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June's Top 10 Blooms

Chloris at The Blooming Garden hosts a monthly recap of the top 10 blooms selected by gardeners each month.  I'm joining this month with my own list.  While my Bloom Day posts are free-for-alls that cram together virtually everything I find in flower, the top 10 exercise requires more thought and, better perhaps for readers of my blog, much less to digest.  The exercise of distilling my list down to 10 plants was surprisingly difficult, at least at this time of year.  What is the basis for selecting such favorites?  Do I apply that rationale consistently?  Should I rule out plants that bloom all or most of the year to focus only on plants that peak during the month in question?  Am I over-thinking this?  The answer to the last question is "probably."

I often over-analyze things; however, in this case, I found that the blooms that are the most profuse in my garden generally rose to the top of my list, followed by flashy plants that put on a limited show.  Then, once I ruled out plants that I'd previously listed as favorites this year, plants that are new and haven't yet proven their value, and plants that are only just starting their bloom cycle, I was able to settle on my top 10.

Agapanthus was an easy choice.  It's blooming en masse this month.

Arthropodium cirratum (aka Renga Lily) is also blooming in spots throughout my garden.

Another profuse bloomer is Crassula pubescens ssp radicans.

My choice of Cuphea 'Vermillionaire' surprised me a bit but, after doing little or nothing last year, it's come into its own this summer.

Gazanias Gaillardias are one of the flowers with an exceptionally long bloom period in my garden, although unlike some of my Grevilleas they don't actually bloom all year.  However, 'Arizona Sun' is at its best this time of year.

Gaura lindheimeri also has a long bloom period.  In addition, its delicate bloom stalks blow in the wind, adding movement in the garden.

Perhaps you noticed the flowers of Hemerocallis 'Spanish Harlem' in the photo of the Gaura above.  That photo was taken in the late afternoon after a day of intense sun and the flowers look more washed out that they appeared earlier in the day.

Leucanthemum x superbum (aka Shasta Daisies) are common in gardens all across the country but I love the ruffled form that grows in my garden.  A friend gifted me with 6 plants in 4-inch pots following my mother's death in 2013.  They come back more strongly every year.

My next choice, Polygala, almost didn't make the cut for this list because it doesn't photograph well, or, more accurately, I never managed to capture it well.  Still, I notice it every time I walk through both the front and back gardens so it deserves a place on the list.

My last selection, Salvia clevelandii 'Winnifred Gilman', also didn't show up especially well in its photos but its flowers are a bright blue so I'll forgive it just about anything.

That's my top 10 list of blooms.  What's on yours?  To see others, visit Chloris at The Blooming Garden.

Posted by Kris Peterson at 8:00 AM 27 comments: Links to this post Labels: Agapanthus, Arthropodium cirratum, Crassula radicans, Cuphea, favorite plants, Gaillardia, Gaura, Hemerocallis 'Spanish Harlem', Leucanthemum, Polygala, Salvia


Wednesday Vignette: Nature's version of stained glass

Although we haven't been blasted by summer's heat yet in my area of coastal Southern California, some of my Leucadendrons are already sporting their summer colors.  When backlit, you can't help but notice them.  They always make be think of stained glass.  I captured a few photos to demonstrate their appeal for this week's Wednesday Vignette, the feature hosted by Anna of Flutter & Hum.

Leucadendron 'Chief' and L. 'Safari Sunset' also look great backlit at this time of year but I didn't manage to photograph them at the right time.


Posted by Kris Peterson at 8:00 AM 29 comments: Links to this post Labels: Leucadendron, Wednesday Vignette


In a Vase on Monday: Mutants!

Although my Agapanthus continue to produce a few new stalks here and there, I think their floral display has reached its peak.  There are fewer blooms this year, presumably due to our exceptionally poor winter rainy season, but I have enough clumps of these plants to provide a good show nonetheless.  So cutting a handful of those tall stalks for this week's vase was a no-brainer; however, to change things up just a little, I included two of the mutant stems I recently discovered in my arrangement.

Of course I didn't stop at one vase.  With our morning marine layer firmly in place along the coast, we're still enjoying cooler than average temperatures and flowers remain plentiful.  It's a huge difference from the start of summer 2016, when a sudden spike in temperature to 105F (40C) caused the widespread loss of not just flowers but entire plants and every lemon on my tree.  It took a good year for the lemon tree to recover and I count myself lucky it did.  This is a long-winded way of explaining why we so appreciate our gray summer mornings.

My second vase was inspired by the Drumstick Alliums in bloom this month.  I planted three species of Alliums in early November.  Allium aflatunense 'Violet Beauty' was a complete bust - I planted 18 bulbs and got no blooms.  Allium rosenbachianum bloomed early and well but I'd planted only 3 bulbs.  I wasn't impressed with the foliage of Allium spharocephalon but most of those 10 bulbs surprised me by blooming this month despite their spindly stalks.

For more Monday vases, visit our gracious host, Cathy at Rambling in the Garden. Posted by Kris Peterson at 8:00 AM 40 comments: Links to this post Labels: Abelia x grandiflora, Agapanthus, Allium, Arthropodium cirratum, bouquet, Leucanthemum


The View from Ruthie Burrus's Garden (2018 Garden Bloggers' Fling)

We saw many fabulous gardens during the course of the 2018 Garden Bloggers' Fling in Austin, Texas back in early May.  One of my favorites was Ruthie Burrus's Garden in Texas Hill Country.  Upon arrival, we walked up a steep driveway, enjoying wildflowers in bloom on both sides. I loved the natural feel of the front garden and the mix of flowering plants and succulents.

I also appreciated how well the house nestled into the garden, despite how large it was.

And I was very envious of the the galvanized rainwater collection tank.  Such tanks were a relatively common sight in Austin but this one was held up to 10,000 gallons of water.  I have 3 small tanks but my storage capacity maxes out at 475 gallons.  If only I had a spot to put one like this!

We weren't the only visitors that morning.  I caught a fuzzy photo of this fellow hanging on outside a window.

Impressed as I was by the front garden, the back garden was a show stopper.  As we walked into the house out onto the patio, we saw this:

But the back garden had more to offer than its magnificent view.  The patio offered a comfortable entertaining space.

The back garden offered a little something for everybody.

We were invited to go through the house and up the tower on one side to the roof, which as you might expect also offered fabulous views.

Lucky as I am to have a view from my own back garden, I found those in this one more tranquil, although a heavy marine layer this morning is making it feel as if we're floating in a cloud today.  Whatever you're doing during this first weekend of summer, I hope it comes with great views too!

Posted by Kris Peterson at 10:46 AM 39 comments: Links to this post Labels: 2018 Garden Bloggers' Fling, Ruthie Burrus garden
