Author Archives: Denise

when plants aren’t what you expected

Posted on May 29, 2013 by Denise

And I mean in the specific sense of mail-ordering one plant and then receiving a different one. With plants, impostors and mix-ups can be difficult to detect. It’s not like mail-ordering a rug, which when it arrives two weeks later … Continue reading →

Posted in plant nurseries, Plant Portraits | Tagged Abelmoschus manihot, Hibiscus aculeatus, Hibiscus moscheutos var. incanus | 12 Comments

Occasional Daily Photo 5/27/13

Posted on May 27, 2013 by Denise

Driving through California Heights for a recent garden tour, just before sunset I happened upon this house, seemingly fixed in amber during the rancho period of old California. This little house sits (as does ours) on the 300,000-acre tract that … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, driveby gardens, Occasional Daily Photo | Tagged California rancho period, Long Beach neighborhoods, Rancho Los Cerritos | 6 Comments

friday flower studies

Posted on May 24, 2013 by Denise

Is it Friday already? Coreopsis tinctoria ‘Mahogany’ Large furry leaves of Plectranthus argentatus, spiky red orbs are Ricinus communis ‘New Zealand Purple, lacy gray leaves from Senecio viravira Tiny, almost-black flowers on tall stems of Pelargonium sidoides All together now, … Continue reading →

Posted in cut flowers, Plant Portraits | Tagged Coreopsis tinctoria 'Mahogany', cut flowers, Pelargonium sidoides, Plectranthus argentatus, Ricinus communis 'New Zealand Purple', Senecio viravira, vases | 3 Comments

pattern seekers

Posted on May 22, 2013 by Denise

That’s one thing at least we all have in common. And a craving for pattern is thankfully one of the easiest (and possibly the healthiest) to satisfy. Unknown objects found at flea market. The seller thought they may have been … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, design, Occasional Daily Photo, succulents | Tagged Agave 'Kissho Kan', Echeveria 'Crinoline', patterns in nature, Saxifraga stolonifera 'Maroon Beauty' | 4 Comments

plant hunting late May

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Denise

I’ve been checking out local nurseries the past couple weeks, both independents and chains/franchises, which isn’t news since I do this quite a lot, but bringing a serious intent to change some of the garden late in May is news. … Continue reading →

Posted in plant nurseries, Plant Portraits | Tagged Brita's Old Town Gardens, Cordyline banksii 'Electric Star', Diascia integerrima, Diascia personata, Digging Dog Nursery, Digitalis trojana, H&H Nursery, Isoplexis canariensis, Kalanchoe beharensis 'Furless', Nolana paradoxa, Pennisetum 'Sky Rocket', San Marcos Growers | 4 Comments

driveby gardens; more on the disappearing lawn

Posted on May 20, 2013 by Denise

I got a very late start on the self-guided Lawn-to-Garden tour Saturday, thirty gardens from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., just because Friday was an unusually odd workday and I lingered and wallowed far too long in the glory of … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, driveby gardens, garden visit, succulents | Tagged Agave desmettiana, Agave lophantha 'Quadricolor', Agave vilmoriniana, Calandrinia spectabilis, Dymondia margaretae, Helichrysum petiolare, Leonotis leonorus, Salvia leucantha, Senecio amaniensis, Senecio mandraliscae, Spanish Revival architecture | 8 Comments

Bloom Day May 2013

Posted on May 16, 2013 by Denise

It’s our blue period again, and not just ours. Jacaranda mimosifolia trees are painting the whole town blue. Spiky plants in the front garden will fly these pennants until July, when the blue period ends, and the trees in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Bloom Day | Tagged Anigozanthos, Aristea ecklonii, Ballota acetabulosa, Baltic parsley Cenolophium denudatum, Diascia personata, Geranium pyrenaicum 'Bill Wallis', Nepeta 'Walker's Low', Pelargonium caffrum X 'Diana', Penstemon 'Enor', Persicaria amplexicaulis, Senecio stellata, Sideritis syriaca, Verbascum 'Clementine' | 11 Comments

unidentified fabulous grass/sedge (Chloris virgata)

Posted on May 14, 2013 by Denise

I’ve gone through a couple online plant catalogues this morning and checked out the online index to John Greenlee’s Encyclopedia of Ornamental Grasses. Nada. Still no ID. I brought this grass home from Western Hills long ago, when Maggie Wych … Continue reading →

Posted in plant nurseries, Plant Portraits | Tagged Chloris virgata, John Greenlee, Orlaya grandiflora, ornamental grasses, The Encylopedia of Ornamental Grasses, Ursinia sericea, Western Hills Nursery and Garden | 6 Comments

Ethan Hawke fondles switchgrass at the High Line

Posted on May 13, 2013 by Denise

There’s an attention grabber. No, that’s not a recent tabloid headline and, yes, I am being facetious, but I find it amazing that the High Line (and switchgrass!) is casually slipped into a bit of puffery about the current goings-on … Continue reading →

Posted in creatures, design, garden visit | Tagged Baltic parsley Cenolophium denudatum, Ein the corgi, Ethan Hawke, Isoplexis canariensis, Nepeta 'Walker's Low', New York, panicum/switchgrass, Papaver rupifragum, pathways, public parks, Sideritis syriaca, Stipa gigantea, The High Line Park, The New Yorker | 5 Comments

the disappearance of summer lawns

Posted on May 10, 2013 by Denise

Lawns are vanishing all over town. The chief ringleader and instigator is the Long Beach Water Department, with their irresistible Lawn-to-Garden Turf Replacement Program. Quite a few of my neighbors have already taken advantage of this program the past couple … Continue reading →

Posted in climate, design, driveby gardens, pots and containers, succulents | Tagged Achillea "Moonshine', Anigozanthos, architects Abramsom Teiger, Baja spurge, Calandrinia spectabilis, California, Euphorbia xanti, Gomphrena decumbens, Joni Mitchell's Hissing of Summer Lawns, Lawn-to-Garden garden tour 2013, Lawn-to-Garden Turf Replacement Program, Long Beach, Long Beach Water Department, mediterranean climate, nepeta, Pittosporum tenuifolium, Russelia equisetiformis, Salvia chamaedryoides, Senecio mandraliscae, Senecio vitalis, Stipa tenuissima, Teucrium azureum, Verbena 'Homestead Purple', Verbena lilacina | 12 Comments