The relatively heavy rain we had early in the season followed by a stretch of warm temperatures delivered us an early Spring. Now, Spring generally arrives early here on the coast of Southern California but it struck me as accelerated this year. I took a lot of photos and, even though I crammed many of them into color-themed collages at the end of this post, this is still a long one so my apologies at the outset. If I hadn't moved up my Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day post by two days because that better accommodates my schedule, it might be longer still! I'm seeing new blooms every day - in fact, I noticed three Dutch Iris buds (not included here) while preparing this post yesterday.
I'll start with the star players, listed alphabetically by species.
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| Two Agave desmettiana 'Variegata' on my front slope are now in full bloom |
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| The Anemone coronaria are peaking. Clockwise from the upper left are: 'Azzurro', 'Bordeaux', 'Mr Fokker', 'Lord Lieutenant', 'Mona Lisa' (maybe), 'Rarity', and 'Rosa Chiaro'. |
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| Almost but not all of my snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus) are putting on a good show |
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| The African daisies (Arctotis) are up and running with 'Large Marge' in the lead and 'Pink Sugar' coming up behind |
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| The Marguerite daisies (Argyranthemum frutescens) do well until summer arrives. Left to right are: 'Aramis Apricot', Beauty Yellow', and 'Mount Everest'. |
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| I can never capture the vivid blue of Aristea inaequalis in photographs |
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| I discovered all the Auranticarpa rhombifolium shrubs (aka diamond pittosporum) in flower by accident when I went to check on another plant |
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| Camellia 'Taylor's Perfection' |
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| Both Cistus x corbariensis (upper left and top right) and C. x skanbergii (bottom left and middle right) are currently in full bloom. Cistus 'Grayswood Pink' (lower right) is blooming more lightly. |
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| Mixes of Dianthus barbata |
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| Freesia blooms are popping up here and there throughout my garden, despite the extensive damage gophers have done to the bulbs |
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| The Gazanias planted in prior years are making their comeback |
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| Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy' blooms all year here (except immediately following their annual haircut) |
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Grevilleas, top row: G. alpina x rosmarinifolia, G. 'Peaches & Cream', and G. 'Poorinda Leane'
Middle: Grevillea lanigera and G. 'Scarlet Sprite' (including closeup of the latter)
Bottom: Grevillea sericea and G. 'Superb' (including closeup) |
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| Hippeastrum (aka South American amaryllis), clockwise from the upper left: 'Amadeus Candy', 'Aphrodite', 'Flamingo Amadeus', and 'White Nile' |
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| We removed one Leptospermum 'Pink Pearl' late last year after we pulled out a fence and I've considered removing this one but it's flowering better than ever now so I'm conflicted |
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| These are 3 of my 5 Leucospermums. From top to bottom are: L. 'High Gold', L. 'Spider Hybrid', and L 'Sunrise'. |
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| This is the most robust of my Limonium perezii (aka sea lavender) but not the only one |
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| The Osteospermums have also mounted their cool season comeback. Clockwise from the upper left are: O. '4D Pink', a mix including O. '4D Purple', O. 'Serenity Purple', O. 'Violet Ice', and an interesting self-seeded cross including what looks like O. 'Berry White' |
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| Polygala myrtifolia has self-seeded everywhere |
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| Rhodanthemum hosmariense (aka Moroccan daisy) |
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| Scilla peruviana (aka Portuguese squill) |
There were a few surprises.
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| Aeonium escobarii (I think), blooming without producing a single offset |
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| Early daylilies, Hemerocallis 'Persian Market' and H. 'Spanish Harlem' |
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| A small shrub I only vaguely remember planting years ago and apparently never recorded, flowering for the first time. My guess is that it's Isopogan formosus. |
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| Protea 'Claire' has borne flowers since early November. It's sporting its last 2 now. |
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| I cut this Teucrium fruticans 'Azureum' (aka azure bush germander) to the ground a couple months ago with the intention of digging up its stump and never got around to step 2. It currently looks better than it ever did before. |
I'll end with my jam-packed collages.
