Clearing the decks

During the past week, I've spent a lot of time clearing the raised planters in my cutting garden of the remnants of summer blooms, packing away dahlia tubers, and refreshing the soil in those beds to receive bulbs, plugs, and seeds suitable for our cool season.  At the same time, we've been dealing dealing with hot, dry Santa Ana winds so conditions have been anything but cool but fall will take hold eventually.  It may not look like much but it was a lot of work.

The photo on the left was taken October 23rd, before I started pulling out the contents of the raised planters.  The photo on the right was taken late yesterday afternoon.

 

I'll give you a closer look at each of the raised planters.

Bed #1 has been planted with 5 Digitalis 'Dalmatian Peach' plugs, 40 Anemone coronaria bulbs ('Mount Everest', 'Mistral Plus Rose Tigrato', and 'Mistral Plus Bicolore'), and seeds of Nigella papillosa 'African Bride'.  I left a Cuphea 'Honeybells' and a noID Tanacetum in place.  I've laid wire mesh over the bulbs and seeds to prevent the raccoons and possums from digging up the area in search of grubs.

Clockwise from the upper left are photos of 4 of these these plants taken in prior years: Anemone 'Mount Everest', A. 'Mistral Plus Bicolore', Digitalis 'Dalmatian Peach' and Nigella 'African Bride'

Bed #2 has 6 plugs of a Digitalis purpurea mix, 40 Anemone coronaria bulbs (Anemone 'Admiral' and A. Lord Lieutenant'), and seeds of 4 different larkspurs (Consolida ajacis 'Smokey Eyes', 'Frosted Skies', 'Shade of Blue', and 'Light Blue')

Clockwise from the upper left are photos of Anemone 'Admiral', a facsimile of A. 'Lord Lieutenant', blue Consolida ajacis, and pink Digitalis purpurea.  In the past, most of the bulbs sold to me as Anemone 'Lord Lieutenant' bulbs did not have the multi-petaled flowers the cultivar is known for.  It remains to be seen if this year will be different.

I've cleared bed #3 of everything other than 2 Angelonia and a mystery plant that showed up recently.  I have 7 varieties of sweet peas to plant here, which I should have in place within the next day or so.  I also have 2 other varieties of Nigella papillosa seeds to sow here.

 

I also replanted two of the three barrels in the cutting garden with new plants.

I filled the barrel in the rear that had held Dahlia 'Lavender Ruffles' with white snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus 'Sonnet White') and my favorite pansies (Viola 'Penny Peach').  I pulled Helianthus 'Brown-Eyed Girl' from the barrel in the foreground and filled in with Argyranthemum frutescens 'Angelic Maize', leaving a yellow multi-petaled Calibrachoa in place.  The latter barrel still needs something with more height.  As the 'Sonnet' snapdragons aren't known to be rust-resistant, I suspect they'll require replacing within a couple of months,

 

When I'll see blooms from the cutting garden is anyone's guess.  I soaked all the Anemone bulbs in water for twenty-fours hours as recommended and I'll be soaking the sweet pea seeds as well in the interest of spurring germination.  However, last year virtually everything in my cutting garden bloomed late because late winter and early spring temperatures were much colder than usual here.  My sweet peas didn't take off until May!  On the other hand I've seen some flowers as early as January in other years.  I'll try to be patient.  Elsewhere in the garden, the foliage of the Freesia and Dutch Iris bulbs is already emerging so my earliest cool season flowers may come from them.

All material © 2012-2023 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

My latest projects

My biggest project this week was tearing up my cutting garden to make way for cool-season plants.  Because our winters are exceptionally mild and frost-free, there are a lot of plants we can enjoy through the fall and winter months.  With one exception, I removed all the remaining dahlias and zinnias.  I saved several of the dahlia tubers I'd like to replant next year.   All but a few are already tucked away in the garage to wait out their dormant period covered in perlite.

