Weigela 'My Monet' and Geum 'Werner Arends'

Clash of the Wee Ones ...  A Weigela and a Geum!

My tale of woe is old-hat, remarked on countless times as the amount of sunlight continues to decrease in Alice's Garden. Thus, in early Spring I transplanted a few treasured specimens to spots that receive a bit more sun.

The wee Weigela 'My Monet' found itself lifted and moved across the pebble patio to the bed below the back porch - where the blue wall is a preening presence in various photos.

Now, the brilliant, burnt orange blooms of Geum 'Werner Arends' are now popping up through the Weigela foliage in a clashing color scheme that would, doubtless,

cause the long-departed doyenne of British gardening,

Gertrude Jekyll to shudder in her 'wellies' (rubber boots, that is).

Dare I admit to enjoying the cacophony!

Bloom's Bodacious Borders at Kendall-Jackson Winery

A few years ago, one of my San Francisco Chronicle 'Garden Walks' columns celebrated the opening of new perennial borders in Wine Country designed by British horticulturist Adrian Bloom.

(Above: Chronicle photo - All other photos: copyright Alice Joyce)

Son of famed plantsman, Alan Bloom,and author of numerous gardening books featuring Foggy Bottom, Adrian Bloom's personal 6-acre garden in Norfolk, Bloom shared his thoughts on the Blooms of Bressingham borders at Kendall-Jackson Winery. Here: a long view of the garden on a recent summer's day, with bees abuzz, flitting among the bountiful blooms.

I'll be returning to the winery's varied landscape in future posts, to visit K-J's vineyard demonstration & culinary gardens, where visitors can relax and enjoy a picnic.

To find the borders, amble from the formal parterre garden fronting the main chateau, and continue around the side of the building. A signpost heralds the Blooms of Bressingham garden, where drifts of plants meld together in what Bloom calls "macro and micro views."
Reflecting Bloom's refined gardening style, the garden plan revolves upon artful combinations of conifers, flowering perennials, ornamental grasses and shrubs. The tall, vertical shapes of evergreen Italian cypresses draw the eye, and as Bloom shared, "give you a bit of structure... whichever way you're looking.. on either side of the pathway to take the eye through," calling attention to the surrounding plant combinations.

One of the lessons I took home: "Even small gardens must have a vista."

The Kendall-Jackson Winery chateau and formal gardens

appear upon exiting the parking area.

Back to the Bloom Borders! Plant tableaux come into focus as you walk along the curving central pathway, where groupings are linked by contrasts in foliage and flower color, texture and form: Purple-toned leaves of heucheras and phormiums; blue-violet, long-blooming Geranium 'Rozanne;' mounding Anthemis 'Susanna Mitchell;' bushy Coreopsis 'Limerock Ruby.'

Geranium blooms weave through hydrangeas; salvias and feathery silver-filigree artemisias are backed by dark Cotinus foliage and butterfly-attracting buddleias.

A bee feasting on... Asclepias incarnata?

Flanking a bench, fragrant rosemary, lavender & Verbena bonariensis

envelop the visitor who stops here to bask in the setting.

Kendall Jackson Winery - www.kj.com

Rude, Rustic Rose Relative .. Rubus r. 'Coronarius'

Rubus rosifolius 'Coronarious'

Plant lust can make a gardener quite mad. In the early days of Alice's Garden, I would read about an unusual specimen in a gardening magazine and simply have to have it. The photo - scanned from a slide - illustrates a particularly spiny... or let's just say a painfully bristly, barbed relative of the genus Rosa: A Rubus species grown for its fluffy white multi-petaled blooms.

As mentioned, the beauty of Rubus rosifolius 'Coronarious' had been highly touted in-print by a beloved and renowned writer/plantsman. And I did swoon when the glowing flowers of this humble yet elegant long-blooming bramble appeared along the back fence in my secret garden.

Yet after a time I decided to remove it.

