May Favorites

On the last Friday of the month, Loree of danger garden hosts a meme focusing on favorite plants.  In preparation, I took photos of all sorts of plants but my attention kept coming back to one bed.  I call it the "spa bed" because at one time it contained a "snorkel spa" we inherited with the house.  The spa was heated by firewood and very inconvenient to use so, after living with it for a few years and using it only a few times, we took it out and used the spa's top to build a patio table.  (I'm using the royal "we" here as my husband really did all the work.)  I planted the spa bed in March 2014 and have modified my plant choices several times since.  I feel it's finally coming together now and, although the plants are still immature, I love the combination already so I'm featuring the occupants of this bed as my May favorites.

Wide shot of the bed formerly occupied by the snorkel spa

Another view of the same bed

The tree on the left, an Arbutus 'Marina', was in place when we moved in, as was the clump of Agapanthus on the right and the hedge behind.  Everything else is a more recent introduction.  After a brief flirtation with some other plants, I took my color cues from the Arbutus with its red trunk and its coral pink flowers.  Here's a closer look at the present bed.

The bed echoes some of the colors in the dry garden beyond

Melianthus major, Leucadendron 'Jester' and Grevillea 'Ned Kelly' started the ball rolling.

A current photo showing the chandelier-like flowers of Arbutus 'Marina' dangling above Melianthus major, mirroring the colors of Leucadendron 'Jester' below and Grevillea 'Ned Kelly' on the right

A broader view picks up the red of Pennisetum 'Fireworks', Lantana camara 'Irene' and Leucadendron 'Blush'

Pennisetum 'Fireworks', Leucadendron salignum 'Blush', a yellow Anigozanthos and a host of smaller plants were later introductions.  Most recently, I've added  Agastache 'Kudos Mandarin', Leucadendron 'Jubilee Crown' and Leucospermum 'Royal Hawaiian Brandi'.  I love each of these plants individually but it's their synthesis that makes them my favorite selection this month.

Top row, from left: Agastache 'Kudos Mandarin', noID yellow Anigozanthos, and Arbutus 'Marina'
Middle row: Grevillea 'Ned Kelly', Leucadendron 'Jester' and Leucadendron salignum 'Blush'
Bottom row: Pennisetum 'Fireworks', Origanum 'Monterey Bay', and the two newest additions, Leucadendron 'Jubilee Crown' and Leucospermum 'Brandi' (still babies)

Visit Loree at danger garden to see the plants she and other gardeners are most excited about this month.


All material © 2012-2016 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Bloom Day - October 2015

It's been hot and, despite unexpected rain in July and September, after 4 years of drought and watering restrictions, the garden is also very dry.  However, after looking back on my October Bloom Day posts for 2013 and 2014, I find I'm not doing as badly in the bloom department as I thought I was.  There are some no-shows but these are counter-balanced by blooms on plants like the Grevilleas and the Gazanias, which weren't introduced to my garden until last year.

The star of this month's garden is Plectranthus ciliatus 'Zulu Warrior', which did have a prominent place in my garden in prior years.  I brought cuttings of this plant with me from my former garden.  I now have it in 2 areas of my current garden and plan to try it in other areas as well.

Plectranthus can handle a little sun but does best here with shade during the hottest part of the day

In terms of plant combinations, 3 areas are looking good, at least relative to the rest of the garden.

Gaillardia 'Arizona Sun' could use some dead-heading to neaten it up and Agastache 'Sunset' is getting a bit ragged but both are still looking pretty

Hebe 'Wiri Blush' is surrounded here by Pentas 'Nova' and Celosia 'Intenz'

New-ish plantings of Polygala fruticosa 'Petite Butterfly' and Euphorbia 'Breathless White' are combining nicely with older plantings of Tulbaghia violacea (aka Society Garlic) and Eustoma 'Echo Blue', returning for another round of bloom (I hope)

Selected genera are also putting on a good show at the moment.

Eustoma grandiflorum 'Mariachi Pink' (right) and 'Echo Pink' (not shown) have been blooming heavily for 2 months after an earlier spring flush; 'Echo Blue' (left) and 'Borealis Yellow' (middle) have been less floriferous but have still put on impressive performances

Despite becoming the newest salad bar for the resident squirrels, Gazanias 'New Day Yellow', 'White Flame' and 'Golden Flame' still have some unmolested blooms

Grevilleas 'Ned Kelly', 'Pink Midget' and 'Superb' have flowered continuously for a good part of the summer. G. 'Peaches & Cream' (not shown) has produced flowers sporadically but seems camera shy whenever Bloom Day comes around.

Pennisetum 'Fireworks' (left) is smaller than Pennisetum advena 'Rubrum' (right) but no less impressive in bloom this summer. (Yes, I know it's officially fall but apparently Mother Nature's local representative hasn't gotten the message.)

