This time of year there's a different set of 'steps.' First you have the progression of evergreen winter blooming shrubs such as Camellias and Chaenomeles (Flowering Quince); then you have the appearance of bulb shoots (I already have Freesias, Ixias, Ipheions, Dutch Iris and Sparaxis up (and that's not counting my South African bulbs); then you have the late winter blooming trees such as Magnolias and Redbuds fattening their buds; followed by early deciduous shrubs starting to leaf out and finally early spring flowers. What these all have in common is activity, progression, all leading to an eventual result. For me, that's also part of the gardening interest and excitement. It may not be the rush of spring but it's still activity that piques one's interest.
That said, there are a few things still in bloom, or just starting, in my garden. So, that means photos to share. Hopefully this will bring a wee bit of joy to those whose gardens are mostly at rest right now.
Wallflowers (Erysimum) need a better PR agent. They get little respect, or even regular interest, amongst gardeners and yet they are an amazing genus. Tough, drought tolerant once established, very long blooming almost to the point of flowering year round in milder climates, well behaved, popular with bees and butterflies, the list goes on and on. This one is E. Poem Mirabelle.
Another wonderful plant not always appreciated, or easily found at nurseries, is Catananche caerulea. The oddly named Cupid's Dart produces an abundance of flowers from late summer to late fall or even early winter apparently, as mine is still in bloom.
As mentioned above, Flowering Quince is a wonderful shrub for winter color. I have three in my garden, this one is Chaenomeles 'Fuji', and they bloom from December through April, depending on the variety. Very adaptable, they'll grow in poor soil (that includes clay), will survive drought but equally a lot of rain. Self-sufficient!
My Magnolia stellata is usually the first of my Magnolias to bloom and it has already produced its first bloom. I describe the flowers to customers as 'fingers,' as the spoon-shaped petals remind me of our digits.
This is just a reminder that it's birding season everyone! Had a nice sighting the other day, spotting two Northern Flickers in a Cordyline tree, in the clusters of flowers. Apparently those flowers draw insects and that's likely what the flickers are after.
My Arbutus Marina just finished producing this cluster of flowers, which should soon turn into berries much sought after by birds.
A lot of South African plants will bloom in winter here (but not all!) and one of those is the genus Arctotis. This A. 'Opera Fire' is just starting to bloom but has tons of buds forming. One of the genera called African Daisy, it tends to like sun, will spread out and is tenacious once established.
Okay, not a great photo but I'm surprised that my new Begonia Angel Glow is staying evergreen. It didn't bloom in this first year but I bought it mainly for the foliage. In fact this will ring a bell for many Begonia lovers. It's often the foliage that is the star attraction not the flowers.
Kudos to anyone who can ID this plant. Believe it or not, it's a Gloxinia! In this case it's a Gloxinia sylvatica 'Bolivian Sunset.' It is indeed a winter bloomer and very hardy outdoors. Very charming flowers!
Speaking of S. African plants and bulbs in particular, Lachenalias are often the first of this wide-ranging group of bulbs to bloom. There's plenty of them too. This is an unusual one, a cross from a local grower. He ID'd it as L. viridiflora x quadricolor. You can see the telltale turquoise blue from the viridiflora and then the yellow, green and purple are from the quadricolor parent.
Lachenalia aloides 'Orange.' The aloides species may be the most widespread and vigorous of all the Lachenalias and they are also early bloomers as a rule.
Snapdragon. Not everyone realizes that snapdragons actually do pretty well in the winter where there is a milder zone. This 6pack is just beginning to flower.
Not real dragonflies but these little vinyl dragons are certainly colorful and 'pass muster' at a distance.
Callistemon viminalis. So, yes a bottlebrush plant but in this case a smaller shrub not a huge tree. I'm growing mine in a container, as it will only mature to 4-6.' Same nectar rich flowers that hummers love. Surprisingly bees like them too.
Camellia 'Silver Waves.' I have a dozen camellias in my garden but this was the first. It's a prolific bloomer and has a substantial boss of yellow stamen to offset the pure white petals. One of the faster growing camellias, which as a general rule are somewhat slow.
This Salvia involucrata 'Pink Icicles' owns one of my favorite variety names but also has an interesting way of producing flowers, forming one large whitish bud (as you can see in the back of this flower cluster) that then opens to three tubular pink flowers. Though listed as a summer and fall bloomer, it seems to be just getting going in this its first year from a 4" plant.
The aptly named Fuchsia splendens took awhile to get settled and in the mood for blooming but finally seems to have figured it out. Simple pinkish-orange flowers are tipped with reflexed green lower portions. This Fuchsia can get big and is semi-scandent, though mine being in a pot has kept it a modest size.
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