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The Last Week Of April Is Hippeastrum x Time
Every year, the hybrid Hippeastrum bulbs in the garden bloom pretty consistently in the last week of April.
The garden hosts Hippeastrum x bulbs bought for 90% off at After-Christmas sales some years ago: the common 'Apple Blossom' and 'Red Lion'), plus one gift ('Rilona')
'Apple Blossom'
One of the 'Rilona' flower stems snapped off. It didn't go to waste. They are a decent cut flower, actually.
This next one is grown from a 'Rilona' seed and is either a self, or a cross with 'Apple Blossom'. They are incredibly easy to grow in the ground here: pull off dead leaves and flower stems at the appropriate times, and otherwise let them be. Two purchased 'Apple Blossom's have become a dozen, and the single 'Rilona' has become six or seven.
The bulbs were originally planted randomly in different spots in the gully. Eventually I moved almost all of them to the edge of one of the terraces, so together they could present a big show.
Unfortunately the terrace is rather tricky to photograph. I've not figured out the best angle yet.
'Apple Blossom' is in the lower corner of the next photo but 'Emperor I' Acer palmatum steals the show. 'Emperor I' was purchased at the beginning of the long drought, around 2012. Bad timing. It struggled through, looking near death last spring, after that previous winter's almost total lack of rain. This past magic rainy winter brought back it. It's never looked so good.
H. papillio, the "butterfly amaryllis" came from a
friend last year; it has grown very well in the entry garden, with already 8 bulblets growing alongside the original, but no
flowers as yet. H. papillio is an evergreen species that, from what I read, needs summer
water, so it is planted in a different location. In contrast to H. papillio, hybrids do
well here on winter rain alone.
It's okay to bloom. I won't yell.
As to other plants this last week of April, several doses of chelated iron + 10% nitrogen over the winter brought back from miserable near-death the gully copy of Grevillea 'Superb'. I'm ridiculously proud of managing to help it back to health. It's growing and beautiful. The goal is to sit under the adjacent pergola and watch hummingbirds fight over 'Superb'.
Speaking of hummers...
At a recent garden talk, received a free(!) Geranium' Ann Folkard'.
Planted in an odd long-unused spot next to a frequently used hose bib, it has already doubled in size. A UK garden site comment by a skilled gardener said something like "Oh, 'Ann' grows nicely on a small trellis." I'm trying that, to hide the bare base of nearby roses.
That location has been heavily mulched and left empty for many years. Moving the hose around tends to smash nearby things. After years of mulch, the soil is the proverbial "chocolate cake", fluffy and rich.
'Ann's flower color is brighter than beloved 'Rozanne'.
Somewhere out and about I got a shot of G. incanum, a very weedy reseeder in Southern California. I grew it for a year and pulled it along with its hundred seedlings. It appeared in the downhill neighbor's garden and has been there ever since. Pretty or not, I feel guilty every time I see it.
Must also mention the plant to the upper right of 'Ann Fokard':
That was a near-death Dudleya planted according to the general rule that Dudleyas need full sun, poor soil, and no summer water. After a summer of full sun and no water, it was 95% dead. I pulled it and tossed it here, intending to put it in the green waste bin on next trash day. This area's chocolate cake soil stays constantly moist because of shade and hose use. The Dudleya came roaring back. So, mostly shade, rich soil, moisture is what it really wanted. Well, okay, if you are happy I am happy.
It's sure looks happy:
Must close with a rose, because April. 'Eyes for You': 
While I had great luck naturalizing Hippeastrum in my former garden, I haven't done at all well with it in this garden. However, thus far, all those I planted here were of the evergreen variety, so I've probably not given them enough summer water. If none appear this spring, I'll move them. I've also had no luck getting 'Ann Folkard' to establish as a groundcover here - I haven't seen hide not hair of her this spring despite our lovely winter rain.
ReplyDelete'Ann' disappears in winter? I know nothing about her.
DeleteIn past years the winter has been so unfortunately warm the Hippes kept their foliage all winter. This past wonderful winter they actually lost it.
The color of Geranium 'Ann Folkard' is nicely refreshed by clean white nearby, and that Dudleya supplies it with panache. Congratulations on successful Grevillea nursing!
ReplyDeleteAh, you gave me the idea to move a couple of Orlaya seedlings adjacent to 'Ann' for a touch of clean white. Thanks!
DeleteHopefully I have not gotten ahead of myself with the Grevillea self-congratulations.
I giggled at the plant 'coming roaring back' in a space where it shouldn't be growing so well. The things they try to tell us. Plants always have their own agenda. I saw amaryllis blooming up a storm in a garden in Costa Rica. Your garden seems just as exotic as that garden to me. You always show such beautiful plants.
ReplyDeletePlants do have their own agenda, but here they tend to be fairly well behaved because they know I'm the one who waters them during the dry season.
DeleteYour garden with the woodland wonders and herbaceous plants that go to sleep for the winter is quite exotic to me. We just don't have much of that here.
Ann grows very well in my prairie garden. It is a rangy rambler so can see how it could be encouraged to grow on a trellis. Your amaryllis are spectacular. Have never seen them grown as an in-ground perennial. Much nicer than in pots. Your dudleya definitely looks happy.
ReplyDelete