I was initially at a loss for plants to feature in this month's foliage follow-up, sponsored by Pam at Digging. Then I looked out my home office window and found myself admiring the mimosa tree in our backyard,
Albizia julibrissin. It recently leafed out and, although it will be a 2-3 weeks before it flowers, I think it's at its prettiest right now. I admit that the tree has been a regular source of frustration for me since we bought our current house three and a half years ago. Its messiness is something I've complained about many times and I won't repeat myself here but, giving the devil his due, the tree does provide a dramatic backdrop in our backyard.
While the
Albizia makes a major statement in the garden, I find myself relying more and more heavily on succulents to add decorative touches. There are pots of succulents throughout the garden.
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| A new Aloe striata and an unidentified stacked Crassula in a pot on the main patio |
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| A collection of succulent pots on the southeast side patio |
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| I planted this birdbath with succulents a couple of months ago but I recently swapped out an ailing Aloe in the center for the Agave victoriae-reginae shown here - it and the Oscularia deltoides in front will fill in (eventually) |
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| The struggling Aloe deltoideodonta moved into this pot, which I hope will provide a more hospitable home |
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| This recent acquisition wasn't labeled but I think it may be Aloe variegata |
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| Echeveria pulvinata 'Ruby,' purchased at a succulent show in April, is happy in the partial shade alongside the dry garden |
I've also been planting more succulents in the ground in areas in which herbaceous plants and shrubs have failed to thrive. This started when, as I may have mentioned before, I placed pieces of an unidentified
Aeonium given to me by a friend in the hard-packed soil underneath our citrus trees for lack of a better idea as to what to do with them.
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| I've cut pieces of these plants for other areas of the garden dozens of times without any apparent harm to the source plants |
Later, at a loss for plants that could survive in the poor, fast draining soil of the sloped area beneath our
Ceanothus hedges, I tucked pieces of
Aeoniums in there too.
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| I'd estimate that these Aeonium, planted from a few single stems, have been in place about a year now, steadily multiplying |
After seeing an entire border of
Aeonium outside a design studio in Orange County, I think I may fill in the remaining space along the stacked rock wall under that hedge with
Aeonium.
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| New ground for additional Aeoniums |
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| This is the look I aim for (photo taken at a design studio adjacent to Laguna Nursery) |
If the drought continues here, as it's expected to do, I expect you'll see even more succulents in future foliage follow-up posts from me. Please
visit Pam at Digging for her foliage highlights and to connect to the contributions of other gardeners.