This is what the area looks like now.  I added fresh topsoil, planting mix and a little fertilizer to each of the raised planters.  The beds are relatively bare but, as the seeds I've sown germinate and as I add plugs to get a jump start on the season, the beds should look a lot greener within 6 weeks or so.

In mid-October after one of my rants about raccoons, commentator Sally recommended using hardware cloth to deter them from digging.  I had to work around some things (like the metal supports the sweet peas climb) but I'm giving it a try.  I used the leftover material my husband bought earlier to make cages to keep the rabbits at bay.  I pinned the metal screening in place with lawn staples.

In addition to 3 foxgloves, I've sown Nigella papillosa and Orlaya grandiflora seeds in bed #1 (left).  I've sown 3 varieties of larkspur (Consolida ajacis) in bed #2 (middle).  I've sown 7 (!) varieties of sweet peas in bed #3 (right).  Once my Anemone coronaria bulbs come in, I'll be adding them to bed #3.  I also plan to plant snapdragons in a couple of the barrels once the varieties I want are available and add more Digitalis plugs here and there.

I pulled one Dahlia 'Lavender Ruffles' but this one in a barrel is still going strong and has numerous buds.  I'm allowing it to stay until it either plummets into decline or my snapdragon plugs become available. 

The cutting garden cleanup wasn't great fun but I'm glad to have cleared the area and happier still that I've finally sown the seeds I've had sitting in a drawer for over two months. 

 

Most of my other projects involved succulents in one way or another.

I showed these replanted areas adjacent to the garage a couple of weeks ago.  Since then, the raccoons have dug them up repeatedly.  This week I added defenses against digging.  So far, so good.

I planted up one of the Agave vilmoriniana 'Stained Glass' bulbils in this pot sitting in the cutting garden,  It'll probably take years to bulk up but I thought I'd give it a good start.

I added several more plants to this succulent bed on the north end of the back garden.  The additions include: Mangave 'Aztec King' (1), Kalanchoe marmorata 'Partridge' (2), Echeveria agavoides (3), and noID Sansevieria (2).

I pruned back the Cistus plants spilling into the flagstone path on the south side of the garden last week, removing the dead undergrowth.  That revealed Graptoveria 'Fred Ives' succulents I'd forgotten were there.  I cut the elongated stems and replanted selected rosettes.  Hopefully, the Cistus survive their pruning.

I picked up another flat of Ruschia lineolata 'Nana', adding some between the flagstones on the south side where the creeping thyme has died out.  Unfortunately, I ran out before filling all the empty spaces but I'll wait to see how what I've added here does before buying more.

I've grown Gazanias in these areas along the front walkway for years but, as our drought has worsened, they haven't done as well so I'm trying cuttings of Aeonium haworthii 'Kiwi Verde' and more Ruschia here

I finally got around to wiring a handful of stray Tillandsias to the front grate of this chiminea, tucked in a corner of the front garden next to the bromeliad-succulent bed.  The chiminea came with the house but it's not in good shape and we've never lit a fire in it.

 

I'm not the only one working on my garden.  As I walked through the neighborhood late Wednesday afternoon, I looked up and stopped in my tracks when I saw this:

The front slope of this home has been carpeted with a wrinkled rug of faux lawn since we moved in years ago.  I've always thought the home deserved better but, as more locals resort to covering their gardens in plastic in response to our perpetual drought, I didn't think this would change.  Half the area is still carpeted in fake grass but the rest is now planted with Agave attenuata and other succulents.  There appear to be 2 Magnolia trees and juniper or something similar edging the wall as well.

 

I'll end this post on a sunny note with a photo of the Senna bicapsularis I'd been worried wasn't going to bloom this year.

I foolishly planted this large shrub between a fence and the concrete stairway leading down our slope in 2011.  I cut it back by half early this year and feared it might not survive.  It has, although it's still much too tall for the spot it's in; however, it's a host plant for the cloudless sulphur butterflies so I'm going to hang onto it as long as I can.

 

Best wishes for a pleasant weekend.

