This is one of my favorite spots in the garden. And, it requires absolutely no care and it bursts forth beautifully every year without any help from me. You can't beat that kind of performance.
Monday, October 12, 2015
Morning sun in a shady spot...
There was an undercurrent of cool in the air this morning. It almost felt like fall. Almost. But the forecast for today is 97. No kidding. Unbelievable.
Standing on the front porch watering pots, the light was beautiful, highlighting a very shady corner of the garden with the only sun it ever gets. Surrounded on 3 sides by house and growing under the high canopy of majestic oaks and a pomegranate, it only gets a dribble of filtered morning sun through the trees.
Because it's so protected and the area takes a long time to dry out after rain or watering, it doesn't need a lot of extra water, which is a plus.
Root beer plant (Hoya santo ) - which means sacred leaf in Spanish) forms a commanding background for Pam's pink Turk's cap (Malavisious drummondii 'Pam Puryear')and Persian Shield (Stobilanthes dyerianus). Look closely and you can see the Poms coming on in the tree.
I'll propagate the Persian shield before it gets cold and those new plants will live through the winter in the greenhouse. It is an annual here and I have to replace the plants every year. Such a striking plant in the garden, I wouldn't be without them. The deer will eat them, but these are up against the house and I've been lucky with them in this spot. The deer would almost have to ring the doorbell to get at them. (And now, of course, they'll get eaten since I bragged that I've outsmarted them!)
Though it's a later bloomer than it's red Turk's cap cousin, I love the pop of pink it adds to this space.
This umbrella plant (Cypereus involucratus), just across the dry creek from the other plants, comes back year after year, giving a great texture and contrast to this space.
This is one of my favorite spots in the garden. And, it requires absolutely no care and it bursts forth beautifully every year without any help from me. You can't beat that kind of performance.
This is one of my favorite spots in the garden. And, it requires absolutely no care and it bursts forth beautifully every year without any help from me. You can't beat that kind of performance.
Very pretty.
ReplyDeleteI'm always amazed at what you get away with, with your deer. They don't bother to ring the bell here. They just dig in.
Hope the forecast is WAY off today.
Linda - thanks. I don't always get away with things. But our houses are probably closer together than yours and we don't have as many deer as you do, so the odds are greater that some of them are going to strike more at your house! I do take some chances, and sometimes that comes back to bite me. It did last year late summer when they came through and ate all sorts of stuff they had left alone all summer.
ReplyDeleteThe weather is crazy, isn't it? I love your little shady spot. That Persian Shield is gorgeous. I've had it in containers before but never thought about putting it in the ground. I've also never seen a pink Turk's Cap before. How pretty :-) My red Turk's Cap is doing well though. Our area is getting so built up now we rarely see deer, so I don't have to worry about them having my garden beds for lunch.
ReplyDeleteIt IS crazy weather, Jayne. I can't believe that I am excited about 89 on Friday. I guess having less deer is a mixed bag. I do love seeing them and most of my plants outside the fence are deer resistant, but I do come unglued when they eat stuff they're not supposed to. OR, when they just hoof stuff out of the ground and leave it lying there, roots exposed!
ReplyDeleteDoes your Persian Shield bloom in the greenhouse in late winter? I love the little blue conehead blossoms that look as if they 'don't go' with Persian Shield.
ReplyDeleteNo, Jean, they haven't yet. They rarely bloom in the garden, either. I've only overwintered them there once, so I'll have to take especially good care of them this winter to try to get them to bloom for me!
ReplyDeleteIt's a beautiful spot. I love Persian Shield but have had a hard time providing adequate shade to keep them going here. We have the same ridiculous heat hanging on here as well - the forecasters think it may break by Thursday. I hope you get a cool down too.
ReplyDeleteThat first photo is a stunner, I could stare at that foliage combo for hours. Nice work!
ReplyDeleteKris - this is in almost total shade I have some planted in the back as well - one patch is big and robust like this one and another is very puny. I think it gets more light and less water. We broke an all-time record yesterday for latest day this hot - 99 - and the date temp record as well. We are supposed to have a cool front - 89 on Saturday! Ha.
ReplyDeleteDanger Garden - Thanks - There's also supposed to be a Cuban gold duranta in there somewhere but it didn't do much this year. I love using the sparkler sedge to brighten up the dark corner, too.