The big chop continues...
I've messed up badly trimming Lavender 'Meerlo'.
Cringe:
Still procrastinating on pricking out and potting up Stock and Snapdragon seedlings. Have not been in the mood for fiddly. Really need to get that done.
Appearing by Mangave 'Snow Leopard' and 'Night Owl'
Rhodanthemums are starting to flower again:
A couple new plants: Leucadendron 'Startreuse':
Also a 'Bee's Bliss', a low-growing, ground-cover(ish) Salvia which is a hybrid of two California native Salvias, either S. leucophylla x S. sonomensis (or S. clevelandii), or S. sonomensis x S. clevelandii. I've seen it with a massive cloud of honeybees surrounding it, so the name is apparently apt. For either the east side slope or the west side slope. Dry tough conditions it might like.
I hear you about the lack of motivation, although maybe I have a better excuse (the cold weather). Wait...I can't use that excuse this next week as we'll be in the 50s and 60s. I'll be outdoors and more motivated, for sure! (I was thinking maybe the Lavender will fill in and grow back?)
ReplyDeleteYou have a far better excuse. It's been gorgeous here if a bit too warm. Lavender does not sprout from dead wood and exposing a lot of dead wood means looking at dead wood either for a long time or for the rest of the lavender's life. I'll look and see if I can remove some of that dead stuff--the picture sure is motivating!
DeleteEnjoy the stretch of mild before winter really sets in--autumn seems always a beautiful time in every climate.
I've had encounters with lavenders like that...
ReplyDeleteA new Leucadendron! I looked for input online and mostly found mentions without pictures. The exception was an IG shot from Barrels & Branches in Encinitas but it didn't match your description so I look forward to seeing it in your garden.
The rain forecast doesn't sound as promising at present in my location as the predictions I heard last week but at least it sounds like there will be something :)
I waited too long on the lavender. My bad. 'Meerloo' deserved better.
DeleteI couldn't find a good photo of the Leucadendron either--it's growing so maybe one of my own soon.
Sounds like there will be rain of some sort for most of SoCal. Any amount reduces wildfire risk and the plants seem to respond to even a little, so--yay!
The Rhodanthemum is quite pretty, I like the silvery-ness to it. I had to laugh at not being in the mood for "fiddly". I've been feeling the same.
ReplyDeleteThe Rhodanthemum has been an excellent little edger/groundcover here.
DeleteI don't do well with fiddly. I'm better at puttering around.
Funny, I too botched-pruned my blond lavender earlier this year. When recovery was slow, I pulled the poor thing out. Sometimes plants get too big for their own good.
ReplyDeleteIt's fun to see the germinated Leucospermum 'Tango': very exciting success. It's a beautiful specimen.
That bronze mantis is gorgeous!
Chavli
'Meerloo' is a bit large for that spot. I planted another in a different area, and am pondering removing the ruined one. It's quite a few years old now and very woody.
DeleteIt would be great if the 'Tango' seeds grow. I've had a few seedlings in past years but they did not survive. Not every seed produces a healthy plant.
The mantis and baby lizards appeared late this year also--it wasn't just plants put back by the very cool May and June.
Ah, I've done a terrible job pruning back a manzanita that ventured too far into the driveway. I understand the pain. Nice to see a praying mantis - we had a couple in the garden for the first time in years. Very cool insect, startlingly big.
ReplyDelete