In a Vase on Monday: Vivid Color

We're facing another heatwave this week so I cut a lot of what was blooming in my cutting garden on Sunday morning.  Dare I hope that this will be our last heatwave of the year?  There are no guarantees and rain is still a distant prospect but my cutting garden is in peak giving mode nonetheless.

The intense color of Dahlia 'Rip City' grabbed my attention when I first saw a photo of the flower online early this year.  I ordered the tuber but I didn't really expect it to live up to its publicity photo; however, it has.

The blooms of 'Rip City' are almost black

Back view: The dahlia's color made it difficult to find partners that would complement rather than clash with its dark bluish-black undertones

Top view: Hot pinks offered the best match and the purplish color of Ageratum corymbosum's foliage gave the arrangement additional interest

Clockwise from the upper left: Dahlia 'Rip City', foliage of Ageratum corymbosum, Coprosma repens 'Plum Hussey', Callistemon hybrid 'Hot Pink', Cuphea hybrid 'Starfire Pink', and Pentas lanceolata

Even though I used Dahlia 'Enchantress' in a vase last week, a good flush of fresh blooms had me cutting it again for another vase this week.  'Enchantress' performed well last year as well.  It's an especially prolific bloomer.

New blooms of a noID Japanese anemone that came with the garden were a last minute addition to play off the yellow in the center of the dahlias and the in the Lantana flowers

Back view: I used a few Zinnia 'Envy' flowers as accents here

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Dahlia 'Enchantress', Abelia grandiflora 'Hopley's Variegated', Lantana 'Samantha', noID Anemone hupehensis, and Zinnia elegans 'Envy'

As it's fall and I'd like to welcome the change of seasons (even if it doesn't yet feel like fall here yet), I cut sunflowers for a third vase.

The bees and the birds have been all over the flowers of this 'Delta Sunflower' in the cutting garden so I felt a twinge of guilt in taking some but the bush is still producing a steady supply of new blooms

Back view: I added stems of variegated Corokia x virgata 'Sunsplash' to brighten the mix a bit

Top view

Clockwise from the top: Helianthus annuus 'Delta Sunflower', Corokia x virgata 'Sunsplash', Leptospermum 'Copper Glow', and Pennisetum advena 'Rubrum'

A friend planned to stop by to bring me a package of the cleaning wipes that have eluded me for months, so I prepared a final impromptu arrangement in a jelly jar to hand off to her as well.

The centerpiece of this arrangement was Dahlia 'Belle of Barmera'.  Other elements included: Agonis flexuosa 'Nana' (foliage), Correa 'Wyn's Wonder', and Zinnia elegans 'Queen Lime Blush'

I hope you enjoy a colorful week too!  For more flower arrangements, visit the leader of our merry IAVOM band, Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

All material © 2012-2020 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Putting a positive spin on my late summer garden

Okay, I know that, technically speaking, it's now fall in the Northern Hemisphere; however, summer probably won't really come to an end for another 5-6 weeks in my area of Southern California.  In fact, aided by our devilish Santa Ana winds, we're expecting high temperatures in the 90s next week.  My garden is generally at its lowest ebb at this time of year.  After the last severe heatwave some areas look downright sad but the extra hand-watering I did in advance of that nasty heatwave did help and there are a few things to crow about.

This hybrid Callistemon 'Hot Pink' surprised me with a flush of blooms.  I think it's the first time it's flowered this year.

Despite the fact that the heatwave singed all the buds on Dahlia 'Iceberg', it produced another gigantic bloom.  The stem was very short and I couldn't cut it without sacrificing the two side buds so I decided to enjoy it where it was in my cutting garden.

Dahlia 'Rip City' produced its first blooms.  The first dahlia tuber I planted this year, it was nearly the last to bloom but it currently has more than two dozen buds,

'Rip City' (left) is nearly black.  The contrast with 'Loverboy' (right) emphasizes just how dark it is.

Helianthus annuus 'Delta Sunflower' is very happy in my cutting garden.  Both the bees and the birds are all over it.

This isn't the most impressive photo but I was thrilled when I noticed a bud on this Iris germanica 'Autumn Circus'.  The plant was a gift from a friend in late May.  It's a reblooming variety and this will be its first bloom.

Even though I threw out my rule against planting anything other than succulents during the summer months, I also managed to hang onto most of what I've recently planted.  Last Friday, I posted a photo of a new delivery of mail order plants. 