Plants come and plants go in the life of any garden, and certainly in the small space I cultivate in Northern California. I often look fondly upon this beauty when perusing my collection of 35 mm garden slides, recalling my tussles with its canes, as well as the excitement of observing the way the flowers would light up an out-of-the-way spot in the garden, alongside a narrow pathway.

Do you grow R. r. 'Coronarious' ... or another ornamental bramble?

Rarest of the Rare .. Plantaholic's Pendant Perennial

Campanula takesimana 'Beautiful Trust' ... a Heronswood Nursery introduction

during Dan Hinkley's tenure as owner-in-residence.

A plant that has complete power over me. It's true.

C. t. 'Beautiful Trust' was ordered from Heronswood Nursery during the garden's early years, when each and every plant was carefully chosen to fill in the new beds and borders being created from scratch.

Other unusual Heronswood varieties did not survive. But I kept an eye on this rarity, and when I noticed it failed to thrive in the summer-dry conditions of my hand-watered garden, I lifted the unusual specimen from the ground and moved it to a prime spot where it could be pampered and doted upon.

Now it grows in a large galvanized tub in the sunniest spot on our pebble patio. Anxiously, I await the bloom each summer, and when the first flowers appear, I gaze delightedly from a bench alongside the planter, admiring the purest white "strap-like ...reflexed petals."

In an email, Dan Hinkley shared an often-quoted story with me about the uncommon plant:

"The ... name is somewhat humorously incorrect. The gentleman who found this and gave it to me in South Korea, Song Kihun, showed up with the plant labeled 'Beautiful Trust' the morning I was about to leave the country - (after a) night of farewells and a great number of toasts. He realized he had written the label wrong at that time - it was meant to be 'Beautiful Truth', a literal translation of his daughter's name, and told me so. By the time I got home with it, the correction was long out of my memory and it was thusly introduced under the wrong name."

Ravishing Miss Ruby .. Butterfly Love!

Ravishing 'Miss Ruby' arrived on my doorstep as a small plant just last year, and in a short window of time, the new compact Buddleia cultivar has shown itself to be a keeper. Proven Winners / ColorChoice sent it to trial - one of the perks of being a garden writer. The color is admirable, far richer and more intense than any buddleia I've grown since moving to California.

Here's Buddleia X 'Miss Ruby' enjoying a sun bath in late-spring. A butterfly bush that blooms like blazes, even before the first day of summer. 'Miss Ruby' has been developed to grow more compactly than the giant butterfly bushes I see when walking around my town. Originally a summer community for San Francisco residents, the town's small cottages remain as vestiges of the old days, along with well-established shrubs such as buddleias with thick trunks, growing streetside for screening and privacy.

Yesterday a marketing person explained that unlike older varieties, 'Miss Ruby' produces vary little viable seed, so the plant should not be invasive. It's certainly a profuse bloomer! Producing enough sprays to enjoy fresh bouquets continuously these past few weeks. And still, the shrub is covered in blooms, attracting a host of swallowtail butterflies.

Frothy Flower Clusters Atop Filigree Foliage .. Sambucus 'Black Lace'

If I were compelled to choose a recently released cultivar, a shrub that appeared in garden nurseries only the past few years and one that elicits a 'happy dance' when the foliage leafs out in Spring, that plant would be Sambucus nigra 'Black Lace.'

Such an easy plant! A beauty that never stirs up a fuss, it deserves a starring role in gardens.

The divine, deeply cut foliage is richly colored, as you see. Darkly dramatic 'Black Lace' forms wonderful alliances when grown amidst a canvas of greenery.

Despite the fact that I generally turn my nose up at pale pink or white when selecting flowers that will occupy important spots in the garden, I love the frothy flowers on Sambucus 'Black Lace.' They enliven two rather sedate, semi-shaded areas of my small plot: One 'Black Lace' grows in the 'secret garden' adjoining a neighboring stucco garage wall;

and on the far opposite side, another plant rises up in a border along the western perimeter.

