After two weeks away from the garden I've had a little catching up to do. Friends kept it watered in my absence and I'd done some cleanup before leaving town so it's in pretty good shape. Today it's the visuals not the thoughts so here goes.
Calceolaria calynopsis + Begonia Nonstop Deep Salmon. The Calceolaria may not come back but at least pinching off its spent blooms has encouraged it to put out more flowers.
Dudleya gnoma. This cute little dwarf species is multiplying nicely. It's taking over the world (like another short guy named Napolean), just very, very slowly.
My ever changing collection of succulents and tillandsias.
Salvias are tough and many are vigorous but this S. elegans 'Golden Delicious' is near the top of the list. I hack it back - it grows back. It's definitely a fall bloomer, as it's just now producing those distinctive red flowers so loved by hummers.
I recently bought a ceramic blue globe and though I haven't decided where to put it, for now it's nestled in among my variegated Star jasmine. Boche ball anyone?
My Helichrysum bracteatum (Paper flower) continues to put on a show. I think I may cut a dozen and bring them inside to put in a vase.
I love my sweet little Calylophus and the way it scrambles. Bees seem to love it too.
Love the play of light on my Verbascum thapsi and in the rear my Correa Wyn's Wonder.'
This figure was a gift from a friend so not sure if she's a Quan Yin or maybe a Tara figure. Contemplative.
Lotus jacobaeus. My black lotus continues to bloom like crazy, plus it's rooted down through the pot. One of those easy as pie success stories.
Coleus 'Glennis.' When the plant was small I didn't like it much. But now that it's larger it's become quite showy. Funny how that goes.
This has been the year of the begonia for me. First the Pacific Hort magazine article I wrote on cane and shrub begonias. Then my ever increasing collection. Here's my B. 'Gryphon,' gradually filling out and holding onto its 'spots.'
Heliotropium arborescens 'Alba.' I still don't know why the alba variety is so much more fragrant than the straight species but wow it's a heavenly delight.
This cute little heather-like plant is Fabiana imbricata violacea. A little water has spurred it into some later than usual blooming. Love these tiny cup-shaped flowers!
Okay, not a great (or good) photo of my Rain lily but I find these simple white flowers infinitely charming. Their common name comes from the fact that the fall rains spur the bulb to bloom. Mine's getting an early start, no doubt because I do water it semi-regularly.
I still can't seem to get a photo of a Hibiscus trionum flower that shows off its subtle butter yellow color. This is one unusual hibiscus. First off, it goes completely dormant. Before it does, it manages to self-seed vigorously. Flowers appear at the tips of slender branches (it's not the sturdy shrub that most hibiscus are). But I love it and the dark eye is fantastic.
Can you guess what plant this flower belongs to? Kudos to those who said Oxalis. This is O. latifolia, a winter blooming species (it's starting early). It's one of the so-called Shamrock oxalis, as the vibrant green leaves are clover-like.
This scary looking plant is a Dyckia marnier-lapostle. Normally, dyckias are indeed very thorny and one you don't want to mess with ('living barbed wire' someone once called them). But this guy's teeth are sharp but not cutting or thorn-imbedding. Love that silvery color.
And we end with one of my very favorite passion flowers - Passiflora 'Oaklandia.' Though the center filaments aren't as showy as some the flowers are very large and that color is magnificent!
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