Bloom Day - June 2019

Summer usually kicks off well before Memorial Day here but the heat that marks its arrival didn't show up until the very end of May this year.  The return of the morning marine layer on Wednesday took the edge off the heat for several days but I know it's not going to last.  The only question now is: how high will it go?  Last year we hit 110F in early July, incinerating many of my plants and causing the loss of every piece of fruit on our lemon tree nearly overnight.  I'm hoping we won't have a replay of that event this summer.

I checked last June's Bloom Day post and, even if summer got off to a slow start, most of my plants seem to be right on track.  Like last year, the stars of my backyard garden this June are Achillea 'Moonshine' and Agapanthus.

There's a lot of yellow in my garden right now but Achillea 'Moonshine' leads the parade

The Agapanthus were at least 2 weeks late in getting started this year but they're now making up for lost time

Meanwhile some of my cool season bloomers are still putting on a good show.

Wind and the first heatwave of summer have taken out some stems of Arthropodium cirratum (aka Renga Lily, a New Zealand native) but there are still plenty in full bloom

Dorycnium hirsutum (aka hairy Canary clover) is still delighting the bees

Other plants that get their bloom on in late spring can be expected to continue blooming into early summer, absent another heat apocalypse.

Erigeron glaucus is doing particularly well this year.  'Ron's Pink' is shown in close-up on the lower left and 'Wayne Roderick' is on the right.

Globularia x indubia (aka globe daisy) is also blooming heavily this year

Plants that appreciate a touch of summer heat are also off and running.

I love the artichoke-shaped buds as much as the full-blown flowers of Centaurea 'Silver Feathers'

Among the Cistus (aka rockrose) 'Sunset' is currently making the biggest statement

Gaura lindheimeri peaks in early summer.  I understand that it's been reclassified as part of the Oenothera genus now but it's still better known as Gaura.

Gaillarida 'Arizona Sun' isn't the flashiest cultivar but it's surely the toughest

Gazanias are mutating - and proliferating - throughout my garden

Daylilies don't put on a spectacular performance in my garden but that hasn't prevented me from tucking them in here and there.  Hemerocallis 'Spanish Harlem' (top photo, backed by Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy') is one of my favorites.   Also blooming at the moment, bottom left to right: H. 'Plum Perfect', 'Indian Giver', and 'For Pete's Sake'.

The flowers growing over the arbor between my cutting garden and the backyard are performing their annual dance (marred a bit by the conduit set in place for the temporary kitchen necessitated by our remodel).  I inherited the Pandorea jasminoides 'Alba' (lower left) and Trachelospermum jasminoides (lower right).  I planted the dark pink Pelargonium peltatum (aka ivy geranium) when we moved in, never expecting it would climb as it has.

Romneya coulteri (aka Matilija poppy) is becoming a thug on the back slope but I'll cut it back even harder this winter in the hope of controlling it

Salvias love summer heat.  The top photos feature Salvia clevelandii 'Winnifred Gilman'.  Bottom left to right: Salvia lanceolata, S. heldreichiana, and S. canariensis.

I'd rather my Santolina didn't bloom but I can't seem to stop it from doing so.  Santolina chamaecyparissus is on the left and S. virens is on the right (mingling with Helichrysum 'Crystal Ice').

Some plants appear to ignore seasons entirely.

Grevillea 'Superb' literally blooms year round.  Cuphea 'Vermillionaire', growing next to it, also flowers through all seasons, although the blooms seem heaviest at this time of year.

Tagetes lemmonii is supposed to bloom in the fall and winter months.  It's confused.

I also have a few favorites this June I want to share.

I've let some of the artichokes on my back slope bloom.  Each flower always seems to have 3-5 bees wiggling through it.

I really love Calendula officinalis 'Zeolights'

Sideritis cypria, with its gray foliage and red stems sporting lime green cups containing tiny yellow flowers, is truly unusual

I've had Wahlenbergia 'Blue Cloud' for years and it's slowly spread itself around in this bed consisting mainly of succulents

Another group of plants deserve a wave goodbye as they prepare to exit the garden scene for the year.

Centranthus ruber (top) doesn't look as good as it did a month ago but the butterflies don't mind.  Also waning, bottom left to right: Leucospermum 'Brandi', Limonium perezii, and Ozothamnus diosmifolius.

But as some plants prepare to exit, others are only just arriving on scene.

Still in limited release are: Leptospermum 'Copper Glow' (top) and (bottom, left to right) Eustoma grandiflorum (aka lisianthus), Leucanthemum x superbum, and Magnolia grandiflora

And the very first Dahlia, 'Enchantress', not quite fully open

I'll close as I usually do with collages showing the best of the rest currently on display.

Top row: Buddleja davidii 'Buzz Purple', Consolida ajacis, Corydalis flexuosa 'Porcelain Blue' and Iris douglasiana
Middle row: Lathyrus odoratus 'Celeste Blue', Linum perenne, and Pelargonium peltatum
Bottom row: Melaleuca thymifolia, Polygala fruticosa, and Teucrium cossonii majoricum

First row: noID Anigozanthos, Bignonia capreolata, and Cotula 'Tiffindell Gold'
Second row: Euphorbia 'Dean's Hybrid', Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream', and Hymenolepsis parviflora
Third row: Leucadendron 'Pisa', Lonicera japonica, and Mimulus 'Jelly Bean Buttercream'
Fourth row: Pelargonium  hortorum 'Tweedle Dee' and Rosa 'Lady Emma Hamilton'

