Underplanted Spring Showstoppers for Medit gardens

It has been rather quiet here recently, and no doubt
world events are not exactly encouraging any of us at
the moment.  As a break from the relentless and
depressing news, it has been more important than ever
for me to get out into the garden and appreciate the
beauty all around.  Somehow I couldn't quite pull it
together to attend the local San Francisco Landscape
Show this year, preferring the solitude over the
crowds.  

There are so many medit plants in their full spring
glory at the moment, I thought I might list a few to
get others to write about what's beautiful in your
part of the world. 

In my own garden, and around the neighborhood,  
Euphorbia characias var wulfenii is in full bloom.  A
neighbor's planting with its flowers peaking out as if
below the skirt of an overhead Ceanothus 'Julia
Phelps' is a brilliant and humorous combination of
chartreuse and deep electric blue.  Ordinarily one
wouldn't plant these two so closely, but they look
charming together, and deserving of a photo.

Also in the neighborhood, and vastly underplanted in
these parts are the beautiful purple flowers of the
Australian Mintbush/Prostanthera ovalifolia 'Excellent
Purple', a selection made at UC Santa Cruz Arboretum. 
The flowers are so numerous that the shrub becomes
weeping while in bloom, and bloom for a month to  6
weeks here.  Along with the other Prostantheras, all
are easily grown, fairly drought tolerant, but rarely
seen in gardens or at retail nurseries.  Blooming at
the same time, Isopogon formosus/Purple Drumstick
Flower is also in full bloom, and makes both a showy
flowering shrub and excellent cut flowers, with the
flowers reminding me more of a sea urchin than
drumsticks!  The dissected foliage is interesting in
its own right, and this is another plant too rarely
seen, but easily grown.  I wish more of the Isopogons
were available in the trade, and wonder if they are
more difficult to propagate, as there are quite a few
species to be seen at UC Santa Cruz Arboretum.

The Grevilleas such as G. 'Superb' are also gorgeous
right now, and I wouldn't be without this particular
hybrid for the continuous waves of  the large
lyre-like apricot orange flowers off and on all year
round, but especially showy right now.  The cut leaf
foliage as it ages and turns orange is beautiful in
its own right if collected and brought inside where it
can be appreciated.  I have this on the deck as a
container plant, and it is happily blooming along with
the equally vivid Leucospermum 'Tango', and the
fragrantly perfumed Scurfy Pea/Psoralea pinnata, with
its soft foliage looking like a pine tree when out of
bloom, and the white and blue sweet pea like flowers. 
I was glad to finally have a form of this which is
distinctly fragrant, as the other plantings of this
species in my garden have always been much later to
bloom(early summer rather than early spring), and
without any fragrance at all.  I am hoping that this
version may also be a repeat bloomer again in summer,
but that may be too much to ask for.  It was a nice
surprise to see how ubiquitous this species is in the
wild in the Cape area of South Africa.

Another plant that is not strictly a medit climate
plant, but which has proven to be equally at home with
virtually no summer water, is a hybrid cross made by
our local Martin Grantham between Beschorneria
septentrionales and B. decosteriana.  I love the 6 to
8 foot tall flower stalks with their unusual
combination of jade green and deep rose shadings, with
similarly colored flowers.  What I hadn't realized,
however, was as the plant formed a clump, the next
year's flower spikes would lean out, and make it
difficult to park near the curb at the street.  One of
those plants that will need to be moved in the future
to best show it off, and looking spectacular with 4
large bloom spikes this year.  The only drawback is
that the plant is a natural harbor for snails,
although they don't seem to do all that much damage to
the plant itself. This hybrid has made me want to grow
more of the other species, and I have purchased B.
yuccoides to try as well.  Another Mexican plant,
Sedum dendroideum is a vision of blinding yellow at
present, which contrasts nicely against the glossy
green foliage.  This makes an excellent low care low
growing hedge for seldom watered spots, and could
easily substitute for a Buxus hedge, but is seldom
offered for sale in retail nurseries these days.  I
favor this plant for low care, low budget landscapes
as it can be planted out from unrooted cuttings, and
will reach its mature size within a year's time, and
not outgrow its space!  Perfect for the gardener with
no patience and prefers not to have to trim hedges.

Giving an unexpected repeat bloom again this spring
after blooming in early winter and also in early fall
is another South African, Gnidia polystachya.  I love
the waves of bloom this slightly weeping shrub gives,
with the lemon yellow sprays of flowers and soft
heather like foliage.  The plant has somewhat the
character of a more dainty Coleonema pulchrum, but has
never caught on with the gardening public.  I know of
only one nursery growing this plant, and when I called
Maggie at Western Hills Nursery to see if she still
had any in stock, she said that I was the first person
to ever ask her about this plant since she has been
growing it.  I would have thought such an easy care
plant which tolerates full sun or light shade, blooms
in fall and again in spring, is virtually pest
free(spittle bug does seem to like it), would have its
fans.  I attribute it to so many people having a bias
against yellow flowers, it must be a conspiracy...

Across the street is a Kniphofia hybrid in full bloom,
which is resplendent in the late afternoon sun,
highlighting its orange and yellow flowers absolutely
glow.  Most of the Kniphofia uvaria hybrids I have
grown(a nameless yellow and the Winter Cheer cultivar)
bloom much later, or earlier, and if I had more room,
I would certainly add this one to my own garden.  As
it is, I enjoy seeing it in my neighbor's street
strip.  The various California native Ceanothus
species and cultivars have all been very showy this
year, as well as the Ribes sanguineum var glutinosum
and of course the California Poppies!  

After a dry spell in January, the rains have been well
spaced and sufficient to spare any necessity of
outdoor watering, so considerate of Mother Nature this
year.  It has made it much easier to get seedlings
going of our local Miner's Lettuce/Montia perfoliata
which is an interesting little herbaceous,(and edible)
winter growing annual for bright shade, looking like a
dwarf clumping Nasturtium with delicate white flowers,
and can form carpets of lush green below our native
Coast Live Oaks.  I also have thousands of seedling
Alstroemeria 'Ligtu Hybrids' finally germinating from
seed saved from two years ago.  I wasn't sure if it
would still be viable, and it took almost a month to
germinate.  I am hoping to have better success growing
this on than last year, when I lost almost every
single seedling when I tried to tease them apart out
of a flat into individual one gallon cans.  Starting
them in 4 inch pots should make them easier to
transplant, but I am still uncertain whether I should
just thin them out rather than try to separate them
and grow them all on.  Anyone who can share tips for
this plant from seed?  I guess I shall have to try it
both ways.  They are so undemanding if sown in place,
and I find them coming up all over the place in the
backyard from escaped seed while cleaning them, but
they almost always seem to be the least interesting
orange shades rather than a deep red, pink, yellow or
cream.  I wish I had a vacant lot next door in which
to plant these all out, as the combinations of pastels
colors when they bloom in late May/June makes them my
absolute favorite cut flower for large bouquets, and
they thrive here in Berkeley on winter rainfall alone.
 I suspect their summer deciduous nature and creeping
rhizomatous nature, along with their rampant size is
what caused them to lose favor in the nursery trade,
as none are to be had at the nurseries these days. The
evergreen florist hybrids, while also beautiful, are
no match in my opinion to an entire garden full of the
Ligtu hybrids.

What has got you admiring its beauty in your area this season?

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