I received two plants to trial before they were available in nurseries, and they've outperformed my expectations as they've grown taller and matured.

Only May 3rd and flowerheads are forming!

I can't imagine the garden without this lacy character!

Fabbest Foliage .. Favorite Shrubs, Perennials & Vines

Alice's Garden Blooming in Spring

In Spring a gardener is allowed to gush!

Kerria j.'Albiflora' .. one of the earliest and most beautiful blooms to appear on a shrub.

Another early bloomer, Weigela f. 'Midnight Wine' with its deep, dark foliage.


Plantings have had to be adjusted as the tree on the property to the west soars ever higher and wider; its branches shading the garden where sunlight once fell.

Couldn't ignore this outrageous Raymond Evison Clematis cultivar, 'Crystal Fountain'

Perhaps the combination I find most enchanting in Spring: dramatic chocolate foliage of Corylus 'Rote Zeller'

intertwined with variegated Porcelain berry vine, Ampelopsis brevipedunculata 'Elegans,' a deciduous, woody, perennial climber - every leaf demonstrating a uniquely complex shape, mottled white and pink flushed.

Click to see more of ... Alice's Garden

Bright Beacons .. Elegant Ixia & Incarvillea

Incarvillea arguta .... aka summer gloxinia is native to the Himalayas. A lovely perennial that's well suited to partly sunny sites. Boasting divided foliage with a distinctive fern-like foliage, it grows as a sub-shrub in the Bay Area. I must wait until midsummer for the blooming to stand out as a focal point. But once the trumpet flowers emerge on terminal stems, the flowering continues well into the fall. A choice perennial, Incarvillea takes its name from a Jesuit missionary to China in the 1700s, Pierre d'Incarville. The species, arguta refers to the plant's "sharply toothed or notched" leaves, according to Gledhill's Names of Plants.

The African corn lilies are strutting their stuff! Ixia hybrids from South Africa's Western Cape province are members of the Iris family: Bulbous plants that have naturalized here, so I can look forward to a perennial show in April, as the wiry stems shoot up into space while the garden is coming to life.

The oval buds are appealing, while the star-like flowers - 12 on a single stem - emerge in rosy reds and golden yellows, none as abundant as brilliant white blooms with edges flushed pink and dark throats. Blooms open when basking in sunshine, but remain closed under cloudy skies. In summer my garden receives little water, emulating the South African habitat: When the Ixias enter a period of dormancy, my garden's exotic dahlias varieties can take center stage.

Link to... Making a Garden - Chapter 1

1999 The early days - to the present.

Escapee! Euphorbia 'Fen's Ruby'

Euphorbia cyparissias 'Fen's Ruby'

An itty bitty Euphorbia cultivar, 'Fen's Ruby' was planted early on in Alice's Garden, let's say... nearly a decade ago. Nothing much happened as the years passed, until now.

Fen's Ruby has become an escapee, making its way into the garden's gravel paths, where it's blooming. Atop the red-flushed stems of the new Spring growth, delicate lime-green to yellow flowers decorate the fine, thread-like textural foliage.

The plant pictured is no more than 3 inches across, if that. While the species is considered aggressive, probably invasive in many areas, this variety is found to be less so.

It generally dies back in a cold winter. And like all Euphrobias, the plant has a milky sap that's caustic. I've taken to wearing surgical gloves whenever I garden, and skin problems that troubled me have disappeared.

Click for more about plants and design in: Alice's Garden

Silvery .. Scalloped .. Spiky - Drought Tolerant Spring Selections

Annie's Annuals & Perennials

Silvery, scalloped & spiky selections!

All are drought tolerant, a quality I'm looking for when choosing new plants for the garden.

These beauties are available online at Annie's Annuals & Perennials: Locals will come upon their booth at the San Francisco Flower & Garden Show. Among the crowd, I'll be picking out plants on opening day of the show!

