Unrequited Love In The Garden….

Do you have a plant that you would love to grow in your garden?  You close your eyes and you can just imagine how beautiful it would look and exactly where you would plant it.

Then, you open your eyes and look out into your garden and sadly, that plant is no where to be seen.  Okay, I don’t mean to get all melancholy on you.  But, is there a plant that you just love, but cannot grow because you live in the wrong climate?  A plant, which despite all the tweaking you try to do to the environment in the garden, your much loved plant will just not grow?

Well, I have a plant that I love that does not grow well in our desert climate.  Sure, you can see it being sold from time to time at the local big box store…..but we all know that just because a plant is sold at one of these stores, does NOT mean that they will survive long once planted.

My much loved plant that I cannot grow is Hydrangea…

hydrangea shrub

Hydrangea Shrub

These hydrangea were growing in the garden of noted author C.S. Lewis.  We visited his home and garden in Oxford, England in 2003.  

When my parents lived in Southern California, they had a huge hydrangea shrub.  I remember visiting them and seeing it absolutely covered in pink blossoms.  **Hydrangea blooms turn pink in alkaline soils and more bluish in acidic soils.

Now, I am generally not a complainer by nature.  I am amazed at how many different plants that I can grow in our semi-tropical, desert climate; a myriad of fruit trees, pine trees, palms, tulips, daffodils, iris, vegetables, as well as dozens of tropical plants.  And so, I will continue to be happy with the wide variety of what I can grow while I enjoy hydrangeas through pictures.

Now, I am wondering…..are there any plants that you wished you could grow, but cannot due to your climate?  Even if you just love your garden as it is, is there one plant you would include if it would grow where you live?

California Nursery Visit

Do You Have a Garden or a Yard?

Garden or a Yard

Garden or a Yard ;An example of a “front garden”.

 What word do you use for the area surrounding your home?  Do you call it a ‘yard’ or a ‘garden’?  

I looked up the definition of the word ‘yard’ regarding the land surrounding a house and here is what I found:

1. A tract of ground next to, surrounding or surrounded by a building or buildings.

3. An area where railroad trains are made up and cars are switched, stored, and serviced on tracks and sidings.

4.  A winter pasture for deer or other grazing animals, or an enclosed tract of ground in which animals, such as chickens or pigs, are kept.

Now, I don’t have any trains in my yard or deer, chickens or pigs either.  I do have animals in my yard, but my dogs spend most of their time indoors.

Of all these definitions, the first one best describes my ‘yard’.  But it is so much more than a “tract of ground surrounding a building”.

Garden or a Yard

My back ‘garden’ in the summer.

So, I looked up the definition of the word, ‘garden’.  Here is what I found:

1. A plot of land used for the cultivation of flowers, vegetables, herbs, or fruit.

2. Grounds laid out with flowers, trees, and ornamental shrubs and used for recreation or display.

3. A yard or lawn.

Now some people may not feel comfortable referring to their ‘yard’ as a garden.  They may feel that their landscape is inadequate.

Garden or a Yard

 Kilkenny Castle, Kilkenny Ireland

Well, I don’t see anything in the definitions of the word, ‘garden’ that means that you have to have beautiful, formal, extravagant landscaping around your home.  You don’t see the word ‘castle’ mentioned in the definition, do you?

I think the definition(s) of the word, ‘garden,’ describe the landscape around my house much more accurately than the word ‘yard.’  I have flowers growing in containers, I have a vegetable garden, I have flowering plants, ornamental shrubs, and trees.

Winter Annuals

 Winter Annuals

Okay, you may be asking, “What if I only have a single tree and a couple of shrubs in my landscape?  Does that mean that I only have a ‘yard’, or can I call it a ‘garden.’  Well, if you look at the definitions from the dictionary, I think the word, ‘garden’ certainly applies.  But, it certainly couldn’t hurt if you decide to add more trees and plants in my opinion 😉

A few years ago, I stopped referring to the area surrounding my home as a ‘yard’.  I didn’t think that the term ‘yard’  described the landscape surrounding my house.  (When I managed landscapes, we had a ‘maintenance yard’ where all of our equipment was kept and our offices were also located there as well.  The term ‘yard’ did describe what we used that parcel of land for – a specific business or activity.  But it certainly was not a term that I wanted for the area around my home.)

My side vegetable 'garden'

My side vegetable ‘garden’

Now, my landscape is not particularly fancy…it’s rather simple, filled with plants that I love.  And so I decided that I did not have a ‘yard.’  To be more specific, I did not have a ‘front yard’, ‘backyard’ or even a ‘side yard’.  I had a garden.  Today, I refer to them as my ‘front garden’, ‘back garden’ and ‘side garden’. 