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Top row: noID Ceanothus, Felicia aethiopica, and Geranium 'Tiny Monster'
Middle: Lavandula stoechas, Lobelia erinus, and Pericallis hybrid
Bottom: Salvia 'Bee's Bliss', S. 'Mystic Spires', and Vesalea floribunda |
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Top row: noID pink Alstroemeria, Boronia crenulata, and Coleonema pulchellum 'Sunset Gold'
Middle: Cuphea 'Honeybells', Daucus carota, and Kalanchoe fedtschenkoi
Bottom: Persicaria capitata, Sparaxis, and Xerochrysum bracteatum |
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Top row: Coleonema album, Dietes grandiflora, and Euphorbia rigida
Middle: Green and white Eustoma grandiflorum (aka lisianthus) and Fuchsia 'Windchimes White'
Bottom: Pelargonium 'White Lady', noID Westringia fruticosa, and Zantedeschia aethiopica |
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Clockwise from the upper left: Aeonium arboreum, Alstroemeria 'Inca Sundance', Gaillardia 'Top Spin Copper Sun', Chrysocephalum apiculatum, Narcissus papyraceus, Oxalis pes-caprae, Rudbeckia 'Juliana', and noID Viola
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| Clockwise from the upper left: noID Cyclamen, Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder', Metrosideros collina 'Springfire', the first bloom of Eschscholzia californica, Lotus berthelotii, and Pelargonium peltatum |
If you made it through this post, congratulations! If you want more, I did a pre-Bloom Day post on a smaller group of flowers I photographed earlier this week (not included in this one). For other GBBD posts, check in with Carol at May Dreams Gardens on February 15th.
Best wishes for a pleasant weekend. After getting 0.47/inch of rain earlier this week, we're expecting more starting this Sunday and I couldn't be happier about that.
All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
I had a little catch-up to do after being out of town. Your vases on Monday's post were an eye candy: wow!
ReplyDeleteOn Wednesday's post, I found out you cut back the bracts of Leucadendron... I didn't realize it was done.
As for today's post: the blooming A. desmettiana 'Variegata' are gorgeous! Does it mean they are done? (sad emoji).
As always, I love the extravagant colors of your Gazanias collection and the subdued ones of Moroccan daisy.
Congrats on the first-time bloomer Isopogan formosus: it's a stunner!
Chavli
Thanks for your catch-up notes, Chavli!
DeleteIf I didn't cut back my Leucadendrons on a periodic basis they'd take over my garden and I'd lose much of the beauty they offer when I restrict their height. In fact, I let Leucadendron 'Chief' (one of my favorites) got out of hand last year and I'm paying for it now - I'm not sure I'm even going to be able to get it back in shape. Leucadendrons don't react well to being cut down to bare wood so, in my opinion, they require regular pruning.
The 2 Agave desmettiana will be "done" once the flowers fade. Hopefully, I'll get bulbils I can harvest before the stalks crash under their own weight. The plants sit atop a moderate slope so there's a good chance they may fall. It's going to be a pain in the neck to remove them. There are 3 more of those agaves in the same area, all of which were pups of prior bloomed-out agaves of approximately the same size so, fingers crossed, the remaining plants don't follow on the heels of these 2!
Vedo sempre delle piante magnifiche! Alcune cose le teniamo anche qui ma l'agave desmettiana è davvero bella! Mia moglie voleva comprarla ma poi ha desistito, non credo sia abbastanza rustica per i nostri 800 metri sul livello del mare.
ReplyDeleteTi auguro una buona primavera in anticipo!!
The variegated Agave desmettiana are among my favorites in the agave genus, Gabriel. I cannot say how they would handle your colder winter climate but I suspect you are right that they would not like it. In my experience, they are also quicker to bloom than virtually any other agave. The 2 I have blooming now are pups of 2 others that previously bloomed and died in my garden. The original plants did leave pups and bulbils behind as consolation, however ;)
DeleteThe isopogon stopped my scroll in its tracks and I had to back up -- bravo! I once drove up to a UC Santa Cruz plant sale to nab one and was foiled. You have so many wonderful things to look at now. February is such a good month in SoCal.
ReplyDeleteI have another species of Isopogon that isn't half as pretty as this pink one, Denise. I can only hope it lives along and prospers! It bugs me that I didn't record it into my digital plant list, though. I can't even remember where I got it.
DeleteI love the big poofs of bloom on the A. desmettiana's. The profusion of blooms is really incredible, what a variety! It's just all fabulous Kris :)!!
ReplyDeleteThe variegated Agave desmettiana are something of drama queens, Tracy. Their flowers are flashier than those of the 'Blue Glow' Agaves, albeit not as dramatic as the flowers of the foxtail agaves.
DeleteDamn! You must be giddy. The first image, Agave desmettiana 'Variegata', stole the show for me. The spikes look of a height that you're able to actually see the flowers. Is that true? Or is it a trick of the camera angle?
ReplyDeleteNo camera tricks here, Loree. Those 2 agaves were both pups of 2 variegated Agave desmettiana that preceded them. They're atop a moderate slope and their bloom stalks have climbed into the canopy of the largest of my Arbutus 'Marina' so they weren't easy to photograph. The bees have quickly pollinated the flowers at the lower sections of the stalks, turning them a goldish color, but there are still relatively pristine yellow flowers and green buds at the upper level. Hopefully, I'll get bulbils. I haven't seen signs of pups at the plants' bases yet.
