back from the dead

I thought for sure this Himalayan clematis had died in last winter’s hard freezes. Now it’s twelve feet high and buried in flowers and silky seedheads.

the late bloomer

This red geum just erupted into bloom a week or so ago. Normally a geum would never be blooming this time of year, but this plant was a little volunteer I pulled out of another pot this spring, and it’s spent the summer trying to catch up to its parent. It will be particularly gorgeous as nearby leaves begin to change color.

lily time again

This has been quite the summer: first a drought, and a major heat wave, then some very autumnal weather with plenty of soft rain and chilly nights. It doesn’t feel much like summer now, with the gray skies and drizzle, except for the lilies blooming on the deck.

As usual the Stargazers opened first, with their pink freckles and sugary scent. Their petals are beginning to scatter through the back yard now, just as the Casablancas come into their full bloom. Stepping through the kitchen door onto the deck brings you into a cloud of spicy lily smell that hovers around everything. To me it’s the true smell of summer, rain or shine.

Christianson’s Nursery

Popped out to Christianson’s the other day to pick up some replacement cannas (all of mine seem to have rotted). The nursery is a paradise of flowers and ferns and moss and cats. I love it there.

snowbell time

The Japanese snowbell came into full bloom this week. It’s not quite as thick a bloom as last year, but the tree is big enough now to be quite magnificent, waving the little white bells about and perfuming the yard with honey.

I’m steeling myself to do some real pruning on this tree. I decided to start by taking off a few low-growing flowering twigs and putting them in a vase, just as a starting point. When the flowers fall, though, I need to do some more serious surgery. It needs opening up, to be the prettiest tree it can be. I dread messing up, though. I planted this tree nearly ten years ago and it’s very dear to my heart. Wish me luck!

busy, busy

It figures that when the garden is just getting really good is also when I’m far too busy watering, weeding and doing other things to get around to taking pictures of anything. Suffice it to say, things are growing quickly. I’ve never seen such consistently hot weather this early in the summer.

We did, however, recently spend a weekend in Santa Barbara for a family wedding, and had time to visit the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden. When we lived in Goleta I used to volunteer at the gardens and got to know them quite well.

Unfortunately, a fire just ran through the hills above town, and the botanic garden did not come out very well. It should rebound, but right now many of the paths are closed off, and some of the plants are looking less than fresh. Apparently the ceanothus grove completely went up in flames – all those volatile oils.

I can’t say I ever thought about what a burned cactus would look like. Interesting.

Hopefully by the next time I visit the garden it will be back to its normal, beautiful self.

starting the vegetable garden

The last few weeks have been hectic, but I have managed to get out in the garden a few times, mostly for weeding/damage control, and attempting to get the vegetable garden started. I got a few seeds sown in the backyard raised bed – we’ll see how that goes, I tend to lose seedlings to the birds and squirrels. I do better with starts, since they’re more likely to survive wildlife depradations. A pot that I planted in April with chard, parsley and lettuce starts is fully rampant now, somehow having escaped various pests.

I gave up starting my own tomatoes a few years ago, not through inability (for the most part), but just laziness and preoccupation. There are many good local nurseries that carry a wide variety of starts, so I don’t feel too bad about it. I’m supporting local business, right? Last year I was really impressed with the Stupice tomatoes that my husband bought for me, so I got two of them this year, plus a Sungold just because they’re delicious and easy. The tomatoes, as usual, are all in containers on the deck, that being the only place that gets enough heat to ripen them. Plus it’s more or less out of slug range.

I’m also throwing in a few packs of French marigolds. They’re supposed to repel pests, and I love the color and scent of them. I’m hoping the deck will be a riot of color this summer, with the tomatoes and marigolds and geraniums and lilies. Mmm, summer.

uncurling

Last year I divided many of my ferns and moved them around. It’s wonderful now to see the fiddleheads rising quietly out of the mist of bleeding heart and astrantia, often in unexpected places.

iris season has begun

I’m so happy to see my dwarf bearded iris kick in this year, especially my favorite, “Cherry Tart.” Luckily, it’s one of the most vigorous iris I have, so I’ve been able to spread it around a bit. I love the dusty wine tones.

Soon there should be many more iris in bloom – can’t wait!

sun disc

Happy May Day! One of my favorite things about late April and May (besides my beloved dwarf bearded iris) is seeing the late narcissus open. This variety, “Sun Disc” is one of the very latest, with the exception of the poeticus daffodils.

It’s a very sturdy little daffodil, with tiny, perfect, rounded golden flowers and a tiny flat cup. One flower doesn’t make much of a splash, but a big clump of them, especially surrounded with muscari, is mightily eye catching.