Bloom Day - January 2017

Although the last couple of days have been sunny and warm, it's been raining cats and dogs here off and on since December (hurrah!).  Drought conditions in much of Southern California have been down-graded from "exceptional" to "extreme," which believe it or not is tremendous progress.  If forecasts of rain into February and March prove accurate, our situation could improve still further.  In any case, we have every reason to look forward to the prospect of a wonderful spring.

At present, my January garden looks similar to my December garden, with a few notable exceptions.

Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder' is now in its full winter glory

Arctotis 'Pink Sugar' is off to an early start

Despite turning most of its flowers to face the garage wall, Camellia x williamsii 'Taylor's Perfection' is proving itself worthy of its name

All 3 Grevillea rosmarianifolia 'Scarlet Sprite' bear tiny rosy red blooms

Many of the boldest bloomers from December are still going strong.

Bauhinia x blakeana bounces back quickly after each rainstorm

Nothing bothers Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy', which continues to produce a plethora of tiny purple flowers

Grevillea 'Superb' never takes a break

I don't give Grevillea lanigera 'Mount Tamboritha' the attention it deserves.  This low-growing ground cover is also in bloom year-round.

Leptospermum scoparium 'Pink Pearl' blooms its heart out throughout our cool season

A couple of support players with long bloom periods are putting on particularly strong showings this month.

Argyranthemum frutescens is at its best in cooler weather

The Osteospermums, like their African daisy cousins in the Arctotis genus, also come on strong when the weather cools.  On the left is O. 'Violet Ice', another in the 4D series.  On the right, are O. '4D Silver'  and what I think is a mutant offspring of O. '3D Berry White'. 

There are other blooms worthy of honorable mentions, shown here in collages organized by color.

Blue and purple blooms, clockwise from the left: Rosmarinus 'Gold Dust', Lavandula multifida, noID Pericallis (reblooming for a second year), and Polygala myrtifolia 'Mariposa'

Pink and red blooms, clockwise from the left: Aechmea fasciata, Arctotis 'Opera Rose', Coleonema pulchellum 'Sunset Gold', Cuphea 'Starfire Pink', noID Dianthus, Mimulus 'Jelly Bean Red', and Ribes viburnifolium

Orange, yellow and white blooms, top row: Kalanchoe fedtschenkoi, Gazania 'Yellow Flame', and Grevillea 'Peaches & Cream'
Middle row: noID Narcissus, Papaver nudicaule, and Pennisetum advena 'Rubrum'
Bottom row: Phylica pubescens, Rhodanthemum hosmarianense, and Tagetes lemmonii

Next month's coming attractions are anxious to take the stage.

From left to right: the first blooms of Calliandra haematocephala; buds of Grevillea lavandulacea 'Penola'; and early risers among the Zantedeschia aethiopica

I recognize how lucky I am to enjoy so many blooms in the middle of winter, especially when so many areas are blanketed in snow or plagued by ice.  I hope that the warm breath of spring reaches those of you dealing with real winters soon.

For more January bloom stories, visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens, our Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day host.


All material © 2012-2017 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

My favorite plant of the week: Leucadendron salignum 'Chief'

While doing some work in our dry garden last Sunday, I suddenly noticed how nice my Leucadendon salignum 'Chief' was looking.  It's a good-looking shrub when viewed from a distance.

Photographed looking north toward my neighbor's fence

Photographed looking southeast

But, when I looked at it up close, I was surprised to see that it was blanketed in small yellow and pink "flowers."  The flowers are actually colored bracts surrounding a central yellow cone.  I don't remember it flowering like this last year.

The tag that came with the plant described the flowers as blonde and pink

It also has beautiful red stems

Like many other Leucadendrons, its winter color is dramatically different from its summer color.

Summer foliage (photograph taken in early August 2013)

Leucadendron in the salignum species or with salignum parentage seem to fare particularly well in my garden.  I planted 'Chief' in January 2013.  It's currently about 4 feet tall and 3 feet wide but it may eventually reach 6-8 feet tall and wide.  Native to South Africa, it has low water requirements but it needs full sun.  It's said to be hardy to 30F (minus 1C).

Still fixated on the "flowers," I compared it to Leucadendron Wilson's Wonder.

Current photo of Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder' in my front garden

Although, at maturity, the shrubs should be roughly equivalent in size, their flower size is dramatically different, as you can see here.

A stem of 'Wilson's Wonder' is on the left and 'Chief' is on the right

Leucadendron salignum 'Chief' is my favorite plant this week (even if 'Wilson's Wonder' is one of my favorite plants of all time).  This post is offered in connection with Loree's favorites meme at danger garden.  Loree presents her monthly favorites wrap-up on the last Friday of the month.


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

Stunning Plants

I've always loved a lush garden with tightly packed plants but my "new" garden is currently showing a lot of bare dirt.  Because my former garden was so small, it was relatively easy to keep it looking full - one trip to the nursery was enough to take care of the empty spots that developed as annual plants died off and herbaceous perennials died back.  However, I can't afford to fill in all the blank spaces in the new garden, at least not all at once.  I've complicated matters by removing lawn in some areas to expand beds, creating larger expanses of bare soil that need to be filled, and by buying plants in the smallest size I can find to keep my costs down and give my new plants the best chance to establish themselves.  This garden also has more herbaceous perennials than I had at our last house - most notably, 40+ orange/red daylilies that go dormant in winter.

Instead of obsessing about what's missing, I'm trying to focus on what looks great right now.  Other than my succulents (most of which look great all of the time), the three plants grabbing attention in my garden right now are:

1. Leucadendron discolor 'Wilson's Wonder'

I have no record of the variety - it could be 'Pom Pom.'  (It was subsequently identified as 'Wilson's Wonder.')  It was growing in a pot at my old house for years with an Abelia x grandiflora 'Kaleidoscope' at its base.  Roots of the two plants were so closely intertwined that, when I transplanted them into the ground, I decided to leave them intertwined rather than risk damaging both by pulling them apart.  The Leucadendron has grown much larger since transplantation.  I cut it back once but it's still between 4 and 5 feet tall.  I recently transplanted another, red-toned, pot-bound Leucadendron and have my fingers crossed that it will also come into its own now that its roots have plenty of room to roam.

2. Mandarin Orange

I have no record of the variety here either - the fruit is fairly large so it may be 'Kara.'  The tree was put in by a prior owner.  It looked unhealthy at the time we moved in.  I trimmed back branches that were suffering from insect damage and added compost around the base but otherwise left it alone.  It didn't bear any fruit the first year we were here but last spring it produced a good crop of sweet, seedless fruit and now it's laden with another crop.  The fruit's coloring up well but, based on a taste test this morning, I think it can benefit from a little more ripening time.

3. Eupatorium corymbosa

This picture doesn't capture the velvety look of the foliage.  Plant stems and veins are the same purple hue that tinges the leaves.  Even though it's a month or more from producing its ageratum-like blooms, it's still beautiful.  It's done very well with only a couple of hours of morning sun.  I'm planning to add more to other shady areas of the garden.






So, what looks great in your garden right now?