Well Hidden, Rampant, Lily

Lilium lancifolium

There are Pacific Slope Flycatcher chicks in the nest,  very difficult to see.  One quick, highly unsatisfactory picture from way up on the tall ladder, and then a dash back into the house.  Lady F. cycles between flying off for food, returning with it to feed the chicks, and resting in her nest.  The male cycles between watching from the maple tree, flying off for food and returning with it to sort of briefly feed a chick, and getting chased off by the returning female, who seems disappointed in him.

  In a few days I hope to get better pictures, when the chicks larger and are looking around for the return of Mom with delicious flies.
As to gardening, a lot to prune back.
Not this:
The oldest clump of beautiful Salvia 'Amistad' down in the gully shifted from vigorous to rampant.  It blocked one of the paths, semi-blocked the culvert, and was invading a Pittosporum and the Key Lime tree and the gully's Metrosideros Springfire. 

Rampant is not tolerable.  I don't have the stamina for it. 
Out!
All cut down, it must now be dug out.  The soil being quite loose here, it should be manageable.  Chopped up into short pieces, 'Amistad' composts well.  And space has opened up to plant something else:  wheeeeeeeeee!!!!!!  It will be something for the hummingbirds, who were feeding from 'Amistad'.  There are still two 'Amistad's back there, and Metrosideros, and Leonorus, as well.
Cleared out the interior of, and trimmed back some of the Key Lime as well, for better path access.  I'm also still pulling stuff out of the front slope.  We're still getting June-Gloom mornings. While they hold out, they make gardening so pleasant. 
The long-lived lily is flowering;  it's the only long-lived reliable lily I've grown.  Our climate is too dry, and we have no winter chill to give lily bulbs a rest.  

Based on a bit of internet reading L. lancifolium is a lily-disease carrying (asymptomatic) weedy problem elsewhere (is it???), but our dry climate limits it perfectly.  I started with two freebie bulbs and after 15 years now have a total of three.  The bulbils that grow at the base of the leaves have never sprouted--I placed the bulbs in an area surrounded by non-irrigated ground, just in case. 
So I have non-rampant lilies returning every year in the garden!
With their bright color, dark spots, upcurled petals and downswooping anthers, they are fun to photograph.

 It's interesting how climates can limit a plant that is a weed in one area, to be a delight in others.  I understand that Salvia 'Amistad' is an annual in colder areas, not at all a thug.   In addition, I've seen first hand that weedy Agave americana here, is, in the PNW a slow, lone, small blue accent plant.  Castor bean is a noxious tree-weed here;  a dramatic tropical accent where it is an annual.  Location, location... 

Comments

  1. Gardeners here wish even a little 'Amistad' would survive the winter.
    Is that Gaura below/fronting the rose? A wonderfully light effect.

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    1. Think one 8 feet wide would survive? I have a lot of digging ahead of me!

      Yes, a Gaura. They are at their best here when smallish and young.

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  2. Ms Flycatcher is doing a great job! I find it interesting that Salvia 'Amistad' does so well for you when it's been a complete dud in my garden all three times I've tried it (in different spots). My sandy soil's failure to hold moisture perhaps? I have difficulty growing lilies as well but perhaps I'll try a tiger lily next year on the chance that I'll have more luck with that than with the Salvia.

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    1. She's been working hard at it. Not sitting the nest quite so much today perhaps because it is warmer. It's been educational to have a chance to watch their behavior for several hours a day over the past weeks.

      Surprised you have had 'Amistad's that were not monsters. They do appreciate moisture and a hit of fertilizer to get going.

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  3. I've recently been marveling at that exact same thing. I planted an Acacia dealbata, protected on the lee side of the house. It shouldn't even be hardy up here, but we had a really mild winter, so imagine my surprise when the damn thing even bloomed!! I had heard horror stories of what a weed this tree is from a Californian, so I had some trepidation about putting it in the ground. So far, it seems well behaved - and I was thrilled to see it survive/bloom. It would be ideal if it landed somewhere in the middle of the vigorousness scale so I get to keep it for a while. (I do hope I didn't just jinx it...)

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    1. It's rather fun to be able to grow a pest plant that because of the climate isn't a pest.

      Here there are more than one species of Acacia reseeding all over the neighborhood,and they tend to be very flammable (bad in fire season) so the Acacia growing is much safer for your climate. Enjoy those brilliant yellow flowers, they are indeed very striking.

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  4. Amistad and the Castor Bean is an annual here. That lily is a native here. I had some of it and it eventually got shaded out. I wish I had moved it to a sunnier location. Seeing this in your garden make me want to grow it again.

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    1. We can't grow lilies very well here, so one that actually comes back is pretty exciting. If you want I can mail you some of those little bulblets that grow at the base of the foliage. There are plenty this year.

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  5. I am struggling to keep any exotic (culinary or ornamental) sage alive. But I do have 2 of our shrubby indigenous ones. I miss the flaming pink of greggii.

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    1. Some of the prettiest here need a good amount of water. S. clevelandii native to SoCal does not, but you would not want anything exotic seeding around, either. S. greggii gets unattractively woody here very quickly; I asked someone in Austin TX why they have such success; the reply was that the deer are constantly nibbling them back, prompting constant new growth. Agree those saturated brilliant flowers are swoony-good!

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  6. You have taken some gorgeous pictures of this lily ! It is stunning.
    I finally had a martagon lily, flower this year , "Fairy Morning" and I was totally in awe of it.
    It is amazing how controlled plants can be by our zones ..
    You have a little gold mine in that lily, congratulations !

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    1. Thanks! It is such fun to take pictures of the lily with its precise repetition of curves.

      Funny how some beautiful flowers are incredibly photogenic--while others just as beautiful are not at all. I have one particular rose, one of the most beautiful, and have never gotten a good photo of it. It's shape is a jumbled mess in pictures, and the color is always blotchy.

      I had to look up martagon lily--what cool flowers. I wonder if they would grow here in the land of dry-no-winter-chill. Might try it, for fun. Have never seen one here.

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  7. Friends just asked me to ID this plant in their yard. I gave them fair warning.

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    1. If they just pop off and discard the little dark seed-like plantlets at the leaf bases, my guess would be it would be a well-behaved plant. The original bulbs don't seem to be dividing much.

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