Plants I Love – Page 3

Giant Buckwheat – A beauty in early fall

This is Eriogonum giganteum, or Giant Buckwheat. This plant needs VERY LITTLE supplemental water in the summer (ie. in general, maybe one deep watering a month depending on location and soil type). Flowers are creamy white during summer and turn this beautiful auburn color now in September. Love this plant!

My Drought Tolerant Mostly Native Garden!

I have here growing from front to back: Salvia ‘Allen Chickering’, Watsonia ‘Red’, Epilobium (California Fuchsia), a baby Eucaluptus pulverulenta ‘Baby Blue’, Eriogonum gigantium (Giant Buckwheat), and Artemisia californica (and more behind but not visible in this picture) . I rarely water these plants, maybe 2 or 3 times during the summer. I didn’t waterContinue reading “My Drought Tolerant Mostly Native Garden!”

Dymondia – The wonder cover

This wonderful groundcover is used here as a lawn substitute. It is a very tiny (maybe 1″ tall) spreading groundcover that is green on the top and silver underneath and so gives off a look of morning frost on grass. It has tiny yellow daisy like flowers mostly in spring, can handle not so greatContinue reading “Dymondia – The wonder cover”

The Lovely Leucadendrons

Leucadendrons are becoming ever more available at nurseries and in all different colors ranging from reds to yellows to greens and greys and in any combination of those colors! I am using them in many of my designs for a number of reasons. First, they are adapted to our type of climate coming from theContinue reading “The Lovely Leucadendrons”

Why not Forsythia in Santa Cruz!

I am surprised to not see more Forsythia planted in Santa Cruz. This plant is absolutely stunning in the springtime with branches completely full of yellow flowers from top to bottom! It is drought tolerant and with a number of varieties in various heights and widths it can be a splash of color March-April toContinue reading “Why not Forsythia in Santa Cruz!”

Abutilons – The Hummingbird Haven

This is a picture of my favorite plant called the Abutilon. There are a number of species and many hybrids with color shades that range from red, pink, orange to yellow with various tones and combined colors as well. I like this plant because it shows itself to be very delicate and beautiful while atContinue reading “Abutilons – The Hummingbird Haven”