Plant Sale!

Don't you love a good plant sale?  While most of our local garden centers remained open even during the height of the pandemic, the special plant sales conducted by many botanic gardens were shelved.  My local botanic garden now has a plant stand near the exit but the offerings can most charitably be described as meager and pedestrian.  Even The Huntington's last plant sale was virtual - people placed orders online and drove to the garden to pick them up but that isn't as much fun as scouring tables of plants to discover specimens you didn't know you "needed."  So, when Sherman Library & Gardens announced it was resurrecting its Plant-o-rama, I had to go.

My understanding is that this event hasn't been held for many years.  It's stated purpose is to support local plant societies and to provide members of the surrounding community with access to plants they wouldn't normally find in local garden centers. 

My friend and I arrived almost an hour before the garden opened to ensure we could find parking.  As the parking lots quickly filled and people lined up at the entrance, we took a spin around the perimeter of the garden, something we don't usually take time to do.

This Agave 'Blue Glow' and its companions were planted atop a brick wall surrounding the back parking lot

The back area of the property had lots of Agaves and Mangaves

The plants out front along the busy Pacific Coast Highway were more colorful

I can't identify this Restio but I thought it looked great with the Phormiums

 

The volunteers and staff expedited entrance to the garden once it opened and the sale tables were quickly swamped.

The Hibiscus Society booth had the biggest crowd.  The plants were good-sized but at $40-60 dollars, I took a pass.  I've already got one Hibiscus in a pot I'm struggling to get to bloom.

The Orchid Society tables seemed relatively bare so I brushed by after a quick look

I focused on the bromeliad offerings.  Great prices but the booth was crowded.

I really should have spent more time on Sherman's own offerings outside the gift shop.  They had a little bit of everything, including a nice selection of begonias, pollinator-friendly plants, edibles and even Mangaves.  There was a fern society booth too but given our water concerns, I gave that a pass.

After I'd made my purchases, I joined my friend in perusing the garden itself.  The garden has a special exhibit going on but I'll cover that in a separate post later this week.   For now, I'll focus on other highlights of our visit, starting with my favorite area, the Tropical Conservatory.

Sherman changes out its plants on a regular basis so there's always something new to see.  I noticed Tillandsias mixed in with orchids this time.

Bloomed-out orchids are regularly swapped for varieties in full flower

I don't remember seeing this chair inside the conservatory before.  It looked like a great spot to take photos.

Closeups of a few things that caught my eye, including the resident turtles

There was an aviary in the conservatory too.  I had some difficulty determining the identity of the birds inside until I noticed the sign describing them as "fancy pigeons."  The two Yellow English Trumpeters were the most unusual.  My friend managed to get a good shot of one of these (upper right) by aiming her camera lens between the bars of the cage.

The Tropical Conservatory wasn't the only area deserving of notice.

How many times have you seen bromeliads like this lining a path?

The Dykcias that used to be in this section have been replaced by a red-flowered Mimulus, adding a fresh punch of color.  I noticed that there was a lot of red and other hot colors in the Sherman Gardens beds at the moment.

A simple but effective combination of Coprosma and Gazania outside the garden's office area (with begonias tucked into a corner)

More red flowers mixed with fresh green plants, including palms and Farfugium (syn. Ligularia)

There were butterflies, including Monarchs, flitting about

And of course no visit to Sherman Gardens would be complete without spending at least a little time in the Succulent Garden.

The Succulent Garden changes less than other areas but I noticed new pots on display

As impressed as I always am by the Aloes, Agaves and barrel cactus, the backlit bromeliad stole the show in this photo in my opinion, making me wish I'd looked for an Aechmea blanchetiana when I was shopping the bromeliad sale booth

I'll come back to Sherman Gardens later this week with highlights of their greenHOUSE exhibit.  As I know some of you will ask, I bought only a couple of plants at the Plant-o-Rama but I'll happily attend again if they hold the event next year.  My friend and I also made a stop at Roger's Gardens nearby as I had a gift card burning a hole in my pocket so I'll wrap up this post with photos of the day's purchases.

