My neighborhood in May

After a long May Bloom Day post, with my garden calling (or rather screaming) for attention, I've tossed together random photos of what caught my attention during my near-daily walks through the neighborhood.  All the following shots were taken with my phone over the last couple of weeks.

One large lot has been empty longer than we've lived here, probably well over 20 years since the home there burned down.  It's over an acre in size and has a good view of the Port of Los Angeles.  The fact it hasn't been sold is a complete mystery.  It's cleared of weeds and dead plants on an annual basis, presumably at the city's direction.

It's going to be interesting to see if the Fire Department takes a position on the large swaths of Mexican feather grass (Nassella tenuissima) planted here when they conduct their inspection of this home's "defensible space clearance."  The succulents are fire resistant but that grass is considered fire prone.

The owner of this house did a nice job of cutting back this Bougainvillea earlier this year

This Bougainvillea at a nearby house is my favorite but I wonder if having it intertwined with junipers and a palm (both considered flammable) could present any concerns

I thought this Callistemon was nicely trimmed to frame the house and garden in the background

Centranthus ruber has taken over the front slope of this house

This house's front slope was once covered by a wrinkled fake grass carpet before it was entirely replanted with agaves, magnolias, and junipers.  The white Centranthus ruber 'Albus' lightened up the color scheme.

This colorful mass of lavender Delosperma spills down the slope along this driveway every spring

Another neighbor has a nice mass of red Delosperma

This may be the most well-maintained Echium in the neighborhood (although even it took a hit when the heatwave passed through recently)

Lovely bearded Irises in front of one house

Two other homes show off large masses of what I think are Spuria Irises

This display has me thinking of planting bulbs of Ornithogalum arabicum (Star of Bethlehem) this coming fall

This neighbor's Phlomis purpurea puts mine to shame

The same neighbor has the best-looking Pilosocereus azureus I've ever seen

As well as the largest rose (Rosa 'Brandy')

She has some 70 roses, including various carpet roses lined up with succulents along her front slope

I don't often see rambling roses here but this noID specimen in another neighbor's garden blooms like this every year

I've been considering adding a bird of paradise (Strelitzia reginae) to one of the newly empty spaces in my garden.  Many are too large to suit the spot I have available but this well-trimmed specimen impressed me - until all its flowers fried during our recent heatwave.

I'm already feeling a seasonal shift in the direction of summer, both in my neighborhood and my own garden.  The early heatwave we experienced last weekend snapped us out of spring mode.  Plants I associate with summer like Achillea, Hemerocallis, and Agapanthus are marching forward.  As I feel summer's heat already breathing down my neck, I need to get moving with my replanting effort.  I hope you're enjoying a more leisurely spring.

All material © 2012-2025 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party