No colorful fall foliage to speak of

I'd intended to pay a visit to the local botanic garden this week since I haven't dropped in there since July but, between the election results and what weather forecasters have classified as an extreme Santa Ana wind event, I wasn't up to it.  The light was interesting yesterday morning so I decided it was time for some foliage shots of my own garden.

When I looked out at the horizon on Wednesday, I thought the marine layer was blowing in but humidity was low and air had a dingy tinge to it.  It didn't take long to learn that the Santa Ana winds had sparked wildfires to the north of us in Malibu, Camarillo, and Ventura.

Due to the Santa Ana winds, temperatures have remained on the warm end of the fall spectrum, which means there's very little in the way of colorful fall foliage but we may yet see some by the time we slip into what passes for winter here.  For now here are the highlights I picked out, starting in the back garden.

View of Leucadendron 'Pisa' featuring a skirt of Acacia cognata 'Cousin Itt' and Agave lophantha 'Quadricolor' and various Aeoniums in the foreground

The one remaining Prostanthera ovalifolia 'Variegata' in my garden and an Aeonium hierrense occupy the same bed

This Mangave 'Red Wing' sits nearby

The dwarf Jacaranda 'Bonsai Blue' I've considered removing several times is actually looking good after a hard pruning last year (even though it refuses to bloom)

The south-side garden offered a lot.

The 3 dwarf Agonis flexuosa 'Nana' shrubs fleshed out after their hard pruning in late winter.  The Coprosma repens 'Plum Hussey' in the background, which I cleaned up following our scorching summer heat, appears to be on the the rebound too.

As long as you ignore the troublesome weeds, this large clump of Agave 'Blue Flame' is looking good, although it's crowding the Agave americana 'Mediopicta Alba' (again)

The leaves of Cotinus coggygria 'Royal Purple' are just starting to turn

Below the Cotinus (and another Coprosma 'Plum Hussey') sits a good-sized Mangave 'Mission to Mars'

The Graptoveria 'Fred Ives' I replanted from cuttings this year surprised me by doing so well.  I suspect the credit belongs to all the rain we had from winter into spring.

Metrosideros collina 'Springfire' zoomed up in size this year, courtesy of the rain.  From this angle, it's fronted by Pennisetum 'Sky Rocket' and Agave 'Mr Ripple'.

Vitex trifolia has a smattering of tiny flowers but the purple undersides of the leaves put on a real show

Some flowers crept into my photos of the front garden.

The foliage of Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder', Abelia grandiflora 'Kaleidoscope, variegated Nasturtium 'Alaska', and Acacia cognata 'Cousin Itt' make the biggest statement here in the front garden but the touches of orange color in the flowers of Grevillea 'Superb', Nasturtiums, and Cuphea 'Vermillionaire' elevates the view.  Agave 'Jaws' and Aloe cryptopoda are almost hidden.

Closeups of the same area

Plectranthus scutellarioides 'Indian Summer' (aka coleus) is doing well in this barrel

Corokia virgata 'Sunsplash' is getting a little crowded by the Correa shrubs surrounding it

The various Plectranthus scutellarioides (coleus) I added along the the path to the front door are doing a good job of accenting the Phormium 'Maori Queen'

These 2 containers featuring Mangaves sit in the area in front of the garage.  Mangave 'Coffee Jitters' (left), a gift from Gerhard Bock years ago, is embellished with the best-looking Sedum morganianum I've ever grown.  Mangave 'Kaleidoscope' (right) is surrounded by a mishmash of cuttings I clipped from other areas of the garden.

Acer palmatum 'Sango Kaku' (aka coral back Japanese maple), situated next to the garage in my cutting garden, is showing more fall color than anything else 

There are also some plants making their presence known in multiple locations.

The Aeonium arboreum (tree aeoniums) are slowly waking up from their summer dormancy.  Those in shaded areas (as shown in the lower row) look fleshier than those that spent the year in full sun.

The Lomandra 'Platinum Beauty', which serve as ornamental grass substitutes, are shining in both the back and front areas

That's it from me this week.  Hopefully, the Santa Ana winds will be done with us by the time this post appears Friday morning.  I'm planning to bury myself in garden chores this weekend.

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