Pink Beauty (Eremophila laanii)

 Pink Beauty (Eremophila laanii)

When I meet with clients, I like to refer to their landscape areas as their front garden and back garden.  My hope is that they will see their “yard” as what it really is…..a garden.

So, what do you have?  A ‘garden’ or a ‘yard’?

Summer Blooming Friends Return….

It may seem odd to refer to colorful flowers as friends, but that is what I think of the blooms of my red bird-of paradise (Caesalpinia pulcherrima) shrubs.

They are located beneath my kitchen window and this time of year, the blooms have just begun to reach up to the window.  What is even better is that the first blooms of the season are just beginning to open.

red bird-of paradise

The bright yellow, orange and red flowers brighten up my day as I work in the kitchen.

Many visitors and new residents ask me about this beautiful shrub.  It really is stunning in the summer landscape.

red bird-of paradise

Native to tropical America, Red Bird-of-Paradise is grown throughout southern areas of the United States, the Caribbean and has been brought to India and the Philippines.  It thrives in areas with heat and sun.

Depending on where you live, this is one shrub that has a multitude of common names….

Pride of Barbados

Dwarf Poinciana

Red Bird-of-Paradise

Mexican Bird-of-Paradise

& 

Peacock Flower

In areas with warm winters, this shrub is evergreen.  However, during the winter in my zone 8b garden, my shrubs go dormant and are cut back to 1ft. from the ground.  This may seem somewhat like severe pruning when it is done each year, but it ensures beautiful shrubs in late spring.  Cold hardy to zone 8a, they can be killed to the ground when temperatures fall into the teens.

red bird-of paradise

 The foliage is also quite beautiful and grows back very quickly in the spring after pruning.

Butterflies and hummingbirds are attracted to the beautiful flowers.  I have seen some shrubs absolutely covered with butterflies in September.

red bird-of paradise

Plant in full sun or filtered shade.  Shrubs planted in the shade will have reduced flowering and sparser foliage and so I recommend planting in full sun.

Their size varies from 3 ft. by 3 ft. all the way to 10 ft. to 10 ft., so make sure you have room for it to grow.  In desert gardens, they do require regular irrigation.

I have planted many of these shrubs in both commercial and residential landscapes with great results.  They are not fussy in the least.  My shrubs are now 11 years old and have never been fertilized or the soil amended.

There is another variety is called ‘Phoenix Bird’, which has distinct yellow flowers (not to be confused with Caesalpinia mexicana).  I used this variety when I designed the landscape for my in-laws.

beautiful shrub

 Whatever you decide to call this beautiful shrub, it is just perfect for me…..it is beautiful and does not require a lot of work to make it look that way.

beautiful shrub

 I am so happy that my summer friends have returned 🙂

An Orange Monday Morning….

Mondays are usually busy days for most of us.  I know that for me, when the weekend ends, there is a list of things for me to accomplish, including writing my first blog post of the week.

This week promises to be busier then usual for our family.  As I have mentioned before, my son is going in for surgery later this week.  He will be getting another bone graft onto his hip.  Kai, is no stranger to surgery and this one will be his sixth.  The hard part is that he will be confined to a wheelchair and unable to walk for approximately 2 months.  Now that would be hard for most of us to handle, but when it happens to a very active 8 year old boy, it can be even more difficult.  

Due to the upcoming surgery, we celebrated his birthday on Saturday at the park.  It was a beautiful day and we had a great time with family and his friends.  Kai’s real birthday is this Thursday.  I wanted to thank those of you who commented on my last post and wished him a happy birthday 🙂

With all of the upcoming stress of this week, I spent this morning taking a walk in my garden in the morning.  I love to do this after the busyness of the weekend is over and to see what has happened in the garden over the weekend.

I was not disappointed….

Orange trumpet flowers

Orange trumpet flowers

My Orange Jubilee (Tecoma x ‘Orange Jubilee’), is now covered with beautiful sprays of trumpet flowers.

This is one of my very favorite summer flowering shrubs.  I love the rich, green foliage and that this shrub can grow quite large (12 ft. high and 8 ft. wide). 

Orange Jubilee

Orange Jubilee, pruned up from the ground for maximum height.

Another reason that I like this shrub so much is that it is super low-maintenance.  I planted my Orange Jubilee 11 years ago when we built our house.  I have never fertilized this shrub, ever.  It does very well in poor, rocky soil and also thrives in rich, organic soils.