At the Plant-o-rama, at a total cost of $10, I purchased a noID Tillandsia and a more unusual Orthophytum 'Gurkenii'.  The latter is a terrestrial bromeliad from Brazil.  The foliage can have zebra stripes but this one is the "snake skin" type.  It produces a bright green florescence with white flowers

At Roger's Gardens, I used my gift card to buy Mangave 'Night Owl' and Dahlia 'Mystic Illusion'

All material © 2012-2021 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

In a Vase on Monday: More lilies

I'm impatiently awaiting the arrival of my dahlias and zinnias, which seem to be off to a slow start again this year.  In 2019, I had my first dahlia blooms by mid-June and they peaked in August.  In 2020, I had my first blooms by mid-August and the plants peaked in September.  I seem to be tracking to the 2020 schedule despite the fact that I started my tubers earlier in temporary pots this year.  Apparently, Mother Nature operates according to her own schedule regardless of my intent.

Luckily, the other Orienpet lilies I planted as bulbs last fall, 'Purple Prince', bloomed late last week.  As the 'Pretty Woman' lilies I cut last Sunday held up in a vase as long as they did in my garden, I went ahead and cut a single stem of 'Purple Prince' for one of this week's arrangements, leaving two stems in the garden.

'Purple Prince' looks more mauve-pink than purple to my eye

Back view: Yes, I'm using Daucus carota 'Dara' again this week.  The blooms are unstoppable and among the most prolific flowers in my garden at the moment.

Top view: I'm assuming the lily bud will open even after the stem has been cut

Clockwise from the upper left: Abelia grandiflora 'Hopley's Variegated', Daucus carota 'Dara', Leucanthemum x superbum, Cuphea hybrid 'Starfire Pink', and Lilium 'Purple Prince'

A lily of another sort made its debut in my back garden late last week as well.  Unlike the dahlias, it's arriving right on time, although given our low rainfall it remains to be seen whether I'll get as many blooms as I had last year.  Amaryllis belladonna (aka as Jersey lily or naked lady, as it blooms after its leaves have died back) isn't a true lily but it is a true Amaryllis, unlike the Hippeastrum commonly referred to as Amaryllis.

This ornamental teapot wasn't the ideal vessel for the tall, thick Amaryllis bloom stalk.  I had to cut the stem very short to make it work.  The green Lisianthus is a holdover from one of last week's arrangements but everything else was cut fresh yesterday morning.

I used a stem of a noID Pelargonium to dress up the back view

Top view

Clockwise from the upper left: Eustoma grandiflorum (aka Lisianthus) in shades of green, pink, and white; Amaryllis belladonna; Leptospermum 'Copper Glow' (without flowers this week); Myrtus communis 'Compacta'; and noID Pelargonium

To find more IAVOM creations, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.

All material © 2012-2021 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Bloom Day - July 2021

Despite the horrible heat many areas of California and the western US are facing (not to speak of the large number of wildfires already burning), my area along the coast has enjoyed a relatively mild summer thus far.  We're still facing serious drought conditions and, like most of California, we've been asked to reduce our water consumption by 15%.  Even though the 2015 water conservation limits were lifted in 2016, I've continued to try to work within those original guidelines and I'm not sure how I can eke out another 15% reduction at this point.  My deliberations on that quandary continue but the subject of today's post is Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day so let's focus on that for the time being.

I'll start with what I consider my star blooms this month.

I've long believed that I can't grow lilies here but, last fall, I acted on a whim and purchased 6 lily bulbs.  The first variety, Oreinpet lily 'Pretty Woman', produced 5 blooms on 3 plants.  The scented flowers are larger than my hand.  Three more 'Purple Prince' lilies didn't quite make the Bloom Day cutoff but they're getting ready to bloom too.

My 4 strawberry trees (Arbutus 'Marina') are literally dripping with tiny coral flowers this month

Daucus carota 'Dara', grown from seed, is flowering like there's no tomorrow

The Lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum) seem to be off to a slow start but at least I finally have flowers in a variety of colors

I thought my daylily season was mostly over when Hemerocallis 'Spanish Harlem' finished up in late June but I've had a few other varieties throw out blooms this month.  Left to right are: 'Apollodorus', 'For Pete's Sake', and 'Persian Market'.

Lavandula angustifolia exploded like the Independence Day fireworks this month

The flowers of Leptospermum 'Copper Glow' aren't easy to photograph but they're particularly abundant this year

My favorite shaggy daisy, Leucanthemum x superbum, took off this month, seemingly blooming all at once

The interesting flowers of this small shrub, Melaleuca thymifolia, deserve more attention than they usually get near the rear of the backyard border

Next up are a few blooms that came as a surprise.

I didn't expect any Hippeastrum blooms this late in the year.  Appropriately perhaps, this variety is called 'Zombie'.  The large bloom is held up by a 3-inch stem.

