Agave Marmorata, Flowering

 

I went out to photograph the neighbor's Agapanthus.  They looked striking paired with the bronze new foliage of Rhaphiolepis indica.  Meanwhile, up in the sky...

Above it all, crows harass a Red Tail Hawk

 Harassing a Red Tail can be dangerous.  While the crows nearly always maintain enough distance, a neighbor found a mangled, dead crow on her driveway.  Perhaps one crow dared to fly too close.

Also far above the neighbor's Agapanthus, Agave marmorata flowers began to open.  While they turned a brilliant yellow at least a week ago, the signal that some were opening would be the arrival of bees and nectar feeding birds.  

 I took the camera out to get some photos, and by great good luck, caught Orioles feeding on the first open flowers.  That particular branch of flowers tilts to the side just enough to give me a good view.  Dad in front--is that a fledgling son with him?  The juveniles appear to spend a bit of time post-nest with Mom & Dad, learning the ropes of survival.  

Mama Oriole was more discreetly feeding from the 'Moonlight' Grevillea nearby.  Luck was not with me to get a photo of her.

Agave marmorata has a child of her own, on the other side of the garden.  Still small in comparison to Mama Marmorata, though hardly small. 

Walking around looking at the Agave flower stalk from different angles...

The rose is 'Laguna', by the way:

...I was also lucky to get decent shots of a hummingbird at Salvia 'Waverly'.  While 'Waverly' is an overly vigorous beast of a Salvia (though to its credit, it does not spread everywhere, like 'Amistad' or 'Black and Blue'), it remains in the garden because the female and juvenile hummingbirds frequently feed from it.  'Waverly' flowers year-round here, making it especially valuable.  

While the feisty males make war over the Grevilleas, the females and younglings have a plentiful, uncontested supply of Salvia nectar.  


Cool!

Still awaiting the opening of Agapanthus 'Black Pantha' in my own garden.  Any day now:

The long-wanted 'Graskop', obtained last year, is healthy and growing, with no sign yet of whether it will flower this year or not. 

Comments

  1. I love all the bird pics! Do you use a telephoto lens for those? Agapanthus 'Black Pantha' looks promising. I bought 3 small Agapanthus 'Elaine' late last year but didn't move them into the ground until the Ginkgo was in place so I don't know if I'll see flowers this year. 'Elaine' is supposed to be a deeper blue but I don't think it'll be nearly as dark as your new additions.

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    1. Its a new lens, Sony FE 4/24-105 G OSS. I think Gerhard has one also. Very, very nice lens. Multipurpose, not a true telephoto.

      Not familiar with 'Elaine'. Pictures of it look really good. They will look pretty with your Ginkgo if not this year then next. The Huntington had a one called 'Ellamae' that caught my eye a few years ago:

      https://pieceofeden.blogspot.com/2016/09/whats-blooming-at-huntington-early.html

      Fortunate that lately there are more interesting (and daintier) Agapanthus than the big coarse washed-out gasoline station kind. 'Black Pantha' getting close to opening, finally, and extremely excited to see a flower stem emerging on the maybe-'Graskop'. Something to look forward too!

      The long drought and all the rodents seems to have eliminated snails here (fingers crossed)--haven't seen any even at the local park where there used to be disgusting hoards of them. Makes Agapanthus a lot more appealing.

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  2. Wow, the Agapanthus blooms are beautiful! As are all your other discoveries...

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    1. Agapanthus are so common here one can get very tired of them, and forget they are beautiful.

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  3. I saw bickering and aero-acrobatics between crows and a Red Tail the other day, too. Was wondering how they dare to be so aggressive... You take the most wonderful bird photos, hb!

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    1. I've read the hawks basically ignore them as not worth their time. Just dumb luck when I get a good picture. 99% of them are out of focus.

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  4. Such beautiful photos!! The birds most love your wonderful garden. Do you use an IPhone
    or digital camera? Your photos are always outstanding in composition and quality.
    Of course the subject matter is always one I enjoy daily .

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    1. Happy you liked the pictures, thanks! I use a camera--they are more adjustable.

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  5. Exciting bird activity. That agave bloom is HUGE. What fun to see one.

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    1. It is the biggest one ever in the garden, even bigger than the marmorata of a couple of years ago. It's as tall as the house--womewhat intimidating!

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  6. The long photo of your garden with the agave stalk in the background provides scale as to how tall they really get. Wow! So much fun watching the birds. Our gold finches have arrived so like watching little canaries flitting around the garden.

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    1. I need to get Beloved out there to stand with the Agave so I can take a picture to show how huge it really is.

      Gold finches are hugely entertaining aren't they? I think they all take several baths a day, because there are always some in the urn fountain splashing around. If I work around the fountain they peep at me to leave.

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  7. 'Waverly' does get big but it's still one of my favs for elegant arching shape. That is a spectacular bloom on marmorata, what a gift to the birds! I think my agapanthus are not appreciating my crammed approach. I was hoping it would grow and thrive among sesleria...

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    1. To fully appreciate 'Wavely's elegance, a whole lot of room is required--and that's tough to do when there are so many plants waiting to be planted.

      The neighbor's Agapanthus have declined significantly over the years because the Raphiolepis have out-competed them. So maybe they are like roses, and can't take competition?

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  8. That marmorata inflorescence looks taller than any building Davis :-).

    The Sony FE 4/24-105 G OSS is my main lens. I love love love it.

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    1. It's as tall as the house.

      Yes, wonderful lens. I'm thrilled to have it.

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  9. Can I ask you a question about your Austins?? Which of these tends to bloom earliest: Abraham Darby, Jubilee Celebration, The Endeavour, or Princess Alexandra of Kent?? Thanks!!! Nate

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    1. Sure. After growing roses for decades, my observation is that the one that blooms first is a combination of three factors: getting pruned first, soil warming up first, and the rose's speed of repeat.

      My rose pruning is spread out over weeks--so the first ones to get pruned are resprouted and sending out considerable new growth by the time I start cutting back the last ones.

      My landscape had some significant exposure differences. The roses in the back gully, where the soil is in full shade in the winter months are always weeks behind the ones with a south facing exposure, even if I cut the gully roses back first.

      Lastly, repeat. Faster to repeat happens after pruning.

      Having said all that, 'The Endeavour' was first this year, though 'Jubilee Celebration' is usually first. 'Jubilee Celebration' just barely beat out PAOK that is always last, but is that because PAOK'S soil is well shaded and therefore slower to warm up, or because it is not as quick a repeater? And is it not a quick repeater because I moved it three times before I found a good spot for it?

      It's--compicated.

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    2. Hunh. I see that it's complicated. Thanks!! Nate

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  10. When I enlarged the photo of the crows harassing a Red Tail Hawk (because I thought I saw 2 tiny white dots on the crow very near the hawk) it looks like the crow's eyes sparkling in the sun! Could that be? If so, you and Gerhard are not kidding that is a fantastic lens!!

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    1. I enlarged and enlarged the original wondering what those dots were. Yes those white dots are reflections from the crows eyes. I was quite amazed myself. Helped that the camera is set to extreme large files--more detail that way.

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