Our remodel is still hitting snags but nonetheless moving inexorably nearer to closure. I've worn blinders for the past several months to avoid getting too worked up about the collateral damage to my garden. It never looks its best at the tail end of our long dry season under any circumstances but some areas are looking truly terrible this year, especially in the back garden where work on our new kitchen spilled over into the beds surrounding the patio. I've decided that a wholesale overall of several beds is in order but, until the construction workers are out of the picture, I'm holding off tackling anything anywhere near the high traffic areas.
Focusing on the little projects for the time being gives me some sense of accomplishment.
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| One of the first projects was pulling all the Lotus berthelotii I used as a groundcover on the south end of the back garden and replacing it with fresh plants. Lotus is a short-lived perennial in my climate but after 2-3 years it was looking scruffy. I planted daffodils (Narcissus 'Sunny Girlfriend') here too. The upturned plastic flats are pinned into the ground to protect the new plants from raccoon rampages. |
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| I've been doing some judicious pruning throughout the garden too. Here, Agave 'Jaws' was in danger of being swallowed by Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder' until I trimmed the latter plant back. |
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| As I plan to sow seeds and plant bulbs in my cutting garden for cool-season flowers, it was time to dig up my dahlia tubers. The plants had already taken a severe beating after 3 rounds of Santa Ana winds. Technically, the tubers could stay in the ground all year in my climate but I need the space in my raised planters, and I don't want to risk rotting the tubers with the water my new seedlings will require. Since I took this photo, I've cleaned the dirt from the tubers and have stowed them in the garage. |
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| I still haven't pulled out all my zinnias but I've already tucked several Lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum) into the bed in the foreground where Dahlia 'Enchantress' once stood |
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| I did clean out most of one raised bed, leaving just a few summer stragglers. I supplemented the soil with compost and planting mix and sowed sweet pea seeds last weekend. This week I soaked anemone tubers to plump them up before planting those as well. I expect to sow larkspur (Consolida ambigua) seed this coming weekend. |
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| I gave one of my large succulent pots a major rehab. I couldn't bring myself to throw the Dyckia out so I painstakingly pulled the plant apart and included 3 divisions in the rehabbed pot. We'll see if they survive the experience. |
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| Mangave 'Red Wing' now serves as the pot's centerpiece, surrounded by (clockwise from the upper right): the Dyckia divisions and Portulaca 'Cupcake Lavender', Rhipsalis (?) and Aeonium haworthii 'Kiwi' cuttings, Portulacaria afra (from the original pot), and 3 Echeveria agavoides. |
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| Other pots in the same area could use a refresh too but they'll have to wait their turn |
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| The window boxes attached to my lath (shade) house were also in need of a refresh and got one . I usually plant both with the same mix of materials but, as their sun exposure is different, I took a different tact with each this time. I left the existing Coprosma 'Inferno' in both but added Coleus (Plectranthus scuttellaroides) 'Redhead' and 'Wasabi' plus Calibrachoa 'Coral Kiss' to the first one and Ipomoea batatas and pansies to the second one. |
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| Yesterday I dug out all but the thyme edging of this bed. Asparagus fern (awful stuff!) has crept in from the bed across the way. I think I got at least most of it out but I probably need to tackle removal of the masses of it on the other side of the path if I'm to have any chance of keeping it out. I've no idea what to plant here as nothing I've tried thus far has done really well. The soil is on the sandy side despite the supplements I've added and the area gets partial shade. Any ideas? |
Meanwhile, a neighbor seems to be working on a project too. My husband and brother-in-law guessed it's a guest house but, as construction proceeds, it looks more and more like a gazebo to me.
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| What's your guess? |
Planting is usually best done during the cool season here (October through April) but our temperatures are stuck on the warm side at present with no sign of rain in the forecast. Like the remodel, I'm hoping for change on that front soon.
All material © 2012-2019 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
