Bloom Day - October 2017

It's a subdued October Bloom Day.  Some of the flowers I count on to make the biggest splash at this time of year are running late relative to the last 2 years, which I find strange as we were plagued by drought conditions and serious water restrictions in 2015 and 2016.  However, Plectranthus ciliatus 'Zulu Wonder' bloomed right on schedule.

This year, Plectranthus 'Zulu Wonder' is keeping happy company with burgundy flowered Pelargonium peltatum (ivy geranium)

The late-comers, Barleria obtusa and Senna bicapsularis, have barely said hello but I expect they'll both be coloring up the garden within the next couple of weeks.

Barleria obtusa (bush violet) shows signs of wishing to take over various sections of my garden but, with healthy green foliage and masses of purple-blue flowers, I can forgive it almost anything

The first buds of Senna bicapsularis 'Worley's Butter Cream' opened just yesterday and, as the plant serves as host to sulphur butterflies, I expect to see them make an appearance soon too

Tagetes lemmonii is also late in making its regular fall appearance, probably due to tardy pruning, but the dwarf form is trying to make up for its absence with a carpet of bright yellow blooms.

The compact form is right at home at the base of Agave 'Jaws' and Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder'

While Eustoma grandiflorum has moved on prematurely, leaving only a few blooms behind, Pennisetum advena 'Rubrum' continues its long seasonal performance.

Two of the 5 purple fountain grass clumps in my garden

I discovered a few surprises on my rounds.

I inherited a few Anemone hupehensis japonica with the garden but they bloom only sporadically and in small numbers if at all

Salvia 'Mystic Spires' can be found in various areas of my back garden but this clump in a corner of my south side succulent bed, while short in stature, is the healthiest one in my garden despite the fact that I've almost entirely ignored its existence

This Tibouchina urvilleana (Princess Flower), also inherited with the garden, has produced more blooms this year than I can ever recall it doing in the 6+ years we've had the garden

The rest is bits and pieces of this and that.

Top row: noID Angelonia, noID Duranta (sold as 'Gold Mound'), Erigeron glaucus 'Wayne Roderick' and Iochroma 'Mr Plum'
Second row: Lotus jacobaeus, Osteospermum '4D Silver', lavender Pelargonium peltatum, and noID Plumbago
Third row: Lavandula multifida and noID Leucophyllum
Fourth row: Polygala myrtifolia 'Mariposa' and Trichostema 'Midnight Magic'

Top row: Achillea 'Moon Dust', Clematis paniculata, Eustoma grandiflorum, and Gazania 'White Flame'
Second row: self-seeded Gazania, Lantana 'Samantha', Leucanthemum x superbum, and Oncidium 'Wildcat'
Third row: Gaura lindheimeri, Hunnemannia fumariifolia, and Lantana 'Lucky White'

Top row: Aloe 'Johnson's Hybrid', Arbutus 'Marina', Cuphea 'Vermillionaire' and Gaillardia 'Arizona Sun'
Second row: Grevillea 'Ned Kelly', G. 'Peaches & Cream', G. Superb', and Lantana camara 'Irene'
Third row: Leonotis leonurus, Mandevilla 'Sun Parasol Apricot', and Salvia elegans

Top row: noID Argyranthemum, Bauhinia x blakeana, Gomphrena 'Itsy Bitsy', and dark pink Pelargonium peltatum
Second row: Pentas 'Graffiti Violet', noID rose, and Rosa 'Pink Meidiland'
Third row: Correa 'Wyn's Wonder', Cuphea 'Starfire Pink', and the last of the Zinnias

I'll close with blooms of 2 of the prettier weeds in my garden.

Top row: tiny cream-colored blooms of Artemisia ludoviciana
Second row: the buff-colored blooms of Helichrysum petiolare 'Silver Mist'

That's it for my October bloom summary.  Visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens for more posts celebrating Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day.


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

July Bloom Day: A Transition Period

Mid-July represents a transition period in my garden.  The flowers that arrived with a bang in May and June are beginning to wane as the temperatures soar.   While those temperatures have reached the mid-90s on some days, we've yet to have the sustained periods of miserably high temperatures that typically characterize summer in this area of Southern California but I'm fairly certain we're headed in that direction.

The Agapanthus blooms that have dominated both my front and back gardens since their arrival in May (which I wrote about here), generally look shabby now.  I can still find fresh blooms here and there, like this one:

But the vast majority look like this:

I'm going to have to dedicate a few hours this week to cutting back the fading flower stalks.  Last week I finally got around to cutting back the Jerusalem sage (Phlomis fruticosa) and I've been cutting back daylily (Hemerocallis) spikes for weeks as each variety, in turn, ended its spring run.

