Bloom Day

Whatever species of Arctotis this is, I don't know. It just started flowering for me a few days ago. My neighbor has this plant growing around his sidewalk tree and it's been blooming all winter.



Just the other day I was saying how nice it is to let the mustards bloom. As far as I'm concerned, all salad greens are welcome to naturalize in my garden. (Note: in the back on the left, Cineraria. It's the only one blooming right now, and this is the only picture I took of it.)



The fuzzy, light blue Ceanothus flowers, so vivid in real life, vanish in pictures. Too bad. This plant plays a major role in the garden right now, but it shuns photography.



In comparison, the low groundcover Omphalodes cappadocica is very forthcoming.



I have a variety of daffodils. I think most of them are done, but this kind, whatever it is, is still blooming in the meadow.



Delphinium cardinale has been blooming at full strength for months. But I don't like it, so I haven't taken it's picture but at this point it's made so much effort... I can't ignore it anymore. Thank you for blooming, Delphinium.



Fuchsia boliviana 'Alba' took winter off, but she's back now and planning to bloom until November.



Another fuchsia. This is Fuchsia splendens, who arrived in the garden late last year from a 4" pot after a long, inexplicable absence.



Since San Francisco is perfect for fuchsia, here's another one. 'Miep Aalhuizen', from the cross F. paniculata X F. venusta:



Another group of plants that does exceedingly well here are the tropical asters. This is Senecio cristobalensis. Alas, you grow it for the foliage, because it makes a flower only an insect could love.



This is the second-to-last time you'll have to look at the crimson-flowering fava this year. The tomatoes go here, but the tomatoes won't be ready by next month's Bloom Day, so you'll have to endure the fava for another month.



Everything else blooming is doing so in very limited quantities. Tiarella, heuchera, snowdrops, tibouchina.




Up on the roof we have tulips, but they are almost done, especially considering the blowing about they got in last Friday's storm. Well, they should have waited until April to bloom like normal tulips.





I'm giving Abutilon and Cobaea scandens the month off, even though they're both blooming. Hardenbergia is past her winter prime so I'm letting her go too, out of respect.

But if you head over to May Dreams, it's entirely possible you'll find a link to someone less respectful than I am. You might get that last look at Hardenbergia before it's all gone for 2010.

ADDED: Moraea villosa, just opened this morning. It's a moth that turned in to a flower.





And Tulipa bakeri.