The Big Camillias

Although camellia blooms do not like rain (they turn brown at the slightest dampness), apparently they do like it when it soaks the ground before they bloom because this year my white camellias are bigger than I have ever seen them! It is hard to tell from this photo, but I would say they are about a third bigger than the previous years on the same plant. I do fertilize them with organic acidic fertilizer once a year after they bloom, but the only thing that would be different in their care is the heavy rains we have had all fall and winter while the buds were forming. They do make great cut flowers for this time of year when the pickings are sparse and I usually float them in low bowls of water. This is the time of year to plant them and the weather is lovely this week so I may just add one or two new shrubs to the garden!

Wicked Weeding

Q: How do you weed a bed of blue agaves?
A: With a very long-handled hoe!

The Thanksgiving Tree

See that scraggly looking liquidamber tree in the middle of the window? That is my Thanksgiving tree. I love these trees, also called sweet gum, for many reasons. They have beautiful bright green leaves all summer, gorgeous color in the fall and lose all their leaves to let the sun in during the winter months. They do have spiky seed armatures that can be a nuisance if they are planted near sitting areas or places where kids run barefoot, but they have never been a problem for the three trees that I have planted in the Laguna garden. I chose this spot to plant it so that during the Thanksgiving holiday when you look out that large dining room window you will see the fall colors. There are quite a few of these trees in our SJC neighborhood and a lot on our street giving the whole area a distinct "fall" feeling as the leaves turn various colors based on the hybrid that is planted. Some are yellow, some red, some orange and there is even one a few blocks away that I swear must be grafted three different hybrids on one tree because it has different colored sections. And yes, it does drop its leaves which I am looking forward to for some good old leaf mulch!

The First Grapefruit

I have a lot of fruit trees in my gardens, but I must confess that they are pretty much on their own. Other than fertilizing them I do little else to pamper them as I probably should. There is no fancy pruning or dormant sprays. They grow and I must confess that most of the fruit goes to the wildlife which is fine with me. We do harvest lots of citrus though (they seem to tolerate my neglect better than most fruit trees) and I planted my first grapefruit tree last year. There are a few grapefruits growing on it already although it is still small and I am keeping my eye on them because I am looking forward to my own garden grown grapefruits in the summer!

Happy (Damp) Campers

So what is loving all this wet weather?

Ferns!



Mosses!


Ligularia!

Cold Weather Means More Color...

...at least as far as these 'flapjack' succulents go! They are normally green with a touch of red around the edges but with the chilly nights we have been having they have taken on a distinctive red hue. Funny thing is last summer I saw some at a nursery that were much more red than mine and I almost got them because of the color. Now I wonder if they had just been in a chilly greenhouse!

On The Green Side of Things

What are the advantages of a year's worth of rain in two weeks? The hills around us are a beautiful shade of green and will likely stay that way until spring when they turn into yellow fields of wild mustard and then dry up in the summer.

The Candelabra Effect

I have seen aeoniums flower before, the yellow blooms of 'Zwartkop' are quite common in my Laguna garden. I must say though that this is a rather unique display for me. This unnamed variety that grows in my street side garden in SJC has taken on a somewhat "candelabra" look with each of the six offshoots as well as the center sporting a tall blossom stalk. This is a taller aeonium than I usually grow in the garden. I like them flat and close to the ground and cut them before they typically get this height, but it is growing amongst a stand of scented geraniums and I let it grow taller to compete for the center stage I guess. It is definitely stealing the show right now!

Mud

After weeks of not getting out into the garden I ventured out this morning to see what this weather trend has brought us. In a word - mud! The compost that was added last fall has become mud. The mulch that was used to tidy up the soil and insulate the roots this winter - mud! Even some of the shallow rooted ground covers that were living in lower spots have become mud. Not really much you can do to alleviate this problem but wait it out and pray for sunshine. Please excuse me while I get on my knees!

The Rain

It has been a while since I have posted on this blog, mainly due to being busy with holidays, visitors and even a brief vacation, but there really wasn't too much to say except it has been very, very wet!

I am always being asked about how all this rain will effect the garden and I must say that we are just going to have to wait and see. Of course we have had wet winters while I have had my Laguna garden and other than a few small slides in some of the sloped beds, the excess water just runs off down the hillside eventually making its way to the bottom of the canyon and on into the ocean. It is an established garden and the deep roots keep most of the soil in place. It is another story in SJC where the property has been terraced to create flat areas that do not drain well with this much water. Of course most of the plants that are drought tolerant have roots that tend to rot with too much rain in the summer when they are dormant, I'm just not sure if they will be able to handle the wet during the winter when it is this much. I had already cut back many of the woody shrubs and perennials and I'm afraid that may have put them in peril due to not enough foliage to try to transpire away some of the moisture. But like I said, we will just have to wait and see!