For the record, I'm two days ahead of schedule for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, hosted on the 15th of each month by Carol at May Dreams Gardens. This month the outlook in my garden is very pink.
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| My Camellia sasanqua came with the garden and I had no IDs for the the 2 cultivars I inherited. An Instagram commentator suggested a name for this one, which sent me down a rabbit hole. While the ID that was offered didn't fit based on the specifications I found online, I determined that this one might be 'October Magic Rose'. |
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| I also think the other 2 Camellia sasanqua could be 'Early Wonder' |
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| Correa pulchella 'Pink Eyre' lagged behind my other Australian fuchsias but it's blooming heavily now |
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| Leptospermum scoparium 'Pink Pearl' usually blooms lightly during the fall and more heavily in spring but the 2 tall shrubs are putting on a pretty good show this month |
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| The bracts of Leucospermum salignum 'Blush' are doing a good job of mimicking flowers |
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| I had to use a telescope setting on my camera to capture a photo of the flowers of Bauhinia x blakeana (aka Hong Kong orchid tree), all of which can only be found in the upper reaches of its branches |
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Here are some more pink flowers:
Top row - Argyranthemum 'Aramis Apricot', Cuphea 'Honeybells', and Gomphrena 'Itsy Bitsy'
Middle - Medinilla myriantha, Pelargonium hortorum, and P. 'Little Pink Splash'
Bottom - Pentas lanceolata, Persicaria capitata, and Protea neriifolia 'Claire' |
There were several standouts in the garden that weren't pink.
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| Aloe vanbalenii x ferox is finally letting its color show |
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| I wasn't able to get the rust-resistant snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus) I prefer this year but I picked up a dozen mixed plugs in November when it came time to prepare my cool-season cutting garden |
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| I found some lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum) at my local garden center in November too and scooped up 8 plants, just now getting their bloom on |
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| Meanwhile, Senna bicapsularis is still flaunting cheerful flowers in December |
As usual, there were a few blooms I hadn't anticipated.
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| Haemanthus albiflos (aka paint brush lily), which I often don't catch in flower until it's already bloomed out |
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| Two daylilies flowering off-season: Hemerocallis 'For Pete's Sake' on the left and a paler than normal H. 'Persian Market' on the right |
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| Mahonia x media 'Charity' didn't flower at all last year for some reason |
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| This is an unusual shrub I picked up somewhere years ago, Ruscus hypoglossum (aka butcher's broom). It produces tiny flowers in the middle of its leaves. It creeps out some people who feel the flowers look like insects but I think it's interesting. |
I've once again dumped my other floral photos into color-coded collages.
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Top row - Barleria obtusa, Evolvulus glomeratus, and Felicia aethiopica
Middle - Lavandula multifida, Osteospermum '3D Silver', and O. 'Violet Ice'
Bottom - Pelargornium peltatum 'Lavender Blizzard', Polygala myrtifolia, and Vitex trifolia |
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| Clockwise from upper left: Argyranthemum frutescens 'Everest', noID Cyclamen, Correa 'Ivory Bells', Fuchsia 'Windchimes White', and noID Impatiens |
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| Clockwise from upper left: Alstroemeria 'Indian Summer', Cuphea 'Vermillionaire, Faucaria tuberculosa, Grevillea 'Superb', Nasturtium 'Alaska', Senecio amaniensis, and Tagetes lemmonii |
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| Clockwise from the upper left: noID Anthurium, Gaillardia 'Arizona Sun', Grevillea 'Ned Kelly', Metrosideros collina 'Springfire', Pelargonium peltatum, and Primula vulgaris |
The holiday season is speeding forward, leaving my head spinning. Best wishes to all! For other GBBD posts, check in with Carol at May Dreams Gardens on December 15th.
All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
So many beautiful blooms Kris. I am so envious, December is such a bleak month here. I think I need to move to California.
ReplyDeleteOne hour on our freeways would probably have you reconsidering that dream, Liz. Our climate in coastal Southern California would definitely appeal to you, although the long periods of drought (and periodic wildfires) can be a spoiler.
DeleteA plethora of color! The Ruscus is interesting, I'll admit part of me wants to scrape off that flower. I'm a sucker for lisianthus and the snaps.
