Gardening is full of surprises. These are a few that I noticed last Thursday. I could have found more surprises, but that would have been more than six.

1. Jasminum humile, yellow jasmine is a real dud. It does not bloom nearly as profusely as I expected it to. Upon closer inspection, though, the flowers are surprisingly fragrant.

2. Lobelia erinus, lobelia self sowed and grew amongst weeds. However, no lobelia grew in the surrounding landscapes. The source of the seed is a mystery. What a nice surprise.

3. Digitalis purpurea, foxglove blooms either white or bright pink. Occasionally, lighter pink blooms are observed. This feral specimen, though, is surprisingly light peachy pink.

4. Aquilegia canadensis, columbine refuses to grow well where we plant it, but manages to bloom enough to toss seed to grow where it wants to. It should be no surprise but it is.

5. Dianthus caryophyllus, carnation was planted as a cool season annual a few years ago but has been retained, and surprisingly lives as a perennial as annuals change around it.

6. Camellia japonica, camellia bloomed well through winter, and then seemed to finish, just before surprising us with this last errant bloom. This is my favorite of the camellias.

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/

21 thoughts on “Six on Saturday: Surprise! III”

  1. All wonderful, and even more so when unexpected! Aquilegias are one of those plants that will only grow where THEY want… I have been pulling red ones out of my white and blue Moon Bed that were never planted there!

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  3. Every now and then I find the foxglove, which is native here, blooming away in a country road’s ditch or an unmowed field. Even there, they’re quite a surprise, and just wonderful to see.

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    1. It is naturalized and grows wild on the coast of Oregon north of here, but I never see feral specimens blooming peachy pink. They are all either white or bright pink. Do you notice any variation of color?

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    1. I have no idea what cultivar the camellia is. It could be ‘Miss Universe’, but that name is unfamiliar to me. I like to think of it as ‘Purity’, but sometimes, the flowers seem a bit larger than they should be for that cultivar.

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  7. So nice to have surprises in the garden. The lobelia looks like it’s definitely a welcome one.

    I love foxgloves! Have been trying to grow some from seed this year, but of course, they will only flower next year if they survive.

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    1. Unfortunately, the lobelia will be pulled with the weeds because it can not be separated from them. It was fun while it lasted. The foxglove gets to stay because it is easier to separate. I do not remember seeing them last year, but they must have been growing then to be blooming now.

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