October 2013 Bloom Day

Purple and blue flowers are making the biggest statement in my garden this Bloom Day.  Plectranthus ciliatus 'Zulu Warrior,' Salvia leucantha and Pennisetum setaceum 'Rubrum' are the chief attention-grabbers.

Plectranthus ciliatus 'Zulu Warrior' continues to produce new blooms

Salvia leucantha is in bloom in my garden and many others in my area

Pennisetum setaceum 'Rubrum' catches the light in my front border

But other purples play strong supporting roles.

Cuphea hyssopifolia (aka false heather) isn't flashy but it makes a great groundcover below the fountain

Hebe speciosa 'Variegata' has bloomed since spring with regular dead-heading (although I think it might be happier with a little less sun)

Some deserve acclaim for sheer perseverance.

The only time Osteospermum ecklonis '3D Silver' hasn't been in bloom is when I've hacked it back but it clearly likes October's cooler temperatures

Acanthus mollis 'Summer Beauty' has been in bloom continuously since late April!  One of it's 2 current bloom spikes has faded but the newer one still looks good.

Bright blues are making a showing too.

Salvia 'Mystic Spires' likes regular dead-heading

This Salvia macrophylla is still a small plant but that blue color is something!

Close-up of bright blue blooms

An Agapanthus flower has made an early return visit

Pink blooms are everywhere but, with one exception, they keep lower profiles.

Angelonia 'Angelmist Dark Pink" provides a bright accent in my dry garden

Arbutus 'Marina' is producing a steady supply of new blooms

Okay, these aren't pink but, in addition to the new blooms shown above, the Arbutus 'Marina' trees are producing berries too

Celosia argentea var. spicata is the least demure of the pink bloomers

Cuphea ignea 'Starfire Pink,' another continuous bloomer, makes a nice combination with Coleonema pulchellum 'Sunset Gold' in the front border

My potted fuchsias responded well to extra water.  I think this one is 'Deep Purple,' which opens with a purple/blue corolla that fades to pink.

Fuchsia 'Bella Rosella'

A hoya (no ID) I've had in a pot for years has finally produced it's first waxy bloom!

These double pink Lisianthus look pretty in a picture but I still don't like them in the back border

The Nandina berries start green, turn pink, then orange and finally red

This Nerium oleander leans into my garden from the neighbor's property

The ivy geranium (Pelargonium peltatum) and Calibrachoa are heavy bloomers in a pot on the sunny front porch

More ivy geranium in bloom in a border alongside the raised vegetable planters

Of course, there are a few white, yellows and oranges too.

Argyranthemum 'Elsa White' in bloom since their installation in March in a side yard bed created as a result of removal of a tall Eucalyptus tree

The white form of Centranthus ruber, a virtual weed in my garden, is entering a new bloom cycle in the dry garden

Some Coreopsis 'Big Bang Redshift' are still blooming in the backyard border

Euryops 'Sonnenschein' is both drought tolerant and shorter than the the Euryops I commonly find in local garden centers, reaching just 2 feet tall at maturity

Gaillardia 'Arizona Sun' is still going strong

I'm hoping that this Helichrysum italicum, new to my garden, will do as well as the other gray-leaved Helichrysum

This dwarf Tagetes lemmonii (aka Copper Canyon daisy) is also a recent addition to the garden

I think that's all that's fit to highlight this month.  Please visit Carol's May Dreams Gardens to find links to other gardeners' presentations of the plants currently in bloom in their gardens.

What I didn't buy...

I'm in a fall planting frenzy.  I've made repeated visits to my local and not-so-local nurseries in my search for items on my planting list, plants to complement the items on my planting list, and, well, anything else that strikes my fancy to fill the current vacancies in my garden beds.  My focus has been on the side yard but I've also picked up plants for my dry garden and my back border.  (So far, my front yard, slope and vegetable garden have been woefully neglected.)

A little over a week ago I went to Roger's Gardens, an Orange County nursery, on my second visit in 2 weeks.  I usually wander the nursery without a cart first to assess the stock, then cycle back with a cart to pick up my final choices, assuming I can remember all of them.  This time, I brought my camera as an aid in my selection process.  I snapped photos of things I liked as I went along.

I bought quite a few plants, some of which have already appeared in recent posts.  But there were also a lot of plants I passed up (at least for now).  Here's what I didn't buy:

This well-priced agave would work on my back slope but clean-up is needed before I get started with any planting there

Angelonia would be nice as a complement to Acanthus mollis 'Summer Beauty' in the side yard but this is a summer-bloomer so it's already past its glory days

This Echeveria would look good with the plants surrounding the side yard patio but it was pricey

Talk about pricey!  This Euphorbia would add height in one of the hanging baskets of succulents in the side yard but I couldn't bring myself to spend $30 for a novelty item.

I loved this Gaillardia but I'd already committed myself to Ursinia 'Solar Fire' as the floral accent along the side yard patio

For some reason, I'm always attracted to Geum, even though I've had little luck getting any of these to bloom.  This one was described as a "wild form."

The price on this Gomphrena 'Fireworks' was marked down 30% but it is the end of its season...

I've already killed Hibiscus acetosella 'Haight Ashbury' once

I was looking for some Lomandra but this variety only came in 1-gallon containers

I'm a sucker for pansies but it's too early in the season to plant these - a good Santa Ana wind, like the one that whipped through our area this past weekend, can take out newly planted pansies in no time

I'm still thinking about this Penstemon digitalis 'Mystica,' a spring bloomer that develops purplish foliage

And this Salvia 'Waverly'

Passing up these double-flowered snapdragons, offered in 6-packs, was difficult

I was looking for Stachys byzantina but I wanted the 'Big Ears' ('Helen Von Stein') variety and this wasn't that

I considered several low-growing foliage plants to complement the Coprosma repens 'Plum Hussy" and Ursinia 'Solar Fire' in the new side yard bed.  I passed on these:

Hebe, I don't remember the variety but I liked the foliage and neat shape of this plant

Dwarf mondo grass also would have presented a neat appearance under the Coprosma

Seslaria caerulea - the blue tones on the reverse of the leaf blades weren't right for my application

I also steered clear of the Halloween displays, although I was tempted.  

Entrance to the special Halloween display

Gargoyle fountain

Lots and lots of pumpkins

Rogers does a good job with decorations but, as we had only 2 trick-or-treaters last year and none the year before, decorating for the holiday is a low priority.  And I already have a perfectly nice bat and skeleton.

So, what did I buy?

Celosia argentea, which I featured as my favorite plant of the week last week

Phormium 'Dark Delight'

5 Talinum paniculatum 'Limon' (aka Jewels of Opar)!

Close-up of the seedpods that form on the Talinum - aren't they pretty against the lime green foliage?

5 Carex testacea (aka orange New Zealand sedge)

5 Crassula lycopodioides, my choice to accent the Coprosma repens 'Plum Hussey'

I have a 3-nursery trek scheduled with a friend in less than 2 weeks.  I hope I can steer clear of garden centers in the meantime...