This was last week's delivery from Annie's Annuals & Perennials in Northern California

After unpacking the box, I held off on planting those new arrivals until early this week but I took care of all of them early this week.  Here's a closer look at the newly installed plants:

This is Agave vilmoriniana 'Stained Glass'.  I've wanted one for a long time but large specimens are pricey, if you can even find them.  I'm giving this one an opportunity to bulk up a bit in a pot before it gets a permanent placement in the garden.

This is one of three new Arctotis 'Pink Sugar' plants.  I admittedly have a lot of these already but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to plant a few more in 4-inch pots as the fall and winter-planted specimens have always done the best in my garden.

Ceanothus x pallidus 'Marie Simon', a pink-flowered variety, was my biggest splurge.  I plan to plant it in my back border but I'm going to let it spread its roots in this temporary pot until I'm comfortably certain that our hot weather is behind us.

This drought-tolerant white-flowering groundcover, Falkia repens, was an impulse purchase.  I divided it in two before planting it out.

I have a checkered past with Penstemon in this garden but Penstemon x gloxiniodes 'Midnight' is supposed to be tough.  I planted three in an area that already contains pink and blue Eustoma grandiflorum (aka Lisianthus), Salvia 'Mystic Spires' and Cuphea 'Starfire Pink'.

Sideritis cypria is a plant I've grown before that has very interesting flowers.  This is a new location for these plants.

Pleased at having everything taken care of, I treated myself to another trip to my local garden center.  I was in the area to get my flu shot, so why not stop?  New plants are a better reward for taking care of that chore than a lollipop. 

The three grass-like plants in the 1-gallon pots are Lomandra.  The green one is a replacement for one than died (the first and only loss of these plants I've had).  I'd been looking for additional pots of the variegated variety, 'Platinum Beauty' and I found these at a reasonable price, so I couldn't pass them up (and I've already planted both).  The rest consists of three 4-inch pots of Santolinas and 6-packs of Digitalis purpurea and Limonium perezii, all best purchased in small sizes.

I can't help it.  Even though it still feels like summer here, I can feel fall's siren call and fall is prime planting season in this part of the country.  I've got several significant projects in the offing but must hold off on some of these until the tree service pays its annual visit, probably next month.  The arborist dropped by this week to discuss what I want done and, in addition to the annual trimming, I'm having two trees taken out.  Their removal makes me very sad but there really isn't any alternative as one is dead and the other is nearly so.

I think the Heteromeles arbutifolia (aka Toyon) was felled by the pathogen that causes sudden oak death.  This tree-sized shrub is one of many plants sensitive to the pathogen.  Once I noticed the leaves turning red, it was already too late.  As it sits on the top of a steep slope overlooking a neighbor's driveway and next to a huge tree stump, I'm not going to be able to plant another tree in that spot but I may try making room for one nearby.

We had emergency surgery performed on this Albizia julibrissin (aka mimosa) two years ago in an effort to stop or slow the spread of damage caused by shot-hole borers but the tree's decline continued.  It produced unsightly adventitious growth and the bark of its trunk is now decaying.  Despite the fact that it also sits atop a steep slope, the arborist believes we can safely grind the stump on the inside of the hedge behind it.  I'm hoping I can plant a small tree in that area but that idea requires further evaluation.

Time to get to work on planting the rest of what I picked up at the garden center this week and planning for the future.  Happy gardening!

All material © 2012-2020 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

March Favorites

Once a month, Loree of danger garden invites us to celebrate the plants in our garden making the biggest impression at the moment.  Most of my selections this month aren't exotic or unusual.   However, in each case, the plant's either at its peak of performance or it's done something to surprise me.

First up is Ajuga reptans 'Mint Chip'.  A very low grower, it fits in nicely alongside the backyard walkway.  Its pretty blue flowers seemed to appear overnight.

Another low groundcover that suddenly burst into bloom this month is Anagallis 'Wildcat Mandarin', a hybrid I planted 2 years ago.  It needs to be cut back after it finishes blooming but that's virtually all the maintenance it requires.

Felicia aethiopica is providing another burst of blue in the backyard.  This variety, called 'Tight & Tidy' by the grower, is just that.  Its projected size, 16 inches tall and 30 inches wide, is shorter than the variety usually offered by local garden centers.  (It's currently in danger of being engulfed by Lupinus propinuus, which is growing larger and faster than I imagined it would.)

