Category Archives: Plant Portraits
the mysterious island in my back garden
One of the movies on heavy VHS-cassette rotation when my boys were young was Jules Verne’s Mysterious Island. Hot air balloon escape from a Civil War-era prison, crash landing near an uncharted island to fight for survival against monster-size crabs, … Continue reading
spring-blooming Aloe camperi
There are so many, many great aloes. A collector’s garden of aloes in zone 10 is a serious temptation. As are agaves. My desire skips like a stone across both these great groups of succulents, trying not to sink into … Continue reading
Posted in Plant Portraits, succulents
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April garden journal
Because the Alstroemeria ‘Indian Summer’ I had previously tried to establish here had failed to thrive, I assumed that it was dead, not dormant, when I replanted this rocky area in November. Which was fine, because I was going in … Continue reading
Posted in journal, plant nurseries, Plant Portraits, succulents
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introducing Nicotiana mutabilis
The back of the garden is a bit crazy right now, what with the miscanthus, the flowering tobacco, Eryngium pandanifolium, Roldana petasites, kangaroo paws and others jostling to claim their allotment of soil and sun. And if that wasn’t enough, … Continue reading
Posted in journal, plant nurseries, Plant Portraits, pots and containers, succulents
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recent garden distractions
Does the world distract me from my garden or the garden distract me from the world? The balance has been different at various times in my life, so I like that the relationship is flexible. Spending most of my days … Continue reading
February scrapbook
Tracing the trajectory of enthusiasms on the blog since 2010, one month at a time… 2/26/10 — a wildflower meadow was a fleeting, transitional feature of a local medical center. February 25, 2011, this weird aroid had my attention. It … Continue reading
Posted in blog, journal, Plant Portraits
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Celosia argentea ‘Cramer’s Amazon’
There’s been a couple of standout plants new to my garden this year, and this vibrant celosia is emphatically one of them. From Annie’s Annuals & Perennials, it was planted from 4-inch pots in August and grew steadily, like it … Continue reading
Posted in journal, Plant Portraits, succulents
6 Comments
october already
Somehow, what the low angled light of October does to grasses always catches me by surprise. I caught this peripheral shimmer on the way to the office yesterday morning, turned to find the source and gasped. Of course it’s one … Continue reading
Posted in agaves, woody lilies, journal, Plant Portraits, plant sales
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new to my garden; Justicia brandegeana ‘Red’
What is that? I was stretching my legs at a local nursery last week, not looking for anything in particular, just keeping track of what plants are up for sale in late August. Cosmos, zinnias, and dahlias have all showed … Continue reading
Posted in Plant Portraits, pots and containers
5 Comments
clippings 6/22/20
Hope you find lots of interesting and diverting things to do this week. I’m tending new seedlings and waiting for another seed order to arrive — there’s got to be more empty pots around here somewhere…