First row: Abelia grandiflora, Alstroemeria 'Indian Summer', Arctotis 'Opera Pink', and Arctotis 'Pink Sugar'
Second row: noID Bougainvillea, Cistus 'Victor Reiter, Cuphea 'Starfire Pink', and Grevillea Ned Kelly'
Third row: Hebe 'Wiri Blush', Lobelia laxiflora, Lotus 'Amazon Sunset', and Lotus jacobaeus
Fourth row: Oenothera speciosa, Oscularia deltoides, Pelargonium peltatum, and Rosa 'Pink Meidiland'

Top row: Agonis flexuosa, Agrostemma 'Ocean Pearls', and Alstroemeria 'Claire'
Middle row: Coriandrum sativum and Orlaya grandiflora (similar in form but not size)
Bottom row: Nandina domestica, Nigella papillosa, and Scaevola 'Surdiva White'

My Bloom Day posts haven't gotten any shorter, have they?  Oh well, one never knows when summer may kick my garden to the curb.  For more Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day posts, visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens.


All material © 2012-2019 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Bloom Day - December 2018

The explosion of blooms I'd hoped for following a couple of good rainstorms haven't materialized, at least not yet.  Perhaps it's too cold and the days are too short for that; however, I still have an ample supply of flowers by comparison to many other areas within the Northern Hemisphere.  The dominant color at the moment seems to be pink.

The Hong Kong orchid tree (Bauhinia x blakeana) was hit hard by our horrific July heatwave.  It was showing tentative signs of recovery last month but it's back to its old self this month.  Unfortunately, it's also on the list for a "light" trimming today when my tree service pays its annual visit.  Hopefully, they'll take care of the dead twiggy bits without costing me all its flowers.

The no ID Camellia sasanquas are in full bloom too.  There are 2 varieties in this sheltered area next to the house but both are the same pink color.  The taller variety (shown) is doing particularly well this year.

After more than 2 months of bloom, Leptospermum scoparium 'Pink Pearl' is beginning to wane but it hasn't halted flower production altogether.  It should produce a fresh cycle of bloom in the spring too.

Pentas lanceolata 'Nova' is also showing off

While pink flowers abound, blooms in other colors can also be found.

The flowers of Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy' may be tiny but they're certainly plentiful, even though I cut both plants in this bed back by half less than 2 months ago

I love Erigeron glaucus 'Wayne Roderick' so much I've planted 5 more in the front garden

The Polygala myrtifolia 'Mariposa' here in the back garden seem to bloom on a slightly different schedule than P. fruitcosa 'Petite Butterfly' in the front garden

Not the most dramatic specimen in my garden but I'm very happy with this hybrid Trichostema 'Midnight Magic'.  It's proven to be tougher than the native California woolly blue curls in my garden.

All my Australian fuchsias are blooming but Correa 'Ivory Bells' is my favorite this month.  It looks as good in a vase as it does in the garden.

The rain did seem to jolt the African daisies awake.

This is the first Arctotis 'Pink Sugar' flower, beginning what I hope will be months of blooms

The Gazanias are providing bright spots of color throughout the back garden.  However, most of the hybrid varieties I originally planted are being replaced by simpler self-seeded varieties.

Many of the Osteospermums are also reverting.  The first 2 plants on the left are O. 'Berry White' and 'Summertime Sweet Kardinal' but the next 2 are self-seeded offspring of named varieties.  These plants get leggy and I've been cutting them all back in the hope that the next rounds of rain I pray are coming will provide an even better floral display.

Some plants have been offering color for months now.

Leucadendron 'Safari Sunset' and its noID neighbor continue to provide flower facsimiles 

The Pennisetums ('Rubrum' on the left and 'Fireworks' on the right) still have feathery plumes

Other flowers are only just beginning to make an appearance.

The snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus) are off to a slow start in my cutting garden

I think of Scabiosa caucasica 'Fama Blue' as a summer bloomer but it's produced a lot of buds as we move toward what passes for winter here, all of which have opened one at a time thus far

Blooms on this Abelia 'Chiapas', planted on my sad back slope were a surprise, largely as I'd completely forgotten it was there.  As it's done well in a tough area with almost no attention, I think I need to try propagating it for use elsewhere.

And, not to be forgotten, there are other plants that either bloom year-round here, like the large-flowered Grevilleas, or maintain a lower profile in the garden.  I'm presenting these in my usual collection of Bloom Day collages.

Top row: Lavandula multifida, noID lavender, and Ocimum hybrid 'African Blue Basil'
Bottom row: Plectranthus neochilus, Pyrethropsis hosmariense, and Rosmarinus 'Gold Dust'

Top row: Arbutus 'Marina' (also scheduled for a trim today), Correa 'Wyn's Wonder', and Grevillea 'Ned Kelly'
Bottom row: Hebe 'Wiri Blush', Hemizygia 'Candy Kisses', and Persicaria capitata

Top row: Achillea 'Moonshine' (with shorter stems than its summer blooms), Aloe 'Rooikappie', and Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream'
Middle row: Grevillea 'Superb', Phylica pubescens, and Rosa 'Joseph's Coat'
Bottom row: Russelia equisetiformis 'Flamingo Park', Senna artemisioides, and Tagetes lemmonii

For more December blooms, visit our host, Carol of May Dreams Gardens.  In recognition of the season, I'll close with a fresh spin on a traditional holiday plant.

Poinsettia 'Ice Punch' (Euphorbia pulcherrima 'Ice Punch') in my shade house

All material © 2012-2018 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party