Still not motivated to garden because of the heat, which has returned. We had three cool days, so feeling hopeful I considered the mailbox bed's various issues.
Raked away the thick layer of oak and Leucadendron leaves, pulled out some small Aloes ('Roikappie', A. brevifolia, A. dorothea I'd used as fillers) along with Agave 'Ivory Curls' some that remained after the original bloomed out and died. The Leucadendron's old location spot has a big hollow depression, as if it needs more soil. I might have created the depression intentionally: to prevent water from streaming so quickly down the slope.
Plants there currently:
Two Agave 'Blue Glow' that replaced three gopher-destroyed Agaves.
Aloe aculeata x cryptopoda
Two pillows of Rhodanthemum
Silene uniflora 'Druitts Variegated', doing fairly well
Three Aloe striatas, not looking overly happy
Lagerstroemia 'Ebony Embers' doing well.
An impulse-buy Echinacea
A self-seeded Lotus hirsutus
Agave 'Ivory Curls' doing well, somewhat engulfed by the Lotus.
A small tuft of an Aizoaceae
Several small clumps of Crassula pubescens that are Not Happy all summer, recovering in fall, growing happily in winter and spring, and going back to misery in summer.
To add:
Alyogyne 'Ruth Bancroft'
Two Aloe aculeata waiting in the veggie garden nursery beds, having recovered from nearly dying in locations that proved to dry for them.
Mulch
I have another Silene Druitt's Variegated that could be added as well.
Not much to do, but still rather hot to do it. Very hot day Monday, but I managed some activity in the area shaded by Aloe 'Hercules', a Leucadendron, and the Oak.
Pulling off spring and summer's growth from Hemerocallis, Leucanthemum, and Geranium 'Rozanne'. In colder climates with frosts and hard freezes I'm guessing plants of those type vanish for the winter. Here they grow a fresh set of foliage and continue to grow or at least remain green and attractive until next spring.
'Rozanne' refreshed:
The Leucanthemums extend themselves slowly from one area to another, a few inches a year. Two new growths there on last-year's stem, with the old piece snapped off from the left side:
Glamorous, trivial, I guess. I found it meditative and peace-inducing. Around me, hummingbirds and bees zipped around, the goldfinch bathing party continued, scrub jays tried to intimidate acorn woodpeckers harvesting acorns from the oak, and a squirrel showed up and quickly left when it spotted the human pawing at the ground.
I did take bloom day photos, but none of them were very satisfactory. The Drimia one was okay.
Last night we got 0.14" of wonderful rain, a special treat in September. Now it is sunny and hot. Again.
I don't blame you for taking a time out. Despite a solid marine layer here on Monday, it's been hot here again this week. We got a little relief as the tropical storm moved in Wednesday afternoon but it delivered just 0.03/inch to us. While the temperatures came down, the humidity has soared so it's still uncomfortable. The wind knocked out my tallest zinnias so I've got some cleanup to do there. I'm not sure how much longer the rest of my warm-season cutting garden is going to hang on - I'd originally counted on it to deliver flowers through October :(
ReplyDeleteSweatember. :( Hoping it's not a Hotober. I miss gardening!
DeleteThe dog-days of summer are hard... gardeners everywhere are itching to get their fingers in the dirt. (I'm currently complaining about low to mid 70's and can't wait for the overcast days to return).
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, your Drimia maritima blooms, so elegant and graceful.
I love the silver-green ground cover in photo 3. Do you have to trim it annually around the pavers to keep them expose?
Chavli
Low to mid 70's sounds heavenly, though my ideal garden weather is high 60's. Overcast, love overcast!
DeleteThat's Dymondia margaretae, another wonderful South African plant. The steppers need trimming 2-3 times a year. Dymondia wants a coarse sandy soil, exactly what that area provides.
I know what you mean. Just when I thought it was over we're in the 90s again, upper 90s forecast. When will it rain??
ReplyDelete