Aquilegia vulgaris 'Black Barlow'

A shade perennial for USDA Zones 3 - 10, this dramatic columbine should grow well with average to low water. Interesting, there are no spurs on this variety.

Beschorneria x 'Martin Grantham Hybrids'

Such a savvy plantsman, Martin Grantham is a Bay Area treasure, working his plant magic at my alma mater, San Francisco State University.

A specimen for dry gardens, this rare & unusual cultivar grows in USDA 8 - 11, or perhaps as a container specimen in colder regions if given protection. Place in part shade to full sun.

Plants are wonderfully textural, and when in bloom, the flowering stems are stunning, as are dark red seed pods that follow.

Centaurea gymnocarpa 'Velvet Centaurea' pictured below: The grey foliage is a give away, as it's one indicator of a drought tolerant plant. A showy Spring bloomer, deer proof and perhaps even fit for a dry and shady spot, this centaurea boasts rich pink-purple blooms - for USDA zones 8 - 10.

Dianthus plumarius 'Rose de Mai'

Don't we all adore the clove scent of dianthus in our gardens?

This variety is recommended for USDA zones 3 - 11, and according to Anni J. - one of the head propagator's at Annie's - the plant pictured is 7 years old and does not receive supplemental water in our summer-dry region. Quite a recommendation.

Grow in full sun.

Annie's Annuals & Perennials

Drought-Tolerant Plants - San Francisco Botanical Garden Plant Sales

SAN FRANCISCO BOTANICAL GARDEN 

... A great source for drought-tolerant plants ...

Trees, Ferns, Rhododendrons, Native Plants Succulents, Perennials, Salvias, Shrubs, Shade Plants: The San Francisco Botanical Garden's Annual Plant Sales are  a great resource.

An impressive, botanical extravaganza, with more than 4,000 different kinds of plants on offer; emphasis on drought tolerant plants for water-wise gardening and food plants perfectly suited for Bay Area vegetable gardens.

San Francisco Botanical Garden - Golden Gate Park - 9th Avenue at Lincoln Way ....

A large selection of California natives will be available at their seasonal peak during the Native Plant Sale. Species you can be  counted upon to feature seeds and nectar to sustain native wildlife, and bring authentic beauty to California gardens. Some 300 to 400 varieties of natives will be for sale.

Eucomis bicolor / Eric Hunt Photo

Beguiling selections of uncommon and unusual plants will delight avid gardeners, while colorful succulents, flowering vines, herbaceous perennials, rock garden plants, salvias, shrubs and rhododendrons should draw plant lovers of every persuasion.

Public Information:  415/661-1316 -- www.sfbotanicalgarden.org

Lilac Vine on Blue Wall .. Hardenbergia violacea

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Are you in the neighborhood?  If you're planning to visit, I generally describe my home in reference to the blue wall surrounding the front patio. Drop by today and you'll see the 'Happy Wanderer' or lilac vine scrambling over the corner of the wall by the driveway. The plant was well-established when I moved into the house a decade ago:

And since I've been 'in charge,' it is rarely given a drink during the Bay Area's 6-month dry period.  While the garden I created outside the french doors at the rear of the house is hand-watered, the plants in front must be able to withstand benign neglect!

When this early bloomer is making a spectacle of itself,

I'm reminded why I pulled up roots and moved West.

The long months of ice and snow were taking their toll in more ways than one.

Today, I'm grateful for the rain,

and for the exuberance of this drought-tolerant, carefree evergreen climber:

An Australian native that tolerates temperatures as 

low as 15 to 20 degrees fahrenheit, especially with a bit of protection (like a wall).

I'll soon be launching a new web site:

Alice's Garden Travel Buzz

Very excited about this project, however daunting it is to undertake!

Scented, Sensuous, Darkly Dramatic! - Chocolate Flower Farm

Whidbey Island, Washington is a gardener's paradise...

