Bromeliads Galore

As mentioned in my last post, I attended a bromeliad show and sale last weekend.  It was held at Rainforest Flora, a tropical plants nursery in Torrance.  When I lived nearby I used to pop in there periodically, usually to buy gifts, but I haven't been by often since we moved out of the area 5 years ago.  I put the event on my calendar after Denise of A Growing Obsession posted about it but I still dragged my feet about the 30 minute drive and delayed my visit until mid-afternoon on Sunday, just a couple of hours before the show was scheduled to end.

Upon arrival, I popped into the first greenhouse which serves as Rainforest Flora's retail space to have a quick look around.

The official greeter was lying down on the job

The centerpiece of the greenhouse is a large water feature

The "rock" walls (they may be cement) are festooned with bromeliads  of various kinds and surrounded by tropical plants

Here's another hanging Tillandsia creation akin to those shown in my prior post

I spent some time checking out the wide variety of Tillandsias offered for sale.

Trays containing different varieties of Tillandsias were arrayed all along the walls throughout the greenhouse space

Here are a few examples:

Top row, left to right: Tillandsia brachycaulos, T. bulbosa 'Gigante', and T. capitata 'Marron'
Middle row: T. elongata, T. 'Issac Jouges', and T. segunda
Bottom row: T. tricolor, T. 'Upper Class', and T. xerographica

You can view the Tillandsia growing area from the retail area.

I used to think the plants on the lower level were also being grown for sale but now I wonder if they aren't used to heighten the humidity around the Tillandsias above

Next I headed toward the back of the property to the greenhouse housing the South Bay Bromeliad Associates' show and sale, passing an outdoor display of bromeliads and other tropical plants.

There was even an agave in the mix, with a huge bloom spike yet

As the back greenhouse space clearly serves as a shipping and receiving area, it wasn't a fancy setting for a show but the plant specimens made up for any omissions there.

The plants were organized by genus.  Aechmea is perhaps the genus that most often comes to mind when people mention bromeliads.

These Billbergia were far more ornamental than the sorry B. nutans I have, which is badly in need of thinning and only impressive when it blooms

I have a tendency to think of Dyckias as succulents, even though I know they're classified as bromeliads.  The 2 here are: D. 'Mary Ellen' and 'Tina Wallace'.

This is Guzmania sanguinea.  I've read that Guzmania is a common form of bromeliad but this is the first time I can recall seeing anything in this genus.

This may be my favorite Neoregelia ever.  It's N. punctitissima.

This is a hybrid Tillandsia: T. fasciculata x flabellata

Even Vriesea that lack fancy foliage often produce very fancy flowers.  This is V. 'Orange Gusher'.

And this was my very favorite at the show: x Neophytum 'Galactic Warrior'

After making the rounds of the show plants, I checked out the plants offered for sale by SBBA.  That's when the repercussions of my decision to delay my visit until Sunday afternoon became evident.  There were a lot of bare spaces that I'm guessing were filled with plants on Saturday when the show and sale opened.

I hadn't really planned on buying anything (please stop laughing!) but the show had whetted my appetite.  Bromeliads are pricey plants and although one woman commented that what was offered was a "steal," I still deliberated.  Here's a sample of what was available:

Clockwise from the upper left: A Vriesea I can't identify, Aechmea fantasia, Neoregelia 'Royal Burgundy', Orthophytum sp., a variety of Tillandsia mounted on driftwood, and V. hieroglyphica

But my absolute favorite was this one:

I stopped short when I saw this it.  It's Aechmea blanchetiana 'Orange'

However, my heart stopped when I saw the price tag.  It was just too pricey for me to justify but I did leave with 3 other plants.  I'd intended to show them here but, as this is already a long post, I'll cover my burgeoning bromeliad collection in next week's Foliage Follow-up post instead.


All material © 2012-2016 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Wednesday Vignette: Great Balls of Fire!

Last Sunday afternoon, I made a trip to Rainforest Flora, a nursery specializing in tropical plants, more specifically bromeliads.  The nursery was hosting a bromeliad show and sale, which I'd learned about in a recent post by Denise of A Growing Obsession.  I arrived mid-afternoon on the second day of the 2-day event.

I took quite a few photos, which I'll cover in another post; however, I thought I'd offer one as my contribution to the Wednesday Vignette meme hosted by Anna at Flutter & Hum.  With apologies to Jerry Lee Lewis, my first thought upon seeing the following construction was "goodness, gracious, great balls of fire!"

The ball in question was on display as part of the show and sale put on by South Bay Bromeliad Associates.  It was made of dozens of Tillandsias, commonly known as air plants because many don't need to be planted in soil to survive.  Unfortunately I didn't get an ID for this particular species of Tillandsia.  Rainforest Flora also had Tillandsias mounted en masse on hanging balls but none of these had leaves flushed with color.  Nonetheless, they were impressive.

