New for 2020: The Carolina Reaper. In our Sunnyvale garden, I have grown a number of hot chile peppers: Habanero, Scorpion, and Ghost Peppers. The Carolina Reaper is a cultivar of the Capsicum chinense plant. Developed by South Carolina breeder Ed Currie, the pepper is red and gnarled, with a bumpy texture and small pointed tail. The Carolina Reaper was …

Originating from South America and otherwise known as the ‘Peruvian Lily’ or ‘Lily of the Incas’, Alstroemeria is named after a Swedish baron named Claus von Alstromer, who brought the seeds back to Europe in the mid-1700s. The flowers of the alstroemeria plant are so diverse that they are often likened to that of orchid blooms. You can always find …

Coreopsis is an easy to grow perennial that loves full sun and can thrive in many types of soil. These native colormakers range from the familiar sunny yellow variety to a host of eye-catching bicolors. Dependably perennial, these are tough plants that tolerate dry, hot weather and deliver long-lasting blooms. Pollinator-friendly and deer-resistant. Other common names are pot-of-gold and tickseed. …

Marigolds are a favorite in our Sunnyvale garden. They attract butterflies, bees, ladybugs, and other beneficial insects. Give them full sun and some well-draining soil and watch them bloom from spring until fall. The marigold flower is the most used in the offerings that are made on the Day of the Dead. There are approximately 50 species of marigold, but …

Easy-care and long-blooming Bidens is easy to recognize in garden beds and borders, as well as container gardens. A cheery annual native to areas of southwestern North America, it features golden-yellow daisy-shaped flowers that continue to appear for weeks. This family of plants earned these names thanks to their clinging seeds, which look something like ticks and stick to clothing …

Lilyturf (Liriope muscari) is a tough but showy evergreen groundcover has deep green, grass-like foliage arranged in slightly upright tufts. Spikes of blue or purple (see below) bell-shaped flowers resembling grape hyacinth (hence its species name) appear in summer, followed by dark berry-like fruits. Great for edging pathways or as and a low border accent. Grows well underneath trees or …

Gaura is a pretty summer-blooming plant for your Sunnyvale garden. As the flowers bob in the wind, they remind you of butterflies. Gaura is commonly grown as an ornamental plant. It is used in either garden beds or pots for accent colour and a delicate texture. It grows best in full sun and can survive lengthy periods of drought.There are many …

New to our Sunnyvale garden in 2020 are Hen-and-chicks (Sempervivum tectorum ‘greenii’). This succulent forms a mat of rosettes, each 4″ across and only 2″ tall, in a lovely shade of blue-gray with each leaf tipped in deep red. Our plant was purchased from Annie’s Annual in Richmond. Older rosettes produce short stems of pink, narrow-petalled blossoms and then die, …

Another new flower for our Sunnyvale Garden in 2020 are Pinkladies. Pinkladies (Oenothera speciosa) has masses of fragrant, bowl-shaped, satiny flowers. Other common names are evening primrose. We purchased our pinkladies from Summerwinds nursery. The large (2-3 inch wide) flowers open in the evening and remain open until late morning. The flowers age to rose-pink with deeper pink veins. They …

California Fuchsia (Zauschneria x cana ‘Calistoga Hybrids’) is a ground covering California native with large number of flowers that smother showy grey-green leaves on this low-water, low-maintenance, deer resistant, drought tolerant plant. Grown for its broad, grey leaves, low form and boldly colored carmine flowers, California Fuchsia prefer loose drainage, but adapt easily to clay soil. Plants do tend to …