Posted on by tonytomeo · 36 Comments

Six on Saturday: ROCK ON!

 

This might be the very first post in the history of Six on Saturday that lacks any plant material! There are certainly plenty of flowers blooming out there, but that was not what I was working with this week. The first two pictures were at a site where I was working earlier in the week. The other four pictures were at a larger landscape that is in the process of being renovated. Until this week, I had not seen much of the site, but heard about it daily. The work is behind schedule, so a whole bunch of us went to the site to help. Although we were very grateful for the help, and everyone was genuinely pleased to be of service, I can not help feeling guilty about my esteemed colleagues engaged in the unpleasantries of such dusty and dirty work, especially when they have so much of their own work to tend to.

1. The soil at the first job site is of exceptional quality, but is only about a foot deep! This now broken mudstone is what lurks below, but it is not broken down under. It is only broken in the picture because it needed to be pried up so that larger plants could go into the ground. It took all morning just to install a few #5 plants. The smaller #1 plants were planted much more easily on top of the mudstone.P806162. This sometimes happens when prying up mudstone.P80616+3. At the second and much larger landscape, the irrigation system and lighting needed to be installed before the rest of the landscape. There is now irrigation pipe and electrical conduit everywhere! It took some serious digging. Because so much excavation had already been done at the site for the installation of big wide walkways, much of the soil was being moved a second time. The soil is so loose and sandy that much of it needed to be dug a few more times from the ditches as the irrigation system was installed.P80616++4. A few big boulders were installed on the site. To avoid driving the heavy machinery on the new concrete, the boulders were installed early in the renovation process, before the new concrete was installed. Consequently, they were buried by the soil that came from all the ditches for the irrigation and lighting systems. They reappeared as the ditches were filled. I still do not understand the appeal of stone and boulders in landscapes. The mudstone that was encountered earlier in the week was not much fun.P80616+++5. Plant material has not yet been installed, so the landscape features only a few dogwood trees that were already there, and these few boulders scattered about in the dusty soil. It really is dusty! I cannot figure out why the dogwoods are so happy there. I can not figure out why the boulders are so happy either, . . . or if they are happy . . . or if they really care at all. I just do not know.P80616++++6. One of our soil science professors at school was emphatic about soil being ‘soil’. We were not allowed to refer to soil as ‘dirt’. Well, this soil happens to be better than it looks, and it is good enough for dogwoods, but it really is very dirty soil.P80616+++++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 · 20 Comments

Six on Saturday: Petunias

 

These were only recently planted, within the past few weeks, so are not completely filled in. That of course is unimportant for pictures of only the flowers close up. I have not grown petunias for many years, but I am getting to like these because they are so colorful in the sunnier spots. There are busy Lizzy in the shadier spots. (I can explain that later.) It is not easy to select a favorite. Although the white petunia should be my favorite, I really like how brightly colorful the first one ‘Dreams Sky Blue’ is on the side of the road. ‘Blue Madness’ and ‘Red Madness’, the second and third pictures, are so reminiscent of petunias that we grew many years ago, and might even be the same. The unknown petunia in the fifth picture is the only one here that I do not like much, and it did not work out as well as hoped anyway. It is planted in hanging pots, but does not cascade. That is why a few ‘Wave Lavender’ in the fourth picture were added in with them. The white petunia happens to be only one of a mix of various colors.

The first three were planted in beds at ground level. The fourth was planted both in an elevated planting bed, and added to hanging baskets with the fifth. The fifth was the first to be planted in the hanging baskets, but is not cascading as expected. The sixth, along with a variety of other colors, is in a few large planter boxes, so will hopefully cascade somewhat, but does not need to.