All material © 2012-2022 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Fall beckons (but summer retains its grip)

While this summer has been milder than most in recent years, we had a stretch of unpleasantly hot and humid weather last week, followed by several nice days this week, but we're facing another heat spike this weekend.  And so, despite vague signs of fall's approach (spiderwebs, blooms on my Sweet Autumn Clematis, buds developing on the Camellias), I know it's probably way too soon to leap into fall planting activities here, especially when I factor in the collateral damage to my garden that accompanies our ongoing remodeling project.  However, I can only contain my garden itch to a degree.

Last week, seeking to escape the noise of sandblasting in our living room, I spent a leisurely hour after meeting a friend for lunch strolling my local garden center.

I restricted my purchases to seeds suitable for direct sowing in early fall here

The seeds can remain in their packets for awhile longer until the weather is more hospitable but I'm afraid my shopping has already extended beyond seeds.

After discovering that I'd missed out on most of the begonias offered for sale at the local American Begonia Society's show, I browsed the plants available on-line at Steve's Leaves and ordered 2 plants.  Begonia 'Champagne Bubbles' is on the left and Chlorophytum filipendulum subsp. amaniense 'Fire Flash' is on the right.  The plants arrived in perfect condition and have found a home in my lath (shade) house.

After receiving notice of a sale by on-line retailer Mountain Crest Gardens, I took the opportunity to order 2 Mangaves I'd been eyeing there, as well as a few other things.  Shown here are the larger specimens in my haul.  Clockwise from the upper left: Mangave 'Waterfall', M. 'Tooth Fairy', Aeonium 'Silk Pinwheel' and A. 'Cyclops'.  They also arrived in great condition and were promptly potted up, pending eventual placement in the bromeliad/succulent garden area in front of our garage.

I ordered bulbs too, a few of which have already been delivered but, as most of those, Ranunculus and Anemones, are intended for my cutting garden, I plan to hold off on planting those until I clear out some of my summer bloomers in late October.  Meanwhile, I'm dithering with garden clean-up activities, like pulling out the carcasses of my two bloomed-out agaves.  How about you?  Have you plunged into fall garden activities yet?


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

This week in my garden

Last Friday I wrote about new plants.  This week, I did a little planting and a lot of garden clean-up.

I had the most fun with my first project, replanting the window boxes attached to my lath (shade) house.  The boxes I'd planted in early July looked worn by late October so I decided they needed an overhaul.  I found a colorful Coprosma at my local garden center and when I discovered a new Lisianthus that picked the deep pink tones in its variegation, the contents for my boxes came together quickly.  There are 2 boxes and I used the same selection of plants in each.

Coprosma repens 'Inferno' (left) provided the inspiration and the new-to-me pinkish red Lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum, right) sealed the deal.  I love the buds on the Lisianthus as much or more than the flowers themselves.

In addition to the Coprosma and the Eustoma, each box contains Nemesia 'Snow Angel', Alternanthera 'True Yellow', Viola 'Red Blotch', and Lobularia maritima (aka sweet Alyssum)

The second box is the same as the first

My biggest project this week was emptying the raised planters in my cutting garden to prepare them for planting winter bloomers.  This entailed pulling out the mildewed zinnias, all of which were still flowering, and digging up the dahlia tubers.  Most of the dahlias had been knocked out by last week's Santa Ana winds but 'Punkin Spice' was still producing new blooms, even after I'd cut 7 blooms on Sunday.  I cut all the mature blooms and used them to refresh the flowers in one of my vases before lifting the tubers for cleaning, division and storage.

As you can see I didn't quite pull everything out.  I have plans for the yellow zinnias in the middle planter but they'll be pulled this weekend.  A lemon verbena and a few stray plants are left in the planter in the foreground, as well as some herbs in the planter in the background.  I'll plant around those.  That exuberant Euphorbia 'Sticks on Fire' is in a strawberry pot - I've no idea what to do with it.

After pulling the majority of plants in each planter, I cleaned out the left roots and other debris, mixed in some fresh planting mix and a light dusting of fertilizer, then covered the soil with compost

My other tasks were less time-consuming.  I mulched the front garden bed I showed in last Friday's post after adding a few more ground cover plants.

