Flowers

Tall Bearded Iris is a great spring flower for Sunnyvale gardens. This is a migrant plant. Some years the iris is in the front yard in the ground; other years the iris is in a container in the back yard. Irises contain the potentially toxic compounds irisin, iridin, or irisine. Symptoms of Poisoning: The gastrointestinal tract may become affected by …

Huge spiked & strongly perennial, this “New Millenium” variety is far superior to the commonly available “Pacific Giants.” They can easily reach 6’ tall & by its second year as much as 4’ across. Extra large, bright-pink blooms with a white “bee” are held compactly to make large 3’ spikes & unbelievable cut flowers. Long blooming if you cut the …

Bachelor button has a very intense blue. Cornflowers were worn by young men in love; if the flower faded too quickly, it was taken as a sign that the man’s love was not returned It is the national flower of Estonia. bought from yamagami nursery planted winter 2014 flowered April 2015 Toxicity: Non-Toxic to Dogs, Non-Toxic to Cats

The Asian Pear Ultra-dwarf tree in my Sunnyvale garden started blossoming the last week in March 2015.

Sisyrinchium angustifolium is noted for its violet-blue flowers and branched flowering stems. Though their foliage is grass-like, the blue-eyed grasses belong to the iris family not the grass family. It is native to southeast USA where it occurs in damp open woods, slopes and along stream banks. It is a clump-forming perennial that features a tuft of narrow grass-like leaves …

Bright gentian blue flowers to 1” across with a surprising pink eye & bright yellow anthers lit­erally smother this striking front of the garden annual or dry garden perennial. Neat & compact, this Mediterranean native grows to 10” tall & 20” across & is stunning combined with contrasty blooms & foliage like Ursinia anthemoides & Heuchera ‘Marmalade.’ Thrives with little …

This is the first bloom of Linaria in 2015. The plant is about 12 inches tall and the whole flower head is only an inch wide. Some have suggested, after viewing this photo, that Alien has crossed from animals to plants. See detailed description of Linaria

Nectarine and Apricot blossoms in late February 2015. Bees are busy visiting all the blossoms. The apricot tree in the photo below is a volunteer tree. This tree grew from a discarded apricot pit. It is growing in a two-foot wide trench along the side yard. Our original apricot tree is growing on semi-standard root stock. This volunteer tree is …

Feb 20 2015

Another sign of early spring: The first plum blossoms on Feb 15 2015 (about two weeks early)