The front garden has its own bolt of blue in the form of the noID Ceanothus hedge that is currently near full bloom.  This hedge, trimmed frequently to keep it within the bounds, probably doesn't have a long life ahead of it.  Since we moved in, I've already lost 3 sections of the front Ceanothus hedge and one section of the backyard hedge.  I've considered removing the entire thing but, when it blooms, granting it mercy and letting it exit on its own terms is an easy decision to make.

The garden has also produced some jolts of hot pink this month.  One of the plants providing that bright color is Callistemon 'Hot Pink', a hybrid I acquired last year.  The plant is still relatively small but it does its best to make an impression.  The only problem with it is that its floral color clashes with that of a number of its bedmates so it may have to move.

More hot pink color is provided by Pelargonium cucullatum 'Flore Plenum' (aka 'Golf Ball').  This was one of several Pelargoniums I picked up at a Geranium Society sale at my local botanic garden last year but it appears to be the most vigorous of the lot.  There's a nice red edge to the bright green leaves that complements the flowers well.

A more subdued bloomer sits on the back slope, where it gets little attention.  Carpenteria californica (aka Bush Anemone) is a drought tolerant, native plant that tolerates sun or shade conditions.  It seemed a perfect choice for the back slope when I planted it in 2012 as the area was in shade most of the day but it struggled to adjust to the increased sun exposure when we took out the giant Yucca Elephantipes there early last year.  It benefits from tip pruning, which I neglected to do last year.  Full of round, balloon-shaped buds now, pruning will have to wait.

My last entry, which also grows on the back slope, may be mundane but it falls into the "surprise" category.  It's an artichoke.  It was leftover from 6-pack of plugs I planted a few years ago.  With no more room in the vegetable garden, I stuck the seedling on the slope.  While it hasn't produced any chokes, it's out-lived the other plants I put in that year.  It gets very little water and dies back each summer but it keeps reappearing after our meager winter rains, flaunting its attractive gray foliage.

For more favorite plant entries, visit Loree at danger garden.


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

In a Vase on Monday: Stuffed with Spring Blooms

Last week I said I stopped myself from putting together a fourth vase in shades of blue and purple so, this week, I started my search of the garden with purple and blue in mind.  There are still plenty of flowers to choose from but, as I stepped out the back door, I fixated on the Dutch Iris in bloom alongside the fountain and locked into a color scheme from that moment.

Front view with the Iris taking center stage - I couldn't bring myself to cut the second blooming Iris stalk but the one I cut has a second bud about to bloom

The vase looks very lopsided from the back because I couldn't get that wide stem of Limonium perezii to cooperate and chose not to hack it into pieces

The top view highlights the silver and chartreuse colors of the Leucadendron

As the bright purple flowers of Limonium perezii are in bloom in areas throughout the garden, they were a natural choice to fill the vase, as were the gold Freesia blooms that have popped up everywhere.  The silver and chartreuse blooms of Leucadendron 'Pisa' were a wild-card addition.  I'm not sure they really mesh with the other flowers but they did lighten what was otherwise a heavy color mix, especially with the dark vase, so I kept them.

Clockwise from the upper left:  Iris x hollandica, Coleonema album with Solanum xanti, Freesia, Leucadendron 'Pisa', Limonium perezii, and Narcissus (noID)

In the past week, there's also been a surge in the volume of hot pink blooms so I made up a second vase to showcase that color scheme too.

Front view with the Schizanthus stealing the focus from the Callistemon on the left

The top view gives each flower its due

Clockwise from the left, the vase contains: Callistemon hybrid 'Hot Pink' with Alstroemeria (noID), Argyranthemum frutescens, Ixia (noID), Prunus laurocerasus, and Schizanthus  pinnatus

The first vase sits in the front entry.

The second vase sits on the mantle in the master bedroom.

And the vase created around the Cymbidium flower stalk 4 weeks ago, which I refreshed last week, is back on the dining room table.

The Coleonema and Leptospermum stems I cut last week are a bit withered but the Cymbidium looks virtually unchanged

Visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden, the host of this popular weekly "IAVOM" meme, to find what other gardeners have scrounged up to use in their vases.


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