Garden Center Visits, Agapanthus and Other New Plants

Accidentally became besotted with Agapanthus 'Twister' on a garden center visit last week.  I saw it, and left it, thinking, "You'll go back if you really want it."  I went back.   

Snails find Agapanthus clumps the perfect place to be fruitful and multiply.  Our long drought brought about a collapse in the neighborhood snail population, so my attitude towards Agapanthus has turned more positive. 

Enchanting 

The Agapanthus inapertus ssp pendulus 'Graskop' plant I asked for and received from a kind neighbor has an emerging flower stem--awaiting its opening.

 'Black Pantha' was good, though I never got a satisfying photo of it.  Next year, hopefully.  The plant, more established by then, should produce a better flower as well.

Sunday early morning, another garden center visit:  we went to Roger's Gardens in Corona del Mar.  We have not been there since March 2019 2020.  They were offering a free California native Asclepias (milkweed) plant in exchange for any tropical milkweed.  Tropical milkweed (A. curassavica) is believed to disrupt Monarch Butterfly migration patterns in California and promote disease in adult Monarchs.  Some were coming up from seed, so I pulled one to exchange.  I've been removing all the seedlings that come up. 

Beloved took most of the photos.  I was busy looking at plants. 

Roger's was fully stocked, though they didn't have much in the way of  latest/greatest/unusual.  Their emphasized trends this June were fruits/vegetables, and hummingbird/butterfly.  They continue to devote a good amount of space to succulent plants and shrubs with lower water requirements, but there were a lot of roses and tropical/subtropical plants as well.  A section of fruit trees contained no 'Improved Meyer' Lemon trees.  I asked an employee, curious as to why they did not.  "We got in about 100 this week, and already sold them all," was his answer.

Big selection of vegetable plants:

The vertical garden looked freshly replanted.  They had a "hummingbird starter box" for sale ($39.95) with hummingbird attracting plants, mostly Salvias, with a mimulus and pentas.

 

Garden long and prosper! 

Their "small scale garden" display changes frequently.  This iteration has a blue, silver, and bright green color combination:

Succulents are still on-trend.  Blogger in habitat:

We got there early and had the place to ourselves, for a while.  Once it hit about 10:15,  shoppers began to pour in.  The pandemic interest in gardening hasn't faded yet. 
 

Most people had Cupheas and Salvias in their carts.  Good to see that--there were lots of feeders for sale, but plants are healthier for the birds. 

That Platycerium specimen has been at Roger's as long as I can remember.  Yes, it's grown.  

Lots of tropicals and begonias, more than in the past few years. 

Blogger in habitat, checking to see if they had Agapanthus 'Indigo Frost'.  They did not. 

Diplandenia/Mandevilla

Clematis 'Nelly Moser':

In Southern California, Hibiscus do fairly well only close to the ocean.  The ones in our neighborhood are sad to see:  stunted and often mostly defoliated. 

Oh, a fringe-y Leucanthemum!  I've been looking for one.  The sealed plastic bag in my hand contained the tropical milkweed plant to be traded in for a native species. 

This planter was Aloes and such last we were here.  Now Dichondra argentea, Pittosporum, Thuja 'Whipcord'...

...Senecio 'Mount Everest', drapey Thymes, and what appears to be a new Lomandra...

To new to be for sale.  Could be an improvement over the similar looking variegated Dianella tasmatica that gets brown tips, spots, and streaks (at least it did in my garden).    

Nice purple center on that white Dahlia.

Beautiful 'Itt' out by the parking lot

What came home with us?  One of those fringe-y Leucanthemums.  This one is 'Sante':
 

Plus, a free Asclepias eriocarpa and Globularia x indubia.  I saw the Globularia quite a long time ago at Rogers but didn't buy one.  One was waiting. 

 By the time we left, Roger's was crazy busy and crowded.  I'm glad we wore our masks.  Covid-19 cases, after a long sustained drop in our state, are starting to rise again. 
 

Crazy busy at home  this very warm dry Sunday at the urn fountain.  Four exotic Lonchura punctulata, no less than five six male Hooded Orioles washing the Agave nectar off their feathers.  A Mourning Dove so dumb it couldn't figure out how to take a bath--it stood in the water looking around until a Mockingbird chased it away.  Female orioles, the usual gold- and house- finches.  Hummers zipping around all.   The towering A. marmorata flower stalk has dripped puddles of nectar into its own dying foliage.