New plants, garden chores & rabbits

I aim to avoid planting anything new during SoCal's "warm season" but I seldom succeed in stopping altogether.  I cut myself some slack when it comes to succulents as most of them handle summer's soaring temperatures and dry soil better than other plants.  As the last few weeks have been relatively cool here, it's also easier to bend my self-imposed rule.  Our morning marine layer has remained intact.  Although it generally clears before noon, the clouds keep the afternoon heat at bay.  Thus far, our temperatures haven't strayed much above a comfortable 72F (22C), however, the temperature this morning suggests a break in the trend.

I haven't gone crazy but I've added a few plants this week.

A friend gave me 2 bulbils still attached to a piece of the flower stalk produced by one of her Mangaves, recently identified as 'Catch a Wave'.  It was growing in shade in a pot and produced a stalk nearly 6 feet tall.  I planted one bulbil in a small pot and one directly in the ground.

My local botanic garden's plant stand  is now well stocked with leftovers from the garden's spring plant sale.  I picked up an unlabeled Aloe, which looks to be the same hybrid I bought year's ago at another sale (shown on the lower right).  If I'm right about that, it's Aloe vanbalenii x striata.  Mine original plant also turns orange with sun exposure during the summer months.

I tweaked the succulent bed on the west side of our garage as I'm still unsatisfied with it.  The small succulent planter I'd had in front was blocking water to the plants behind it so I moved it.  I planted an Agave 'Mr Ripple' pup I had in reserve in its place.  I also replaced some unhappy succulents with Echeveria agavoides, which have generally done well here.

I'm hoping 'Mr Ripple' (left) bulks up now that its roots are in the ground.  I added 3 Echeveria agavoides 'Red Tips' (shown upper right) and plan to get more to create a mass in that area.  I added 6 Echeveria agavoides 'Gilva' in another section (shown lower right).

The Agave 'Mr Ripple' on the left is the parent of the pup I just planted.  The succulent planter on the right is the one I moved to another spot on the west side of the garage.

It's already too warm and dry for the ox-eye daisies (Leucanthemum vulgare) I planted in one backyard border last fall.  Those that haven't already died back look terrible so I'm trying out Helianthemum 'The Bride' as an alternative groundcover.  It's supposed to grow only 6-8 inches tall with a spread of 2-3 feet.

I continued pruning shrubs that recently finished their bloom cycles.

Echium candicans 'Star of Madeira' has been in place in this spot since December 2014, which makes it old by the standard for this species.  It's getting increasingly tall and woody and, as it doesn't take well to hard pruning, I take only the growing tips off. My guess is that I'll need to replace it in another year.

The 'Star of Madeira' sits atop a moderate slope at the front of the garden so pruning it is something of a challenge but I managed without breaking my neck.  I cut it back further in front as it had been covering up some of my favorite Agaves, as well as Aloe laworana (shown on the right).

I left some of the Echium's debris in place a this seems to be a favorite hang-out for this dove

I also pruned my second Echium webbii on the back slope.  The Centranthus ruber below the lemon tree needs to be deadheaded as well but I had yet another unfortunate encounter with fire ants while working there so I've put that off.

I was nervous about pruning the Leucospermums but read that they can be cut back as long as 4 sets of leaves remain on the stem.  I took that advice and cut back both 'Goldie' and 'Sunrise' after the last of their flowers dropped.

Leucospermum 'Royal Hawaiian Brandi' has barer stems so I was more cautious when pruning it.  I was treated to a butterfly sighting while work was in process.

After previously taking a casual approach to rabbits in my garden, this year has shown me what a blasted pain in the neck they can be.  During the first seven years here, I never saw a single rabbit.  They made their first appearance three years ago but during the first two years they disappeared in early spring, presumably as a result of activity on the part of coyotes and other predators.  This year, our little ecosystem is completely out of sync and a whole extended family of bunnies appears to have taken up residence.  In the past, any movement I noticed out of the corner of my eye was usually due to the presence of a lizard or a bird but I'm now encountering bunnies at every turn.  I've learned that they're voracious and seemingly willing to taste-test every plant I've got at least once.

This one let me get within 2 feet of him before he sprinted off

My husband made me cages to protect the plants the rabbits have taken a particular shine to.  I've deployed close to a dozen of these already.

The good news is that the plant cages are effective in keeping the rabbits out and my husband prepared extras to be called into service as needed.  That's a good thing, especially as I have a small mail order plant delivery pending.  A friend gave me a few plants as birthday gifts late last month that I still need to get in the ground too.

Best wishes for a peaceful, pest-free weekend.

All material © 2012-2022by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party