And the home base for Chocolate Flower Farm, a unique plant nursery. 

Marie and Bill specialize in dark flowers and foliage,

offering tender specimens & biennials, long-lived perennials & seeds.  

Here's a sampling! Above: 

Nicotiana 'Chocolate Smoke,' this hardy annual is a strain of N. 'Hot Chocolate,' 

developed by Chocolate Flower Farm.

Aquilegia 'Single Black' .. "the little black dress" of Columbines, elegant & simple, yet quite rare.

Photos: Chocolate Flower Farm

Berlandiera lyrata - Chocolate Daisy

Grow in Zones 4 - 10 in full sun: Considered by Marie & Bill to be the best chocolate scent of all. 

A night bloomer, the flowers offer up their cocoa scent in the morning and drop their yellow petals each day.

Dierama 'Cosmos' 

Started last year from seed. It will take 3 years for plants to reach bloom stage. Be patient!

Delphinium 'Kissed By Chocolate'

Elegant white English delphiniums boasting gentle brushes of chocolate over the inky black colorations produced on 

the majority of 'Black Shades' cultivars (now known as 'Chocolate').

Dianthus 'Sooty' -  Chocolate Sweet William

Biennial in Zones 4 - 10: Grow in full sun; an excellent selection for cut flowers.

An all-time fave in my garden!

Click on link below to read one of my San Francisco Chronicle 'Plant Pick' columns, featuring 

Chocolate Cosmos

www.chocolateflowerfarm.com

Fall Planting Party - Drought Tolerant Plants, Annie's Annuals!

Digitalis obscura

Digitalis obscura 

A drought tolerant foxglove from Spain, growing 2 feet by 2 feet.  

I love the rusty orange flowers of this gorgeous specimen for sun or "a bit of shade."

Plant in lean soil: hardy in Zones 4 - 10.

A personal favorite, Philadelphus mexicanus 'Flore Plena'

A charming, fragrant heirloom shrub: Spring bloomer that often flowers again in Fall. 

Plant in sun to part-shade; low to average water.

Fall planting ideas: Drought-Tolerant & Low-Water Shrubs & Tender Perennials.

Inspired by my recent visit to Annie's Annuals. 

Annie Hayes 

at this year's Fall Planting Party in Richmond, California.

The Bay Area wouldn’t be the same without Annie’s Annuals,

supplier of rare & wonderful plants for the past 15 years.

Annie Hayes shares the desire for rarities that drives plant-a-holics.

Plants are no longer for locals only ... Annie's Annuals are now available by mail-order.

Clianthus puniceus ‘Albus’

'White Lobster Claw' - Clianthus aka 'Kaka Beak'  or 'Parrot's Beak'

A fast growing evergreen shrub or small tree for a sunny setting; not fussy about soil type.

Average to low water; USDA zones 8-11 but web site mentions plants surviving 

  13 degrees fahrenheit. 

Nursery, growing grounds & display gardens are a vibrant habitat for bees, butterflies & hummingbirds.

A glimpse of the display gardens at Annie's Annuals.

Zaluzianskya capensis Albus

'Night Phlox' aka 'Midnight Candy' -  Zaluzianskya capensis

A richly scented, uncommon South African species, growing 12” tall & wide with multi-branching stems. A profuse bloomer for the night garden, Z. capensis boasts

white flowers backed by maroon. Easy to grow in sun; average to low water.

USDA Zone 9-11 or as an annual.

Arctotis grandis

"Steel blue eye encircled by a golden ring... pearly white daisy from South Africa.

...behaves as a perennial in USDA zones 9-11 - grown as an annual in colder winter gardens. Flowers ... close up at night. 

Plant in well-drained soil in sun; average water/No summer water."

(Photos of available plants, courtesy Annie's Annuals)

Link to Annie's Annuals

http://anniesannuals.com/