This is a public-interest archive. Personal data is pseudonymized and retained under GDPR Article 89.

the state of my own garden this winter

As I have failed to recently post anything related to my own garden,
here goes . . .

My small parcel of land is in sad disarray at the moment.  Not that
my climate precludes having 'something doing' at this time of year -
indeed, there seems to be activity regardless of my neglect, which
is the real cause of the problem.  Fall clean-up never really
happend, and the 'Christmas clear-away' was also missed!!  I'm
hoping for a 'New Year's new start', but there is a significant
amount of construction and painting happening to my building in the
next weeks, so I'm sure that will cause a disruption to my plans as
well!

The lower slope, which faces south west, is currently blooming madly
with Oxalis pres-caprea!  Quite bright to those unfamiliar with this
horrible weed, but striking fear into the hearts of those interested
in planting other winter growing plants.  We have the Pentyploid
mutant which is much larger and far more vigorous than the type
(diploid) species.  Though sterile (due to the odd number of
chromosomes), it more than makes up for it in all other ways.
California is lousy with the stuff, the only saving grace being its
short season of growth.  We removed and sifted out many bulbils last
summer, but those that remain seem to be thriving because of our
efforts!  I merely pull handfulls of the succulent greenage from
areas where I have other plants trying to survive, and it seems to
make a bit of difference (fewer and smaller Oxalis) over time.

Meanwhile, Geranium incanum is getting ready for an early spring
bloom, my plant cascading gently over a wall at the base of this
slope.  I pull away the matt of stems under those on top of this
spill, thinning it out and creating a more delicate effect (this
plant can be a thug!).  A shrubby Velvet Groundsel (Roldana
petasitis, = Senecio p., Cineraria p.) is growing close by, its
large, rounded, scallop-lobed, felty green leaves always attracting
interest and an occasional 'feel' from passerbys.  Its deep maroon
brown-red, clusters of flower buds are interesting until they open
to reveal the raggedy yellow daisies (at which point I promptly
remove them).  Other plants inevidence (among the dissarray of weeds
and overgrowth!) are Echium pininnana and Geranium psilostemon.  The
former is a new plant for me, and I am pleased with the rapid growth
of its rosette, promising a handsome, tall spike of flowers this
spring.  The latter is in a 'leaf stage' - a nice clump of rounded,
lobed leaves (magenta flowers will surmount this most of spring and
summer).  Coleonema pulchrum 'Sunset Gold' is very bright right now,
looking much like a gold-toned heather.  I mean to relieve its
'lumpy' shape by taking selected cuttings when I get a chance,
finding that it looks best when allowed to grow in the more
horizontal, upswept form typical of this cultivar.  A large unnamed
Verbascum has made a huge yellowish rosette in this part of the
garden, much to the chagrin of my wife, who constantly reminds me
that I said it would be smaller in size (how was I to know! - it had
always been smaller in the poorer soils and minimal irrigation in
which it grew before!).  She feels it sets the planting 'off
balance', but is willing to wait for flowering and seed gathering.

Also far too large is Agave angustifolia variegata, planted across
the stairs from the site just discussed, and protruding obnoxiously
into the walking space!  While it is unquestioningly very beautiful,
its rounded form of stiff, spikey leaves, a soft celadon green with
a broad creamy edge, bedecked with deep red-black thorns, it must go
soon!  I thought it would flower before growing larger (I seem to
have this problem, I guess!) but it does not seem ready to give up
growing in girth just yet.  I'm going to need to rent a large
pry-bar and try and lift this guy out of his bed and move him
(somehow) down to a public succulent garden here in town, where he
will be a featured attraction, no doubt!

Tecomaria capensis, a melon orange form, towers behind, apparently
not minding its shabby seed-pod crown, still throwing out a new
flower spike or two, even though the weather long ago cooled lower
than it usually perfers.  Its dwarf yellow cousin is behind,
shooting out long, lax branches in all directions, seeking to claim
more horizontal space than its vertical companion.  It cascades over
the largest Agave attenuata in the garden, whose large, soft, wavy,
sculpted leaves were slightly damaged in the last hail-storm, but
now are being replaced quickly by fresh, new growth.  I hope for a
nice, tall, 'foxtail' inflorescence this spring - a thick spike
densly clothed in yellow flowers and with a characteristic limp,
'crooked' top.

While I feel the garden is a pretty sad sight right now, it does
still cause some to stop and admire (or perhaps they are aghast!).
Many of you who have read my ramblings before have imagined a large,
spacious few acres to contain all that I explain!  It is a very
modest space, and perhaps much of the content is only evident to the
gardener himself (moi).  But then gardens are often that way,
especially when the gardener has other things to do beside spend the
days tending that bit of the natural world (sigh!).

 Sean A. O'Hara                     sean.ohara@ucop.edu
 710 Jean Street                    (510) 987-0577
 Oakland, California 94610-1459     h o r t u l u s   a p t u s
 U.S.A.                             'a garden suited to its purpose'
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index