Surprise is a town northwest of Phoenix that I encountered between late April and early May. These six are different sorts of horticultural surprises which I encountered at work.
1. Platycerium bifurcatum, common staghorn fern, Tillandsia usneoides, Spanish moss and two other unidentified species of Tillandsia combined for a surprisingly compelling epiphytic platter. The staghorn fern is from Brent’s garden. The Spanish moss should be fuller as it grows. The two unidentified Tillandsia should be displaced as the fern grows.
2. Brugmansia X cubensis ‘Charles Grimaldi’ angel’s trumpet is no surprise. A picture of it posted here last Sunday. Its richer than typical yellow floral color is a surprise though. It is also from Brent’s garden, and was from one of his projects years ago. Brugmansia X candida ‘Double White’ and Brugmansia suaveolens ‘Single White’ both bloom nearby.
3. Brugmansia, angel’s trumpet of an unidentified cultivar demonstrates why the yellow floral color of ‘Charle’s Grimaldi’ is so surprising. Both were about the same pale peachy color last year, with the same fragrance. I thought that they may be the same. Obviously, but actually surprisingly, they are not. I do not know what it is, but I know what it is not.
4. Persicaria amplexicaulis ‘Firetail’ arrived here with Persicaria bistorta ‘Superba’ and perhaps Persicaria affinis ‘Dimity’ from Tangly Cottage Gardening early last April. I can not distinguish the cultivars, which is why I do not know if they include ‘Dimity’. It was a surprise to see ‘Superba’ bloom immediately after relocation. ‘Firetail’ is a surprise now.
5. Mimulus guttatus, seep monkey flower is blooming with surprising abundance where the stream from Redwood Springs flows into the drainage pond. The location should not be a surprise since, as its common name implies, this species prefers damp situations. It is surprising only because I somehow neglected to observe so much bright yellow earlier.
6. Rosa, rose of an unidentified cultivar would not be so surprising if I were not aware of how it got here. Someone who does not work in the landscapes removed it from where it was obstructing access to one of his projects. I saw it in his pickup as he was about to discard it. I am surprised that it survived, blooms well and seems to be a hybrid tea rose.
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 
The first photo looks almost prehistoric! Very atmospheric. What a great collection of plants on show.
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Yes, it is weird. That is one of the pleasures of working within public landscapes. We get to try oddities that I would not want within my own garden if we think that guest might find them to be appealing, or at least weirdly interesting. It is gratifying when they do.
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A Rescued Rose – how poetic and pretty!
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Much of what inhabits the landscapes at work is rescued or recycled from somewhere, or I grew it from bits that I ‘acquired’ from somewhere. We do not get much from nurseries.
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I love it. I would have done the same and rescued that rose; what a pretty flower. I am curious about the Staghorn Fern. I have neighbors who have these giant specimens attached to their oak trees, and they can produce seeds that go airborne and grow elsewhere. I think I might have two baby ones, one growing under a Sago Palm and the other at the base of another plant. Would you have any idea?
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Staghorn ferns, like all ferns, disperse spores. I have never seen any evidence of them doing so here because they do not grow from spores within the arid climate here. They may begin to grow, but then desiccate before they can get established. Regardless, I have never observed it. They could do so and survive within more humid climates that lack frost.
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Seep Monkey Flower? and I have weird plant names? You could be in Florida with the Tillandsia and Staghorn, major favorites around here.
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Well, that happens to be one of only a few weird names, although it is not as weird as sticky monkey flower, which is more common. Staghorn fern is not as popular here as it is in coastal Southern California because it can incur a bit of damage if the frost gets pronounced enough.
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Staghorn fern is well-named – I immediately knew which plant you were referring to! I had Persicaria Firetail in my last garden in the dry rockery and I really liked it. It formed a very large clump ithat flowered from June until the first frosts.
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These are my first Persicaria. I like how they are right at home on the edge of the drainage pond. I hope that they exclude weeds as they grow. If I relocate some to my own garden, I will separate them.
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I love the stagshorn fern with the Spanish moss. I have given up on Brugmansia, they always get destroyed by slugs, which surprises me as they are so toxic to humans. Your yellow one is a beauty.
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I had wanted to grow Spanish moss for a while, but was not aware that it was available at a nursery in town. Someone else got it for this epiphyte platter. I am pleased with it, and I hope that it grows enough to move bits of it around to other parts of the landscape. Brugmansia get munched by snails and slugs here also, but eventually get too big for the snails and slugs to damage too severely. Snails and slugs seem to bother them only while they are small and close to the ground, as if they can not climb very high up their trunks. The yellow cultivar is ‘Charles Grimaldi’ which is a copy from a big specimen in Brent’s garden, which was originally a spare from one of his landscapes.
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