DryStoneGarden

Plants, Stone, California Landscapes

Flower

Bloom Day — May 2010

We have a fair bit going on for bloom day. The woodland strawberry bed has campanula and Allium unifolium and the last of the bearded irises.

Coastal Cal Poppy with Geranium petal

Coastal Cal Poppy with Geranium petal

Aquilegia Black Barlow

Aquilegia Black Barlow

There is something about A. ‘Black Barlow’ that’s so black, it’s like how much blacker could it be, and the answer is none. None more black.

Aquilegia chrysantha

Aquilegia chrysantha

Aquilegia chrysantha is my favorite columbine. I even like it better than the native one.

Nicotiana Limelight

Nicotiana Limelight

3 month old Hellerbore blooms

3 month old Hellerbore blooms

These flowers were new and purple for February bloom day, invited back into the bloom day mix because they still look pretty good three months later. Gotta like a flower that can age so gracefully.

Beach Primrose, Camissonia cheiranthifolia

Beach Primrose, Camissonia cheiranthifolia

I also like how the Beach Primrose flowers age.

Hebe Pattys Purple

Hebe Pattys Purple

We have a spot by the front steps where we rotate in whatever we have blooming in a container, like a display at the nursery. This month is Allium unifolium, in March we had Daffodils, in April Freesias. Next month should be the Lilies which are now budding. I’m not sure what we’ll have after that, but it’s starting to become a thing, to have something blooming in that spot every month if possible.

Allium unifolium blooming

Allium unifolium blooming

Click over to MayDreamsGardens for the growing collection of links to all of the other bloggers posting for bloom day. My thanks to Carol for hosting.

I’ve been keeping a list of everything in bloom each month for bloom day. I should have the list up soon.

— Update — And now it’s up, below the fold.

Peak Bloom

Allium unifolium
Hebe ‘Patty’s Purple’
Campanula
Aquilegia chrysantha
Snow in Summer

Blooming

Coastal Cal Poppies
California Poppy ‘White Linen’
Nicotiana Limelight
Variegated Iris
Cistus ladanifer
Salvia ‘Hot Lips’
Sedum spathulifolia
Scrophularia
Senecio ‘Giovannis Select’
Oxalis oregana
Penstemon heterophyllus
Mexican Evening Primrose
Erysimum menziesii
Bearded Iris (the blue ones)
Heuchera ‘Torch’
Aquilegia ‘Black Barlow’
Sacred Flower of the Incas
Salvia mellifera
Salvia spathacea
Salvia ‘Green Carpet’
Tellima grandiflora
Dicentra ‘Bachanal’
Sedum spathulifolium
Sidalcea malviflora
Geranium ‘Bill Wallis’
Sisyrinchium bellum
Mimulus arantiacus

Starting up

Galvezia
Linum lewisii
Calycanthus occidentalis
Sisyrinchium californica
Salvia chamaedrys
Beach Primrose
Mimulus hybrid

Finishing

Meadowfoam
Sisyrinchium bellum
Triteleia ixioides ‘Starlight’
Dicentra formosa

Pretty Much Ever-Blooming

Blessed Calendula
Alyssum
Fuchsia “Gartenmeister Bonstadt’

11 Responses to “Bloom Day — May 2010”

  1. May 14th, 2010 at 11:59 pm

    Rosie@leavesnbloom says:

    Those are lovely columbines – the black double and the yellow are a lovely combination.

  2. May 15th, 2010 at 12:06 am

    Ruth says:

    I especially like your first picture. It’s gorgeous! I used to garden in California and I miss it. Great plants!

  3. May 15th, 2010 at 8:36 am

    Brad says:

    Great opening shot. And I really like the Aquilegia chrysantha as well. The black one, not so much.

  4. May 15th, 2010 at 8:47 am

    Town Mouse says:

    Wow, what an interesting collection. And I’m sure that just as with my garden, there’s more. But why sit at the computer when one could be in the garden ;->

    Happy bloom day!

  5. May 15th, 2010 at 9:44 am

    Gayle Madwin says:

    Your Campanula patch is certainly going strong! And I quite like the Hebe ‘Patty’s Purple’ as well.

  6. May 15th, 2010 at 11:31 am

    Valerie says:

    It is always to so interesting to see what grows in your California gardens. I envy that you can grow all year round. I like the aquilegia too. I have purple, pink and white ones in the garden but not quite in bloom. Thanks for sharing. Valerie

  7. May 16th, 2010 at 2:19 pm

    lostlandscape (James) says:

    I agree with Ruth about that first photo. The shady mix of blues is such a cooling, calming effect. And the allium photo with the prickly pear nearby is a nice scene, too. It’s nice to see cactus in a setting that says “lush” instead of “deprived.”

  8. May 16th, 2010 at 4:07 pm

    ryan says:

    Thanks for the comments everyone. The black and yellow columbines are actually right next to each other, but I didn’t get them into a decent shot together. Townmouse, you’re right, there are more things blooming. These are just the ones that seemed interesting this month, abd pretty much the ones that happen to be at their peak. I’ll put up the list of everything in bloom, for my records, later.
    The prickly pear is a recent addition to our garden. The potted succulents work surprisingly well in our very un-desertlike garden.

  9. May 17th, 2010 at 7:31 am

    Noelle / azplantlady says:

    Oh, I love the pretty yellow columbine too and may try to grow it sometime. But, my favorite is the California Poppy from my native state 🙂

  10. May 31st, 2010 at 10:01 pm

    chuck b. says:

    The Camissonia cheiranthifolia is one of my favorites. Unforch, I haven’t been able to keep it happy for a few years.

  11. June 2nd, 2010 at 10:45 am

    ryan says:

    Camissonia cheiranthifolia seems to live fast and die young in our garden. We’re on our second or third generation already. The original plant finished two years ago, and now we have cuttings from it, plus one plant that reseeded itself. The cuttings all looked terrible for a while and then one by one entered a happy phase. Last year’s happy camissonias are already gone, and I’m expecting this year’s ones to go too.

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