White Snaps

I put in flat of white snapdragons in the Moonlight Garden early last fall so I would have some blooms during the holidays. They immediately went somewhat dormant and I thought they were a lost cause this year until this week when I went out and they were blooming profusely. I really like them because they add a sparkly vertical (albeit short vertical) element to the beds and the rabbits that are abundant here, don't seem to like the taste of them. The question is now should I add some more to enhance the ones that are already blooming for the upcoming garden tours next month or should I look for white annuals that will be happier in the warmer days of summer? Such decisions!

While It Lasts

I went through a period of a few years when I was enthralled with Japanese Maples. Who wouldn't be? They are beautiful and graceful and perfect to collect because of all the different varieties. Only one problem. They aren't really very happy here. They do look lovely, like this 'Waterfall' that is one of the few that I have left, but only for a few weeks in the spring when they first bud out. As summer starts and the gardens in Southern California become dependent on sprinklers to quench their thirst, the alkaline water turns the tips of these delicate leaves brown. Not pretty. I guess if you took the time to neutralize the water every time you watered they would do well, but that is just not going to happen in my garden. I've learned to just say no to temperamental plants like this no matter how lovely they are. I will enjoy this pretty little thing for a few more weeks and then just look the other way!

New Habits

Instead of always focusing on breaking bad habits, I try to focus on developing good habits. This year I am trying to remember to cut flowers from my gardens to enjoy inside. I am pretty good about making bouquets for friends, but you will rarely see bouquets in the house, which is a shame because there are many days that we don't make it out to the garden to enjoy what is blooming. So I decided on Tuesdays to be the day of the week that I will pick and arrange flowers first thing in the morning. The first arrangement goes on my nightstand (so far that is the only one that gets done every week) and is on the small side. It literally takes me all of five minutes as I arrange the flowers in my hand as I pick them and then grab a vase from a shelf on the way to the kitchen so you can see I really have no excuse for not doing this. I hope to get at least a couple done for the rest of the house next week. No excuses!

Blooming Ajuga

Check out the exuberant blooms on this 'Chocolate Chip' ajuga! It is a favorite little groundcover that I like to use for the dark burgundy (almost black) foliage that sets off nearby plants. Sometimes I even forget that it actually blooms.
But right now it is a show stealer along the flagstone path near the front door in SJC. Mounds and mounds of bright purple spires about six inches tall are intermingling with the other blue and pink spring blooms. At first I forgot what it was until I looked closer because you can barely see the foliage anymore! The combination of cool weather and lots of rain seems to be just what makes this plant happy. Or else it thought it was going to drown and sent up lots of blooms to make seeds in a survival mode. Either way, it works for me!

If I Had To Choose

I grow almost every kind of lavender available somewhere in my gardens. I love them all, but if I had to choose only one to grow it would most likely be Spanish Lavender. It blooms early in spring and puts on a colorful show for a good month or two. After a cut back it will bloom again, although not as intense, in the summer. The color is heavenly and the bees adore it. I just hope I never have to choose!

First Clematis of the Season

'Niobe'

Shrubbery Solutions

This was once a problem area in my Laguna garden that I never could get quit right. I was always using the formula that had served me well in other beds in the garden with a couple foundation plants and the rest perennials, bulbs and tuber plants, groundcovers and succulents. For years this large slope along the north fence never looked good with struggling perennials and it was always consumed with weeds. Wildlife burrowed in from the untamed wild area on the other side of the fence and ate or dug up almost everything. About seven years ago I attended a gardening lecture regarding using azaleas in the garden and it changed the way I thought about this space and I proceeded to fill it with larger scale plants. Shrubs, flax, ornamental grasses along with, of course, some azaleas and camellias eventually transformed what was once a problem into one of the most attractive and easy maintenance spots in the garden.. Greens, burgundy and splashes of reds and pinks in the spring make it a lovely, calm area. Not all groundcovers need to hug the ground!

The Early Roses

Not all roses get cut back and stripped every year in my gardens, and those that aren't show their appreciation by blooming early in the season. This Scotch Rose (rosa spinosissima) which is a climber starts it's once a year bloom in March before any of the other roses are open. It is an early sign of things to come that is much appreciated!

What Grows Under Eucalyptus

Well, in our garden, almost anything grows down in the eucalyptus grove. I have been told that nothing grows under these trees due to their pungent oils that supposedly infiltrate the soil when the leaves fall and decompose, but I think that is just a myth. If it is difficult to get things to grow there it is more likely the same issues that all big trees have, meaning that the deep shade and extensive roots that suck up all the water and nutrients are more likely to blame. We have a number of beautiful eucalyptus that we inherited in Laguna and when I ran out of space to grow things in the rest of the yard I started putting things in around them too. We used to spend a lot of time in hammocks during the summer down there and I looked forward to some ornament plants to spruce the place up. When I divided some clivias I put in a couple down there and they have been quite happy as you can see. I started sprinkling tall red fescue grass seed around once a year until it filled in and now it gets "mowed" with the weed whacker a few times a year and left to do it's own thing the rest of the time. The rains have been a welcome relief to this area and it shows with the deep colors in the shade. It is also the home to the whimsical Douglas Fey Gargler Birdhouses that we and the birds adore!

Riot of Avocado Blooms

Looking down from the deck in Laguna shows what looks like a million avocado blooms on our big tree! If you could hear this picture it would be a definite buzzing sound from all the bees hard at work gathering pollen. Avocados are self pollinating, meaning they have both male and female parts required to make seeds on the same plant. The interesting thing is that the male flowers are open for business in the morning and then close up and the female parts open in the afternoon! Isn't nature amazing!