Category Archives: Bulbs

percolating

Posted on January 3, 2012 by Denise

The garden continues to percolate along in a quiet January fashion. Poppies, lunaria, Orlaya grandiflora, and Geranium maderense seem to be what’s on the menu for spring — their seedlings are everywhere. A nice problem to have and easy to … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, Bulbs, garden visit, Plant Portraits | Tagged Agave guadalajarana, Agave snout-nosed beetle Scyphophorus acupunctatus, Ammi visagna, Athanasia acerosa, Helleborus argutifolius, paperwhite narcissus, phormiums, Senecio mandraliscae | 5 Comments

Bulbs, Poppy Pots, and Echeveria imbricata

Posted on December 6, 2011 by Denise

By the first week of December, any activity that’s not directly holiday related can seem a bit, well, selfish. But it’s also the time when the bulbs that have been prechilling in a crisper drawer in the fridge since September, … Continue reading →

Posted in Bulbs, design, garden ornament, pots and containers, succulents | Tagged Campo de' Fiori pottery, Echeveria imbricata, Echeveria secunda, Potted gifts for the garden, prechilling bulbs, The Poppy pot | 4 Comments

some quiet plant conversation

Posted on November 26, 2011 by Denise

I suggest we leave the main table with its overturned wine glasses, scattered pie crumbs, gravy stains and increasingly madcap discussions and gather in an out-of-the-way corner to quietly talk plants. A kind of horticultural digestif. A couple weeks ago … Continue reading →

Posted in Bulbs, creatures, plant nurseries, Plant Portraits, pots and containers, succulents | Tagged Anthericum saundersiae 'Variegata', Armstrong Nurseries, Aster Frikartii 'Monch', Chlorophytum saundersiae, Echeveria ciliata x nodulosa, Gerbera 'Drakensberg Carmine', Graham Rice, Hayefield, Lilium 'Lankon', Monterey Bay Nursery, Nan Ondra, pollinators, Salvia littae, The TransAtlantic Plantsman | 2 Comments

Occasional Daily Weather Report 10/28/11

Posted on October 28, 2011 by Denise

Days in the mid to high 70s (Fahrenheit to Celsius conversion), nights in the low to mid 50s. Finding just the right angle of morning sun and then holding absolutely still for maximum absorption is a morning’s work for Evie. … Continue reading →

Posted in Bulbs, creatures, Occasional Daily Weather Report | Tagged Fahrenheit to Celsius conversion, Nerine bowdenii | Leave a comment

Bloom Day October 2011

Posted on October 15, 2011 by Denise

The highest temps all summer hit last week, an unwelcome intrusion into fall planting season. Limbing up the big smoke tree a few weeks ago allowed a lot more light into the back garden, setting in motion some deadly domino … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, Bloom Day, Bulbs, Plant Portraits, succulents | Tagged Dahlia 'Chat Noir', Digging Dog Nursery, Grevillea 'Superb', Nerine sarniensis, Persicaria amplexicaulis, Ricinus communis 'New Zealand Purple', Rudbeckia triloba, Salvia canariensis var. candissima, Salvia madrensis, Selinum wallichianum, Thunbergia gregorii | 9 Comments

Rained Out

Posted on October 5, 2011 by Denise

Unlike a sporting event or outdoor concert or meal, a Southern California garden that’s rained out in early October is cause for rejoicing. And to really intensify the blissed-out experience of the first seasonal rains, just the day before you … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, Bulbs, design, garden visit, Occasional Daily Weather Report, Plant Portraits | Tagged Agave bovicornuta, Agave desmettiana 'Variegata', Agave parryi var. truncata, Allium sphaerocephalum, Bouteloua gracilis 'Blonde Ambition', climate change, dahlias, garden disputes, Pennisetum 'Princess Caroline', prechilling tulips, Salvia farinacea 'Texas Violet', San Marcos Growers | 4 Comments

a monday collage

Posted on September 26, 2011 by Denise

A new week, slightly out of focus. Feed the cats, make the coffee, read Paul Krugman’s column. Routines are the pitons hammered into the seams of blurry grey rock that is a Monday morning. A quick check on the garden. … Continue reading →

Posted in Bulbs, Plant Portraits, succulents | Tagged Agave parrasana 'Fireball', Callirhoe digitata, Charlie Don't Surf, nerines, Papaver rupifragum, Passiflora sanguinolenta, The Clash | 2 Comments

Summer’s Bounty

Posted on July 24, 2011 by Denise

Man cannot live by tomatoes alone. (The first dahlia opened today.) There’s no way I’m going to keep the garden moist enough simply for a few dahlias to thrive, but I’d hate to face August and September without them. So … Continue reading →

Posted in Bulbs, edibles, pots and containers | Tagged dahlias, San Marzano tomato | 9 Comments

Sean Hogan at Flora Grubb Gardens

Posted on July 18, 2011 by Denise

On Sunday, July 17, 2011, Sean Hogan of Cistus Nursery, Portland, Oregon, gave a talk at Flora Grubb Gardens in San Francisco, California, entitled “The Art of the Rosette.” I’ve visited Cistus Nursery twice, so I know first-hand that it’s … Continue reading →

Posted in agaves, woody lilies, Bulbs, MB Maher, pots and containers, succulents, The Hortorialist | Tagged Agave 'Spot', Agave schidigera 'Black Widow', Agave schidigera 'Durango Delight', Agave schidigera 'Shira ito no Ohi', Aloe 'Brass Hat', Cistus Nursery, eucomis, Flora Grubb Gardens, Hechtia texensis, Mangave 'Bloodspot', Mangave undulata 'Chocolate Chips', Opuntia fragilis, Plantlust, Sean Hogan, Tradescantia sillamontana, Yucca angustissima 'Southside', Yucca nana, Yucca rostrata 'Sapphire Skies' | 6 Comments

Gladiolus communis ssp. byzantinus

Posted on April 1, 2011 by Denise

Some byzantine glads opened while I was out of town a few days. Flowers have that unerring sense of timing, don’t they? As I’ve written before, these bulbs are an inferior strain, in that they are not the desired deep … Continue reading →

Posted in Bulbs | Tagged Beth Chatto, Gladiolus communis ssp. byzantinus, Old House Gardens | Leave a comment