Gardening Lots, Garden Blogging, Not Much

Late November New Garden Visit in Southern California

Vastly more gardening than garden blogging these days.  It's been Autumn clean up time of spring and summer's lavish growth thanks to last winter's near-perfect rainfall.  This activity is regulated by space in the green-waste bins;  once full, clean up pauses until collection day empties the bins again.   

The big 'Laguna' rose climber that bloomed so spectacularly but then collapsed due to a late rain in May awaits a major pruning:

Planted sweet peas from six-packs because last year something ate all the sprouted seeds that came up so nicely but vanished.   Rabbit guards this year.

Planted a package of Freesia corms for the heck of it.  Screen laid over the area so I don't step on them.

 With regret, pulled the declining Grevillea 'Superb' by the mailbox and replaced it with Leucadendron 'Pom Pom' that had roots growing out of the pot.  Several major branches of the 'Superb' had died.   I discovered the plant was getting zero irrigation;  it didn't actually need much to grow, but in the light soil here it needs some water to look good.  'Pom Pom' is getting an edging of Aloe brevifolia.  The foliage color is a match with 'Pom Pom's. 

Pulled the increasingly weird-growing Agave americana 'Medio Picta Aurea' that annoyed me every time I walked out of the house (there are offsets to plant elsewhere, perhaps).  It was loaded with mealy bugs.  The slope needs care too.  It must wait until after 'Laguna''s turn to fill the green waste bins.  

 I cut the stem which was long and bare and pushed the agave over the wall.  It looks so lovely in the trash bin but it's a mess of mealies.  Love-hate with A. americana, mostly hate.  It's too weedy here. 

 The beheaded stem of 'Moon Glow' that sprouted about a dozen rosettes was being overwhelmed by a 'Blue Flame' Agave so I pulled it.  I'll cut off the dozen rosettes and reroot them. 

 Pondering What To Change On The Front Slope continues, with fear at the effort required.  The many months long bloom of 'Cynthia Gitty' is a joy, but the massive ever spreading clump of plants is a worry.  'Cynthia' at least forms a very tight, tidy mass.  The yellow flowered megalacantha hybrid(?) looks untidy.  This all scares me.  

To be honest I prefer the ease of solitary or mostly solitary rosettes, like aculeata, reitzii, tomentosa, rubroviolacea, and the like, but the benefit of constant flowers for the hummers is important.

Aloe aculeata: 

 Light tree trimming;  emotionally reconciling myself to removing the remaining trio of beautiful 'Swaines Golden' Cupressus sempervirens (fire danger, rodent refuge).  The sad/gross trapping of rats is distressing.  I did not know Cypress are a favored nesting site for rodents.  I do now. 

The yellow-gold of the Cypress is a fine accent to the Acer dropping its foliage in the autumn glow. 

A visit to a brand new beautiful garden last week.  A friend redid her longtime family home, and the garden as well.  This is a garden for large happy family gatherings rather than a PBG (personal botanical garden), so it has elegant cohesion rather than 50,000 pots of fascinating plants stuck here and there and and everywhere that won't fit into the ground because there are already fascinating plants (one of each)  everywhere in the ground.  This is not one of those gardens.  But it's beautiful anyway.   
Walk out the back door...

 Barbecuing is a year round activity here.  Nifty Cor-ten laser cut screen to hide the neighbor's house

 The large Eucalyptus trees belong to the HOA and the homeowners are not allowed to remove them.  The visit took place on  one of our golden warm autumn days. The pool sparkled and the plants glowed. 

 The sun at its lower November angle created shadow patterens and warmed rather than burned. 

 Variegated Dianella tasmanica alternating with Scaevola edge the pool.

 I could have sat there all day enjoying it. 

My own garden is at its worst at this time of year, which makes the gardener quite melancholy.   The roses and other plants happiest in more sunlight hours look unhappy but really are merely taking a well-earned rest.   Much clean up yet to do. 
The warm golden days we've had lately are magical...

Though we got about 0.3" of rain last Wednesday, we're predicted to get much more this coming Wednesday.  The golden days of autumn are waning.  Rainy days ahead.  Wheee!!!!!!! 
Clouds!   Moisture!  Imagine that.