I resisted my inclination to squeeze more large plants into this area and made do with ground cover plants like Alternanthera 'Joseph's Coat' to fill the space between the large shrubs (2 Leucadendron and a Grevillea), which will eventually spread substantially

While I'm hoping for decent rain this winter, I've applied more mulch this year to retain soil moisture (micro-bark in this instance).  I'm relatively happy with how this area is shaping up but there's still more work to be done, including additional planting (a mail order plant delivery is due next week!).  I also need to order flats of creeping thyme so I can fill in between the paving stones, which were overrun by clover last year.

I finally got around to pruning the 2 large Leptospermum 'Copper Glow' on either side of the walkway to our front door too.

I love these shrubs but they'd gotten a bit larger than I'd planned while I wasn't paying attention

This weekend I hope to get seeds sown and ranunculus tubers planted in my cutting garden.

I've got more seeds than space already

That's a summary of my week in the garden.  Fall's a busy time here.  What are you up to in the garden this weekend?


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

This week's projects

It's still hot here.  The temperature hasn't gotten above the low 90s but the humidity has been running higher than we're used to.  Garden activities are once again restricted to early morning and late afternoon.  Watering takes the majority of my time during those restricted intervals but I've tackled a couple of projects this week.

The first involved cleaning up an area of the front garden badly damaged by the early July heatwave.  I resisted the urge to cut back the damaged foliage of my Acacia 'Cousin Itt' but I went ahead and pulled out the clover and Santa Barbara daisies (Erigeron karvinskianus) that were incinerated when the temperature hit 110F and stayed there for hours.  I also cut back 2 mint bushes (Prostanthera ovalifolia 'Variegata') that looked spindly and sad well before the heat struck - they have short lives here and I don't really expect them to come back.  I focused on adding topsoil and soil amendments in the hope of creating a good foundation for replanting come fall.

Lots of bare space now for planting when the weather cools.  The Acacia 'Counsin Itt', Arthropodium cirratum, Pennisetum 'Rubrum', Leucadendron 'Safari Sunset', and probably the Artemisia 'Seafoam' will stay.

I'm not sure about the Phormium 'Tom Thumb' or the Pelargoniums.

The area beyond the Acacia and Arthropodium gets sun most of the day.  I'm considering adding another Grevillea 'Superb' (to mirror that on the other side of the path) and either clumps of Lomandra 'Breeze' or Festuca californica.  Beyond that, I'm unsure what to do here but then there's lots of time to deliberate before September.

My second project was seed sowing.  Encouraged by a small success in getting a few Ferraria crispa seeds to germinate, I sowed seeds I'd recently collected from my Pacific Coast Irises (Iris douglasiana).  It remains to be seen whether I'll be successful in getting any of these plants to grow but my fingers are crossed.

I know the Ferraria seedling looks scrawny but I was thrilled just to get the seeds I collected to germinate.  This is a bulbous plant so it'll be a long while before it produces blooms like those on the right but worth the effort as the plants aren't especially easy to find.

I continued to work on rehabbing my succulent containers too.  I made a second trip to the succulent nursery I visited last week.  I hadn't planned to visit again so soon but one does what one must.

A friend joined me on this visit.  These are views of the larger succulents and cacti growing in full sun.

The nursery has a large collection of healthy houseplants too

I checked out the bromeliads this time but decided to hold off on buying anything as there's a bromeliad show scheduled this weekend that's likely to offer better deals

The nursery has a surprisingly large collection of Sansevierias.  I brought home one of those on the far right.

Like my prior trip, I focused on making selections among the smaller succulent under shade cover, although I also brought home 2 houseplants and a large Aloe in addition to the Sansevieria.  My only complaint about this nursery is that most of the plants aren't labeled and the staff isn't always able to provide an ID.

I selected plants for 2 pots that needed rehab.  So far, I've replanted just one, a hover dish planter positioned outside my lath (shade) house.  Once again, I mixed cuttings from my own garden with newly purchased plants.

