A California Winter

 I'm always amazed when people who don't live on the west coast wonder just what the heck we're doing, living out on or near the California coast. Well, it's 60 degrees, dry and sunny. And I just came in from the garden. That pretty much sums it up right there. For further proof, here are a collection of photos taken today, of just my one not too large garden. They offer a good sampling of my Oakland winter garden.

Erysimum Poem Mirabelle. This common wallflower blooms throughout the year.

Agastache variety. I'm not sure which one this is but it has the distinctive tubular flowers that so many of these Hummingbird mints possess.

I'm as surprised as anyone that my Banksia rose is in bloom. Very early!

On the other hand, this is about the right time for Ranunculus to be in bloom.

This is a new Calothamnus I've added to the garden. It's C. gracilis 'Spring Torch'.

Though not in bloom, I already have nice thick swaths of Babiana. The first flowers should be here in 3-4 weeks.

Also in progress is my Leucospermum 'Veldfire.' Those fuzzy balls within the leaves are flowers in the making.

Honeysuckles can be amazing. My Lonicera x americana always seems to be budding up, if not in bloom.

Here a few last flowers for the season on one of my red Mimulus.

This shot is not just in shade but not completely in focus but thought I'd include it anyway. My Salvia discolor has begun blooming and it has the blackest flowers of any salvia.

Abutilons also seem to flower nearly year round in the mild Oakland climate. This one is A. 'Tiger Eye.'

Though partly in shade, this is one of the shamrock Oxalis. This one has spread out among my dry garden plants and will eventually produce rose-pink flowers.

Here's my collection of plants under a SW facing fir tree. There's dwarf conifers and bromeliads in pots and behind those are swaths of Chasmanthe bicolor.

I put my charming Geranium harveyi in an equally charming wooden watering can planter.

Though not in bloom, the rough textured leaves on my Salvia corrugata are still a delight.

One of my earliest blooming S. African cowslips is this Lachenalia aloides 'Orange.'

My sprawling, bushy Cuphea oreophila is still in bloom and doing its best to overrun the walkway that leads to the backyard.

Camellia 'Winner's Circle.' This hard to find camellia may in fact no longer be for sale.

On the other hand, this Camellia Frank Hauser is a regular in the trade.

The little variegated aloe here is A.'Delta Lights.'

Finally, here's a long view of our main walkway and the narrow bed planted along its right side.

December already?

 How can it possibly be December? Not just because the year has flown by but because it's still getting up in the high 60s during the daytime here in the Bay Area. Well, our gardens certainly don't mind. Without further adieu, here are some recent photos from my garden.

Aloe Sunshine. A new Aloe in my garden, this aptly named variety has sunny yellow flowers.

A new Grevillea, this G. Poorinda Leane is already blooming.

I like the pleasing contrast between the fall colors on my Cotinus Royal Purple and the delicate bluish-green foliage on my Melianthus pectinatus.

This shamrock oxalis is a winter bloomer and also sports vibrant green foliage.

Another photo of my Oxalis White Pillow. I love the dense mound it makes.

My Black lotus (Lotus jacobaeus) is in full bloom, attracting every bee from a mile away. Or so it seems on sunny days.

This sport off an Azalea variety was named Court Jester. The flowers are all different, some with pink portions like this one, others with pink speckling.

After a major pruning, my Duranta has flushed out vibrant golden new growth.

Berberis 'Orange Rocket.' My Berberis is holding onto its foliage late in the season.

Aloe striata (Coral aloe) + Sideritis cypria. These companions have filled in very nicely.

Here is part of my collection of bromeliads and dwarf conifers. Even though they're in pots, the fullness creates a densely planted look and I like them against the backdrop of the tree.

Speaking of dwarf conifers, here is the first collection I planted 10 years ago around the other side of the tree mentioned above.

The patches of Babiana are getting nice and thick. This South African bulb is an early spring bloomer.

Three new bromeliads, added to my extensive collection.

A simple Petunia but pretty nonetheless.

This uncommon Centaurea (C. ragusina) has kept its intense silvery tones.

There are many shades of blue, and flowers exhibiting those colors. I think of this Salvia bullulata Pale Form as being a fine representative of robins-egg blue.

Aeonium 'Sunburst.' This succulent has prospered without much attention.

Kalanchoe variety. This one gets big, with thick rubbery leaves. This girl is just a baby.

Sometimes called 'propeller plant' for its thick, planar leaves, this Crassula falcata has some of the most intense flowers in the world of succulents.

Canarina canariensis. I love the simple reddish-orange tubular flowers on this winter blooming scandent plant.

Catching up

 Well, it's been a few weeks since my last entry but things have been busy for me and not quite so busy for the garden, thus less to photograph. Still, there was a surprising bounty to capture on film today so I share that with you now.  Though winter is not quite upon us, losing daylight savings time and having shorter days always makes it seem as if winter is around the corner.

This sunny bed is already showing the first clumps of Babiana shoots. It has has a lovely petunia in a pot and some Lemon Balm in the right foreground.

This dense mound is the always charming Oxalis 'White Pillow.'

A new addition to my garden, this yellow blooming Aloe 'Sunshine' is already attracting hummingbirds.

Correa 'Ray's Tangerine.' Correas can sometimes bloom in winter and I have two varieties doing just that.

My ceramic hedgehog planter is now sprouting some Sedum Angelina.

My Berberis 'Orange Rocket' had its best year ever, holding onto its rich burgundy-red color all year.

This is one of many mixed dwarf conifer bowls in my garden. For those of you who get the Regional Parks Botanic Garden eNewsletter, keep an eye out for my article on dwarf conifers that will appear in the January edition.

This new addition to my garden, Juniper horizontalis 'Pancake' is slowly spilling out of its pot.

Another of my favorite dwarf conifers is this Chamaecyparis 'Golden Mops.' It too has held onto its color all throughout the year.

It's not too late for Hibiscus to be in bloom and that includes my H. 'Cherie.'

I've begun collecting Dianthus (carnation) and this is one of my favorites - D. 'Chabaud Orange Sherbet.'

I got a bee harvesting nectar from my Asclepias cancellata flowers today. There are so many flowers that the branches are weighted down nearly to the ground.

Pelargonium 'Raspberry Twizzle.' This fun geranium always seems to be in bloom.

I'm pretty sure this Begonia 'Summerwings Ebony and Orange has some B. boliviensis in it, given its telltale orange flowers.

Azalea 'Court Jester.' This azalea is a late season bloomer, sometimes up until nearly XMas.

This striking Begonia 'Gryphon' has never bloomed but I don't mind. I bought it for its foliage.

On the other hand, this Begonia 'Irene Nuss' does put on quite the blooming show in the fall.

Billbergia 'Hallelujah.' This is one of the more spectacular billbergias and it's one of those plants that thrives with benign neglect.

And finally another bromeliad that I think is an Aechmea though I'm not sure. I love the banding.