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Six on Saturday: Just A Few Flowers

It is difficult to select only six flowers from the many blooming at this time of year.

1. Morea bicolor, yellow African iris is not very yellow. It is an impressively resilient and reliable perennial, though, and is quite easy to propagate. It really deserves more credit.

2. Morea iridioides, African iris is at least as resilient, reliable and easy to propagate, so is therefore very common. Whenever we have use for more, we simply split big colonies.

3. Canna X generalis ‘Mango’ canna performs very well and proliferates very efficiently. It begins its bloom before any other canna here. I just am not so keen on its floral color.

4. Echinops ritro, globe thistle looks like an Allium in this closeup picture. You might be able to guess where it is from. It is the first that I have grown since the summer of 1986.

5. Crinum bulbispermum, Orange River lily typically does not bloom quite like this. The florets should have darker pink or red centers. Could this be another species of Crinum?

6. Hemerocallis fulva ‘Flore Pleno’ daylily has been growing like a weed. We relocated a few only a few years ago, and must already relocate some of their now crowded progeny.

Anyone who would like to participate in this meme should peruse this participant guide for Six on Saturday.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 11 Comments

Six on Saturday: Foliar Closeups

All six here this week are foliar, without flowers. I suppose that floral subjects would be more appropriate for June; so, perhaps next week.

1. Ilex aquifolium, English holly certainly looks vicious up close. It grows wild from seed in the landscapes. I canned several as if we might find a use for them, which is unlikely.

2. Abies grandis, grand fir was collected from the wild near Smith River. A few are now canned here, although we have no idea what to do with them. They are such grand trees.

3. Picea sitchensis, Sitka spruce came with the grand fir from near Smith River. It is also difficult or impossible to accommodate in the landscapes here. Collection is a bad habit.

4. Heliconia psittacorum, parakeet flower is considerably more useful than the previous three. For now, though, it remains canned on a silly shelf outside my bedroom window.

5. Saccharum officinarum ‘Pele’s Smoke’ sugarcane came with the parakeet flower from Brent’s garden in Los Angeles. It is almost too easy to propagate, so we have quite a few.

6. Saccharum officinarum ‘Purple Ribbon’ sugarcane is an old heirloom cultivar. It was acquired after ‘Pele’s Smoke’, but already has as much potential to propagate too easily.

Anyone who would like to participate in this meme should peruse this participant guide for Six on Saturday.

Posted on by tonytomeo · 20 Comments

Six on Saturday: Exotic & Native

The first three were recently added. The second three were already here. That makes for Six on Saturday.

1. Opuntia, prickly pear, of an unidentified species, was collected from the wild near the original Bat Cave, which is really the Bronson Caves, in Los Angeles. It is overly prickly.

2. Echinocereus, hedgehog cactus, also of an unidentified species, was collected from the wild in Buckeye, near Phoenix, in Arizona. It is even more prickly than the prickly pear.

3. Agave filifera, thread agave was salvaged from a planter box outside a barber shop in downtown Felton. The planter box needed to be dismantled, so the agave came with me.

4. Salvia, sage, also of an unidentified species, is part of a pattern of unidentified species here this week. It is native, though, so was here prior to the arrival of the previous three.

5. Whatever this is, it is also unidentified and native. The flowers resemble onion flowers in blue. I think that it might be Triteleia laxa, Ithuriel’s spear, but I really have no idea.

6. Achillea millefolium, common yarrow is native here, but may be descendents of some that were seeded here nearly twenty years ago. I do not remember any prior to seeding.

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

Six on Saturday: More Memories

Nearly everything in my garden has history of some sort.

1. Aloe arborescens, candelabra aloe came from the home of a friend in the East Hills of San Jose about twenty years ago. It is the only one of these six that was not just planted.

2. Aloe barbadensis, aloe vera came from my former neighborhood in town. I relocated decades ago, but got pups from a former neighbor who also took some to her new home.

3. Hesperaloe parviflora, red yucca came from Surprise, to the northwest of Phoenix in Arizona, near the new home of my former neighbor who gave me the few aloe vera pups.

4. Yucca desmetiana ‘Blue Boy’ yucca was a Christmas gift several years ago. It had been confined to its can within partial shade for too long. It already has stout but bare trunks.

5. Yucca glauca, soapweed grew from seed that I collected at a gas station somewhere in New Mexico on the way to Oklahoma in late 2012. It must be happy to be in the ground.

6. Yucca arkansana, Arkansas yucca, contrary to its name, came from Newalla, just east of Oklahoma City in Oklahoma, not long after I acquired the soapweed seed in late 2012.

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: TIMBER!

Several large trees needed to be removed at work.

1. The steeple of the Mount Hermon Memorial Chapel (el Catedral de Santa Clara de Los Gatos) is now visible. It had been mostly obscured by a big Douglas fir and a big tan oak.

2. This new view of stately redwoods is also visible behind the Mount Hermon Memorial Chapel. It had previously been cluttered with tan oaks, bays and another big Douglas fir.