During the past month, roses have appeared here and there, although not in significant numbers.  'Californa Dreamin' (left) and 'Pink Meidiland' (right) are currently making appearances in the front garden.

The Salvias soldier on, with the exception of 'Amistad' which appears to have given up the ghost.  From left, Salvia discolor, S. 'Mesa Azure' and S. 'Mystic Spires'.

And here are the best of the rest, organized by color groupings.

Orange, yellow and white flowers include, clockwise from upper left: Portulaca 'Carrot', Abelia 'Kaleidoscope', Clematis terniflora, Coreopsis 'Redshift', Gaura lindheimeri 'Snow Fountain', Hemerocallis 'Double Impact', Lantana 'Lucky White' and Leonotis leonurus

Pink and magenta flowers include, clockwise from left: Bauhinia x blakeana, Angelonia 'Archangel Raspbery', Gomphrena 'Itsy Bitsy', Nerium oleander, and Pentas 'Kaleidoscope Appleblossom'

Also my noID Hoya carnosa with what I thought was a bee making a casual visit (left).  She turned out to be the prisoner of an unidentified white and black spider which is still on hand waiting for its next victim (right).

The blue flower group includes, from the left: Aster frikartii 'Monch', Duranta 'Sapphire Showers', Felicia aethiopica "Tight & Tidy', and prostrate rosemary

That's it for my Bloom Day post this month.  I'm hoping that summer, which is apparently loathe to let go of Southern California, will come to an end this month and cooler weather will bring the "second spring" we usually enjoy during the autumn months.  Some rain would also be nice.  (Do you hear me El Niño?)

For other Bloom Day posts, please visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens, the esteemed host of the monthly event that is Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day.


All material © 2012-2015 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Wednesday Vignette: Sunrise or Sunset?

Each week, Anna at Flutter & Hum hosts a presentation of images that caught the attention of participating bloggers.  I took a photograph of a scene from my bedroom window across our front garden just after sunrise this morning, meaning to post it in connection with this meme.  For a variety of reasons, I didn't get to it until this evening.

Photograph taken from my bedroom window (My windows are cleaner than I realized!)

The light from the east lit up the garden.  Touches of orange and red warm an area otherwise dominated by green.  One plant, Agastache 'Sunset', ties the whole scene together.

Photograph taken from the garden itself

I hope you'll check out the images Anna and other gardeners found compelling at Flutter & Hum.

All material © 2012-2015 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

August Favorites

On the last Friday of each month, Loree at danger garden hosts a roll call of her favorite plants.  I usually participate but I admit I'm having a hard time getting excited about my garden right now.  In the midst of our second heatwave this month, I'm feeling disillusioned with its performance.  When I go out there, I see dead things.  I lost an Agastache 'Summer Glow', my Grevillea 'Bonfire', both of my Philotheca myoporoides, most of my Fuchsias (which I frankly had no business planting under current conditions), and 1 of my 3 Pittosporum 'Silver Magic', among other things.  Additional plants seem to be hanging on by a thread.  Of course, it's not all bad.  The plants I raved about in my Foliage Follow-up post earlier this month, are still looking great.  But beyond those drought and heat tolerant stalwarts, I had to look more closely to find plants I could declare my favorites this August.

With that long-winded disclaimer, here are my August 2015 favorites:

Agastache 'Sunset': Grown in partial shade, it responded well to being cut back by half shortly after I put it in the ground

Dorycnium hirsutum (aka hairy canary clover): It didn't produce more than a few blooms this year but its foliage is fabulous and it has self-seeded like crazy

Duranta erecta 'Sapphire Showers': It's spent its entire life (5 years thus far) in a pot but it has bloomed prolifically since I put it on a steady diet of graywater collected from the kitchen

Eustoma grandiflorum 'Echo Pink' and Yucca 'Bright Star': With apologies for the sun-drenched photo and the over-exposure both plants have received on my blog, the appeal of these plants can't be denied.  The nearby Gaillardias are looking haggard but look at those Eustomas!

Gomphrena 'Itsy Bitsy': The heat seems to have coaxed the plant into full bloom.  Its flowers, floating like satellites on wiry stems, are tiny but numerous.

Grevillea 'Superb': If my other Grevilleas bloom as well when they reach maturity, I'll be a happy camper.  Summer heat or not, I just added 2 more of these plants to my garden after finding 1-gallon plants in a local garden center.

Lemon (no ID): I inherited this tree, sitting at the bottom of our back slope, with the house.  It's ALWAYS laden with fruit.  I seldom give it any supplemental water.  It survives on our meager rain, run-off from the slope, and the graywater fed by our washing machine (a system we didn't know we had until the Yucca elephantipes was removed earlier this year).

Pennisetum advena 'Rubrum': The undisputed star of my late summer garden

Phyla nodiflora (aka Lippia): Its flowers are tiny (about 1/4 inch/6.35mm) but profuse and colorful

Salvia 'Amistad', S. lanceolata and S. 'Mesa Azure': I've had spotty luck with Salvias but these 3 appear happy in my dry soil

It's supposed to begin cooling off beginning tomorrow and the marine layer is expected to return next week.  There are no signs of fall yet that I can see or feel but the cooler temperatures will be welcome.

