More Wildflowers (if you can take it)


Maybe nobody noticed that I changed the text on the banner for May. It used to say:"Gardening with Native Plants in the Coastal Hills and in the Suburbs of Central California." That started to sound a bit like false advertising, so I changed it to "Adventures with California Native Plants in the Suburbs and in a Ridgetop Restoration Garden."


And sometimes I am just tempted to say "Adventures with California Native Plants." So, here, before I forget what everything is, the final installment of MY Tassajara trip -- you do all know that there are two writers on this blog, I hope -- which was in mid May. The two pictures above show Calochortus albus var. rubellus (fairy lanterns), one in shade, and one in a sunnier location. My results with planting Calochortus bulbs have been disappointing, so I just love seeing them when out on a walk.


The photo above is Salvia spataceae (hummingbird sage). Except it's hummingbird sage on steroids. These plants were at least twice as thick as mine, and there were literally hundreds of them. The picture doesn't quite capture it, let's just say I've never seen anything like it.


Delphinium parryi (western larkspur) was also abundant. There's a chance this is Delphinium patens (woodland larkspur), if yes, I apologize for the misidentification.


 Above is a close-up.



And then there was Collinsia heterophylla (Chinese houses). I struggled mightily to get this beautiful annual to grow, fighting against snail, having trouble with plants that didn't grow upright. Mother Nature did a better job, with fields of beautiful blossoms (above) in the areas just burnt so recently.


Above a close-up.


Lupine was also abundant, that I'd planned a post called "Mother Nature's Crop Rotation." Many different kinds of lupine were in the burnt areas, adding fertilizer to the soil and getting it ready for the perennials and trees.



Above a close-up.

But really, the next post should be about the garden again. Still, let's just have one more picture of Hesperoyucca whipplei (our Lord's candle), with monkey flower and fairy lantern.

Comments

Unknown said…
Isn't it funny how some of these plants grow so well in the wild but don't want to perform in our gardens? In those situations I just try to get one plant to grow well enough to reseed itself, then usually the volunteers do so much better than the one I planted!
Kimberly said…
Your delphinium and lupine are marvelous! I just wrote a post about wildflowers, too..in Florida. They're so pretty this time of year.
Christine said…
Oh Mother Nature! I love you, but do you have to be such a show-off?! So glad you captured this incredible scene, Town Mouse!
Laura Livengood said…
Oh yes, that hummingbird sage, must add that to my 'parkway natives!' (just now enjoying my first mimulus and layia blooms)Thanks!
Benjamin Vogt said…
I want hummingbird sage! I bet it's one 6 or 7 though, right?
Oh, my.... I need some Fairy Lanterns! Those are very cool!
Chandramouli S said…
Larkspur! God, have I wanted them to grow here! They look lovely and so do the other natives too!
Teresa said…
My neighbot just gave me some seedlings of hummingbird sage. I hope it grows well to look like these. they are all so beautiful.