On the last Friday of each month, Loree at
danger garden hosts a roll call of her favorite plants. I usually participate but I admit I'm having a hard time getting excited about my garden right now. In the midst of our second heatwave this month, I'm feeling disillusioned with its performance. When I go out there, I see dead things. I lost an
Agastache 'Summer Glow', my
Grevillea 'Bonfire', both of my
Philotheca myoporoides, most of my
Fuchsias (which I frankly had no business planting under current conditions), and 1 of my 3
Pittosporum 'Silver Magic', among other things. Additional plants seem to be hanging on by a thread. Of course, it's not all bad. The plants I raved about in my
Foliage Follow-up post earlier this month, are still looking great. But beyond those drought and heat tolerant stalwarts, I had to look more closely to find plants I could declare my favorites this August.
With that long-winded disclaimer, here are my August 2015 favorites:
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Agastache 'Sunset': Grown in partial shade, it responded well to being cut back by half shortly after I put it in the ground |
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Dorycnium hirsutum (aka hairy canary clover): It didn't produce more than a few blooms this year but its foliage is fabulous and it has self-seeded like crazy |
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Duranta erecta 'Sapphire Showers': It's spent its entire life (5 years thus far) in a pot but it has bloomed prolifically since I put it on a steady diet of graywater collected from the kitchen |
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Eustoma grandiflorum 'Echo Pink' and Yucca 'Bright Star': With apologies for the sun-drenched photo and the over-exposure both plants have received on my blog, the appeal of these plants can't be denied. The nearby Gaillardias are looking haggard but look at those Eustomas! |
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Gomphrena 'Itsy Bitsy': The heat seems to have coaxed the plant into full bloom. Its flowers, floating like satellites on wiry stems, are tiny but numerous. |
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Grevillea 'Superb': If my other Grevilleas bloom as well when they reach maturity, I'll be a happy camper. Summer heat or not, I just added 2 more of these plants to my garden after finding 1-gallon plants in a local garden center. |
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Lemon (no ID): I inherited this tree, sitting at the bottom of our back slope, with the house. It's ALWAYS laden with fruit. I seldom give it any supplemental water. It survives on our meager rain, run-off from the slope, and the graywater fed by our washing machine (a system we didn't know we had until the Yucca elephantipes was removed earlier this year). |
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Pennisetum advena 'Rubrum': The undisputed star of my late summer garden |
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Phyla nodiflora (aka Lippia): Its flowers are tiny (about 1/4 inch/6.35mm) but profuse and colorful |
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Salvia 'Amistad', S. lanceolata and S. 'Mesa Azure': I've had spotty luck with Salvias but these 3 appear happy in my dry soil |
It's supposed to begin cooling off beginning tomorrow and the marine layer is expected to return next week. There are no signs of fall yet that I can see or feel but the cooler temperatures will be welcome.
Visit Loree at danger garden to see what plants have found favor with her and other bloggers this month.
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© 2012-2015 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party