Almost finished packing for the trip. The big question is whether I bring a handful of ballpoint pens to give to school children. Here's the itinerary:
Hanoi: 2 nights
Ha Long Bay: 1 nights
Siem Reap (Angkor Wat): 3 nights
Cruise down the Mekong River: 7 nights
Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon): 2 nights
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Friday, November 11, 2011
Finishing up the Second Year of Landscaping
I'm almost done with this second round of landscaping.
The wildflower meadow on the side needs some stability of focal point when the wildflowers aren't active, so I've added some perennials.
These include: achillea millefolium rosea (Island Pink Yarrow).
Blue-eyed grasses (of differing sizes):
And an artemisia california (California sagebrush "David's choice")
The finished meadow:
I've also added a large rose buckwheat in the front where the royal penstemon died:
I've finished the front walkway and added ornamental pots by the porch:
Each pot contains a monkey flower. This is mimulus carnivale:
This is mimulus cardinale:
I've also finished putting in the Carpenteria in the front planter box.
I put in Margarita penstemon along the second path across the parkway strip:
The Indian mallows are doing fantastic and the bees love them:
The fuschia-flowering gooseberry has come out of summer dormancy and added lots of new, green leaves. I'm hoping it will flower this year.
The monkey flowers near the back porch are doing nicely.
Lots of lemons on the Meyer lemon tree:
I've planted beets in the garden (nothing to see yet).
I put in a brickellia californica (brickellbush) near my back bedroom window. They are supposed to smell fantastic when the flower.
The wildflower meadow on the side needs some stability of focal point when the wildflowers aren't active, so I've added some perennials.
These include: achillea millefolium rosea (Island Pink Yarrow).
Blue-eyed grasses (of differing sizes):
And an artemisia california (California sagebrush "David's choice")
The finished meadow:
I've also added a large rose buckwheat in the front where the royal penstemon died:
I've finished the front walkway and added ornamental pots by the porch:
Each pot contains a monkey flower. This is mimulus carnivale:
This is mimulus cardinale:
I've also finished putting in the Carpenteria in the front planter box.
I put in Margarita penstemon along the second path across the parkway strip:
The Indian mallows are doing fantastic and the bees love them:
The fuschia-flowering gooseberry has come out of summer dormancy and added lots of new, green leaves. I'm hoping it will flower this year.
The monkey flowers near the back porch are doing nicely.
Lots of lemons on the Meyer lemon tree:
I've planted beets in the garden (nothing to see yet).
I put in a brickellia californica (brickellbush) near my back bedroom window. They are supposed to smell fantastic when the flower.
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Plant Sale - Round II
This morning was the annual native plant sale at the Rancho Santa Ana Botanical Gardens. In preparation, I pulled out all the calla lilies from the front planter boxes. I had done this last year, but I wasn't careful and they all grew back. I tried to get all the roots and bulbs, though I expect I still missed some.
In order to prevent trick or treaters from running across the new plantings, I put up some cobweb fencing that actually worked.
This morning, I woke up early and headed out to Claremont at 6:45 am. The doors open at 8, but last year I got there at 8:15, ended up having to park on the street and take a shuttle, only to find that the place was packed. It was 50 F, as I waited in the queue, but I didn't have to wait long. When they let us in, the volunteer staff applauded us (you have to be a member to go in early).
I had a list and headed right for the Carpenteria californica. This is a rather endangered species in the wild, and all the pots I bought had a certificate that they were grown from cuttings in the botanical gardens, not taken from the wild. The popular name is Bush Anemone (cultivar "Elizabeth"). It has dark green leaves (somewhat resembling oleander but not poisonous), and when it blooms, it has large white flowers. It also likes light shade.
They had a handful of five gallon pots, so I bought all three. Two went in the front, near the front door:
The third big one I put where the dying chaparral currant was:
I noticed they had some really nice Sisyrinchium californicum (golden-eyed grass). This is tall and has bright yellow flowers. I thought it might brighten up this corner, so I planted it in front of the bush anemone:
I'm tweaking the wild flower meadow a bit. I think it needs some stable perennials to anchor it, so I put in some Sisyrinchium bellum (blue-eyed grass). This is a little shorter than its yellow cousins. I had planted a lot of this last year on the front parkway strip, but it needs summer water or it shrivels and dies. The meadow stays moist all summer, so I think it will work better here.
