LONDON Calling .. Gardens Galore in the Weeks Ahead

A rare peony growing alongside the pond at Chelsea Physic Garden.

So much to share: Here, a few sights/sites to revisit.

I've returned from the U.K. with stories to tell and garden gossip. After experiencing two weeks of cold weather, the sun appeared, blazing among the aisles of London's Chelsea Physic Garden; preening with Paeonia and poppies.

A scene-stealer... the brilliant Tamarisk.

Physician, entrepreneur, plant collector: Sir Hans Sloane stands watch over the Physic Garden's amazing flora. Imagine! I returned today just as the Chelsea Flower Show was about to kick off. And though I've attended this fabulous show in previous years, I had other plans to occupy my days on this sojourn.

Detail of a rare, wonderful Echium - E. wildpretii

Along Portobello Road, cascading golden panicles of Laburnum trees draped the sidewalks.

Look for garden touring from London to Wales, continuing in the weeks ahead here on

Bay Area Tendrils

& on Alice's Garden Travel Buzz

Jet lag notwithstanding.

Solitary Survivor .. Dendrobium Orchid

Hundreds of species and cultivars grow in Alice's garden ... but there is only one orchid:

Dendrobium x delicatum 'Extra Fine'

is blooming rather late this year. A single stem sends out flowers, unlike previous seasons, when sprays emerged from multiple stems. A dear friend passed this plant along, a savvy plantsman and native San Franciscan with impressive expertise in the sphere of orchid cultivation. I've managed to keep the plant alive, although a more tender specimen - Masdevallia coccinea 'Leywoods' did not survive. I'm appalled to report that I failed to provide winter protection for the tender Masdevallia orchid and it perished.

The Dendrobium receives a bit of coddling during the rainy season, when it's placed outside the french doors on the back porch. There, it avoids the worst of my micro-climate's winter frosts that drape the floor of the garden, and the onslaught of drenching rainfall, resulting in soggy conditions. Only .. one .. orchid.

Pendulant, Promiscuous Cerinthe!

Cerinthe major purpurescens

Although slow to colonize here in Alice's Garden, the richly graduated shades of blue, purple and green of Cerinthe are now rampant, bolstering the planting in the garden's central bed. I extended an invitation to this self-sowing annual years ago, but its promiscuous nature has only recently taken hold in the loamy soil. I find the flower color to be reminiscent of Han Purple, an ancient pigment found in the decoration of China's terra cotta army figures. Oe perhaps the color is more akin to the Royal Purple associated with Medieval Europe. In general, I am put off by the color purple for clothing or decor. But in the garden, I revel in the contrast between the bracts' blue-purple hues and the rounded, pale blue-green leaves.

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!

Magnificent Succulents at Mrs. Bancroft's Garden

(Bancroft Garden Photo: Brian Kemble)

The Ruth Bancroft Garden in Walnut Creek is hosting a Workshop Series,

to include a Succulent Propagation workshop on Sunday, May 9th, 2010.

Visit: www.ruthbancroftgarden.org for details.

Link to an earlier post:

Remarkable Australians! Australian plants at The Ruth Bancroft Garden