October has its winners and losers

Usually temperatures start to come down in October and, even when we still get some toasty days now and again, we feel a crispness in the air that signals the arrival of fall.  However, this year is different.  It's only the shorter days that have marked the seasonal change as it's been unspeakably hot more often than not.  We got a brief break when Tropical Storm Rachel moved through the area last week but it remained relatively warm even then, and the humidity level rose.  And now we understand that we're likely to see ninety degree temperatures again this weekend.

But as I evaluate the damage the high temperatures have done to my garden during the last two heatwaves, I note that some plants fared surprisingly well despite the heat.  I expected the remaining dahlias to quickly wither and die but many did not.  They deserve a final bow to applause as I expect I'll be pulling them out by next month, if only to clear the way to install cool season bulbs and plants in my cutting garden.

This is Dahlia 'Admiral Rawlings' which, after generally delivering just a couple of flowers at a time, went for broke with a flurry of them this month.  The plant has an ungainly habit of producing especially tall stems that flop over but its blooms are a luscious dark red.

After a 2-month hiatus, 'Break Out' returned with a parade of new flowers.  It was my top performer earlier in the season too.

'Good Day' has been a solid performer for most of the season, regardless of weather conditions.  It was said to develop an orangish tone later in the season and has recently begun to do so.

One of my 2 'Labyrinth' dahlias threw in the towel last month after a very generous showing but this one is still producing a few new flowers

'Mikayla Miranda' has been sparse with its blooms but it continued flowering throughout the heatwaves so it gets a plus for that

'Omega' is a star, which keeps pumping out big beautiful flowers while most of the other dahlias have gradually shrunken in size

'Snowball' is a good overall bloomer, if somewhat slower with its production than I'd like

'Table Dancer' is still generous with its flowers, however they've gotten smaller in size over time.  I haven't fertilized any of of the dahlias during the past 2 months, though, which may be a factor there.

While the zinnias I seeded in June never took off in great numbers, they did eventually make an acceptable showing.

Clockwise from the upper left, the Zinnias include 'Oklahoma White', 'Benary's Giant Salmon Rose', a noID pink variety, and 'Benary's Giant Wine'

Unthwarted by the heat, some new blooms arrived on their usual schedule elsewhere in the garden too.

Barleria obtusa, aka bush violets, are putting on their usual show with their small blue flowers

Clematis terniflora, aka sweet autumn clematis, has been relatively shy with its flowers thus far

When my asters went amok several years ago, I tried to rid my garden of them altogether; however, they've returned since, albeit in small but manageable numbers.  I believe this one is Symphyotrichum x frikartii 'Monch'.  It'll be interesting to see if El Niño causes it to go crazy again next year.

Other plants simply ignored the heat.

Grevilleas 'Peaches & Cream' and 'Superb', both which flower year-round

These 2 daylilies bloom in both late spring and late summer/early fall here.  They are Hemerocallis 'For Pete's Sake' and 'Spanish Harlem'.

Some of the Leucadendrons that imitate flowers are still going strong.  They include Leucadendron 'Blush', 'Summer Red' and 'Safari Sunset'.

 Looking to fill vacancies, I planted several new plants in late September.  Unfortunately, even with close attention to my watering, many succumbed to the recent heatwaves.  Two Salvia 'Mystic Spires' are among the few survivors. 

And then there was this:

I usually welcome blooms of all kinds.  The exception are flowers on agaves, as the blooms inevitably mean their eventual demise.  I'm not looking forward to the loss of the variegated Agave 'Joe Hoak' on the left, a pass-along gift from a blogger friend many years ago, even if that event may still be months away.

I'll close this Bloom Day collection with a collage featuring miscellaneous honorable mentions.

Clockwise from the upper left are: Duranta 'Sapphire Skies', noID Gazania, Helianthus 'Astra Rose', Lantana camara 'Irene', Leonotis leonurus and Tanacetum parthenium 'Aureum'

That's a wrap for my Bloom Day post.  Carol of May Dreams is still hosting her mid-month line-up through the end of this year.  You can find her post here.