The Shasta daisies (Leucanthemum x superbum) are still going strong with regular deadheading; however, the taller varieties, have begun to flop over, as they're inclined to do.

July marked the flowering of the mimosa tree (Albizia julibrissin).  As mentioned in an earlier post, this is a mixed blessing.  The tree is currently covered in blooms.

One branch laden with fuzzy pink blooms

View of the backyard tree peaking over the roof, photographed from the front yard

But, in addition to all the flowers on the tree, there is a huge quantity of litter on the ground, on the patio, on the patio furniture, in the nearby fountain, and covering every plant in the general vicinity.

Lawn below the mimosa tree less than a day after a major clean-up

On a more positive note, the plants just beginning their summer bloom cycle include the following:

Abelia x grandiflora (no ID on variety)

Achillea millefolium

Angelonia 'Angelmist Dark Pink'

Aster novae-angliae 'Skyscraper'

Convolvulus  sabatius

Coreopsis 'Big Bang Redshift'

Coreopsis 'Tahitian Sunset'

Echinacea hybrid 'Sombrero Hot Coral'

Tanacetum parthenium (with dried mimosa bloom)

Geranium 'Rozanne'

Asiatic lily (no ID), received as a gift with an early spring bulb purchase, surrounded by Cuphea 'Starfire Pink'

Leonotis leonurus, performing well for the 1st time this year after a hard pruning last year

Lisianthus 'Echo Pink'

Pentas lanceolata 'Kaleidoscope Appleblossom', a recent purchase

Russelia equisetiformis 'Flamingo Park'

Tibouchina urvilleana

Trachelium caeruleum 'Devotion Purple'

In addition to these recent bloomers, some of the spring/summer stalwarts of my garden are still going strong.

2 new bloom spikes on this Acanthus mollis - maybe it prefers its full sun exposure to the shady condition it grew in before removal of a nearby tree

Achillea 'Moonshine' and Geranium 'Brookside', both returning after a late spring trim

Echinacea 'Pow Wow White'

Gaillardia x grandiflora 'Arizona Sun'

Gaura lindheimeri 'Snow Fountain', Rudbeckia 'Cherry Brandy', and Cuphea ignea 'Starfire Pink'

Geranium 'Tiny Monster'

Gomphrena 'Las Vegas Mix' with a Nemesia returning for a 2nd year (and a couple of dried-up mimosa blooms)

Osteospermum '3D Silver' still going (decorated with more mimosa blossoms)

Pansies in July in Southern California!

I'm joining the gardeners who link up on the 15th of each month to share what's blooming in their gardens.  This monthly event is hosted by Carol of May Dreams Gardens.  You can connect to other bloom posts by going to her site.  Thanks for visiting mine!

Bloom Day!

I started this blog at the end of December so today marks my very first Bloom Day contribution.  For my friends who don't read garden blogs (i.e. 99.8% of you), Bloom Day is a monthly event hosted by blogger Carol of May Dream Gardens on the 15th of each month.  Participating bloggers from all over the U.S., as well as other countries, post pictures of what's in bloom in their gardens.

So, without further ado (or any commentary to speak of), here's some of what's currently blooming in my zone 10b garden:

Arbutus 'Marina"

Argyranthemum frutescens 'Bright Carmine'

Camellia japonica 'Taylor's Perfection'

Camellia sasanqua (variety unknown)

Cuphea ignea 'Kristen's Delight'

Cuphea aff. Aequipetela

Grevillea lavandulcea 'Penola'

Hebe speciosa 'Variegata'

Leptospermum scoparium 'Pink Pearl'

Nemesia 'Sunsatia Lemon'

Bauhinia x blakeana (aka Orchid Tree)

Osteospermum ecklonis '3D Silver'

Osteospermum 'Zion Red Copper'

Tibouchina urvilleana

Viola (no record of variety)

These are samples of what's in bloom.  I have a more varieties of Argyrantemum, Grevillea, Hebe and Osteospermum than I've shown here, all in bloom or coming into bloom.  My fondness for Violas is founded in childhood and I'm afraid I've got gobs of varieties of those but I've pictured just the little blue form shown above because I'm so taken by its sweetness.  For more views of what's blooming go to May Dreams Gardens for links to other gardening blogs.