Most of what comes to recover in the nursery here was originally from the landscapes at work. Some needed to be removed because it was deteriorating. Some was obstructive to another project. Some of what is here grows from seed that was found in the landscapes. Several plants here came from more unusual and unexpected sources. A few plants grew from seed or cuttings that I found while out and about elsewhere, merely because I took interest in them. Such procurement would not be such a bad habit if more of such plants were actually useful to the landscapes here. Vines require too much maintenance. Cacti, palms and tropical foliage are not sufficiently compliant with the style of our landscapes.
1. Salvia elegans, pineapple sage is the most likely of this Six to be useful to landscapes at work. I grew cuttings from a stem that was obstructive to my use of an ATM machine.
2. Distictis riversii (or Distictis ‘Rivers’), royal trumpet vine grew from cuttings of a wiry and stray stem that encroached far enough into a public parking space to annoy Carson.
3. Washingtonia filifera, California fan palm, or desert fan palm, is the only palm that is native to California, but is rare locally. I took seed when I got the chance, but now what?
4. Musa basjoo, Japanese banana is one of four pups that I was quite pleased to acquire from an established specimen within a private garden. It now has three additional pups!
5. Opuntia microdasys, bunny ears cactus was originally a component of a prefabricated ‘terrarium’ of small tropical plants that need regular water. It was removed and left here.
6. Carnegiea gigantea, saguaro cactus arrived with assorted potted succulents that were left by a relocating neighbor family. Actually though, I have no idea what species this is.
This is the link for Six on Saturday, for anyone else who would like to participate: https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/2017/09/18/six-on-saturday-a-participant-guide/
Tony Tomeo 
A bit like a salvage yard for plants. I’m sure they all appreciate what you do for them.
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Well, I do not know. Most of them are expected to work for a living when they leave here. There will be an abundance of birch this winter. Some may go to Los Angeles, so may not be overly happy about that. Some could become firewood.
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sounds like you should be putting stuff on Craigslist, not getting stuff from it. At least you have destinations for some of it, I shred half of what I grow because I never should have grown it in the first place.
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Well, . . . yes. I suspect that I may find homes for some of the Canna next year, if the landscapes here can not accommodate them. There is so much space in the landscapes here, with more at home, but some things just do not fit the style.
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Thankfully, I don’t have that much access to homeless plants or my yard would be even more packed.
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Most of us practice some degree of restraint so that our gardens do not become crowded. Weirdly, my garden is quite bland and utilitarian, with minimal ornamental vegetation. All of this fancy flowery material is for work.
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I have no restraint, I’m sorry to say.
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Oh, there is no need to apologize for enjoying your garden. Lack of restraint is what makes the majority of home gardens more interesting than my utilitarian garden. Besides, you likely practice more restraint than you are aware of by limiting the quantity of plants that you grow, even if you grow many different types. I tend to grow entire crops of plants, as I would do on the farm. Rather than growing confined specimens of several or many cultivars of Canna, I grew enough of just three cultivars to surround an urban parcel this year! That was after most were given away, and does not include seven other cultivars that are also here, which I will grow more of next year. I suppose that eventually, I must accept that Craigslist goes both ways.
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I am always glad my problem is with plants and not cats. I keep a limit and only have one cat. 🙂
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Los Gatos is named after excessive cats, so they can not be all that bad.
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It’s so much fun going through the inventory and remember all the places plants came from. Often, they are gifted divisions or seedlings from friends, and I think of them with joy and gratitude when I admire the plants growing, despite my (often inconsistent and errant) care. LOL!
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Yes, and that is partly why I must limit new acquisitions. I grow the same rhubarb that my great grandfather gave to me before kindergarten. I also grow the same Iris pallida that I got from my great grandmother at about the same time. They are priorities within my garden, so can not get crowded by other material. I know that the Canna that I grow now will always be with me, so I must grow only a few of each for my own garden. We can accommodate so much more at work, but even that has its limits.
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