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Bloom Day - May 2026

I missed two months of Bloom Day posts while sidelined by medical issues.  I'm still recovering, but I was determined to get a post up this month.  My garden isn't exactly up to snuff as regular therapy sessions take a lot of my time, however I've taken a stab at documenting what I could.

The Agapanthus are blooming heavily as usual this May

Arctotis ‘Large Marge' is more vigorous than 'Pink Sugar'

White and yellow Argyranthemum (aka Marguerite daisies) are at their peak

Cynara scolymus, commonly known as artichokes on the back slope 

Echium 'Pride of Madeira', one of 3 Echiums I currently have in bloom

Globularia x indubia (aka globe daisy), beloved by bees

Hippeastrum flower on an irregular schedule.  I've noID for this one but it's naturalized in my garden.

Leonotis leonurus, aka lion's tail

Leucadendron salignum 'Blush' - not a true flower but it looks likes one

Leucospermum Royal Hawaiian 'Brandi', the flashiest Leucospermum in my garden (so far)

NoID Pelargonium (left) and 2 Pelargonium peltatum (right) aka ivy geranium)

Flamboyant Salvia canariensis var candidissima

The cutting garden still has spring flowers (soon to be replaced with dahlias).

Consolida ajacis, aka larkspur

Lathyrus odoratus, aka sweet peas

NoID Gladiolus

There are also a host of dependable long term bloomers:

Clockwise from upper left: Grevillea 'Superb', 'Peaches & Cream', 'Scarlet Sprite', and G.sericea

Cuphea x ignea 'Starfire Pink' and a noID orange variety

Hemerocallis 'For Pete's Sake' & 'Spanish Harlem'

I've thrown several other flowers into a final collage for final measure:

Top Row: Alstroemeria ‘Claire’, Callistemon viridiflorus, and Lagurus ovatus (aka bunny tail grass)
Middle: Centranthus ruber, Oenothera speciosa, and Felicia aethiopica
Bottom: Chrysocephalum, Gaillardia 'Desert Flame', and Gazania 'Spin Top Copper Sun'

That's it for this month's survey.  Many thanks to Carol at May Dreams Gardens for hosting Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day each month.

All material © 2012-2026 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Bloom Day - February 2026 (Early Edition)

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.

Two Agave desmettiana 'Variegata' on my front slope are now in full bloom

The Anemone coronaria are peaking.  Clockwise from the upper left are: 'Azzurro', 'Bordeaux', 'Mr Fokker', 'Lord Lieutenant', 'Mona Lisa' (maybe), 'Rarity', and 'Rosa Chiaro'.

Almost but not all of my snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus) are putting on a good show

 

The African daisies (Arctotis) are up and running with 'Large Marge' in the lead and 'Pink Sugar' coming up behind

The Marguerite daisies (Argyranthemum frutescens) do well until summer arrives.  Left to right are: 'Aramis Apricot', Beauty Yellow', and 'Mount Everest'.

I can never capture the vivid blue of Aristea inaequalis in photographs

I discovered all the Auranticarpa rhombifolium shrubs (aka diamond pittosporum) in flower by accident when I went to check on another plant

Camellia 'Taylor's Perfection'

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.

Mixes of Dianthus barbata

Freesia blooms are popping up here and there throughout my garden, despite the extensive damage gophers have done to the bulbs  

The Gazanias planted in prior years are making their comeback

Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy' blooms all year here (except immediately following their annual haircut)

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)

Hippeastrum (aka South American amaryllis), clockwise from the upper left: 'Amadeus Candy', 'Aphrodite', 'Flamingo Amadeus', and 'White Nile'

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

These are 3 of my 5 Leucospermums.  From top to bottom are: L. 'High Gold', L. 'Spider Hybrid', and L 'Sunrise'.

This is the most robust of my Limonium perezii (aka sea lavender) but not the only one

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'

Polygala myrtifolia has self-seeded everywhere

Rhodanthemum hosmariense (aka Moroccan daisy)

Scilla peruviana (aka Portuguese squill)

There were a few surprises.

Aeonium escobarii (I think), blooming without producing a single offset

Early daylilies, Hemerocallis 'Persian Market' and H. 'Spanish Harlem'

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.

Protea 'Claire' has borne flowers since early November.  It's sporting its last 2 now.

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.

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

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

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

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

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