Monday, May 16, 2016

Garden Bloom in May

lavender, gaura, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
Preparing to post for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, I was surprised at how much is still in bloom in the garden.  Temperatures have already crossed the century mark more than once, but then dropped back down quickly, allowing many plants to continue a prolongation of spring bloom.

The main season for annuals is over, though a few faces still show up here and there.  The early sunflowers are ripening their seeds; I've removed some of the violas and need to take out what's left of Cerinthe major purpurea.  But the chamomile is very much in bloom.
chamomile, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
California poppies (Eschscholzia californica) are still flowering as well.
eschscholzia californica, california poppy, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
Dianthus has threatened to quit more than once; but every time temperatures drop, it starts bravely on again, thriving on water and shade from the nearby rose bushes.  It has set loads of seed, and I hope to be able to keep it as a fixture in the garden.
dianthus, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
Dianthus is getting a little worn, and I can't keep up with deadheading it, but it is blooming on into May.
One annual (or rather, very tender perennial) recommended for warm season use here is Madagascar periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus).  I have just planted some, giving it a first try this summer in the borders.
catharanthus roseus, madagascar periwinkle, vinca, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
By and large, though, the emphasis in the garden is shifting to the perennials and shrubs.  Woody subshrub Chrysactinia mexicana, though a young plant, is loaded with bloom...
chrysactinia mexicana, damianita, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
...as is Tetraneuris acaulis.  For once, the color scheme of the East Border can be guessed at in the photo below, still a jumble as I wait for plants to fill out! 
small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
The big surprise here is the chrysanthemums.
chrysantemums, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
Lantana "Denver Red" is also blooming well.
lantana, denver red, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
All the lantanas are blooming well, in fact.
lantana, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
Lantana at the back of the patio.  These plants were already growing here when we moved in.
lantana, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden, white
The newest lantana, a white variety blooming in the White and Silver Garden
Back in the East Border, Berlandiera lyrata still is blooming heavily, though we've reached the time of year when the flowers begin to close by midday.  Some of its stems have straggled up through nearby plants, such as these peeking through Acacia leaves.
berlandiera lyrata, chocolate flower, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
Special mention should be made of another yellow-flowered plant: little Tagetes lucida, which sulked until the weather turned warm but is now happy.
tagetes lucida, mexican tarragon, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
And although neither of my columbines had blooms for this month's GBBD, it is their season; that is to say, Aquilegia chrysantha "Swallowtail" has been blooming off and on for weeks, and A. desertorum is just putting up its first buds.

One reason for ample bloom this May is simply that the garden is more heavily planted than it has been before, with the East Border filling out and the North Border beginning to take shape a little bit.  North Border plants include a medley of purples and reds.  Ruellia brittoniana has flowers...
ruellia brittoniana, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
...as does the still bluer Salvia farinacea, which deserves a post of its own and will hopefully eventually get it!
salvia farinacea, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
Also there is a plain Osteospermum, bought to test the possibilities of oversummering it in the open garden.  Last year I met with no success, but I would love to be able carry these plants through.
osteospermum, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
Also a scarlet Pelargonium is at the top of the border.
pelargonium, geranium, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
In the Central Bed there is another Pelargonium.  I am hoping to ease these through the worst of summer; I have read various recommendations for this, from restarting with new cuttings to allowing the plants to go completely dormant.
pelargonium, geranium, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
The Central Bed contains many blooms this month.  Lavender "Goodwin's Creek Gray" continues to bloom, combining with Gaura (now Oenothera lindheimeri) on one side...
lavender, goodwins creek gray, gaura, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
...and Penstemon pseudospectabilis on another.  This penstemon has a wonderfully long bloom season.
penstemon pseudospectabilis, lavender, goodwins creek gray, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
Other plants blooming nearby include Cuphea ignea "Vermillionaire" and a newly planted Cistanthe grandiflora, still sold as Calandrinia.
cistanthe, calandrinia, rock purslane, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
The various Salvia greggii varieties bely their common name of "autumn sage".
salvia greggii, autumn sage, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
And Russelia equisetiformis "Big Red" is looking good.  I think it has belonged in all but one or two GBBD posts since first planted two and half years ago.  It needs to be pruned back out of rose Wollerton Old Hall and vice versa.  I wasn't really expecting it to reach its full 5 ft (1.5 m) spread here!
russellia, coral fountain, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden, big red
Now, I have been encouraging the roses to slack off for the hottest months, a different tack than I used last year, but I am hoping it will enable them to put out a stronger flush come autumn.  Most have received only one full feeding this spring, plus topdressing with composted manure.  However, some have their own ideas, one of which is that May is a good time to bloom.  So...
rose, william shakespeare 2000, david austin rose, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
William Shakespeare 2000
rose, graham thomas, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
Graham Thomas

rose, st. swithun, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
St. Swithun

