but I generally consider their succulent stock on the expensive end of the spectrum.

Top: Mangave 'Center of Attention' and Agave bovicornuta 'Holstein'
Middle: Mangaves 'Bedhead', Silver Fox', and 'Mayan Queen'
Bottom: Mangaves 'Mayan Queen', Falling Water', 'Lavender Lady', and 'Kaleidoscope'
Can you believe I have at least one of all of these except the agave?

Clockwise from the upper left: planted containers, Aloe striata, Dudleya, and Cereus forbesii 'Spiralis'.  The last was priced at $80.

I even strolled through the indoor plant displays.

I'm always tempted by orchids but even the Cymbidiums on a 50% off sale (which didn't include those shown in the lower right photo) were very pricey.  I didn't even look for a price on the Zamioculcas 'Black Raven' on the lower left.

I ended up taking home three 'Violet Queen' Echeverias in four-inch pots and an Anigozanthus (aka kangaroo paws).  Neither really fit the specs I had in mind.  However, I've got two other 'Violet Queen' Echeverias in a pot I love and I'd told myself I should pick up more if I had a chance.  They're probably a bit delicate for my new space but they'll fit someplace!  With respect to the Anigozanthos, I came across plants in the Bush Gems Celebration collection two years ago and, although stunned by their unusual colors, I passed on them, only to regret that later.  Even though I couldn't envision it in the renovated succulent bed, I couldn't bring myself to pass on it again.  So now the question is: what do I do with it?

Closeup of the flower.  The pot was only labeled "Anigozanthos Celebration," which is a term applying to all the varieties in the Bush Gems collection.  However, I looked it up online and I think this one is known as 'Masquerade'.  The plant grows about 18" tall and 16" wide and, depending upon who's consulted, can tolerate full sun or needs partial sun.

I carried the plant around my garden to conduct tryouts in different settings.

This spot along the walkway bordering my north-side garden has a vacancy, gets morning sun, and is backed up by Grevillea 'Scarlet Sprite', which plays off the reddish-pink in the Anigozanthos's flowers.

This spot is at the back of the south-side bed facing the dirt path that only I and the gardeners that trim our hedges use.  It gets almost full sun and has lots of open space while I wait for the baby Agave ovatifolia 'Frosty Blue' to grow up.

This spot is on the west side of the south-side garden next to a Callistemon 'Hot Pink' (not yet flowering) and several Cistus.  It gets good sun but I'm concerned the Anigozanthos may be too small to show up well against the larger plants.

This spot is in the south side of the front garden next to the flagstone path.  It's backed up by a Pennisetum 'Rubrum' (past due for its annual buzz cut), a Centaurea 'Silver Feather', and an infant Lepechinia fragrans.  All those surrounding plants can get big so the Anigozanthos could get swamped.

Then I asked myself if the Anigozanthos could go in the renovated succulent bed after all.  It's not big or fluid enough to provide the soft touch I was looking for among the succulents but that doesn't mean it couldn't have a spot there.  If I planted 'Blue Glow' Agaves on either side of it to play off the turquoise blue of the flowers and introduced some reddish-pink color behind it that might give the relatively small plant a boost.  The area gets good sun, with some late afternoon protection from the Arbutus 'Marina' tree in the background. 

What do you think?  Which option would you choose?

Due to other commitments and the rain in the forecast, I may only make it to my "neighborhood" garden center this week for another round of plant shopping.  In addition to agaves, I'll continue to shop for smallish Leucadendrons and Euphorbia 'Miner's Merlot' (preferably in one-gallon pots).  I have two other local sources for succulents I plan to check out as well but they require longer trips that'll have to wait a bit.

All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party