ReplyDeleteAw, the Ruscus wouldn't be interesting without those peculiar flowers, Tracy ;) Apparently, the female plants will develop berries following the flowers but I've never seen those on my plant so I'm assuming it's the male of the species. It's very drought tolerant and it takes deep shade, which are pluses.
DeleteSomehow it just doesn't seem right that you can have aloe and protea blooming along with Mahonia x media 'Charity'...
ReplyDeleteMost Aloes bloom this time of year, although there are exceptions. The bloom schedule for plants in the Protea genus aren't clear to me. San Marcos Growers' site says that 'Pink Ice', which is a P. neriifolia like 'Claire', can bloom year-round, which was news to me as I seem to remember other sites claiming that late summer-autumn is their main bloom period. In contrast, the Mahonia has been very unpredictable here but that may have something to do with the haphazard timing of my pruning schedule.
DeletePink is good when it is a Camellia. Lovely. Wow very happy healthy Haemanthus, well done!
ReplyDeletePlenty of flowers still in your garden--the Aloe is quite grand.
I did get a few flowers on my Barleria, a nice surprise. :)
I expect that your Barleria will grow bigger and stronger in time, HB. I need to cut mine back soon before the seeds fall and start sprouting. It's a reasonably easy plant to control, as long as I don't ignore it for too long - the Barlerias at the local botanic garden are humongous.
DeleteYour Aloe vanbalenii x ferox is magnificent!
ReplyDeleteMy eyes open wider whenever I see Osteospermum 'Violet Ice'; the color is so outstanding and unique.
And always a favorite from your vase creations: Vitex trifolia. I usually love it for the foliage but the blooms complements it nicely.
Chavli
The Osteospermums are short-lived perennials here, Chavli. They self-seed a bit but I think my multi-petaled varieties are in need of replacement. Annoyingly, I haven't found the ones I like best - 'Violet Ice', '3D Silver', and '4D Pink' - in local nurseries this fall, or online for that matter. I'm hoping they appear in the new year when the local garden centers restock.
DeleteKris, I love seeing your plant collections, specially the many completely new to me. But as a Camellia fan, I'm drooling over your Sassanquas! I can't grow them in my garden (too cold and alkaline) but love to see them.
ReplyDeleteI love the Camellia sasanquas too, although I do wish they weren't all pink ;) However, as I inherited them with the garden I can't bemoan the gift they represent.
DeleteIt's heart warming to see so much colour in your December garden Kris, a month when there is so little in the way of colour here 😂 I hope that your festive preparations are going well and that your head isn't spinning too much.
ReplyDeleteI've put much of the Christmas decorations on hold this year as the cat I adopted in late August is still mostly kitten at heart, which means she can't be trusted! My husband (aka the grinch) is entirely happy with that aspect of having a new cat.
DeleteOh boy! The pinks are beautiful...and the reds and the blues and all the other colors, too. I'm a huge Camellia fan, but my climate is just a bit too cold to overwinter them here. I tried a potted Camellia one year, but it didn't work. They are just beautiful plants/bloomers...
ReplyDeleteWell, sadly we all have plants we adore but can't grow. In my case, it's peonies ;)
DeleteAn abundance. I appreciate the highlight on some of the more unusual flowers - The Haemanthus and Ruscus, in particular are rewarding in their own unique ways. And the Faucaria, with its fun contrast between the toothed, bulky leaves and then that delicate, yellow spidery flowers. Great selection. I can almost smell the snappy scent from the snapdragons now.
ReplyDeleteAw, I commented as anonymous. The coffee hasn't kicked in yet - Jerry
DeleteThe Faucaria is one of my personal favorites, even if the plants usually produce only one flower at a time. I have 2, both in small pots, which they seem to prefer to being planted in the ground. I was surprised by your mention of the scent of snapdragons, which I've never noted before but then I don't have a good nose for detecting scent in general. I planted my nose in the cut flowers after reading your comment and just barely caught a whiff.
DeleteLuscious blooms, Kris! Your world is looking a lot more colorful than mine right now. :) Eliza
ReplyDeleteThat white blanket of snow looks really good to me at times, Eliza! At least it doesn't demand constant work ;)
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