Today it's photos of my garden, covering the gamut from winter interest to the first hints of spring. In the very least, we have sunshine and that's always a good thing.
Camellia reticulata Francie L variegated. Such a lovely flower, with wavy petals and each one a slightly different combo of colors.
My Camellia reticulata Frank Hauser has gotten big and seems very happy!
This one-of-a-kind Lachenalia is a cross between L. viridiflora (where it gets its blue) and L. quadricolor (where it gets the rest of its colors).
Primula polyanthus. Primroses are a great source of winter color.
Here's another photo of the unique Melaleuca micromera. Unlike most other Melaleucas, it has fine-textured, almost wispy foliage.
This winter blooming oxalis features large shamrock leaves and soon bright pink flowers.
Here's my collection of Neoregelias (and one Vriesea) that are the smaller (for now) varieties.
Here are the larger bromeliad varieties. As I've mentioned, they're providing lots of winter interest, even though none have bloomed yet.
Abelia Kaleidascope. This variegated Abelia is a real beauty and does fine with benign neglect!
I recently built a low bed with red brick-sized pavers, so I could get more of my dwarf conifers out of pots and into the ground. I added two Hellebores, 2 primrose and some violas to round it out. Viola indeed!
Salvia 'Marine Blue.' A delicate looking but surprisingly hardy sage. And a late season bloomer!
A friend donated this gorgeous Vriesea Red Chestnut to me. Love that banding!
Some people report problems keeping their Coprosmas happy but so far so good with my potted Coprosma Pina Colada.
This mystery Lachenalia turned out to be L. aloides var. aloides. The flowers matured into a pure gold with rich burgundy tips. Lovely!
Here's another shot of my Lachenalia viridiflora x quadricolor.
My Abutilon thompsonii has decided to remain bushy not form a small tree. It's kind of spread sideways, which is fine by me as it doesn't then compete with the tall Duranta Gold Mound to its left.
Camellias are generally very dependable bloomers but I haven't had much luck with this C. Maroon and Gold. But it's finally putting out flowers this year so fingers crossed.
This lovely wooden planter came from an Etsy seller and I put 3 primrose and two ferns in it. It's in a shady spot so that combo should work out fine.
Camellia Lila Naff. This coral pink double form camellia is a real delight!
My back yard is mostly shade so I'm always on the hunt for interesting additions suitable for those conditions. I recently added this Fatshedera lizei Annemieka. It's a bit overshadowed by the fern to the right but soon it'll get a lot bigger (taller) and look better.
I recently found these lovely fabric flowers online. They're hooked to small solar panels and have lights of varying colors that illuminate the interior of the flowers at night.
Succulent bowls have a way, over time, of falling into disrepair. I just replaced 3 ailing specimens with much nicer ones, including two sempervivums.
Though not yet in bloom, my Leucospermum Veldfire is adding fuzzy flower buds. It should make for a spectacular show in about a month.
Ficinia truncata Ice Crystals is one of my favorite new additions. This low growing ground cover hails from South Africa.
Late winter is the time for flowering quinces. I have 3 in my garden. Here's my Chaenomeles Kurokoji, with its evocative blood red flowers.
"Oh, don't plant THAT" I hear all the time about my Chasmanthe bicolor. A crocosmia relative, it does have a tendency to spread and to self-seed. So far mine has behaved. If you look closely, you'll see it's put out its first flower spikes.
I've recently discovered the joy of pine trees. Here's my Japanese Black Pine (Pinus thunbergii). It won't be long before it generates cones that are a feature of this increasingly easy to find pine.
Here's a new Lachenalia, the hard to find L. namaquensis. You can see a hint of the purple color appearing on its flower stem.
Speaking of hard to find, I'm glad I grabbed my Black lotus (Lotus jacobaeus) when I could. It owes its common name to its nearly black parrot's beak flowers.
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