Nomacharis pardanthina

Nomacharis pardanthina blooming in my garden now

     One of the choicest bulbs in my garden is blooming now--Nomacharis pardanthina.  I have previously written about Nomacharis here, but the only pictures I had for that entry were of Nomacharis aperta.  I got both species of Nomacharis from Far Reaches Farm but unfortunately, they are out of stock of both right now.  Their website indicates that N. pardanthina will be available in the fall.  Paul Christian, a UK rare bulb dealer which ships to the U.S.,  currently lists Nomacharis finlayorum for sale. I just might have to order it!

Scilla Peruviana with Lionness

Lionness sculpture with Scilla peruviana in bloom in front

     Last year I wrote about a planting scheme I had in mind for the bed by the lionness sculpture in my garden here.  I had moved some Scilla peruvianas there from my front border because the deer had been eating them, and I also have some pink California poppies and Tropaeolum polyphyllum in this bed, among other things.  So today I wanted to show you the bloom of the scillas after having established themselves after the move.  I will be posting some more pictures of this bed with views of the tropaeolum soon.  Unfortunately, as planting schemes which are predicated on different plants blooming together are wont to do, things don't always work out perfectly, and the prime bloom of the scillas was a little bit earlier than the prime bloom of the tropaeolum.  Such is the life of a garden planner!
     The bamboo in the background of the picture is Fargesia robusta which I wrote about here.  In the top left of the picture you can see the foliage of Nothopanax (or Metapanax) delavayi which is discussed here.  The bright green foliage in the center left is the unnamed alsroemeria I previously wrote about here.

Verbascum Bombyciferum

Self sown Verbascum bombyciferum in my front border

     In my last post I commented on the importance of yellow to give a garden composition some punch.  Verbascum bombyciferum is certainly a plant which can add drama to a garden, not only because its flowers are in the all important lemon shade of yellow, but because its foliage is such a lovely furry gray and its form is so striking.  Indeed, even if it never bloomed it would be a good addition to the garden because of the pettable gray rosette it presents.
     A few years ago I planted 3 plants of this verbascum in about the spot you see above in the picture.  They have since self sowed prolifically, and some of their offspring, from several generations, are what you see.  In the first couple of years the seedlings pretty much stayed in the same location that the mother plants were, but this year I have noticed that they are getting around the border in a gratifying manner.  I would like for them to be scattered more evenly throughout the border.
     For those who are unfamiliar with this plant, it is a biennial, meaning that the rosette forms the first year of its life, blooms the second year, and then dies, leaving its progeny to live on.  Like all verbascums, this one is deer resistant and drought tolerant.  Indeed, it will not do well in a very moist situation.  Also, like most gray leaved plants, it requires full sun.
     Other plants you can see in the picture above are Stipa gigantea (in the background), Lychnis coronaria (a weed!), and Callistemon 'Woodlander's Red'.  I will have a future post on Callistemon, of which I have grown many with mixed succes.

The Importance of Yellow

Vignette of my front border with yellow accents provided by Allium moly and yellow dutch iris

     I have previously written about the boost that orange gives to a garden.  Today I want to focus on a similar effect achieved by the use of yellow.  I have in my front border at this time of the year a lot of flowers in the pink, magenta, purple, and blue shades, but not much in the way of yellows.  So I have been consciously trying to add more yellow because I think it adds a great deal of punch to the composition.  Try to imagine this scene without the yellow and I think you will see my point.
     I particularly like lemon yellow as opposed to a more orange yellow, and two plants which meet this criterion, and are also deer resistant and drought tolerant (which they have to be to exist in this border) are Allium moly and yellow dutch irises.  I would highly recommend Allium moly--most bulb suppliers carry it, it is inexpensive and it provides a nice shot of lemon yellow at a time to coincide with the great flower extravaganza in this border.  I have had more mixed results with the dutch irises.  They are also inexpensive bulbs carried by most bulb suppliers, but I have found that they tend to disappear from the garden over time.  I suppose I could remedy this by getting more each year, but I want the plants in this border to be self sustaining over time.
     Other plants in the photo above are Eremurus 'Roford', Allium 'Globemaster', Papaver orientale 'Bolero', Eryngium bourgatii, Echium vulgare, Papaver somniferum, and Nasella (Stipa) tenuissima.  As you may be able to see from the photo, particularly if you click on it and view it large, the flowers of the Eryngium bourgatii are nothing to write home about.
     One plant which would provide a shot of yellow at this time of the year, and that I do not currently grow is any kind of Euphorbia.  I have, in the past, grown every kind of Euphorbia that is hardy in our climate, and I have gradually gotten rid of them for one reason or another, so that I am now Euphorbialess.  The main reason I don't grow them in this front area anymore is that after the bloom time is over the flowers become incredibly ugly and you have to cut off the flowering stalks to keep the garden looking good.  In a garden the size of mine not only is this an onerous chore, but the white sap the cut stems exude can be downright dangerous.

Papaver orientale 'Manhattan"

Papaver orientale 'Manhattan' blooming now in my garden

     I have been very busy lately and so have not had time to process many of my photos.  My garden, especially the front border,  is coming into its peak right now and so I will be posting photos of that soon.  Since this is the only recent photo I have had time to process, here it is; Papaver orientale 'Manhattan'.  For a more in depth discussion of oriental poppies, see my entry from last year here.
     This poppy is in my front border, where it has grown for at least 7 years.  The deer never eat it and I never water it.  This is probably my favorite Oriental poppy.
     This is a focus stacked image meaning it is a combination of 4 shots with different focus points.  This, as I have explained before,  allows the entire flower to be in focus while keeping the background out of focus.

Hummingbird Magnet

Eccremocarpus scaber growing on trunk on dead Trachycarpus

     Last year I wrote about Eccremocarpus scaber here, and in that post I had a picture of this vine just starting to grow up a dead Trachycarpus trunk in my garden.  If you compare the picture from that entry with the one here, you will see how much growth this vine has made since last year.  Of course, it was helped by our very mild winter, since the Eccremocarpus never did die all the way back like it sometimes does.  Anyway, this vine has made a great cover up of the dead trunk and the hummingbirds thank it for that!

Bearded Irises

Closeup view of Sunrise Elegy

One of the yellow/orange irises I ordered from Schreiner's Iris Gardens last fall

Sunrise Elegy again

Two more of the Schreiner's irises

Yet another of the Schreiner's irises

     As I said I would in a previous entry, I am posting pictures of some of the bearded irises I got from Schreiner's Iris Gardens last fall. As a photographer, I love these flowers! The first image above is of one called Sunrise Elegy, which was a bonus plant they sent me.  It just goes to show you that ones that might not appeal to you in a catalog turn out to be great.