1. Dreams Sky BlueP80609
2. Midnight MadnessP80609+
3. Red MadnessP80609++
4. Wave LavenderP80609+++
5. This variety is unknownP80609++++
6. This variety is unknown and includes a mix of colors.P80609+++++
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: Rose Parade

 

There is way too much blooming for me to keep up with. Because I know there will be less blooming through summer, I get pictures while I can, even if I can not use them right away. Consequently, these pictures are not exactly from this last week. Some were from the second phase of bloom, and the first picture is from the first and only phase of bloom of a rose that blooms only once annually. I suppose I could have gotten pictures of the other five this last week, but I wanted to get them earlier than later, just in case they were between phases when I wanted to get the pictures.

Roses do very well here, and are even happier in the warmer and more arid weather of the Santa Clara Valley, just a few miles away. The Santa Clara Valley is one of the best places in the world for roses, which is why the Heritage Rose Garden is located there. Sadly, that collection is presently not in very good condition.

1. ‘Doctor Huey’ is the only cultivar of these six that I can positively identify. It has been the common understock for grafted roses longer than I can remember. Because it is only used as understock, it is not often seen blooming out in the garden. These are only blooming because the original scion died, and was replaced with sucker growth from below the graft. ‘Doctor Huey’ blooms profusely but only once in spring. It grows as a bramble, and can form small thickets if neglected long enough.P80602
2. Although not white, this pretty hybrid tea rose is probably my favorite of the six just because it is so perfect. I do not know the cultivar. It is not in the landscape, but is in the nursery, waiting to be installed into the landscape. Hybrid teas are the roses that I grew up with, so are my favorites.P80602+
3. I am not sure if this bicolored rose is a hybrid tea or a floribunda. I am guessing that it is a floribunda because there are groups of flowers blooming where I earlier deadhead the first phase of single blooms. It is out in the landscape, in the same garden with 4, 5 and 6 below. It is grown as a shrub. The others are grown as standard or tree roses.P80602++
4. This is my least favorite of the six because it looks like one of those trendy David Austin roses. The color is nice, but the form is weird. I will never understand fads. I know that hybrid tea roses were a trend or maybe even a fad at one time, but it was the trend that I grew up with, which is why they are what I compare all other roses to. This rose does not compare to them too well. It is grown as a standard or tree rose.P80602+++
5. This is also grown as a standard or tree rose, but in conjunction with 6 below. I mean that they are grafted together on the same trees. Individually, they are nicely formed roses with excellent color, but they look silly stuck together with the white roses. I could probably identify this rose if I wanted to, but I do not want to misidentify it. Except for the color, the rest of it grows just like ‘Iceberg’.P80602++++
6. This one looks just like ‘Iceberg’, and except for the color, grows just like 5 above, which it is grafted onto the same trees with (as I mentioned above). The white is perfect. If it were a hybrid tea, it would be my favorite of these six. I just prefer 2 above because it is such a perfectly formed rose on good stems.P80602+++++
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 · 14 Comments

Six on Saturday: Elderberry +

 

It is only coincidence that all of the bloom for today happens to be white. Again, these are old pictures, from two weeks ago or so. The mock orange, Philadelphus lewisii, and black locust, Robinia pseudoacacia, finished bloom a while ago. Both were very fragrant.

I wanted to get these pictures of the ‘Black Lace’ elderberry, Sambucus nigra ‘Black Lace’, and the native blue elderberry, Sambucus cerulea, in bloom, not because they are remarkably pretty, but for comparison. Their more recent bloom has been more impressive, with wider floral trusses. The blue elderberry is very common here, and because common black elderberry are uncommon here, it is our standard elderberry. ‘Black lace’ is only rarely available in nurseries, and grown primarily for the dark foliage and nice bloom. However, some mail order catalogs describe it at a productive fruit ‘tree’, as if it is comparable to other elderberries. It came here as an ornamental. Fruit would be an added bonus. I am very interested to see how it compares to the native blue elderberry, which is excellently productive, particularly if cultivated. It is ideal for award winning jelly, even if it does not win the blue ribbon: https://tonytomeo.wordpress.com/2017/10/01/blue-ribbon/

Elderberry bloom is useful as well, although we have not used it for anything here. I prefer to leave the bloom to make more fruit. However, because there are so many around here, we could easily get a significant volume of bloom without significantly compromising the availability of fruit later on. Bloom can be battered and fried like fritters, or used in beverages. I will leave that work to someone else.

