Posted on by tonytomeo

Winter Flowers May Be Scarce

Not many flowers bloom for winter.

Evergreen foliage and berries are now popular for home decor for a primary reason. Not many winter flowers are blooming and available for cutting and bringing in. Most flowers prefer to bloom while more pollinators are more active. Not many pollinators are out and about while weather is cool through winter. Consequently, winter flowers may be scarce.

However, they are not actually as scarce as they seem to be. Some winter flowers bloom without drawing attention to themselves. They do not need to if they rely on wind for their pollination. Colorful flowers are colorful only to attract pollinators. For example, redwood is blooming quite privately about now. It produces no prominently colorful flowers to see.

Some winter flowers do not actually intend to bloom in winter. They are merely confused by the local climates. For example, African daisy blooms whenever the weather is warm. It does not know to stop blooming for winter here because the weather is not overly cold. Cala are tropicals, so have no concept of winter. They should not bloom, but might try to.

Camellias are some of the most familiar and popular winter flowers. Sasanqua camellias bloom before common camellias. Different cultivars of each type bloom at different times. The latest sasanqua camellias might actually bloom after the earliest common camellias. Sasanqua camellias bloom more abundantly. Common camellias provide larger flowers.

Although most salvia bloom during warmer weather, a few bloom sporadically for winter. Autumn sage seems to never be completely without bloom. Meanwhile, cultivars of witch hazel bloom curiously on bare stems. So does winter jasmine, but only in yellow. Oregon grape can bloom impressively within cooler climates. It is evergreen and blooms yellow.

Many of the better winter flowers are cool season annuals, which are no good for cutting. These comprise pansy, viola, cyclamen, dianthus, snapdragon, nemesia and primroses. Stock is exceptional, because it can be cut and brought inside and is splendidly fragrant. Ornamental kale and ornamental cabbage are foliar plants that present like wide flowers.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 6 Comments

Six on Saturday: More Unseasonal Azaleas

Half of these blooms are right on time. The other half are azaleas that really should wait until spring to bloom. I hope that some refrain from blooming now to bloom in season.

1. Osmanthus fragrans, sweet osmanthus may not be much to look at, but is exquisitely fragrant. I believe that the current cool and humid weather enhances its floral fragrance.

2. Viburnum tinus, laurustinus, which is not typically very fragrant, likewise seems to be more fragrant with cool and humid weather. This one blooms white without pink blush.

3. Osteospermum ecklonis, African daisy blooms significantly less while weather is cool, but seems to never be completely without bloom. This one blooms with a billowy center.

4. Rhododendron spp., azalea should not be blooming now. Flowers that bloom now will be finished and unavailable to bloom in spring. I believe that this cultivar is ‘Coral Bells’.

5. Rhododendron spp., azalea, which is likely ‘Fielder’s White’, is blooming prematurely also. If I remember correctly, it typically does this, but somehow blooms for spring also.

6. Rhododendron spp., azalea with double bloom is probably a recycled florist specimen. I have no idea what cultivar it is. It certainly is colorful. I hope it saves bloom for spring.

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/

Posted on by tonytomeo · 16 Comments

Six on Saturday: Common Color

As bloom of most other plants decelerates for late autumn and winter, the floral color of common annuals becomes more prominent in the landscapes at work.

1. Viola X wittrockiana, viola blooms with smaller but more profuse flowers than pansy. I am not certain if they are the same species. Also, most of the flowers face one direction.

2. Viola X wittrockiana, pansy blooms with bigger but less profuse flowers which mostly face random directions. We got only two six packs to add to other flowers in a small bed.

3. Viola X wittrockiana, pansy is redundant to the picture above, but is a different color. The plants are so dinky that they are scarcely visible behind their relatively wide flowers.

4. Bellis perennis, English daisy ranges in color from this rosy red to white like the color scheme of candy canes. I am fond of it because it is not so overly bred like other annuals.

5. Cyclamen persicum, florist’s or Persian cyclamen is cheapened as an annual. I used to grow mine as cool season perennials. I also grew colors other than simple red and white.

6. Rhody was unconcerned with these common annuals as he surveyed his domain early last Monday, while I burned forest green waste. He is not overly horticulturally oriented.

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/

Posted on by tonytomeo · 8 Comments

Six on Saturday: More Late Bloom

Flowers are starting to succumb to cool and rainy weather. So, it is beginning to look like autumn here. Summer is truly over.

1. Pelargonium X hortorum, zonal geranium is finally starting to look somewhat shabby after the recent rains, although several others continue to bloom as if nothing happened.

2. Rosa spp. ‘Iceberg’ rose is probably the last rose to bloom for the season. A few young floral buds are molding before they bloom. The roses get pruned before New Year’s Day.

3. Tagetes patula, French marigold is more seasonable. It is expected to bloom through autumn, and could continue until replacement with warm season annuals during spring.

4. Abutilon X hybridum, flowering maple does not seem to know when to stop blooming for autumn. Its bloom should probably decelerate now that the weather is getting cooler.

5. Rhododendron spp., azalea is even more confused than the ‘Duc de Rohan’ azalea that bloomed not so long ago. It is blooming more abundantly and even later, or not so early.

6. Rhody curls up somewhat tighter while the weather is cool. His fur should get fuzzier, but does not seem to be doing so. He insists on coming to work with me, out in the cold.

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/

Posted on by tonytomeo · 2 Comments

‘The Wise Old Owl’

Filoli

(This article is several years old, so contains outdated information.)

The sixteen acres of gardens of Filoli are spectacular and horticulturally compelling throughout the year. However, the weather through winter, although more pleasant than other places in the world, is not always quite so compelling or conducive to garden tours. At Filoli though, this is not a problem. More than six hundred volunteers and the Filoli staff merely bring the outdoors indoors, by selecting materials from the garden to adorn the interior of the 36,000 square foot Filoli residence for ‘The Wise Old Owl’, the annual fund raising Holiday Traditions Boutique.

While perusing The Wise Old Owl merchandise, guests can enjoy how so much more than flowers can be brought in from the garden to deck out the home. Bare stems, gnarly limbs, evergreen foliage, pine cones, bark and all sorts of bits and pieces of the autumn and winter garden demonstrate the potential for alternatives to traditional cut flowers that we may not even recognize as useful materials in our own gardens. Of course, there will be no shortage of the less abundant flowers that bloom through the season and decoration that are not out of the garden, as well as live music to enhance the display. Regardless of horticultural interest or boutique merchandise, the grand residence at Filoli is worth visiting even on the least eventful day of the year.

There are too many events within the Event to describe here. Guests can visit http://www.filoli.org to plan ahead and make reservations for buffet lunches and evening bistro dining, as well as an elegant Saturday Evening Dinner Party with dancing in the Ballroom. Children six to twelve years of age can enjoy a Children’s Tea on the finale of The Wise Old Owl on December 3.

The Wise Old Owl begins in only a few days on November 25, and continues through December 3. The hours of operation and admission are variable relative to the various events throughout the main Event. Reservations for specific events can be arranged and more information can be found online

Tickets can be purchased online, by fax or by telephoning Filoli weekdays between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. At 650 – 364 8300 X 508. Order forms for fax transactions can be downloaded from the website and sent to 650 – 503 2090. Admission is limited; and tickets get exhausted somewhat early. Tickets are neither refundable nor exchangeable. Filoli is located at 86 Canada Road in Woodside (94062).