Two Tillandsia balls on display in Rainforest Flora's store

Visit Anna at Flutter & Hum to find what caught the fancy of other gardeners this week.


All material © 2012-2016 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Fragrant Flowers

I had two flowers in mind when I stepped into the garden to fill this week's vase.  As the two clearly wouldn't make suitable companions, this meant two vases.  (I know you're not surprised.)  However, the one thing the two vases had in common was scent.

The impetus for the first vase was a plant that's relatively new to my garden: Gomphrena 'Pinball Snow-tip Lavender'.  Gomphrena takes the heat and isn't a water guzzler so, when I saw this one, I broke my rule against planting in summer (again).

Front view: The scent here was provided by a noID rose, which may or may not be 'Angel Face', but smells very much as I remember that rose smelled

Back view: You knew the pink Eustoma grandiflorum would turn up somewhere, didn't you?

Top view, highlighting the hard-to-photograph Gomphrena

Clockwise from the left, the vase contains: Gomphrena 'Pinball Snow-tip Lavender', Abelia x grandiflora, Eustoma grandiflorum, Origaninum 'Monterey Bay', Polygala myrtifolia 'Mariposa', the noID rose, and Stachys hybrid 'Lilac Falls'

The second plant I fixated on was Callistemon 'Cane's Hybrid', which recently produced a flush of new flowers.  The flowers are a magnet for bees and I had to shake the stems before bringing them in to the house to prevent the bees from coming in with me.

Front view: An ensemble cast of flowers with no obvious lead player

Back view: Lonicera japonica, inherited with the house, provides the scent here

Top view

The flowers of the Callistemon are on the peachy side of pink, which made finding suitable companions more of a challenge.  The yellow undertones of the Callistemon made the pink Eustoma look dingy so I chose other flowers in shades of coral and yellow.

Clockwise from the left, the vase contains: Callistemon 'Cane's Hybrid', Achillea millefolium 'Appleblossom', Grevillea 'Ned Kelly', Lantana camara 'Irene' with Zinnia 'Profusion', Leucanthemum x superbum, Lonicera japonica, and Plectranthus scutellariodes 'Mocha Mint' (commonly known as coleus and formerly classified as Solenostemon scutellariodes).  There's a little Tanacetum parthenium in the mix too.

The new arrangements displaced last week's creations.

The first arrangement sits in the front entry

The second sits on the dining room table

For more vases, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.


All material © 2012-2016 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

It all started with the Eucalyptus

It seems much easier to design a garden bed from scratch than it is to modify it as circumstances change.  This week I've been deliberating about what to do with the garden on the southeast side of the house.  It's evolved in fits and starts without any clear direction, leaving me with something I don't much like.

When we moved in over 5 years ago, the south side section of the garden was dominated by a giant Eucalyptus tree.  The surrounding area was mostly shade and the plants I added after we settled in were suited to that situation.

The Eucalyptus in its glory

Two years into our ownership, a neighbor complained that the Eucalyptus tree blocked her view of the harbor.  After multiple discussions and meetings with 2 arborists, we agreed to take the tree down.  (You can read that story here.)

The tree's removal in February 2013 completely changed the appearance of not just the south side garden but also views from the front and back gardens

One thing led to another and we ended up removing all the lawn on the southeast side and replanting the entire area.

View of the southeast side at the end of November 2013 with the lawn gone, flagstone laid and new plants in

By August 2014, things were filling in relatively well, although some of the plants that had enjoyed the shade provided by the Eucalyptus had already begun to suffer.

The area on August 1, 2014

Then the neighbor reappeared with another complaint and, in the interest of accommodation, we removed a second tree and thinned most of the others in March 2015.  Meanwhile, as California's drought took hold, the state placed significant restrictions on irrigation.  The area on the south side of the house suffered more than most and I started trading out perennials and shrubs for succulents.

As you can see in this photo taken at the beginning of August 2015, succulents had begun to displace flowering plants

Between August 2015 and August 2016, another tree died and other herbaceous plants came out, replaced by more succulents.

The Arbutus 'Marina' on the left was compromised when we moved in and, when it began to fail in early 2016, I had it cut down.  I also moved a large number of plants that couldn't handle the intense sun exposure in this area, including two Acanthus mollis and large clumps of Arthropodium cirratum. 

I haven't been really happy with the area since the spring of 2014.  While I like the succulents I've added, I think I need to add some plants with a softer aspect.

The area at present

Although this past week has been considerably cooler than the 2 weeks that preceded it, summer won't be over until October here so it's a bad bet to go on a planting spree now.  I'm trying to keep my itchy fingers under control for a while yet and use this time to plan additions, subtractions and moves.  I lost height and the red color provided by the trunk and limbs of the Arbutus 'Marina' that died so I'm thinking about adding a Leucadendron salignum 'Chief' like the one I have in the dry garden on the north side of the house.