DeleteOh my gosh, the Anemones are gorgeous! Love the Leucospermums, too. One of these Februarys, we need to head out to SoCal. You are so fortunate to have things blooming and growing year-round! Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteYou'll always be welcome to visit my garden should you make it out this way, Beth.
DeleteSo many February flowers! I think I would get lost trying to catalog that many.
ReplyDeleteI take the photos here and there so that's no problem but labeling them before sorting out the photos to use can get ridiculous. I've been thinking of giving up my Bloom Day posts entirely in favor of posting photos on a more haphazard schedule. After participating in GBBD diligently for over 12 years now, it's wearing thin. I do like having a monthly record of what blooms when to check trends but I could do that without throwing everything in a single post.
DeleteIt would definitely burn me out. I always try to catalog everything when, instead, I could make a simpler post and just focus on my favorites. It's also hard for me to blog on a set schedule. It's amazing how even what I think will be a "short and simple" post suddenly balloons into something ridiculously long and complicated.
DeleteI understand that 2026 is to be the last year Carol at May Dreams Gardens intends to shepherd Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Based on her declaration, I may continue in some fashion through the remainder to this year as a final testimonial to her efforts.
DeleteGood grief! You win "most blooms on bloom day" again! That's quite the show! Thanks for sharing it with all of us.
ReplyDeleteYou're most welcome. I'm actually a little overwhelmed by my February floral display. Even today I discovered blooms that hadn't been present just last Thirsday.
DeleteI've never come across a garden so packed with goodies as yours is. Wonderful as usual Kris. The Isopogan is an amazing flower, I've never seen anything like it. And I love the agaves. Will they die after bloomng?
ReplyDeleteA few agaves can survive the first bloom stalk (one of my 'Blue Glow' Agaves did that last year) but most agave die when the bloom stalk goes. In my experience, Agave desmettiana is a species that blooms and dies early in its lifespan and the decline of these 2 plants is already evident, even though the flowers should continue for at least a couple more months. The saving grace is that they usually produce lots of bulbils, as well as a few pups at their bases.
DeleteHow wonderful to have so many blooms in your garden! I never tire of seeing your plant collages, and that you keep track of all the plants. Is that you potting shed in the first photo? It's charming! And those agaves in bloom are awesome!
ReplyDeleteMy records aren't perfect as shown by my difficulty in identifying the pink Isopogon, Elena. The structure you see across from the blooming agaves is a shade house made of lath my husband built for me years ago. Shade is something I can't always provide to some of my favorite plants so it's more useful to me than a greenhouse or potting shed, although I have a potting bench elsewhere (and would love to have a greenhouse too if I could find space for one!).
DeleteWow…you certainly are having an early spring and all the blooms and collages are beautiful! You do win the award for most blooms in the garden and this gives me hopes of spring. We are buried beneath a blanket of snow right now, so I am taking it all in virtually through you! I am especially floored by the blooms on your Aeonium escobarii and Agaves!
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, both the agaves and that aeonium rosette bloom and then die, although at least the agaves will produce bulbils (infant plants) as their stalks die back, and maybe some pups at their base. I'd hoped for offsets on the aeonium but it doesn't appear I'm going to get anything from it. Such is life!
DeleteMy New York State winter-weary eyes are refreshed and I'm dreaming of spring. Oh so beautiful to see these collages. Your photos are so sharp, too. I'm in love with those flowers..
ReplyDeleteThanks Alana. I hope you see spring at your doorstep soon!
DeleteI love your Bloom Day posts, Kris, esp. in winter. The color is a joy to behold, as we are a bit short on it right now. 😉 I've been recovering from a hospital visit last week and this just the cheer I needed. (No worry, I'm on the mend, btw 👍🏼) Eliza
ReplyDeleteI hope it was a very short hospital visit with no lasting repercussions, Eliza. Take care of yourself!
DeleteI really enjoyed this post Kris! My world is lacking any colour atvthe moment, so seeing all those wonderful blooms is a real treat. I had no idea you had so many different Grevilleas and Leucospermum that you often put in vases. And how lovely to have Gomphrena flower all year round. I also noticed the lovely Aristea which reminds me of Gaura. Such a pretty colour. And seeing Cyclamen and Narcissus (which survive our cold winters) among all your other flowers is funny for me! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThanks Cathy! Spring is generally early, and usually unfolds fast here, but this year in particular is a bit much!
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