My ongoing effort to scout local garden centers for plants to fill various vacancies in my garden reached an impasse this week as I discovered that the Christmas tree takeover I described in last Friday's post was already well underway. While cut trees haven't actually arrived yet, landscape plants have already been cleared to make way for them. I visited two more garden centers this week and came home almost empty-handed.
A friend and I visited Roger's Gardens in Corona del Mar on Wednesday and encountered the signs of the impending Christmas holiday at every turn.
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| The demonstration bed near the front entrance has been replanted to show off the toy trains that make their appearance every winter |
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| There were holiday ornaments big and small scattered throughout the grounds |
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| Although the cut trees haven't arrived yet, artificial trees had been decked out. This one had a nautical theme. |
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| These are just some of the ornaments the nautical tree featured |
That's not to say that there weren't any garden plants available. There were plants that grabbed my attention, just not the wide variety I'd have liked to have found.
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| Overview of the front section of the plant sale area |
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Top row: a wood container with begonias, Peperomia and succulents and an interesting hanging planter
Second row: Two versions of Kokedama
Third row: pocket planters |
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| California natives and succulents were on sale for 25% off |
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| Left to right: The same Furcraeas species I saw at Deep Roots last week, the best-looking Hebe 'Quicksilver' I've ever seen, and Pilea involucrata |
I didn't go home entirely empty-handed. I'm not sure I ever have on a trip to Roger's.
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| Clockwise from the upper left: Graptosedum 'Vera Higgins', Peperomia 'Funky Frog', Pyrrosia lingua 'Variegata', and Salvia discolor. I also brought home an Amaryllis (Hippeastrum) bulb and a gift for a friend I won't be showing off here. |
My trip to International Garden Center in El Segundo following a dental appointment the next day wasn't as fruitful. It didn't help that our temperature jumped from the low 70sF on Wednesday past 90F (32C) that afternoon, making plant shopping much less enjoyable.
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| At least this display near the front entrance acknowledged Veteran's Day amidst the Christmas holiday trappings |
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| I was also tickled to see this Gomphocarpus physocarpus in full splendor when I entered. Also know as family jewels and hairy balls milkweed, I didn't see any smaller specimens of this milkweed but this large plant was impressive. |
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| If I ever have to replace our fountain, I'll check out International for a replacement |
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| If it hadn't been so hot, I might have brought home a few of the Argyranthemum 'Aramis Pink Bi-color' on the upper left or the Calibrachoa 'Evening Star' on the lower right. Brunnera (upper right), beautiful as it is, wouldn't survive long in my garden and regrettably there's no pond in my future for water lilies (lower left) |
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| There were lots of succulents. I was surprised to see the Aloe 'Safari Sunset' (bottom, middle) in full bloom. I was intrigued by the Kalanchoe bracteata (silver teaspoons, bottom left). |
I'd hoped to see the garden's chickens but they were nowhere to be found, although I did find turtles.
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| I wondered if the netting above the turtles was intended to protect them or to keep them corralled |
The large area that generally holds perennials and shrubs had been cleared and strings of lights were going up, indicating that the preparations to receive Christmas trees were well underway.
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| Signs of the looming Christmas holiday |
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| The poinsettias almost glowed. I was very taken by the peachy-yellow ones. |
Although there were a few things that tempted me, the heat dissuaded me from buying anything. I also scrapped my plan to visit another garden center in Marina Del Rey, throwing in the towel on my plant search for the time being. The hot weather is expected to stretch through the weekend with no rain in the foreseeable future for Southern California so I'll focus on maintenance and keeping what I've already planted alive.
Best wishes for a pleasant weekend.
All material © 2012-2021 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