1. ‘Black Lace’ elderberry bloomP80526
2. blue elderberry bloomP80526+
3. ‘Black Lace’ elderberry foliageP80526++
4. blue elderberry foliageP80526+++
5. mock orangeP80526++++
6. black locustP80526+++++
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 · 23 Comments

Six on Saturday: Rhody

 

Not the terrier!

These are six of the many rhododendrons that have been blooming in the landscape for a while now. Some of the pictures are a week or so old. I do not remember when I took them. The rhododendrons did well this year, and their bloom has been lasting quite nicely. I should be pruning them next week, but can not get started until they finish. Some are very big, and some are sloppily overgrown. As much as I enjoy them in this landscape, I miss working with them on the farm. I can remember delivering the smaller rhododendrons in this landscape several years ago. Some of the bigger specimens are about as old as I am. I think I recognize a few of them, but can only positively identify the one in the first picture. ‘Annah Kruschke’ is the most popular cultivar, not only because it is so reliable, but also because it is not too bothered too much by the arid climate of the Santa Clara Valley and other regions that are somewhat farther inland.

1. Annah Kruschke is not the best purple, but is the easiest to grow. The foliage is is very nice dark green and somewhat glossy. It has a nice stout form that does not get too sloppy. Thrip do not bother it too much.P80519
2. This one looks like Taurus, and is just as popular with thrip, but I can not positively identify it. Branch structure is not only open, but has gotten quite sloppy with age. These will be a challenge to prune back.P80519+
3. I will not even guess what this watermelon red rhododendron is. There are several of them here. Although the branch structure is somewhat open, it is not a sloppy mess.P80519++
4. This one looks more like a cultivar that belongs in the Northwest. It has a nice stout branch structure, and nice round trusses of bright pink bloom. Although happy here, these types are not so happy in chaparral climates.P80519+++
5. This is probably my favorite rhododendron here because it looks so much like one of my favorite whites, “Helen Schiffner’. I could do without the yellow blotches. The foliage and branch structure are somewhat shabby.P80519++++
6. Like #3, I will not even guess what this one is. Although I typically prefer plain white, I happen to like these sorts of flowers because the blackberry stains in each floret makes the white look whiter.P90519+++++
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 · 11 Comments

Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day May 15 – My Second (Yes, Another Sequel)

 

Just like in April, there is too much blooming here in the Santa Cruz Mountains above Los Gatos to easily select only a few pictures. Again, these pictures are from work instead of my home garden. We are in USDA Zone 9, on the coastal side of the Santa Cruz Mountains, which is significantly less arid than the chaparral climate of the Santa Clara Valley below the inland side.

In the process of selecting pictures, I omitted most of any flowers that I have used or will use for other articles, as well as the new warm season annuals that will be more prolific later in the season. However, I might feature chamomile soon, and will post several pictures of rhododendrons on Saturday morning.

