Thursday morning garden

Thursday morning kitten.



I cut all the dead parts off the Scarlet Runner Bean vines, and then they made new growth. This is the peachy-flowering cv. 'Sunset'.



The beans didn't taste as good as the red-flowering 'Scarlet Emperor' that I grew last year. In her book Golden Gate Gardening, Pam Peirce says beans from the ornamental cultivars don't taste as good as those from cvs bred for food. I'm kind of torn about whether to take these out and put the 'Scarlet Emperor' back in. 'Scarlet Emperor' flowered more than this one did, too.



The cold winter rains forecast for the weekend and next week should put an end to the lingering grape leaves.





It's finally time to take out the tomatoes. I'm just going to grow herbs where the remaining two tomato plants are. I bought a little Salvia officinalis and a lemony Aloysia sp. (not really an herb but good for tea and baths). The oregano and perennial basil hybrid Ocimum 'African Blue' are ready to welcome the new arrivals.

Artichoke is perennial.



There's bulb foliage coming up everywhere. This is Arum dioscoridis, from Telos. Should be interesting.



This Dracaena marginata used to be a houseplant, but the kittens would knock it over when they tried to climb it to play with those pointy leaves. That was annoying, so I carried it down to the garden several months ago. Not sure what to do with it. Not sure how hardy it is.



Also in that family, this Beschorneria would look awesome with Flickr contact Cazadero Garden's beet red cordylline 'Festival Grass' if I can find it.



It won't catch a frost here, under the deck, but it will get cold. Kind of tempted to top it and see if it will grow multiple trunks.

Several days ago, before my camera came, the passionflower 'Victoria' had several flowers on it all at the same time. That almost never happens. Of course, now that the camera is here, we're back to one flower at a time.



This is one of my favorite views in the garden. As you can see, I still have the compost bin. Guy hated the use-it-to-grow-potatoes idea. I didn't really like that idea either.



Instead, I'm trying potatoes in a contraption I rigged together from two wire baskets, one inverted inside another. I plan to mount compost on top of it all winter long as the vines grow and make more potatoes. When I'm ready to harvest, I'll just rake away the compost and lift the basket. Or something like that.



The cuphea under the tree fern is a real trooper.



Frances, your abutilon gifts are doing well.



Two of them have new growth.



The third one that I cut back to the crown hasn't re-sprouted yet, but I think it will.

Some years ago I bought a hellebore. It was a real mistake and I haven't been able to get rid of it since. Every year, I try to reach in to the ground and rip it out, but it's an awkard angle and I can never get all of it.



The garden is a montonous green right now, besides the grape leaves and the silvery wood of the buckeye. This Calif. native drops leaves in the summer to avoid our long drought.



I pass one on the way to work that's already leafing out.

The three buckwheat seedlings I planted out recently are doing well. Good to have them installed before the winter rains. They any resent any summer water so they have to get established now.



I will be beside myself if the chapparal currant (Ribes malvaceum) doesn't flower this year.



Seems like I should see flower buds forming by now, but I see none. I will be hard pressed to keep this plant if it doesn't flower. Maybe I added too much soil amendment here once upon a time. How long do I have pay for that?

The garden is ridiculously monochrome green right now, but even more so in these pictures than in real life. This Cantua buxifolia tho'... totally green. Green, green.



I'll wipe clean the witch ball in April or May when the rains are done, done.