After 4 inches of rain on Sunday, the sun reappeared on Monday, offering an opportunity to give the garden a thorough once over. With heavy rains at intervals over the past 2 months, the season-to-date rain total in my area is more than twice what we got during the entirety of the October 2015-September 2016 season. According to the
US Drought Portal, my area now is now classified as in "severe drought." Does that sound bad? Well, maybe it's not exactly great but it's MUCH better than the "exceptional drought" designation we had when our winter rainy season began in October.
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| I spied a rainbow peeking out below the exiting rain clouds earlier this week |
There are weeds popping up all over. (I had remarkably few issues with weeds last year - apparently, even weeds didn't like our drought.) But, in addition to weeds, California poppy seedlings are popping up in several locations, mere weeks after I complained about the difficulties I've had growing those flowers from seed. It also wasn't hard to find plants to get excited about for the monthly favorite plants post hosted by Loree at
danger garden. Instead I had to winnow my list down so as not to be obnoxious.
So here's what made this month's cut, starting in the back garden:
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| Agonis cognata 'Cousin Itt' probably gets more than it's fair share of attention in this blog but doesn't it look good here under the tree? Maybe I'm imagining things but I swear it grew a few inches in height in the past month. This mass is comprised of just 3 shrubs, all planted in fall 2012. I have plants in a few other areas but none have done quite as well as these. |
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| Directly opposite the Acacia on the other side of the flagstone path, Rosmarinus officinalis 'Gold Dust' is coming into its own. I planted 5 4-inch plants here in March 2014. Variegated leaves are responsible for the gold cast to its foliage. |
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| Agonis flexuosa 'Nana' is a dwarf version of the peppermint willow trees I have elsewhere in the garden. The foliage has the same light peppermint scent and new growth emerges in a pretty reddish-orange. The growth spurt visible here is attributable to the rain. I used 3 shrubs to screen the small patio on the south side of the garden, a job it's done effectively. |
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| This is Westringia fruticosa 'Morning Light' (aka coast rosemary). Like the Acacia and the Agonis, this plant hails from Australia. I planted 4 of these last year to add some sparkle to the backyard border. |
The steep upper section of the back slope still looks awful and now weeds punctuate the empty spaces between dead ivy and honeysuckle vines but there are some stars to be found in the lower section:
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| The 3 Ribes viburnifolium (aka Catalina Perfume), planted in 2011, are in full bloom. It isn't a flashy plant most of the year but it holds the slope and it tolerates dry shade conditions. The leaves are glossy now that they've been cleaned by the rain. |
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| This is one of 3 Pittosporum tenuifolium 'Silver Magic' we planted at the boundary line of the property after we took out the invasive Yucca elephantipes forest that had previously grown there. These plants, which are outside our irrigation zone, have struggled, in part because the massive Yucca roots continue to decay and the ground here has slowly sunken in response. However, this shrub looks as though it nearly doubled in breadth overnight in response to January's heavy rain. |
Out in the front garden, I found a couple more plants to crow about:
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| Agave impressa, a solitary growing species, bore the red stripes of a bad sunburn during the summer but it's a healthy green now, surrounded by Graptoveria 'Fred Ives' and other happy succulents. The raccoons have been digging in this bed, even through the gravel cover, but they haven't bothered the agaves. |
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| Rhodanthemum hosmariensis (aka Moroccan daisy) is producing loads of white flowers. Although I love daisies, I almost prefer the pretty buds that stand out against the silvery foliage. Formerly classified as Chrysanthemum and more recently reclassified as Pyrethropsis hosmariense, the former genus Rhodanthemum is what's still stuck in my head. |
Finally, although it already featured prominently in my January Bloom Day post, I have to mention
Leucadendron 'Wilson's Wonder' as January is its month to glow - literally.
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| I have 2 of these plants now. The first, shown at the top of this collage, is one of the few shrubs I brought with me from our old house, where it'd been confined in a pot. I put it in the ground in the front garden shortly after we moved in 6 years ago and it exploded in size. I haven't properly measured it but I'd guess it's about 6 feet tall and wide now. It's bracts turn red in summer but winter is all about the yellow cone flowers. I added a second shrub, shown on the lower right, in November 2014. |
I'll cut the list there this month but
visit Loree at danger garden to discover what she and other gardeners have pulled out of the hat during what's been a very difficult winter in many regions.
All material © 2012-2017 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
