GBBD List for November 2009

The monthly plant round-up known as Garden Blogger Bloom Day was started by Carol of May Dreams Gardens. A post for November is on my main blog, the Transplantable Rose but the list of every plant that had even one flower is here, with what I hope is the correct botanical name.


Achillea 'Moonshine', light bloom

Ageratina havanensis, syn Eupatorium havanense /Fragrant white mistflower, two plants have flowers and butterflies

Asclepias curassavica, tropical milkweed, many buds, few open flowers

Barleria cristata/Philippine cristata three plants, only a few flowers - most dropped petals

Bryophyllum daigremontianum, synonym Kalanchoe daigremontiana/ Mother of Thousands, Alligator Plant - budded

Brugmansia - unnamed variety Yellow Angels trumpet keeps making buds and opening flowers

Bulbine frutescens 'Yellow'/ yellow bulbine - many bloomstalks

Camellia sasanqua 'Shishi Gashira' maybe 2 dozen buds and blooms

Canna americanallis 'Bengal Tiger' syn 'Praetoria' - flowering in front bed

Canna X generalis, unnamed tall, bright green-leaved with one red-orange flower

Capsicum annuum – two leftover garden peppers, a few buds

Clerodendrum ugandense – Blue butterfly flower.(Pam/Digging & Dave's Garden call it Rotheca myricoides 'Ugandense'), several stalks, many flowers

Clitoria ternatea- the Blue Butterfly Pea, still blooming

Conoclinium greggii, Gregg’s Mistflower - more faded than fresh but still in bloom

Cuphea ignea, orange Cigar flower, sprinked with little orange flowers

Cuphea llavea – small pink & lavender form (two plants) both in full bloom

Cuphea llavea –red & purple ‘Batfaced’ in bloom

Cuphea llavea 'Georgia Scarlet', blooming with in red-orange & purple flowers;

Cyclamen persicum/ florist’s cyclamen hybrids - two lived-over plants have flowers and/or buds

Delosperma cooperi ? Dark pink flowered hardy ice plant has flowers in pink garden

Dendranthema x grandiflora? - ordinary cushion mums in several places, blooming purply-pink and yellow

Dianthus – a few ‘Telstar’ hybrids in assorted containers


Duranta erecta, Skyflower - still quite a few flowers


Eriobotrya japonica, Loquat, Japanese Plum - full bloom


Evolvulus glomeratus, Blue Daze, several plants, each with one or two flowers


Gaura lindheimerii, unknown tall rose-pink variety (‘Pink Cloud’?), many flowers


Impatiens walleriana, bedding impatiens. Scattered around, white and lavender, in containers


Ipomoea batatas, dark purple sweet potato vine - buds

Ipomoea quamoclit, Cypress vine, reseeding annual, a few flowers

Jatropha integerrima 'Compacta' red buds

Jasminium sambac, Sambac jasmine, buds


Justicia spicigera/ Mexican Honeysuckle, no flowers open but has buds


Kalanchoe daigremontiana syn. Bryophyllum daigremontianum/ Mother of Thousands, Alligator Plant - budded

Lantana, unknown varieties upright lavender in parkway strip blooming and so is trailing white one

Lavandula intermedia 'Provence', fragrant, one old plant in bloom.


Lobularia maritime, Sweet alyssum - in one hanging basket


Lonicera sempervirens, coral honeysuckle in new bloom cycle


Melampodium leucanthum / Blackfoot daisy - few flowers in back triangle - plants with more sun in front have more flowers

Osmanthus fragrans/Sweet olive three shrubs pouring out fragrance from tiny white blossoms. Bought oldest abt 2000, newest in spring 2008.

Oxalis crassipes 'Alba' (dotted around and in containers), lots of small flowers


Oxalis regnellii 'Atropurpurea' (dotted around and in containers), lots of flowers


Pelargonium hybrids– assorted bedding geraniums, white one has open flowers


Pelargonium hybrid, 'Fantasia Salmon', zonal geranium blooming in breakfast room window


Perovskia atriplicifolia, Russian Sage (two beds), many wands of blue


Phlox sublata/Creeping phlox in lavender blue - three clumps with flowers


Plumbago auriculata (two shrubs), winding down to a few flowers


Portulaca - buds on plants in one pot


Punica granatum 'Nana'/ dwarf pomegranate keeps popping one flower at a time


Rosa 'Belinda's Dream', Pink shrub rose- one open, buds still coming


Rosa ‘Champagne’ mini rose, delicate pink , two plants, a dozen roses open but hard to photograph and leaves are pitiful!