The Agave lophantha 'Quadicolor', Portulacaria afra, Rhipsalis (maybe R. burchellii), and noID Echeverias came from the nursery.  I filled in mostly with cuttings of Aeonium haworthii 'Kiwi' and 'Kiwi Verde' from my garden.

In retrospect, I think the composition is busy but, as the Agave's likely to pup, I can remove Aeoniums to make room as needed

The biggest garden project this week was my husband's.  He designed and constructed removable shade covers for my lath house.  My hope is that they'll prevent the kind of damage the plants there received when the sun went supernova in July.  My husband installed the covers this afternoon and I spent hours before dinner cleaning up the space.  More on that to come in a future post.  For now, best wishes for a great weekend.


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

The garden wants attention

I returned from the Garden Bloggers' Fling in Austin, Texas to face a garden in need of attention.  Although many parts of the US are currently enjoying the first real days of spring, my garden has already experienced summer-like conditions with periodic flashes of heat, including 2 days of temperatures in the low 90sF while I was away.  There are flowers to be deadheaded, dried bulb foliage to be cut back, bare spots to be mulched, and Mexican feather grass (Stipa tenuissima) to be thinned to prevent the rampant spread of seedlings.

The back garden presented few surprises upon my return.  The Alliums, Achillea 'Moonshine' and Agapanthus have produced their first flowers but I can't yet say I'm seeing the usual early summer stampede.  The mimosa tree (Albizia julibrissin) is still utterly bare of foliage, not to speak of flowers.  However, the Mexican feather grass was downright blowsy.  

Scorching temperatures had burned the foliage of the peach foxgloves in the cutting garden in early April and another round of 90 degree temperatures during my absence, combined with inadequate water and an assault by opportunistic aphids polished off the plants.

The peach foxgloves and calendula in the middle planter (next to the exuberant Euphorbia 'Sticks on Fire') were unsightly, although the white foxgloves in the first planter and the sweet peas in the third planter appear to have taken the heatwave in stride.

My husband failed to act on my request to water the cutting garden if the temperature soared while I was gone but in that he used his time to wash all our windows inside and out plus the screens, I'm not lodging any complaints.

I took this photo of the back border from inside our living room.  You can't even tell there's glass there, can you?  My husband did a great job on the windows.  This photo was taken 2 days after the one at the top of the post, after all the Mexican feather grass had been thinned.

The clean windows also give me a good view of Leucospermum 'Brandi', blooming at last, from my home office window

Pulling out the sorry-looking peach foxgloves provided room to transplant some of the dahlia tubers I started in pots in early April.  Dahlia 'Terracotta' is already off to a great start and needed more room to spread its roots.  Generally speaking, the tubers I grew in last year's cutting garden are sprouting faster than the new ones ordered this year even though all were potted at the same time in early April.

'Terracotta' was VERY vigorous last year and it's looking as though it'll be a strong performer this year too

The plant sprawled badly last year so, instead of stakes, I'm using a tomato cage to corral it.  If the plant gets as big and bushy as it did last year, the cage should be hidden once the plant matures.

I pulled the rest of the peach foxgloves after planting 'Terracotta' and popped them into a vase.

This isn't one of my best efforts but I didn't give it much time.  In addition to Digitalis purpurea 'Dalmation Peach', the vase contains Achillea 'Moonshine', Agonis flexuosa 'Nana', Antirrhinum majus, Callistemon 'Cane's Hybrid', and Salvia lanceolata.

I picked up more bagged compost on my way home this afternoon, so I'll plant the other dahlias that have sprouted this weekend.  As I'm already late getting my sunflower, zinnia and other summer seeds sown, that task is also at the top of the weekend's project list.

Where all these seeds are going to go is still a question

We're experiencing weather whiplash here again with drizzle projected for Saturday.  Of course, as the last rain forecast on May 1st fizzled, I'm not holding my breath.  At least it should be a cooler day to work in the garden.  May the weather favor you however you're spending this weekend!


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