Flowers

First Freesia of 2017

Freesia is a fragrant pretty spring corm that naturalizes so it comes back year after year. I plant them at the bases of the fruit trees and in containers to provide some of the first blooms and scents of spring.

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This Sunnyvale Garden – February 2017

We had a very wet February in our Sunnyvale garden. But we still had a lot of flowers: Pea-shrub, orinthogalum, several types of crocus, daffodils, armeria, plum, apricot, flowering plum, viola, cyclamen, english daisy, yarrow, lavendar. On the vegetable side: cilantro, tomatoes, beet, garlic, rhubarb, chile, basil. Lots of spring growth: swartzkopf, mulberry, figs, milkweed, foxglove, caesurium, bleeding-heart, lily-of-the-valley, verbascum, …

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Nasturtium – Christmas 2016

Nasturtiums are great flowers for the Sunnyvale garden. They grow in most types of soil and soil moisture. The flowers are colorful and edible and have a peppery taste that can vary in intensity from flower to flower on the same plant. The strongest have a taste and aroma of horseradish. An added benefit is that the nasturtium fixes nitrogen. …

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This Sunnyvale Garden – November 2016

November is the beginning of winter in our Sunnyvale garden. Summer and fall flowers are putting on their last show. The hummingbird loves the red tubular flowers of the Salvia elegans. Daylilies,  yarrow, marigolds, and mums brighten the darkening skies. The hibiscus loves the south-facing wall. Harvested Panache figs, pepino melons, pomegranates, spaghetti squash. Planted garlic, beets, carrots, kale, cabbage, …

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Mums 2016

During the fall, the garden nurseries are full of mums of all varieties. I plant them in a variety of pots.

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This Sunnyvale Garden – August 2016

This past month I was not doing much in the garden. I was remodeling the kitchen for over a week. Then I was on vacation in the Pacific Northwest for ten days. The drip irrigation mostly worked while I was gone. Marie discovered one morning that a 1/4 inch feeder hose had popped out of the larger 1/2 main line …

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This Sunnyvale Garden – July 2016

This past June was very hectic and I spent little time in the garden. I have the drip irrigation working again in the backyard. Marie is very grateful because I will be on vacation and she does not want to water the 100 plants and trees on that system. I had a leak from behind the hose bib and had …

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This Sunnyvale Garden – June 2016

There was lots of activity in our Sunnyvale garden this past May: Spring flowers were finishing their bloom;. Summer flowers were pumping out new growth and, in some cases, early flowers. The stone fruits- plums, nectarines, and apricots – got larger and starting getting color. The tomato plants range in size from 2 to 4 feet in height. Some are …

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This Sunnyvale Garden – May 2016

The garden exploded in April with a full spread of colors. We had the full range of spring flowers and now the summer flowers have started. In May I will harvest the winter root vegetables (beets and carrots); finish moving the 24 tomato plants to the final large pots; harvest some blackberries and squashes; and try to identify the dozens …

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