Supplemental water is required in the desert southwest.  The tips can suffer frost damage when temperatures dip into the 20’s and will freeze back to the ground when temperatures hit the teens.  But, it grows back quickly and can achieve heights of 5 – 7 ft. in a single growing season.   It is hardy to zone 7.

Orange Jubilee

Orange Jubilee, pruned from the top, resulting in a fuller and shorter shrub.

It thrives in full sun and in filtered shade.  I like to use it as a background planting along a wall.  I have also recommended it as a screen for a air-conditioning unit and as a less expensive option to hide pool equipment, rather then build a low wall.

Plant smaller shrubs or perennials in front such as Purple Trailing Lantana or Gold Lantana.

Orange trumpet flowers

Oh, by the way, if you like hummingbirds in your garden, they will love your Orange Jubilee.

Favorite Flower Photos: Day 3 – Orange Beauty

May’s MGB…..Monthly Garden Bouquet

It is time again for the Monthly Garden Bouquet.  It is hard to believe that May is already more then halfway through.

My bouquet for this month is made up of only two different flowers.  Both flowers are from plants that will soon stop blooming and I wanted to be able to share their blossoms with you before they are gone.


It is a very simple bouquet as are most of my previous ones.

I actually used small branches from my flowering Palo Verde tree along with the last of my Firecracker Penstemon blooms.  

Garden Bouquet

As you can plainly see, this bouquet is quite simple, but I do love how it shows the beauty of both of these flowers.  It is also so nice to have this bouquet to look back on later this year and be reminded of what my garden has in store for me next spring 🙂

You can view two of my previous entries here 

if you like.

If you would like to participate in MGB, here are the guidelines….

1. MGB is held the third week of each month and bouquets can be submitted during a 7 day period (or even later if you like).

2. Create your own bouquet as fancy or simple as you like.

3. I would appreciate it if you would provide a link back to my post inside of your MGB post, but it is not required 🙂

4. Add your link to Mr. Linky below and that’s it!

I cannot wait to see what bouquets you create from your spring gardens.

Have a great week!

Pretty In Pink…..With A Hidden Secret

Mexican Evening Primrose

Mexican Evening Primrose (Oenothera berlanderi syn. Oenothera speciosa)

Aren’t these flowers just lovely?

I do love pink flowers. 

Our local big box nursery had quite a few of these on display over the weekend.  

pink flowers

Mexican Evening Primrose is a groundcover the produces beautiful pink flowers in the spring.  They are drought tolerant and hardy to Zone 5 through 9.  They do not require fertilizer and thrive on neglect.

pink flowers

Now you may be wondering what secret it is harboring.  Surely a plant with such beautiful flowers cannot have anything to hide, can it?

Well, I discovered it’s secret years ago as a new homeowner.  I was in heaven over having my own garden for the first time.  I discovered these pretty plants at my local nursery and brought some home and planted them in a raised planting bed.  

They grew very well and although they were fairly boring when not in bloom, they more then made up for it in the spring when they were covered with pink flowers.

pink flowers

 BUT, one year after I planted them, I began to notice them coming up in my lawn, adjoining beds and the cracks in the driveway.  It was then that I found out that they could be invasive.  They spread by stolons and by seed.  **It was experiences like this one that I had as a new gardener that motivated me to obtain my degree in horticulture.  However, I am still learning as I go along and just when I think I know all about a particular plant – one will surprise me by doing something different 😉

Now, I am not saying not to ever use Mexican Evening Primrose in the landscape.  They do have a place in the landscape.  For example, they do very well along dry hillsides and other areas where their growth can be contained in a particular area.

What I do recommend, is to research a plant before you decide to put in your garden.  Mexican Evening Primrose can be invasive in a residential garden, but can be the answer to a difficult, bare hillside.  This goes to prove that just because a plant has a “pretty face”, doesn’t mean that it is delicate.

**Butterfly Update:  Guess What?!!  The butterflies emerged for their chrysalis.  I will post about them soon!

I hope you all have a wonderful week!

Beautiful Flowers and New Seeds

A Gathering of Bees

The other day, I was on my way to the store when I saw something in the distance in our local park that was out of the ordinary.  I was pretty sure that I knew what it was as I had seen this before and so, I drove nearer.

Desert Willow tree

Can you see it?  There is a large mass on the right side of a newly planted Desert Willow tree.

Once I got closer and realized that my guess was right, I turned around and drove home to get my trusty camera.