Rosa floribunda ‘Julia Child’, butter-yellow rose, one flower plus buds


Rosa 'Mutabilis' (two good-sized plants), front plant in sun covered in flowers and buds, one on patio in too much shade, but making buds

Rosa /unnamed apricot mini-rose, had 3 flowers ....LAST week


Rosmarinus officinalis 'Prostratus' - Prostrate Rosemary, covered in pale blue flowers


Rosemarinus officianalis, upright Rosemary, tiny white flowers


Russelia equisetiformis, Firecracker plant in bloom


Salvia coccinea, red Hummingbird sage - I'd already ripped out the plants in the triangle. A few are still flowering in hummingbird garden

Salvia coccinea, white Hummingbird sage a few flowers on patio


Salvia coccinea ‘Coral Nymph’, coral pink Hummingbird sage - flowers in Secret Garden and Pink Entrance Garden


Salvia elegans/Pineapple sage – many flowers


Salvia farinacea, Mealy Blue sage, a few wands of flowers


Salvia greggii, many plants, many colors, at various stages in bloom cycle


Salvia guaranitica, Majestic blue sage, winding down but still has flowers


Salvia guaranitica 'Black and Blue' Ditto


Salvia leucantha, Mexican Bush Sage full bloom


Salvia leucantha 'Santa Barbara' hybrid Mexican Bush Sage - puny plant, puny bloom. Not in good spot

Salvia microphylla 'Hot Lips' - recently moved out of container and cut back - a few buds


Salvia X 'Nuevo Leon' (several borders and containers), scattered small violet flowers


Schlumbergera truncata, Thanksgiving cactus - 2 of 4 have buds


Scutellaria suffrutescens Pink Skullcap - a sprinkling of flowers


Scutellaria indica 'Dorota Blue'/Dorota Skullcap, still has dark blue flowers


Sedum-type plant, no ID, pink fluffy flowers



Setcresea pallida/Purple Heart, syn Tradescantia pallida, a few lavender flowers


Tagetes lucida/Mexican Mint Marigold, Texas Tarragon, all gold and in bloom


Tradescantia geniculata, groundcover in full bloom. Made 3 tries at photographing flowers. FAIL.


Tricyrtis, Toad Lily, unknown species, light bloom


Zinnia linearis/ syn Zinnia angustifolia, several plants, abundant white flowers.

GBBD list for October 2009

On the fifteenth of each month May Dreams Carol asks garden bloggers everywhere to post about what is blooming in our gardens. Most of the photos are in my Garden Bloggers Bloom Day post at the Transplantable Rose - here's where I keep complete lists with my best guesses at their proper botanical names.Abelia chinensis/Abelia, four white shrubs full bloom

Abelia chinensis two unnamed pink shrubs in light bloom

Abelia chinensis 'Edward Goucher' smaller pink shrub in light bloom

Ageratina havanense, Fragrant white mistflower, two plants just budding

Aster x frikartii 'Wonder of Staffa'. One plant in full bloom, one okay, one nearly died

Barleria cristata/Philippine violet, three blooming plants.

Brugmansia - unnamed variety Yellow Angels trumpet, many not-quite-open flowers

Buddleja lindleyana/ Weeping butterfly bush, a few flowers left on branch tips.

Bulbine frutescens 'Yellow'/ yellow bulbine - took summer off now loaded with flowers and buds

Calibrachoa hybrid, tender perennials, one surviving plant of 6, dark violet flowers in hanging basket

Clematis unknown hybrid, began rebloom a couple of weeks ago - still opening flowers

Clematis hybrid, probably 'Miss Bateman' 0ne flower

Clerodendrum ugandense – Blue butterfly flower.
(Royal Horticultural Society says it's Clerodendrum myricoides 'Ugandense', nicknamed Blue Cat's Whiskers), not as robust as last year, but still quite a few flower heads

Clitoria ternatea- the annual Blue Butterfly Pea vine, still blooming but smaller than usual and foliage ratty. Its usual companion the Moonvine gave up already

