December Morning In The Garden

  Rain! Oh, gloriousness!

  Not only the most amazing sunrises and sunsets, but water enough to fill my rain barrels over and over….that is when I find the time to run around emptying them into the garden! But I don't mind. This gives me the chance to catch up and see what's going on with the plants.

  This is something I have little time for these shortest days of the year. It's dark when I get home, and I seem to be too busy in the mornings to get much time in the garden. 

  This morning I said the hell with it, and went on a tour of sorts…. I'm so very glad I did. 

  Besides seeing just how many weeds have sprung up (basically overnight…), I really got excited about the way everything has plumped up. These are some happy plants, people!

By now you know how I love my variegated plants.
geranium "Vancouver Centennial" in all her Xmas color...

Coprosma "Rainbow Surprise" is looking quite festive, too.
Under her, you see plectranthus "Zuluensis", I believe.

  Plectranthus is such an easy going plant in our region. It propagates super easy, and nothing seems to eat it. It always comes on strong with flowers in autumn, and continues through the end of the year. 

  I have had some frost damage, but it grows back within a season, so I keep it throughout the garden, making new cuttings all year long. It looks so much better with water, like now. In the dog days of summer, it survives ok without, but perks up after a slow soak.

  I'm a big fan.

I like this mash-up…..
Plectranthus with alstroemeria and even the "weed" oxalis.
The texture together is great.

The buds are so trippy!
The original cutting came from a garden in Cambria.
Yes, I sort of pilfered it.

  Another favorite to see after a few good days of rain, are the various succulents. 

  I'd stopped watering them, for the most part, so they were looking pretty sad. Now they are happy, happy, happy...

See those big smiles?
Happy succulents!

Part of a collection of small pots of succulents on the back porch...

The colder temperatures bring out a blush of pink.

These began not so long ago as one here and one there…they have become a border
along a bed in the back garden. I'm so thrilled to see them at their best.

Well, what can I say? Succulents, variegated this and that…me like!

They just keep getting more massive!
Not that I mind...

 

  Seriously, I ran around for about fifteen minutes snapping these photos this morning before coming to the gallery. It had just rained, and everything was clean and fresh. I wish I could have just stayed in the garden all day.

  I love puttering this time of year…little weeds need to be pulled, raking is instant gratification, and the plants are either at their best, or getting put to bed for the winter. It's not too warm, and the fragrances are divine.

  I know that I take many of the same shots of the garden. It's true- the garden isn't that big, and there are certain areas that just look so good all the time. I can't help it. These "strong" areas just keep getting bigger and better, as they grow and fill in.

  Also, over the years I've just done away with plants that are not doing well. We just don't have the water to waste on them anymore. I've either traded them out, found them new homes elsewhere, or chopped them into the compost bin. Now I concentrate on the tough old gals that go and go and look good doing it!

A new member of the family,"Prince Rupert", a variegated pelargonium I bought as a four inch specimen.
Hmmmmmm…wonder why?

I know, I know…it's that same old coprosma, "Marble Queen"…again.
She gets a lot of play on this blog. But I do love her.

Honestly, I thought I'd lost these hellebores, but no!
They look good, too, especially with the variegated plectranthus all over.

Not a ton of "color" in the garden right now,
but this Hebe is going for it.

A close up of the absolutely beautiful variegated ivy geranium from the photo above.
Thank you, Tasha….

Oh! Here's a little December surprise!
Isn't it time to start cutting back the roses?

  I'm in love with Hellebores…most all varieties are good, but I especially like  the Corsican and Sternii varieties. They get huge in my garden, and bloom year round, almost. Tough, too. The only thing that bugs them are aphids in the warm days of spring… A good strong jet from the hose works wonders.

Near the hot tub area, Quan Yin meditates among the Hellebores.
Thanks, Tasha…..

Also nearby, my Rosy maidenhair(?) fern…I think that's what this is.
Whatever they are, I am happy that they are starting to put out new growth.

   

  In another area of the garden, I have been tucking cuttings of this and that, along with babies of this and that…basically just experimenting. I like what's going on here. This section has been through so many changes over the years, I wish I had just done this incarnation to start with.

  But, hey, we gardeners learn as we go, and we do make lots of mistakes. Some really horrible, some quite lovely…right?

Who knew this combination would work so well?
Talk about low maintenance!

Across the path, same area as above…another "this and that" which has turned out pretty nice.
I love the color of the euphorbia foliage with the variegation here.

  Throughout the garden, we have a fine collection of garden…ummm…. art? 

  This collection also continues to grow, though we have gotten better at "editing" what stays. 

  Just a week or so ago, our garden angel, Pedro, decided that this fine fellow belonged in our garden, not his. 

  He knows us well! We love this new (odd, yes) "Hotei" at the front door.

  He's the happiest fellow, even if he is sort of flaking away. We gently rub his head when we pass him, coming and going.

Thanks, Pedro!
(just this side of creepy, but it's ok)

I mean, we have cherub heads hanging around with old rusty bits….
The coral was found some twenty years ago
while beach camping on the Sea of Cortez.

Yeah,  just more of the collection.
Poor St. Francis…the flock gets bigger every year!

I have to wonder what guests think when they come to the front door…..
It changes all the time.

Beach glass collection with our lucky froggy.

  Just to wrap things up here, a couple of photos from the gallery "garden"… It's a life saver for me, when things are slow here. I enjoy going outside and just doing a little clipping, or rearranging...

I made four nice big pots of this combination,
a smaller growing euphorbia with the tough carex "testacea".
I think it's a super nice color combo.

Aeonium "Zwartkop", looking somewhat washed out.
Not enough full sun here, but these are cuttings to be moved elsewhere.

Last, but no where near least, the ornamental oxalis "Lucky".
Another dream plant to propagate, and what drama!

  Well, there you have it.
  Just give me ten to fifteen minutes in the garden on a morning like this day started with, and I'll give you some good plants to think about.
  Or maybe I just give myself something to do when the crowds thin out here in the gallery!