Mock orange, Philadelphus lewisii, is finished blooming. I wanted to get this picture of it before it was completely gone. These flowers were in a shaded spot, so lasted a bit later than the others. They are extremely fragrant, and extremely white. They contrast nicely with their rich green foliage and the surrounding evergreens. This mock orange is the state flower of Idaho.5bd1Mock orange of a different flavor blooms sporadically and later. This one is Pittosporum tobira, or something like it. It happens to be a very old shrub, so might predate the modern garden variety, or might be a slightly different species. It does not look quite right, but I can not explain it in any manner that would interest anyone. It is fragrant too, but with heavier fragrance.5bd2Roses are finishing their first phase, but are already starting their next phase. Most of these are floribundas, which are not my favorite, but work very well here were they are so visible. Quantity is more important than quality here in this prominent spot. We want them to bloom more regularly than to make flowers for cutting, although some do happen to make nice stems.5bd3Clematis is still in the can because it was only recently purchased from a nursery to be added where others are not filling in on their trellis adequately. Vines are such a bother. Most are too aggressive and crush their trellises. Those that are not so aggressive do not fill in well enough. Clematis blooms nicely this time of year, but rarely does much more once summer gets warm.5bd4Peruvian lily or alstoemeria do quite well here, and are certainly happier than in the Santa Clara Valley a few miles away. There are three here. A pink one can be seen in the background. There is also a salmon pink one. All three are the sort that used to be grown for cut flowers, but are difficult to obtain now. Most garden varieties are lower and mounding with shorter stems.5bd5Chamomile can naturalize here, but this garden variety does not seem to seed so profusely. Actually, it does not seem to seed at all. I have not yet seen any feral chamomile. The foliage of this variety was bright yellowish chartreuse when it was new, and is now fading to light green. It blooms most of the time. By the time it gets too green, it can get cut back and start all over.5bd6Rhododendron is blooming all over. I took pictures of only this one flower because, as I mentioned earlier, I will post six more pictures of other rhododendrons on Saturday morning. I chose this particular flower because I also wanted to show how big the plant that produced it is. Other colors can be seen nearby. They are really happy here, even with minimal maintenance.5bd7This picture does not show off flowers as well as the rest of the pictures do, but shows how big the rhododendron tree is. Although it is not as broad as some of the others are, it is likely the tallest here. It is situated at least twelve feet below the bridge, and stands about twelve feet above it, so is at least twenty five feet tall! Even by my standards, it is a big rhododendron!5bd8Garden Bloggers all over America and in other countries can share what is blooming in their gardens on the fifteenth of each month on “Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day”, hosted by Carol Micheal’s May Dreams Garden at http://www.maydreamsgardens.com

Posted on by tonytomeo · 25 Comments

Six on Saturday: Tree Ring Circus

 

When a tree falls in a forest and there is no one around to hear, it makes a big noise, as well as a mess, and it leaves some if its root in the ground. If a redwood tree falls in a forest, and there is no one around to hear, it is probably better that way. It wold be dangerous to be too close to a redwood when it comes down! They are so big and tall, and are typically so crowded amongst other trees, that they bring down tons of debris with them.

Falling redwoods are rare. They live for centuries or thousands of years. Yet, sooner or later it happens. In more modern history, after the ecology of the redwood groves was disrupted by extensive harvesting, redwoods sometimes get killed by forest fires. (Redwoods are some of the few trees in California that survive forest fires by being fire retardant, but can be killed if enough of the more combustible trees around them burn hotly enough. Extensive harvesting allowed more of the other combustible trees to mix into redwood forests than would normally be there.)

The one thing that redwoods do even less frequently than fall is die. Even after they fall, burn to ‘death’ or get cut down, they regenerate from their stump or roots. Sometimes, several or many genetically identical new trees that are all attached to the same root system develop around a dying parent before it falls. They sometimes do so after a parent burns or gets cut down. Eventually, the original tree decays, leaving a circle of new trees around where it once was. Outsiders often refer to them as ‘fairy rings’. To us, they are just tree circles or rings. Larger and more impressive circles might be known as ‘chapels’ or better yet, ‘cathedrals’.

They are impressive features in the forests. When the area nearby gets landscaped, they are typically ignored because they are so excellent that they can not be improved. There are not many plants that live in the debris of redwoods anyway.

1. This is a nice small but crowded chapel where I work.P80512
2. How does such a chapel get landscaped? It doesn’t. Ours happens to have a nice patch of azaleas nearby. This picture was taken earlier. Bloom finished a while ago.P80512+
3. These azaleas are just so excellent that I had to get a better picture to show them off.P80512++
4. Forget-me-not happens to be one of those few plants that does not mind light redwood litter, so we often let it grow and bloom if it shows up in a good spot.P80512+++
5. Columbine just seems to look good with redwoods for some reason, but it dislikes the litter. This columbine is in a nearby planter that does not get much litter.P80512++++
6. I can not explain the red freesias that bloom earlier in spring. There are yellow and purple ones too. No one knows where they came from, but they do not seem to be bothered by a bit of redwood litter.P80512+++++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 · 27 Comments

Six on Saturday: Azaleas

 

There is just too much blooming this time of year to fit it all into one Saturday. These azaleas were blooming quite some time ago, and these pictures are at least a week old. Some might be almost two weeks old. I just could not use them last week because there were still camellias to show off.