Conoclinium greggii, Gregg’s Mistflower - closely related to C. coelestinium, the mistflower I grew in Illinois, but leaves are quite different. Lavish bloom following near-death in summer

Cuphea ignea, orange Cigar flower, many little orange flowers

Cuphea llavea – small pink & lavender form (two plants) both blooming but smaller than in other years

Cuphea llavea – two red & purple ‘Batfaced’ alive and flowering

Delosperma cooperi ? Dark pink flowered hardy ice plant, died back, now regrowing and flowering

Dianthus – various colors of ‘Telstar’ hybrids in assorted containers - scattered flowers

Dendranthema x grandiflora. -cushion mums - a few flowers on scraggly plants

Duranta erecta, Skyflower -grown amazingly well this year and in flower

Evolvulus glomeratus, Blue Daze, a few plants blooming

Gaura lindheimerii ‘The Bride’ (two plants)- cut back - not reblooming yet

Gaura lindheimerii, unknown tall rose-pink variety (‘Pink Cloud’?), cut back, some flowers

Hedychium coronarium/ Hawaiian White Ginger - a couple of buds left on one stalk

Helianthus, unknown, gigantic, annual sunflower - top 2-feet now dead - a few flowers still opening

Impatiens walleriana, bedding impatiens, lavender flowers in a patio container and white ones in a pot in the Secret Garden

Ipomoea quamoclit, Cypress vine - self-seeded with a few flowers

Jatropha integerrima 'Compacta' - never many open at a time but always a few

Lagerstroemia - crepe myrtles. The small 'Catawba' in a patio pot looks awful but the 2 white 'Acoma' hybrids and unnamed hot pink varieties have a few flowers here and there.

Lantana, unknown varieties both upright and trailing – lavender, white and gold, most have at least some flowers

Lavandula intermedia 'Provence', only surviving lavender has some fragrant wands in bloom

Leucophyllum frutescens/ Texas sage AKA Barometer bush AKA Cenizo – one shrub, a few flowers.

Lobularia maritime, Sweet alyssum couple of containers lived to rebloom

Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii/Turkscap or Red Wax Mallow two plants have quite a few flowers

Melampodium leucanthum / Blackfoot daisy, native plant - blooming parkway, front bed, back triangles

Ocimum basilicum, Basil, in trough

Osmanthus fragrans/Sweet olive three shrubs making tiny, fragrant flowers

Oxalis crassipes 'Alba' (dotted around and in containers), several blooming

Pavonia lasiopetala, pink rock rose near mailbox, covered in flowers

Pelargonium hybrids– assorted bedding geraniums in containers- isolated flowers here and there

Pelargonium hybrid, coral, in kitchen window - a few flowers... and ants!

Perovskia atriplicifolia, Russian Sage, plants in long sunny fence bed in bloom, but shade of pecans means no flowers on the plants in the center back fence bed

Platycodon 'Fugi White', a few flowers left

Platycodon grandiflorus / Blue Balloon Flower - front plant has flowers

Plumbago auriculata (two shrubs), still making blue flowers

Plumbago auriculata var. alba, slow to establish but now has some flowers

Poliomintha longiflora, Mexican oregano (3 plants), all blooming

Portulaca - Moss roses and flowering purslane. The plants in the ground died; those in containers have flowers

Punica granatum 'Nana'/ dwarf pomegranate - a few flowers

Rosa 'Belinda's Dream', Pink shrub rose- handful of buds

Rosa ‘Champagne’ mini rose, delicate pink , two plants

Rosa floribunda ‘Julia Child’, butter-yellow rose,

Rosa 'Mutabilis' (two good-sized plants) more buds than flowers right now

Rosa /unnamed apricot mini-rose, one open flower and a couple of buds.

Rosmarinus officinalis 'Prostratus' - Prostrate Rosemary, some pale blue flowers

Rosmarinus officinalis, upright Rosemary - many white flowers

Salvia coccinea, annual reseeder, red Hummingbird sage

Salvia coccinea, annual reseeder, white Hummingbird sage

Salvia coccinea ‘Coral Nymph’, annual reseeder, coral pink Hummingbird sage

Salvia elegans/Pineapple sage – two plants lost many stems; what survived is in bloom

Salvia farinacea, Mealy Blue sage, young plant did okay- long bloom period

Salvia greggii (white, red, cherry) most have some flowers, some have many flowers

Salvia guaranitica, Majestic blue sage - stems ragged but reblooming

Salvia guaranitica 'Black and Blue' - planted 3 places, all reblooming but best in front bed

Salvia leucantha, Mexican Bush Sage -very happy!