The decapitated blue sage on the parkway strip finally succumbed to the inevitable and died. I replaced it with a Salvia apiana (white sage). To get an idea at how fast it grows, compare this new one:
With this one that I planted a year ago:
Because all the blue eyed grass on the parkway strip died, I decided to use Erigeron glaucus "Wayne Rogers" (Wayne Rogers seaside daisy) to edge the path
I'm using something similar on the path to the front door. The Cape Sebastians are beginning to bloom:
Meanwhile, for reasons I don't understand, one of my heuchera (coral bells) has decided it's time to bloom:
Not much more to do. Later next week, I hope to pick up some brickellia (brickellbush) to put on the side of the house under my bedroom window (it's not a pretty plant, but it's supposed to smell very nice). I'm also thinking of using margarita penstemon to edge the other path over the parkway strip. It seems to do very well when given limited water and I'm interested to compare how it does versus the seaside daisy.
In order to prevent trick or treaters from running across the new plantings, I put up some cobweb fencing that actually worked.
This morning, I woke up early and headed out to Claremont at 6:45 am. The doors open at 8, but last year I got there at 8:15, ended up having to park on the street and take a shuttle, only to find that the place was packed. It was 50 F, as I waited in the queue, but I didn't have to wait long. When they let us in, the volunteer staff applauded us (you have to be a member to go in early).
I had a list and headed right for the Carpenteria californica. This is a rather endangered species in the wild, and all the pots I bought had a certificate that they were grown from cuttings in the botanical gardens, not taken from the wild. The popular name is Bush Anemone (cultivar "Elizabeth"). It has dark green leaves (somewhat resembling oleander but not poisonous), and when it blooms, it has large white flowers. It also likes light shade.
They had a handful of five gallon pots, so I bought all three. Two went in the front, near the front door:
The third big one I put where the dying chaparral currant was:
I noticed they had some really nice Sisyrinchium californicum (golden-eyed grass). This is tall and has bright yellow flowers. I thought it might brighten up this corner, so I planted it in front of the bush anemone:
I'm tweaking the wild flower meadow a bit. I think it needs some stable perennials to anchor it, so I put in some Sisyrinchium bellum (blue-eyed grass). This is a little shorter than its yellow cousins. I had planted a lot of this last year on the front parkway strip, but it needs summer water or it shrivels and dies. The meadow stays moist all summer, so I think it will work better here.
The decapitated blue sage on the parkway strip finally succumbed to the inevitable and died. I replaced it with a Salvia apiana (white sage). To get an idea at how fast it grows, compare this new one:
With this one that I planted a year ago:
Because all the blue eyed grass on the parkway strip died, I decided to use Erigeron glaucus "Wayne Rogers" (Wayne Rogers seaside daisy) to edge the path
I'm using something similar on the path to the front door. The Cape Sebastians are beginning to bloom:
Meanwhile, for reasons I don't understand, one of my heuchera (coral bells) has decided it's time to bloom:
Not much more to do. Later next week, I hope to pick up some brickellia (brickellbush) to put on the side of the house under my bedroom window (it's not a pretty plant, but it's supposed to smell very nice). I'm also thinking of using margarita penstemon to edge the other path over the parkway strip. It seems to do very well when given limited water and I'm interested to compare how it does versus the seaside daisy.
Monday, October 10, 2011
The Desert Willow is Blooming
Normally, desert willows (Chilopsis linearis) blooms in the summer, but this is not quite a year old, so it may be a little off.
I also finished the front walkway. I planted more seaside daisies on the other side, but they don't fully match the ones I planted earlier. These are "Ron's Pink," and they are somewhat larger and a different shade from the Cape Sebastian on the other side. Both varieties will grow and spread (significantly) over time.
This is a Ron's Pink:
This is a Cape Sebastian:
I also finished the front walkway. I planted more seaside daisies on the other side, but they don't fully match the ones I planted earlier. These are "Ron's Pink," and they are somewhat larger and a different shade from the Cape Sebastian on the other side. Both varieties will grow and spread (significantly) over time.
This is a Ron's Pink:
This is a Cape Sebastian:
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Native Landscaping - Year 2
I've been cleaning up the front yard and replacing plants that have died. Last year, I found that I had planted things symmetrically, despite my desire for asymmetry. As the plants died asymmetrically, however, I have been able to achieve some of what I desired.
By the way, even though it's October, I still have some summer wildflowers hanging on:
The centerpiece of the front yard (corner side) is the desert willow. While I feared this might have died, as you can see it was merely hibernating over the winter and has finally and fully come back to life. Not only is it growing by leaps and bounds, but it looks like I may even get some blossoms this year (check back in a few weeks to see).
Most, though not all of the small penstemon died as a result of the floods, so I've replaced them with "Cape Sebastian" seaside daisies. I need to pick up some more for the other side of the walk way. Once I get them, the front yard (block side) will be done.
I put in a lot of Margarita BOP penstemon last year, but most of them have died. The guy at the nursery said to think of them more as a long-lived annual. The ones that didn't get a lot of water have survived. I put in two new ones here. I'm hoping because I started smaller, they might live longer (the surviving penstemon is behind them).
