The tall grasses are starting to dry out a little bit. Their everywhere-ness is a bit chaotic, but I like that. These are all native plants and this is what starts to happen in California about now.
It may be hard for you to discern the form of the buckeye in that picture. I'm very pleased with its trajectory so far. The branches extend away from the trunk, curving and bending, in interesting ways that I think will become more interesting with age. California buckeye can be maintained as a tall shrub, but people rarely do that instead letting it become a 30' tree. I plan to keep it much smaller.
On the left, the white anemone-type flowers of Carpenteria.
This is another native, and very fragrant. By mid-summer last year's leaves start to curl and die. Unfortunately, they will hang on forever, so I snip off each and every one by hand with pruners. I snip off all the leaves off the buckeye too. It sounds so laborious, but it doesn't take very long and it's absolutely worth it, imo.
There are three roses in my garden I was inspired to grow by reading garden blogs (all Southerners, as it happens). I got Rosa mutabilis from Annie in Austin and Rosa 'Moonlight' from fairegarden. I also have 'Veilchenblau' from Dirt Therapy. You can see it blooming in his garden in these posts.
I'm growing it on the railing of my back steps, along with a native grape. The railing provides opportunities to bend down the long canes to promote vigorous flowering.
The new roses look like this for a day or two,
The prominent yellow stamens fade leaving just the petals.
I've been generally unhappy with the companion planting in this bed. The one companion plant I've been happiest with is bronze fennel, so I added two more.
Underneath Mimulus aurantiacus has started to bloom.
Guy hated this Beschorneria on the front steps. I pulled out of its much larger pot there and put it back here, where I also like it much better.
I did not set out to have a jungle garden, but after adding so many plants from the tropical cloud forests to the back of my garden, I have a jungle anyway.
5 comments:
When you two retire to Kauai you will be mentally and visually prepared for a jungle garden.
word verify : preti
I wondered for a moment whether cutting the dead leaves off the buckeye and anemone would expose them to sunburn. Then I remembered that the sun hardly comes out in San Francisco. Lucky you!
Yes, your garden is indeed looking very tropical! Love the roses.
I love jungly gardens, which is one of the things that makes yours so appealing. And unlike my northern garden, yours stays jungly and interesting all year around.
I've lusted after Veilchenblau for some time, but am not sure I want to commit ever shrinking space to something that most likely only blooms once. I already have a rose that disappoints me that way.
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