Blooms in Suburbia -- Town Mouse

 

I was sorry to miss last month's bloom day, but here I am with blossoms for February. Above some beautiful Hellebores, Mediterranean plants from Greece, with some currents (Ribes sanguinium) in the background. 

I ordered a batch of plants last year, and somehow miscommunicated how many Ribes sanguinium I wanted. I wanted one and ended up with six, but I rose to the challenge. It's been interesting how the different plants grew at a different pace depending on their location. They like shade, but get bigger with a few hours of sunshine. Here's another one.

 

I love the filigree quality of the blossoms, delightful at a time where we have a lot of greening but not quite so much blooming amongst the natives.  But then, I do have a few more exotics. Here's Chondropetalum tectorum (fringe cup), which thrives with little water and blooms abundantly. I question the wildlife value of this shrub, never see insects or hummers, though the birds like the shelter. One day, I might replace it with a nice manzanita, but for now, I enjoy the show. 

I inherited this plant, as well as a number of other pink plants, from the previous owner. Unfortunately, I don't really like pink...But then, I do have to admit this is quite a show, and it goes on for a long time. 

Overhanging from the neighbor are the branches of this ornamental pear, so pretty against the blue sky. And the many petals do look a bit like snow as they slowly tumble down to the ground. A bit. 

First in the sequence of my own fruit trees are the plum blossoms above. I'm very glad we're having a break in the rain for the next week. If it's too wet and cold, no one comes by to pollinate, and that means no plums. But I have seen a few bees during the last two days. A bit disoriented perhaps, but they'll figure it out. 

The photo above actually belongs to a set I made about moss, to show Frances at Fairegarden,  Queen of Moss, that we have moss here. But I saw that the photo showed off the blooming redwood sorrel quite nicely, and yes, that native just started to bloom a few days ago. (I'll try to get that moss post out soon after bloom day). 

Following the unfortunate theme of pink, and also inherited from the previous owners, are the pink double Camelia blossoms. Yes, they're a bit garish. But it really cheers me up to see them open up after weeks of rain, and they've managed to cope with an admirably small amount of water last summer. I do suspect they've spread their roots and are sneaking drinks from the neighbor's lawn irrigation, but no matter. I can't help but be impressed by such a well-behaved plant. 

 

Speaking of pink, the first blossoms of the Eriogonum arborescens (Santa Cruz island buckwheat) in the front garden do look much more pink than a white-blooming plant should look. But my friends are envious that I have such an interesting cultivar, so I guess I enjoy this special treat. 

Possibly the most exciting development in the spring garden is that the hummingbird sage (Salvia spatacea) is finally coming into its own. The plan was to have that Salvia fill up the area where I removed the Euphorbia that had attacked me, but last year, I only have two flower stalks. This year, things look promising, many more flower stalks. The first stalk just started opening up, some red blossoms for Valentine's day. 

 

I'll leave you with this happy red blossom and hope that you'll head over to Carol at May Dreams Gardens, who makes our bloom day gatherings possible.  Amazingly, her Monday post is already up, so you can head over and visit her, and then enjoy some other blooms.