And The Generous Gardener -- very generous, but betwixt...
rose, the generous gardener, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
...and between.
rose, the generous gardener, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
A few more shots from around the garden...

A smattering of late blooms from Eremphila maculata "Valentine"
eremophila, valentine, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
A burst from Leucophyllum frutescens, probably "Green Cloud"
leucophyllum frutescens, texas ranger, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
And the nearby Eremophila hygrophana, combining with lemon thyme flowers (a photo taken very much in the shade).
lemon thyme, eremophila hygrophana, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
There is also Pennisetum setaceum "Rubrum", heading into its first summer here.
small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
It's the end of the season for Oenothera pallida "Innocence".  I intend to shift these rampant stragglers entirely to the White and Silver Garden by autumn; they're a little too robust at self-seeding for the regular beds anyway.  But the smell is fabulous!
small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
It's the beginning of the season for a couple of plants, however.  Perovskia atriplicifolia put out its first flowers for the occasion.
perovskia atriplicifolia, russian sage, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
Even more exciting is the very first bloom from one of my Crape Myrtles.  This is Lagerstroemia indica "Rhapsody in Pink".
lagerstroemia, rhapsody in pink, crape myrtle, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
A good beginning to summer!  The real test lies ahead and is named "June"!
parkinsonia, palo verde, small sunny garden, garden bloggers bloom day, amy myers, desert garden
Flowers on the young Parkinsonia "Desert Museum", newly planted to help shelter the Rose Border.
Weather Diary; Sunny; High: 91 F(33 C)/Low: 69 F (21 C)


10 comments:

  1. So much blooming - and all so lovely, too! Hope the weather cooperates. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much, Eliza! I do too...! Today was beautiful so I can't complain ;-)

      Delete
  2. You have an incredible number of flowers blooming, not what I would expect for the desert. I like the plants in your new East Border, I hope they fill in nicely for you. It seems you grow some of my favorite plants from my Houston childhood, like Lantana. I suppose they like heat but it was wet in Houston. Can you grow Ocotillos there?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I expect the bloom to fall off next month, but I have tried to work out some bloom year-round, so we shall see... I've been amazed at how well some of the tropicals grow here; some are far more resilient in drought than I imagined, and of course, yes, they are reliable in the heat - bless them! Lantana is excellent and used in street plantings here. Ocotillos grow well as long as they don't get too cold; I'd love to have one, but I'll have to put it outside the garden area as there just isn't room... ;-)

      Delete
  3. Lovely to see that wider shot of the border and to see the borders filling out. I love the rusty colour scheme too, it feels right for the desert!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm using far more yellow and orange here than I ever did; they do seem appropriate, and certainly most of the wildflowers are in those colors ;-) Earlier I took some wide shots of other parts of the garden and keep meaning to post them - must do!

      Delete
  4. I don't know how you manage to have so much colour in your garden with the temperatures you are experiencing, amazing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm discovering a whole world of plants that like hot weather, including some that actually sulked until temperatures started going on up ;-) It's a bit tricky though, to balance that with tolerance to low humidity and drought... gets a bit confusing at times!

      Delete
  5. You really have some lovely plants blooming Amy - no-one would believe that you live in the Sonoran Desert! The roses are absolutely beautiful. I particularly liked the lovely petal arrangement on the St Swithun rose. I hope June is kind and gentle with you and with me - it makes for a very long hot summer if not! Thank you for sharing your lovely plants and garden.
    - Kate x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hope so too, Kate! It's not like a cold winter either, where one must just sit it out and hope for the best in the garden come spring! No, there's all the hovering over plants, watching them struggle and trying to figure out how to salvage them! Live and learn... But May hasn't been bad so far!
      I totally agree about the blooms on St. Swithun; I was so hungry for good old-style quartered blooms ;-)
      Thanks a lot!

      Delete