3. Logs were still strewn about when I took these pictures on Wednesday. Unfortunately, a few redwoods needed to be removed also. The largest trunks will be milled for lumber.

4. The stump to the lower right was cut last Monday or Tuesday. The stump to the upper left was cut when the redwoods were harvested, prior to 1906, more than 120 years ago.

5. Alyssum, wax begonia and zonal geranium should perform much better with so much more sunshine. (Stock will be removed for summer.) They had always been in the shade.

6. This rose, although irrelevant to the topic, is the token flower of my Six for this week. It is too colorful to omit. I have no idea what cultivar it is. It was red, then faded to pink.

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 · 21 Comments

Six on Saturday: Surprise! III

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/

Posted on by tonytomeo · 15 Comments

Six on Saturday: Nursery Projects

The nursery at work should not be as much work as it is. It produces more than we use.

1. Musa ingens, oem, or giant highland banana, is pupping, with three new pups poking through the jade plant that covers the medium around the base of the original specimen.

2. Pulmonaria officinalis, lungwort covers the medium around the base of a specimen of ‘Mekong Giant’ banana. This plant blooms pink, and is from Tangly Cottage Gardening.

3. Salvia greggii, autumn sage grew in a vacant pot of otherwise empty medium. It may be useful within one of our landscapes. Its parent is ‘Hot Lips’. It is very likely the same.

4. Cydonia oblonga, quince is one of a few small rooted cuttings of an understock sucker of a pear tree. It is useful for grafting certain pears, but I will retain one to produce fruit.

5. Hesperaloe parviflora, red yucca is growing from seed that I brought from Arizona. It is considerably more abundant than expected. What can I do with eighty-six red yuccas?

6. Saccharum officinarum ‘Purple Ribbon’ sugarcane grew fast enough from bits of cane last year to produce a short length of new cane. It recently shed old leaves to expose this.

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: Rhody’s Rhodies 2026

Rhody’s rhodies have been blooming spectacularly. It is not easy to limit their picture to only six. There are so many cultivars.

1. White is generally my favorite color. However, most white rhododendrons are blushed with another color, so are not pure white. This one usually exhibits a bit of a pink blush.

2. Pink is the most common color among rhododendron cultivars. That certainly can not discredit any of them. They all are pretty. This cultivar eventually fades almost to white.

3. Lavender is one of the lesser common colors among rhododendron cultivars. Purple is more common. I may get a picture of a purple rhododendron for Sunday Best tomorrow.

4. Fuchsia is one of the many colors that many guys can not perceive. This looks pink to me. I guess it is slightly richer pink than the other pink rhododendron, but only slightly.

5. Magenta is another color that many guys have difficulty perceiving. I can merely guess that this is magenta because it resembles the rich color of ‘Barbara Karst’ bougainvillea.

6. Red is an easier color, although Rhody can perceive it no better than pink, magenta or fuchsia. As a canine, he sees just blue and yellow. Regardless, these are Rhody’s rhodies.

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: Rhododendrons Must Wait

Rhodies are in bloom now, but will need to wait while I show off five other blooms.

1. Sambucus nigra ‘Purpurea’ elderberry is already blooming. Is this early? It did not get pruned while dormant in winter. I must see if the native blue elderberries are blooming.

2. Disocactus flagelliformis, rat tail cactus is more out of focus than the elderberry. It is one of only a few potted plants that gets moved into the landscapes only while blooming.

3. Rosa spp., rose was not blooming for last Saturday when six roses were featured here. This particular rose was removed from its landscape a few years ago, but not reassigned.

4. Iris X germanica, bearded iris came back with me from one of the lodges that I spent a night at on one of my several trips to the Pacific Northwest. All our irises have history.

5. Epiphyllum spp., orchid cactus, like the rat tail cactus, was relocated into a landscape as it began to bloom. It has been here for several years, but has not bloomed like this yet.

6. Rhody has been absent from Six on Saturday for quite a while. He makes it difficult to get a good picture of him. Perhaps I will take some pictures of his rhodies for next week.

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: Rose Parade 2026

Roses are in season and blooming now.

1. Color seems to be somewhat deficient with this first and the last of these Six. This rose is actually more butterscotch colored than pale yellow. It is probably the best performer.

2. This rose might be ‘Double Delight’. It looks like it at times, and is nicely fragrant. It is unfortunately the least florific, though. It may not bloom for the second half of summer.

3. Deer have access to these next four roses, so occasionally eat the buds before they can bloom. We appreciate what we can get when we get it. This one seems to be a floribunda.

4. Yellow is not a common color within our landscapes. This is the only rose that is plain yellow, and is not in a prominent situation. It is still recovering from relocation last year.

5. Does this one resemble ‘Seashell’? With so many cultivars available, it is impossible to know. I like to think that it is. I can remember when ‘Seashell’ was popular in 1976 or so.

6. Again, it is impossible to identify the unidentified roses that were recycled from other landscapes or home gardens. I like to assume that this one might be ‘Chrysler Imperial’.

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/