On the other side, I decided not to go with more penstemon, but rather with an Alan Chickering blue sage. These have the most wonderful aroma.
Just behind it and a little over I planted a variety of lilac verbena. These will grow somewhat prostrate and have dark bluish purple flowers.
The small California fuschias I planted a month ago are doing well. The plant behind the lower one is the pitcher sage.
The surviving pitcher sage is still going strong. I may need to prune it.
Where the other pitcher sage died, I decided to go with something quite different. This is a monkey flower (Mimulus "Dave").
Here's where I had several Margarita BOP penstemon die last year, so I replaced them with some small ones.
I put in some more Anchor Bay ceanothus a few weeks ago, and they seem to be doing well.
For a long time, the Carmel Sur manzanita just sort of lay there, but after a year of getting acquainted with the neighborhood, they've finally begun to grow (though a different rates). The new growth leaves are yellowish.
The Lutsko Pink manzanita in the parkway strip has also begun to grow (though these are slow growing plants, so they only gain between 6" to 12" a year).
On the west side of the house, I did some soil amendments to the planter box to lower the pH (it was 8, which is very alkaline). One of the monkey flowers had died, so I replaced with another one (Mimulus "Jelly Bean Terra Cotta").
Instead of the chaparral current I put in a California mock orange (Philadelphus lewisii "Covelo" ). This plant goes winter deciduous, so while it doesn't look that great now, it should take off in the spring. It may not bloom next year, but when it does it will have large white flowers whose smell resembles orange blossoms (hence the name).
The remaining chaparral current isn't dead yet (though it looks it).
The monkey flower behind it was planted 11 months ago, so you can see how big they get.
The chaparral current still has sap and has a few small leaves emerging. I've tried to lower the pH of the soil to save it, and I might yet. I won't know for a while if it will survive.
Meanwhile, the grass has come in nicely and the orange looks healthier. I'm hoping it will grow a bit more this year.
By the way, even though it's October, I still have some summer wildflowers hanging on:
The centerpiece of the front yard (corner side) is the desert willow. While I feared this might have died, as you can see it was merely hibernating over the winter and has finally and fully come back to life. Not only is it growing by leaps and bounds, but it looks like I may even get some blossoms this year (check back in a few weeks to see).
Most, though not all of the small penstemon died as a result of the floods, so I've replaced them with "Cape Sebastian" seaside daisies. I need to pick up some more for the other side of the walk way. Once I get them, the front yard (block side) will be done.
I put in a lot of Margarita BOP penstemon last year, but most of them have died. The guy at the nursery said to think of them more as a long-lived annual. The ones that didn't get a lot of water have survived. I put in two new ones here. I'm hoping because I started smaller, they might live longer (the surviving penstemon is behind them).
On the other side, I decided not to go with more penstemon, but rather with an Alan Chickering blue sage. These have the most wonderful aroma.
Just behind it and a little over I planted a variety of lilac verbena. These will grow somewhat prostrate and have dark bluish purple flowers.
The small California fuschias I planted a month ago are doing well. The plant behind the lower one is the pitcher sage.
The surviving pitcher sage is still going strong. I may need to prune it.
Where the other pitcher sage died, I decided to go with something quite different. This is a monkey flower (Mimulus "Dave").
Here's where I had several Margarita BOP penstemon die last year, so I replaced them with some small ones.
I put in some more Anchor Bay ceanothus a few weeks ago, and they seem to be doing well.
For a long time, the Carmel Sur manzanita just sort of lay there, but after a year of getting acquainted with the neighborhood, they've finally begun to grow (though a different rates). The new growth leaves are yellowish.
The Lutsko Pink manzanita in the parkway strip has also begun to grow (though these are slow growing plants, so they only gain between 6" to 12" a year).
On the west side of the house, I did some soil amendments to the planter box to lower the pH (it was 8, which is very alkaline). One of the monkey flowers had died, so I replaced with another one (Mimulus "Jelly Bean Terra Cotta").
Instead of the chaparral current I put in a California mock orange (Philadelphus lewisii "Covelo" ). This plant goes winter deciduous, so while it doesn't look that great now, it should take off in the spring. It may not bloom next year, but when it does it will have large white flowers whose smell resembles orange blossoms (hence the name).
The remaining chaparral current isn't dead yet (though it looks it).
The monkey flower behind it was planted 11 months ago, so you can see how big they get.
The chaparral current still has sap and has a few small leaves emerging. I've tried to lower the pH of the soil to save it, and I might yet. I won't know for a while if it will survive.
Meanwhile, the grass has come in nicely and the orange looks healthier. I'm hoping it will grow a bit more this year.
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