1. What this one lacks in profusion, it compensates for with large flower size. We used to grow one that looked like this but perhaps with slightly richer color. It was known as ‘Phoenicia’. It was a bit too garish for my taste.P80505
2. These flowers are smaller, but seriously more profuse. In fact, they are so profuse that, like #4, #5 and #6, the foliage is barely visible behind so many flowers. It is garish too, but I rather like this particular flavor of color.P80505+
3. Okay, so they are not as profuse, but they are such an excellently bright red. It looks like ‘Ward’s Ruby’ to be, but I can not be certain. All these azaleas look so different in this landscape than in production on the farm.P80505++
4. Not much foliage could be seen through these glowing flowers. They are more profuse than they look. They just do not seem so profuse because they are not dense. I do not know which cultivar to compare this one to.P80505+++
5. ‘Coral Bells’ has very profuse and very densely arranged tiny flowers. They form a layer over the exterior of the plant. Although I would say that these are more pink than coral, this cultivar is unmistakably ‘Coral Bells’.P80505++++
6. ‘Fielders White’ is the best that I saved for last. They are perfectly white medium sized flowers that are profuse enough to almost obscure the foliage, but not so profuse that the perfect form of the flowers is obscured.P80505+++++
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 · 35 Comments

Six on Saturday: Camellias on Parade II – Another Sequel

 

The camellias are getting meager, but a few are STILL blooming, even a week after the camellias that were blooming so late last week! These pictures were taken at the same time as those for last Saturday. There were just too many to fit into six pictures. Last week, we had two light pink and four white camellias. These are the dark pink or red camellias. There are no pictures of sasanqua camellias, and we have no reticulata camellias.

1. This is probably the biggest of our camellias. I do not know the name of it or any of the camellias here, but I believe that this is one of the old classics that had been around for centuries, and was popular in the 1960s.P80428
2. If this big ruffled dark pink camellia looks like the last one, it just might be. It does not seem to be as deep red, but that might be a result of the exposure.P80428+
3. You know, I do not typically like this simple pink; and I do not typically like this floral form; but for some reason, I really like this simple pink camellia. It just looks so much like a camellia should look.P80428++
4. This floral form is more refined, but looks almost too perfect, as if the flower were assembled by robots on an assembly line.P80428+++
5. This one also seems to have been assembled, but is a bit friendlier. I happen to like such formality.P80428++++
6. Like #3, this one has an unavoidable appeal. It really looks like a camellia should look, although it also looks like it could use some Grecian Formula.P80428+++++
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 · 37 Comments

Six on Saturday: Camellias on Parade

 

The camellias are STILL blooming! They may not bloom profusely, but they have been blooming for quite a while. I do not know how many different cultivars are here, but there are more than I can fit into just six pictures. There are six more for next week, although two might be the same. They are the dark pink or red camellias. For this week, we have two light pink and four white camellias. I did not get any picture of the sasanqua camellias. I have not seen reticulata camellias or any other specie here.

1. This clear pink camellia is probably my least favorite of these six, only because it is a bit too casual for my taste.P80421
2. This clear pink camellia looks more refined. I really like this form.P80421+
3. Now we have white, my favorite color, but the bright yellow stamens in the middle make this casual camellia look like a fried egg.P80421++
4. I happen to prefer this fluffier white, with less prominent stamens.P80421+++
5. Wow! This one really looks yummy!P80421++++
6. Now my favorite; so simple, and so white, although, the camellia in the previous pictures actually looks yummier!4bd5
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/