2012 in pictures

While most of the world is now focused on looking forward, I want to savor the past year in the garden one more time before I move into 2013.  Here's a brief retrospective of my 2012 gardening year, with each month showing some favorite plant action.

In January we visited Pasadena, where I spotted this huge planter full of Agave parryi var. truncata.

In February, I was heartened to see Arctostaphylos x 'Austin Griffiths' beginning to bloom.

March is such a wet month here in the PNW that I have learned to embrace moss in all its forms.

The Northwest Territory shone in April as Mahonia aquifolium bloomed.

A sea of Helianthemum set off the steely blue spikes of Yucca rostrata in May.

My favorite color, orange, plays out in June as Phygelius 'Passionate' fronts Trachycarpus fortuneii.

In July, I visited the hillside McCulloch garden as part of the Hardy Plant Society's Open Gardens program.

Meliathus major 'Purple Haze' looked good enough to eat in August. Its scent, reminiscent of honey, explains its common name of Honey Bush.

September is the month for Caryopteris blooms in a saturated shade of periwinkle blue.

With perfect fall coloring, Libertia peregrinans 'Broad Sword' and Ensete ventricosum 'Maurelii' warmed up October.

In November this NOID heather turned a lovely orange and set off Yucca rostrata's cool blues.

The fun of sputnik blooms on Fatsia japonica is a great way to end the year in December.

And with that fond look back at 2012, I may actually be ready to move forward into 2013! Happy New Year!

Holiday Greetings!

Cheers! I hope the holidays bring you and yours many small joys...

... and a peaceful and rewarding New Year full of LOTS of gardening!

A very late Bloom Day post for December

Yikes! I am four days late posting my bloomers for December. I actually ran out and took these pictures during a rain break on the 16th, but it's taken me two more days to put the post together.

So what did I find out there?

I'm still grooving on the recently planted Camellia sasanqua 'Yuletide' I showed last month. All three are blooming now, and their amazing flowers have held on through torrential rains and some pretty substantial winds as well.

A few Evergreen Huckleberries (Vaccinium ovatum) are already opening. Our lack of cold weather is encouraging growth of all kinds, but I wonder what the downside may be later.

Abutilon 'Tangerine', still pumping out a surprising number of blooms.

There are a few blossoms on Salvia 'Black and Blue'.

This is the exact same Kniphofia 'Timothy' bloom I showed a month ago for November's Bloom Day. Clearly, it has weathered, but it's still hanging on.

Fatsia japonica is such a kick at this time of year.

 An unknown rose.

A couple of random Ceanothus thyrsiflorus 'Victoria' flowers surprised me.

And it wouldn't seem like December in my garden without a few Rosemary blossoms. Rosemarinus prostratus 'Bonnie Jean' is reputed to be hardier than most prostrate varieties, though last winter and what we've seen of this winter have not been much of a test.

Visit our host Carol, at May Dreams Gardens, for a look at mid-December blooms in gardens all over. Happy Belated Bloom Day!

Bud Patrol

Yes, I know it's just early December. We haven't even passed the winter solstice yet. Leaves are still hanging on the trees around us. But thank goodness many plants are preparing themselves attractively for Spring's blooms and foliage, so here's what I'm seeing as I look hungrily for signs of that renewal. It just can't come fast enough for me!

Huckleberry, Vaccinium ovatum.

Camellia sasanqua 'Yuletide'. Many of these buds have already opened as you can see in the background.

Camellia 'April Kiss'.

Mahonia aquifolium.

Gaultheria shallon.

Pinus contorta.

Daphne odora 'Marginata'.

Arctostaphylos x 'Austin Griffiths'.

Embothrium coccineum with its fuzzy red buds. It's years from flowers, but I'll settle for new growth this spring.

 How about you? Can you "be here now", or are you already jonesing for Spring?

A Belated November Bloom Day

Things at Longview Ranch are much quieter this month. It's mostly a case of falling leaves and more falling leaves. But I have a few blooms to share with you - and a surprise appearance.

I've qvetched about the plume color on this Cortaderia selloana and apparently it heard me: they have bleached out to a nice pale white. It makes me happy to see them against this rare blue sky.

I wish there were more hummingbirds around to enjoy the constant and continuing bloom of Agastache 'Acapulco Orange.

Kniphofia 'Timothy' has sent up one last flower head.

There is the usual complement of almost-microscopic blooms, like these tiny flowers on Parthenocissus tricuspidata.

Here's a closeup. The open blossom is less than 1/4-inch wide.

Another small bloom on a species Rosemary.

And tiny Delosperma 'Oberg'.

The blooms on Rosa 'Sally Holmes' get bedraggled in the rain, but give her a few dry days and she comes back nicely.

Of course, the rain is excellent for fungi. If I knew more, I'd be tempted to harvest these for the kitchen.

One of the happiest plants in the garden right now is the Fatsia japonica. Its fat, sputnik-like blooms are attracting both me and the bees.

And here's the surprise: one of three Camellia sasanqua 'Yuletide' planted in the Northwest Territory last month has burst into bloom. All three were covered in buds when we bought them, but I didn't expect flowers until late December or January. I'm enjoying their unexpected cheer in the garden this month.

I'm a day late for Bloom Day, hosted by Carol at May Dreams Gardens, so take a look: I'm sure there are lots of flowers already there to enjoy. Happy Belated Bloom Day!

More of my favorite color

I love warm colors and autumn orange reigns as my current favorite. I want a lot more of this seasonal color at Longview Ranch, but here are the few glowing examples in my garden right now.

Cornus x 'Eddies White Wonder'.

The fast-growing pin oak next door is showering the garden with bronze leaves that contrast nicely with the green foliage of Acanthus mollis.

New foliage of Vaccinium ovatum.

Nandina domestica 'Moyers Red'

Parthenocissus tricuspidata 'Veitchii'.

Okay, not orange, but this Syneilesis hybrid is moving in a warm direction...

An Erica hybrid warms up an adjoining Yucca rostrata.

The beauty of maple leaf litter.

My neighbor's unusual Cornus.

My favorite new shrub, Langerstroemia 'Natchez', is coloring intensely this month.

If I can't have summer temperatures, I'll just have to warm up looking at all this bright foliage.