Friday, December 31, 2010

Endings and Beginnings

The last abutilon of 2010
 The end of a year always brings thoughts of endings, yet beginnings are all around. Here is a look at some of each in my Davis garden as December 31, 2010 puts an finish to another year.

 As the nandina berries reach their reddest, and just before I decide they need to be removed now that they they have served the purpose of providing holiday color, a new spray of blooms appears on an adjacent plant.


 Likewise, the metallic blue berries of Viburnum tinus 'Spring Bouquet' remain although it has already begun blooming. 


What promises to be the first strawberry of 2011 is just beginning to have a little pink blush while my new Rosa The Fairy shows off its first blossoms of the new year.
Rosa The Fairy
Cyclamen and narcissus foliage
The cyclamen will continue to bloom into January and then rest until next fall, meanwhile narcissus foliage emerges nearby.

Colchicum foliage

The foliage of colchicums given to me at the Buffa10 garden blogger gathering by my friend Kathy at Cold Climate Gardening begins to emerge also.
The beginning of the end of my beloved plum tree
The last shot is the future firewood cut from my plum tree as I begin to remove it. It is the end of that particular plum tree. But all gardeners know that while it is sad to see the death of a prized plant, it is through one plant's demise that we are granted space for a new beginning. And with that thought I'm looking forward to what 2011 brings...in the garden and my life.

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

GBBD December 2010

The holidays are quickly approaching but that doesn't stop Garden Blogger Bloom Day!  Carol at May Dreams Gardens has, for almost three years, been inviting garden bloggers to join her in listing the blooms they have in their garden on the 15th of each month. Visit her to find links to Bloom Day posts from around the world!

This time of year the pressure is on for those of us living in climates where we can still find blooms so here goes.

 Let's start with what gardeners in colder climates might be AMAZED to see...Hemerocallis Teatime blooming just in time for December Bloom Day!  I must, however,  tell the truth and admit I'm amazed as well. It seems every year I have some confused plant blooming out of turn. Today, it's Teatime's turn to shine. Joining in is this sweet foxglove that just won't quit. 


Some plants are what I call constants...they bloom a big chunk of the year, stopping only for a short while if things get especially cold or hot.  Constants blooming today include:


Rosa Demitasse
Rosa Flower Girl
Abutilon Pink Parasol
Unnamed pink abutilon
Dwarf Carnation Evermore     
Sweet allysum
Solanum jasminoides
Lavandula pinnata buchii
Chrysanthemum frutescens

Everything here is soaking wet from the welcome rains we've been having and leaves have been falling big-time so some blooms have to work to be seen.. like the sweet allysum.

Other plants blooming today that perform for a long period, but not quite enough to qualify as a constant, include:

Rosa Berries and Cream
Scabiosa Butterfly Blue
Salvia Mulberry Jam
Salvia Dancing Dolls
Wax begonias
Pansies
Foxgloves
Lobelia
Salvia greggii
Plumbago auriculata


And plants that bloom for shorter periods that are blooming today include:
Camellia Sasanqua Kanjiro
Nandina
Snapdragons
Cyclamen