Visit Loree at danger garden to see what plants have found favor with her and other bloggers this month.


All material © 2012-2015 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Bloom Day - June 2015

With early heatwaves in March followed by unusually cool weather through early June, my garden is mixed up this year.  Some summer bloomers, like the Agapanthus, got off to an early start but others, like the dormant Hemerocallis 'Sammy Russell' have been slow to get going.  The late rain we received, little as it was, also made a difference, encouraging some flowers, like the Osteospermum, to return for a repeat performance.  This is a long-winded way of saying: the garden is full of flowers this June.

The flowers I'm most excited about are a mixed group, some old favorites and others new introductions.

I can't help but be impressed, as I am each year, by the legion of Agapanthus in bloom

After disappointing results from Agastache in prior years, I've fallen in love with the 2 varieties shown here: A. 'Summer Glow' and A. 'Sunset'

While some of the Hemerocallis have been slow to get started, there are still a lot of them to add interest - clockwise from the top left: 'For Pete's Sake', 'Dallas Star', 'Frank Gladney', 'Indian Giver', 'Persian Market', 'Russian Rhapsody', 'Spanish Harlem' and 'Sammy Russell'

This noID bearded Iris is exciting mainly because it's the only one in my garden that has bloomed this year

I'm very happy with the exuberant Lotus berthelotii in a pot - it's almost uncontrollable here when planted in the ground

Melaleuca thymifolia is putting on a fine show this year, its second in my back border

I love the cerulean blue of this Salvia macrophylla but it's very hard to photograph

Solanum xanti, a California native, shown here with Leucadendron 'Pisa' and Salvia 'Amistad', continues to be one of my favorite plants

Some plant genera are making big shows throughout the garden:

The Cupheas: 'Carribean Sunset', 'Strybing Sunset' and 'Starfire Pink'

The Gazanias: (clockwise from upper left) 'New Day Yellow', unspecified orange from the 'Flame' series, 'Sunbathers Otomi' and 'Kiss Me White Flame'

There are buds but no blooms on Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream' this month but those that are blooming include G. alpina x rosmarinifolia, G. 'Ned Kelly' and G. 'Superb'

I have a few Fuchsia: F. thymifolia, 'Neon & White Windchimes', and 'Swingtime'

The Eustoma grandiflorum are just getting started but the white and pink forms are already making a splash

Lantana of various types are adding summer color

The Nasturium (Tropaeolum) I grew from seed bloomed - these are the only seeds that make it past the raccoons in the garden beds

The cooler weather in May brought back the Osteospermum for another run

The ever-present Pelargoniums are blooming in earnest

Even the succulents have joined in

But that's not all!  Here are a few more, organized by color:

Top row: Achillea 'Moonshine', Anigozanthos (noID), and Argyranthmum 'Butterfly'
Middle row: Cotula 'Big Yellow Moon', Cotula 'Tiffendell Gold' and a Cymbidium (noID)
Bottom row: Euphorbia 'Dean's Hybrid', Halimium x pauanum, and Jacobaeus maritima

Clockwise from top left: Anagallis 'Wildcat Mandarin', Bignonia capreolata, Digiplexis 'Illumination Flame' and Russelia equisetiformis

Top row: Albizia julibrissin, Alstromeria (noID), and Arctotis 'Pink Sugar'
Middle row: Centranthus ruber, Hebe 'Wiri Blush', and Heuchera (noID)
Bottom row: California poppies, 'Pink Meidiland' rose and Salvia 'Wendy's Wish'

Top row: Arthropodium cirratum, Gaura lindheimeri, and Geranium 'Biokovo'
Middle row: Lagurus ovatus and Leucanthemum x superbum (2 forms)
Bottom row: Magnolia grandiflora, Trifolium repens, and Hoya 'Shooting Star'

Top row: Ageratum corybosum, Aster frikartii, and Duranta (noID)
Middle row: Geranium 'Tiny Monster', Pericallis stellata, and rosemary
Bottom row: Teucrium x lucidrys, Tulbaghia violacea, and Wahlenbergia with Nierembergia

You'll find even more blooms by visiting Carol at May Dreams Gardens, the host of the monthly event that is Bloom Day.  As it's Monday, it's also the day to put forward a bouquet for "In a vase on Monday," the popular meme hosted by Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.  Here's mine:

A hasty construction of blooms from a recently purchased Digiplexis 'Berry Canary' accompanied by Abelia x grandiflora, Eustoma grandiflorum 'Echo Pink', Pentas 'Kaleidoscope Appleblossom' and Salvia 'Wendy's Wish' (photographed with my ceramic frog sprouting Rhipsalis)

All material © 2012-2015 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party