Category Archives: Plant Portraits
Winter Sun ‘Variegata’
I never met a variegated leaf I didn’t like, which might be considered the equivalent of a horticulturalist recessive trait, a weakness of character, a penchant for the flashy. In other words, not in the best of taste. Variegated derives … Continue reading
Potting Up
Real estate may still not be improving much, but in the garden houses are always moving, as with this Agave americana var. medio-picta ‘Alba’ that has been upsized to a new home that can be comfortably inhabited for several years, … Continue reading
Studies in Tetrapanax
Blooms in the classic rosette or composite shape would seem to be selected by many humans as the ideal flower, but gardens throughout the seasons reveal a much more complicated diversity of inflorescence. Though it may not cause one to … Continue reading
The Montezuma Cypress
Wandering a botanical garden such as the Huntington, one cannot but give thanks to rich industrialists for their interest in botany, whatever their sins. We can only hope the likes of Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, or George Soros will follow … Continue reading
Veltheimia bracteata
Yes, Joseph, this one will be a slow grower, so settle in. My system for summer-dormant bulbs is fairly lackadaisical, as in if I’m lucky I just might trip over the pot tucked in an out-of-the-way spot and notice the … Continue reading
Posted in Bulbs, Plant Portraits
Tagged Pacific Bulb Society, Telos Rare Bulbs, Veltheimia bracteata
2 Comments
Pennisetum spathiolatum
This pennisetum, the Slender Veldt Grass from South Africa, has been on my mind for some time. The form of it has, at least. I didn’t know its name until last week. I was hoping to find this form in … Continue reading
Posted in Plant Portraits
Tagged Digging Dog, Pennisetum spathiolatum, Slender Veldt Grass
3 Comments
Do Not Fill Angel Trumpets with Whipped Cream
Amazing how fast plants cycle back into flower. This brugmansia had dropped all flower buds in response to high temperatures in September, and now this show in November, taken early this morning. These blooms on ‘Charles Grimaldi’ are a pallid … Continue reading
Silver&Gold
(I’m describing the slow accretion of the colors selected to surround me, practiced by me, a nonprofessional. An inattentive process of anti-design, if you will.) It starts out with silver. Just silver. Silver came home first, in the form of … Continue reading
Weedy, Weedier, Weediest Mullein
A white seedling of Verbascum phoeniceum is enthusiastically blooming away after the October surprise of early rains. It held on to its basal leaves in the sere gravel garden all summer in hope of some form of irrigation. Tough little … Continue reading
While You Were Away
I swing between elation and despondency upon returning from an absence to be confronted by a garden that obviously carried on beautifully while I was away. Bravo, everyone is alive and thriving vs. sniffle, I am clearly superfluous. As usual, … Continue reading