Swarm of bees

Swarm of bees

What this is, is a swarm of bees that had stopped to rest in this tree.

Swarming is actually a fascinating phenomenon.  Usually the old queen of a bee colony, lays special eggs to create a new queen.  Then the old queen leaves with a bunch of her worker bees to form a new colony elsewhere.

They usually stop along the way for a day or two, which is what happened here.  While they rest, scout bees are sent out to find a new place to build a new colony.  This is a very vulnerable time for the bees as they are unprotected.  The queen is in the center of the mass of bees for better protection.

Swarm of bees

I had to play a bit with the lighting of this photo so that you could see the bees.  I stayed in my car and took this photo.

Swarming usually occurs during a 2 – 3 week period in spring.  You do not have to do anything if you see a swarm, but stay away.  The bees will usually leave in a day or two.  If they are in a dangerous location, you can call in a bee-keeper who will take them somewhere else and release them.  You can read more about swarming here.

**By the way, did you know that beekeepers clip the wings of the queen bees to keep them from leaving their hives?  I think that is just so interesting, although I wouldn’t want to do it.

Although I had observed bees doing this before, I was so happy to have witnessed this fascinating behavior of bees again AND to have had my camera handy.

Leaving the Wardrobe….C.S. Lewis

I have always been an avid of reader of C.S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia books and was fortunate to have been able to visit his home and gardens in Oxford, where he wrote all of his books.  I shared my visit in an earlier post, which you can read here.

Rosie, of LeavesnBloom recently wrote two wonderful posts about Lewis’ earlier life in Northern Ireland and the landscape where he received much of his inspiration of the land of Narnia.  You can read her last post here.

And so in closing, I would like to share with you my visit to one of Lewis’ favorite pubs, his church and his final resting place. 

C.S. Lewis

First on our list is a visit to the Trout Inn, which is located just outside of Oxford.  In this pub, C.S. Lewis would frequently meet with his friend J.R.R. Tolkein (Lord of the Rings author).

As we approached the inn, we were greeted by it’s resident doorman or should I say bird….

C.S. Lewis

The Trout Inn is a wonderful place to visit and eat.  The food is delicious.  Once inside, you can almost envision the two scholars (Lewis and Tolkein) sharing ideas over a couple of pints of ale.

C.S. Lewis

After our visit to the inn, we went to see his church and grave.

C.S. Lewis

This is Holy Trinity Church, where Lewis worshiped for over 30 years.

Northern Ireland

Inside the church, you can see the pew where Lewis would sit every Sunday as it is marked with a plaque.

One of the windows of the church, plays tribute to the characters of Narnia.

Northern Ireland

Who can you identify in the windows?

I see Mr. Beaver, a dwarf, Peter’s shield, Aslan, Digory and Polly on the flying horse Fledge, the mountains of Narnia, Susan’s horn and much more.

We then stepped outside into the church graveyard.

Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland

Here is the final resting place of C.S. Lewis, who passed away November 22, 1963.

Northern Ireland

What a legacy he has left behind for us all to enjoy.  I remember reading “The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe” for the first time as a 7 year old.  Then as an adult, I enjoyed reading his stories to my oldest daughters.  

I now get to read them to my youngest children  🙂

Flowers Raining Down….

This is my favorite time of year in the garden.  You may be saying, of course it is….it is spring after all.  Isn’t that everybody’s favorite time?  Well, there is another reason.  This time of year I cannot go outside without coming back inside with a yellow flower or two in my hair.

yellow flower

Desert Museum Palo Verde (Parkinsonia hybrid ‘Desert Museum’)

All three of my Palo Verde trees are blooming.  Each one is covered in yellow blossoms.  Actually some of the branches are hanging quite low due to the weight of the flowers.  My Palo Verde tree above, is about 4 years old and will eventually grow to be about 30 ft. tall and wide.

yellow flower

 ‘Desert Museum’ Palo Verde flowers

Palo Verde trees are the iconic trees of the desert southwest.  The word “Palo Verde” is Spanish for “Green Stick”, which aptly describes their green trunks.

In times of extreme drought, they drop their leaves to avoid losing excess moisture and they will continue to photosynthesize through their green trunks.  What a great survival mechanism, don’t you think?

yellow flower

There are quite a few different types of Palo Verde trees.  My favorite is a hybrid that was found growing in the Tucson desert near the Sonoran Desert Musuem.  Appropriately, it is called ‘Desert Museum’ Palo Verde.  