I sowed seeds of Nigella damascena 'Albion Green Pod' months after I'd sown my Nigella papillosa seeds and, when cilantro came up instead of the Nigella, I assumed I wasn't going to see any flowers from 'Albion Green Pod'.  This delicate flower made its first appearance shortly after I pulled the cilantro.

The flowers of the shrub Rotheca myricoides (syn. Clerodendrum ugandense) must be viewed in closeup to explain its common name of blue butterfly bush (not to be confused with anything in the Buddleia genus)

Every garden has its reliable workhorses and here are some of mine.

Cuphea hybrids 'Starfire Pink' and 'Vermillionaire' bloom year round but the floral display is heaviest during the summer months

With the exception of 'Scarlet Sprite' (lower left), these Grevilleas also bloom year-round.  Clockwise from the upper left are: Grevillea 'Superb' (first 2 photos), 'Ned Kelly', 'Peaches & Cream', and 'Scarlet Sprite'.

Salvia canariensis var candidissima doesn't bloom year round but the colorful calyces that hold the lavender-pink blooms extend the show it provides

Creeping thyme (Thymus serpyllum) regularly gets stepped on and it still blooms each year

I also have a host of plants that are coming to the end of their bloom season after putting on a good show in late spring/early summer.

I've already cut down 2-3 dozen spent bloom stalks of Agapanthus.  The rest are getting straggly and most will probably go by the end of the month.  

Like most of the Agapanthus, Hemerocallis 'Sammy Russell' is one of the few perennials that came with the garden.  Those in the back garden are almost done and I expect those in the front will follow within the next couple of weeks.

I've belatedly started to deadhead Monarda 'Peter's Purple' in the hope of getting another flush of flowers

Osteospermum generally goes into hiding during the summer months but this mix of '4D Silver' and 'Violet Ice' has hung on longer than expected

The bright blue flowers of Salvia clevelandii 'Winnifred Gilman' are fading fast

There are a handful of recent additions to my garden I'd like to share too.

I wish I'd bought 2 more of this Agastache 'Sunset Orange' for this bed

This bedding Dahlia 'Dark Side of the Sun' is the first and only dahlia blooming in my garden at the moment.  This one arrived as a mail order plant, while all the rest were planted as tubers.

I was delighted to stumble upon this California native Solanum xanti in a local garden center 2 weeks ago.  I've grown it before and was very pleased with it.

Venidium fastuosum 'Orange Prince' (syn. Arctotis fastuosa) is my latest plant crush.  I purchased 3 plants by mail order in early June and wish I had more.

This is my latest attempt to grow dwarf Verbena bonariensis 'Lollipop'.  The rabbits mowed down 2 plants in the front garden but thus far have left the 3 in the back garden alone.

I'll close as I usually do with color collages capturing the best of the rest of what's in bloom this month.

Top row: Fuchsia 'Deep Purple', buds of Globularia x indubia, and Hebe 'Grace Kelly'
Middle row: Plectranthus neochilus, Polygala fruticosa, and Scabiosa columbaria 'Flutter Deep Blue'
Bottom row: noID Scaevola, Trachelium caerulea, and Trichostema 'Midnight Magic'

Top row: Cistus skanbergii, C. 'Sunset', and Fuchsia 'Miss California'
Middle row: Hebe 'Wiri Blush', Lantana camara 'Irene', and Rosa 'Pink Meidiland'
bottom row: Nemesia 'Banana Swirl', noID Pelargonium, and Scabiosa columbaria 'Flutter Rose Pink'

Top row: Abelia grandiflora 'Edward Goucher', Angelonia 'Archangel White', and Cosmos bipinnatus
Middle row: noID gauva, Magnolia grandiflora, and Myrtus communis 'Compacta'
Bottow row: noID Phalaenopsis, Phyla nodiflora, and Tanacetum parthenium 'Aureum'

Top row: noID Anigozanthos, Lantana 'Lucky Yellow', and Zinnia 'Profusion'
Middle row: Cotyledon orbiculata and Hesperaloe parviflora 'Brakelights'
Bottom row: Leonotis leonurus and Epilobium californica

Top row: Alstroemeria 'Indian Summer', Gaillardia 'Arizona Sun', and Lobelia laxiflora
Middle row: Cosmos bipinnatus and Gomphrena decumbens 'Itsy Bitsy'
Bottom row: Pelargonium peltatum and P. sidoides

Congratulations, you made it to the end of my very long July Bloom Day post!  To catch up with what's blooming elsewhere in the country and the world, check in with Carol at May Dream Gardens.

All material © 2012-2021 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party