I know “runaway garden” is an oxymoron, but even so the SoCal garden (zone 10) seems to have been on a journey without me, cycling through various caretakers, some benign, some less so. The last few days have been the longest time I’ve spent in it since that leavetaking in October 2021. Since returning it’s been nonstop cleanup and sorting out disputes among some very large succulents, retaining the best and generally thinning out the garden for easier future maintenance. And making it safer for kids and future guests.
But I am so impressed with the resilience of the succulents.
Pots and garden were all bone dry on my return. (The last guest left six weeks ago, and the garden probably had better survival odds once they departed.) In the above photo, the potted ‘Medusa’ and Euphorbia canariensis were both moved to this corner, which is in the process of being reworked almost entirely, a mix of in-ground plants and potted. (If a plant survived all this time in a pot, it stays potted, especially the larger specimens). A poorly placed Aloe marlothii was removed, as was Agave lophantha ‘Quadricolor’ — its leaves were cut off by caretakers, so the plant was basically ruined. Same for an enormous Agave kerchovei ‘Huajapan Red’ that never reddened but was nevertheless stunning if growing too large for its spot. The potted cordyline surprisingly survived the crush of plants and lack of water.
While I was away, the weeds flourished (crouch grass, oxalis, bronze fennel, even Solanum pyracanthos and a prolific euphorbia that I no doubt introduced). The unclipped creeping fig vine had sheared off the back wall from its excessive height and weight, leaving the flesh-colored CMU and the once-hidden neighboring houses visible, which takes getting used to. The passion vine, Passiflora vitifolia, clambered everywhere, hanging in curtains from the pergola, scaling the acacia tree, the roof. Removing the passion vine was key in assessing what could be saved.
Weeds covered the ground and encompassed those astonishing survivors, the succulents. (Long sleeves, gloves, and a hemostat are essential.) As much as I fought having a wholly succulent garden, loving the sculptural beauty but less so the inert, seasonless effect, I now recognize that if a frost-free garden is going to be abandoned for years at a time, succulents are the answer. A tree-like Grevillea ‘Moonlight’ and huge clump of Pedilanthus bracteatus continue to satisfy the bees and hummingbirds, animating the garden with a whirring, buzzing soundtrack.
The bromeliads did very well too, apart from being covered in debris, which choked all the plants, succulents and bromeliads.
More soon!
Yeah for succulents! I’m not surprised that your succulents did so well, but it’s still so good to see.
Glad Billie’s surgery is behind her!
I’m frankly shocked and impressed that your garden has been so resilient. I hadn’t realized you had not been back for any length of time since 2021. The plants look so good! I see succulents will also be my friends in Los Osos, once I get there. The rains have returned to the Oregon coast, so enjoy that warmth!
Hooray for the succulents. Can’t imagine being able to leave a garden for so long and not have a jungle. I had assumed you were going back and forth between the properties so give yourself a pat on the back for your wise choices. Hope Billie is racing around again soon.
Great news on your garden and on Billie. I know all about torn ACLs. Your LB climate is fairly forgiving even if guests were not. Are you missing your other garden already, or is it beginning to going to sleep for the winter?
@Gerhard, the debris pile runs the length of the driveway, but there’s so many plants left to play with and remake the garden. Much relief!
@Jane, succulents will love your new garden, and since you’ll be full time you can play with lots of seasonal stuff too.
@Elaine, I visited the garden a couple times for a few hours, hoping to hack away and clean up a bit, and each time I ended up just chatting with the guest who followed me around the garden – I gave up on any cleanup! And Billie already races probably far more than is good for her! It’s so good to see her weightbearing on all fours again, tho she still reverts to three when going faster than a walk.
My heart hurt for you and your plants reading “the garden probably had better survival odds once they departed” and “its leaves were cut off by caretakers.” Still I cannot fathom having a garden look even a fraction as good as yours does in these photos after being largely left on its own for so long (acknowledging you did some clean up prior to photo taking). What a surprise to see the Alcantarea imperialis and pyrrosia pot. I hope that image convinces Kris that she can indeed grow pyrrosia!
I’m surprised that even the succulents did so well with no water to speak of in the past 6 weeks and sporadic support before that. ‘Medusa’, ‘Snow Glow’ and the Alcantarea all look like they just came out of a nursery! I’m sorry you had to give up the passion vine, though.
P.S. Ha! I noticed Lorre’s comment just as I was finishing this one. For the record, I immediately decided that I need to get my small pyrrosia out of its pot and in the ground as soon as I saw your photo!
@Loree, there was lots of cleanup before these photos even tho it still looks a mess to my eyes and lots more cleanup to go. What really takes getting used to is the grime on everything. Rain can’t come too soon!
@Kris, some of the specimen succulents did hang on, but now comes the task of pulling a garden together out of what remains. The variegated St. Augustine’s grass has been a surprising success as a ground cover that kind of pulls everything together. Pyrrosia is a definite winner here and can tolerate fairly dry.
Wow, I think it looks fabulous! I imagine you did have lots of clean-up, but dang it looks so good. The Euphorbia canariensis is picture perfect. Oof, the Agave celsii var. albicans is practically glowing. Lots of treasured here. So happy to hear your Billie is healing so well.
@Hoov, I do love that coastal PNW climate and light, but you can’t beat Long Beach in winter. The garden is going to gently go into winter, frost after frost — cleanup needed when I return but only cutting back, nothing like the wholesale demolition going on in LB!
@Tracy, it’s been nonstop solid cleanup since Monday, and I’ve been starting to infill around the big stuff now with the smaller survivors like Echeveria agavoides, the bromeliads, the smaller potted aloes — lots more fun than the first days of hacking through the weeds.
Sometimes, at my most tired and disgruntled, I am tempted by an experiment such as yours in the home garden. Just abandon the whole thing to the elements and see what survives and what doesn’t. But, I can’t help myself and keep the consistent meddling, watering this, tweaking that, moving this, hacking that. The cleanup would be the hardest part for me. I hate having to weed from in between established plants, pulling out masses of crud as the seeds tumble everywhere. Blech. Sounds like an unwoven patchwork quilt at the moment. How do you find the fabric that pulls the pieces back together into a cohesive garden. The plants you do have left are in beautiful shape. You’ve got the designer skills to do the rest to pull it back together.