Leucadendron 'Chief' provides height, a touch of red color, and moves gracefully in the wind.   Grevillea 'Scarlet Sprite' like the one in the foreground of this photo might also work well to add the softness I'd like to see in the southeast garden.

Some of the Chondropetalum tectorum I used in the succulent bed along the street might also make good additions.

The rush would also add height and movement 

What about you?  Has your mind skipped ahead to fall planting plans yet?


All material © 2012-2016 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Wednesday Vignette: More Pink!

Pink is not my favorite color but a look at my summer garden might suggest otherwise.  The Lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum) I've featured in my vase posts for weeks are mostly pink.  Now, Callistemon 'Cane's Hybrid' has produced a fresh flush of pink blooms.  When I purchased the plant in 2015 I'd convinced myself that the flowers were more peach than pink - but they're pink.  They're very pretty, though, and the plant is a bee magnet.  It's a last minute choice for this week's Wednesday Vignette, the meme hosted by Anna of Flutter & Hum.

Photographed from this direction, the Callistemon blooms don't look particularly abundant.  (Some of the remaining pink Lisianthus insisted on photobombing the shot.)

The majority of blooms are on the east-facing side of the plant

We've got a strong breeze going, blowing the branches this way and that.  This was the best close-up of a flower and a bee that I could manage but most flowers have 2 or 3 bees buried in the blossoms. 

Visit Anna to find images that resonated with her and other gardeners this week.


All material © 2012-2016 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: Fuzzy Touches

I'm a little in love with my first vase this week.  I finally broke down and cut a stem of the green Eustoma grandiflorum (Lisianthus) growing in the backyard.  Of the 6 plugs of the green variety I obtained by mail order this spring only one plant has produced green flowers thus far.  The blooms fade as they age, looking more pale yellow than mint green in the strong outdoor sunlight.

The Lisianthus flower buds look greener than the fully opened blooms

The back view flaunts the foliage elements

Top view

I considered a number of possible companions for the pale blooms of the green Lisianthus but, to avoid eclipsing their delicate color, I stuck mainly to plants with equally soft colors.

Clockwise from the upper left, the vase contains: unnamed green Eustoma grandiflorum, Achillea 'Moondust', Bouteloua gracilis 'Blonde Ambition (shown with Leucadendron salignum 'Chief), Coprosma 'Evening Glow', Phylica pubescens (aka Featherhead), and Xylosma congestum.  The vase itself is a decorative teapot that once belonged to my mother-in-law.

Thrilled as I am with the green Lisianthus, the fuzzy Featherhead and the 'Blonde Ambition'  ornamental grass may steal the show.  I've coveted the latter since I saw it at Tongva Park in Santa Monica back in 2013.  (Click here if you'd like to view my post on Tongva Park, which was designed by James Corner, the landscape architect responsible for the High Line in New York City.)  For unknown reasons, the plants haven't been available locally but I recently obtained 5 from a mail order nursery.  (Once again I broke my own rule against planting during the summer months  - but the plants were on sale and they're drought tolerant!).

I still have some pink Eustoma grandiflorum so of course I again have a second vase containing that flower.  The blooms are gradually fading and they don't last as long in the vase as they did when the stems were fresher but even I'm surprised at the value I've gotten from these plants.  The double pink-flowered Lisianthus may well be the Energizer Bunny of summer blooms.  Maybe it's no coincidence they're both pink.

Front view

A very similar back view, highlighting the fuzzy beauty of the ornamental grass's purple tassels

Top view

Clockwise from the left, the vase contains: Eustoma grandiflorum ('Echo Pink' cultivar I think), Coprosma 'Plum Hussey', burgundy Pelargonium peltatum, dark pink Pelargonium, Pennisetum 'Fireworks', and dry seedpods of Phlomis fruticosa

Last week's vases met a premature end.  No, Pipig played no role in their demise (this time).  Our air conditioning system conked out.  The earliest date we could get a repairman in was Wednesday of this week so, despite slightly cooler temperatures, we steam-cooked inside over the next few days as the humidity rose.  (Southern California's heat has traditionally been called a "dry heat" but it's seemed a lot less dry this year.)  While we waited out the arrival of the repairman, my husband rush-ordered an inexpensive replacement part on the chance that it'd do the trick.  The great news is that it did so the AC is back on and we hope to string our system out through the remainder of the summer, planning to replace it in the fall when the prices of AC units should fall to more palatable levels.  Hopefully, with cooler indoor temperatures, this week's vases will last a bit longer than the last ones.

The first arrangement sits on the dining room table

The second arrangement sits in the front entry

Visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden, our "IaVoM" host, to see what she and other gardeners are featuring in their vases this week.


All material © 2012-2016 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party