It grow very quickly, is thornless, produces yellow flowers somewhat larger then their cousins and is quite low-maintenance.

Blue Palo Verde

Blue Palo Verde (Parkinsonia floridium)

Blue Palo Verde trees are also quite beautiful and an asset in the landscape.  Their bark has more of a gray-green color and is a slower growing Palo Verde.

Palo Verde trees flower in the spring and mine sometimes flower a little in the fall, although that is not always dependable.

Palo Brea

 Palo Brea (Parkinsona praecox)

Another type of Palo Verde is the Palo Brea tree.  Their trunk is bluish green in color.  They do have thorns and must be pruned often to keep their branches from growing downwards.  But, they are absolutely lovely in the landscape.

Foothills Palo Verde

Foothills Palo Verde (Parkinsonia microphylla)

Last, but not least, are the Foothills Palo Verde, which grow very slowly, but have beautiful branch architecture.  This is the type of Palo Verde that you will find growing out in the desert most often. 

Yellow flower

Yellow flower

Lately, every time I come back inside from the garden, I find a flower or two that has fallen into my hair. 

Did I mention that I love this time of year?

A Farm, Flowers and a Restaurant in the Midst of Suburbia

Imagine a family farm where crops had been grown for years in their fields.  Then a developer comes in and buys the property in order to build houses on it.  Many of us have seen this happen often where we live.  A farmer sells his fields and new homes or a parking lot with stores rapidly pop up afterward.  Well, this is not exactly what happened in this case.  The family who owned this farmland decided to tweak things a bit.

Now, there was a subdivision that was built on their land, aptly named “Agritopia”.  But 12 acres of land was reserved for the creation of an urban farm.  There is a grove of olive trees and an orchard with citrus, apples, peaches, plums, apricots and blackberries.  Another area of the farm is a large field where vegetables, herbs and flowers are grown.  

In addition, the family’s original home was converted into a restaurant with beautiful surrounding gardens that are open for all to enjoy.

community organic farm

My first stop was to go and see the community organic farm, which grows food for the restaurant and the residents of the surrounding homes can grow their own plot of vegetables, flowers and herbs here as well.

Being the flower lover that I am, my attention was first captured by the beautiful flowers that were blooming among the vegetables.  The flowers attract bees to help pollinate the crops. 

community organic farm
community organic farm

As a new vegetable gardener myself, I was excited to see what they had growing and so I tore myself away from the flowers and stated to explore the beautiful vegetables that were growing.

community organic farm
community organic farm

Aren’t the artichoke heads beautiful?

community organic farm

Many of their vegetables and fruit are available for sale at The Farm Stand.  

As I finished my walk through the vegetable gardens, I decided to look closely at a crop that does grow in Arizona, that may surprise some of you.  It certainly surprised me when I first moved here 24 years ago.

community organic farm

Can you tell what this is?

community organic farm

Did you guess yet?  They are grapevines.  I love how the grapevines line both sides of the pathway.

At this point, I could smell some delicious food in the air and so I turned my attention across the street where the restaurant is located.

Joe's Farm and Grill

As you can see, it is actually an old home that has been converted into a restaurant.

Joe's Farm and Grill

Diners are invited to eat at any of the picnic tables under the shade of the trees.

Joe's Farm and Grill

In front of the main entry to the restaurant, were two absolutely huge Tamarisk trees.

Joe's Farm and Grill

The trees are so tall as you can see and easily dwarf the diners and the restaurant.

I then took a short walk through the gardens, and came up upon the coffee shop.

coffee shop

I particularly like to visit this coffee shop because the eating area is surrounded by roses – my absolutely favorite flower.

fragrance

The fragrance of the roses was intoxicating.  

fragrance

If you look carefully, you may find one of the hidden ‘rooms’ in the garden where you can sit and enjoy your coffee.

Restaurant

The smell of delicious food was in the air and I was hungry, but had no time to stop for lunch.  I will never make that mistake again….note to self, when visiting a restaurant’s gardens, make sure to have time to stop for lunch.

On my way out, I saw the beautiful flowers of the Passion Vine and the colorful snapdragons in the distance.

Restaurant

Okay, seriously, I am not getting paid to promote Joe’s Farm and Grill 🙂 But, it is a great place to visit to sit and relax, enjoy good food, kids are free to run around, the gardens are beautiful and the farm is an educational experience as well.

It is one of my favorite places to visit.

**There are still 5 days left to participate in April’s MGB (Monthly Garden Bouquet).  I’d love to see your garden bouquets.

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