Salvia leucantha 'Santa Barbara' hybrid Mexican Bush Sage - does not like its location but made some flowers

Salvia madrensis - shorter but fuller than last year, now fully budded, starting to open yellow flowers

Salvia microphylla 'Hot Lips' a few scattered flowers but spindly

Salvia X 'Nuevo Leon' (several borders and containers), some plants died back, but the survivors have many small violet flowers

Scutellaria indica 'Dorota Blue' flowers on ends of branches, med. size plant in patio container

Scutellaria suffrutescens, pink skullcap, two plants - some dieback, now regrowing a reblooming

Sedum, or maybe Hylotelephium? Passalong succulents/stonecrops blooming pink



Tagetes lucida, Mexican Mint Marigold, Texas Tarragon, one plant all gold and in bloom. The other is alive but had a rough summer

Tradescantia geniculata, groundcover , in bloom

Zinnia linearis/ syn Zinnia angustifolia, several plants, abundant, long-lasting white flowers.

Garibaldi Biscuits

Both Philo & I remember liking a kind of shiny-surfaced, flat cookie with a raisin filling when we were growing up in the Chicago area, but we hadn't seen them in years. The flat bars had perforations to break a larger cookie into smaller rectangles.

Recently I read a tweet from James Alexander Sinclair , of Blackpitts Garden, revealing that his Biscuit Blog now had its own twitter account. These aren't American-style baking powder biscuits split to enclose sausage or drenched in gravy... they're what we might classify as cookies.

When Garibaldi biscuits were spoken of on the blog the historical name didn't seem to connect with our cookies of memory, but the photos looked right. Philo's family and mine lived less than a mile apart and our parents shopped at some of the same stores. It's a long time ago, but we think the cookies/biscuits were not bought not in packages but in bulk at the bakery department of a long-gone Chicago chain of department stores called Goldblatts.

Online searches turned up Crawford's Garibaldi Biscuits. While still deciding how nuts it would be to order them and pay the shipping, we stopped for other products at Spec's liquor store here in Austin and found the Garibaldi Biscuits on an aisle of imported treats. They look the same and taste pretty close to what we remember, although the ingredients say "currants" and we're pretty sure the version from the 1960's were filled with raisins. The wrapped and packaged biscuits don't seem to be as chewy as those sold loose and exposed to air from glass bins.
Patient GardenerJane Perrone wrote a post for the biscuit blog musing on the origin of the name Garibaldi Biscuit. A web search turned up a children's book called Garibaldi's Biscuits, written and illustrated by Gonzo artist Ralph Steadman, collaborator with Hunter S. Thompson on Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and apparently... lover of biscuitry.

ED Oct 12 AM Was giving credit to the wrong person for that original Garibaldi post - sorry Helen!

GBBD List for July 2009

The main post for May Dream Carol's Garden Blogger Bloom Day is at The Transplantable Rose


Here's a list of whatever plants have dared to make any flowers this July, with what I hope are the correct botanical names:


Abelia chinensis/Abelia, four white shrubs few flowers

Abelia chinensis two unnamed pink shrubs a few flowers

Abelia chinensis 'Edward Goucher' smaller pink shrub a few flowers

Achillea 'Moonshine', a couple of flowers

Amarcrinum ‘Fred Howard’ three bulbs, three areas of garden, each with one stalk. In the photo above is a plant that gets morning sun filtered by overhanging Brugmansia and a Meyer's Lemon tree. Three stalks sounds pretty good until I remember there are at least 20 bulbs of amarcrinum and crinum lilies scattered around, most of which have never bloomed.

Anisacanthus quadrifidus var. wrightii, Flame acanthus from Pam/Digging, stressed and flower like paper even with water

Asclepias curassavica, tropical milkweed, one plant looks fabulous, other does not

Calibrachoa hybrids, annual, some from Natural Gardener, some from Shoal Creek Nursery. All alive, but barely. Purple one in basket next to patio door gets most shade and looks best

Ceratostigma plumbaginoides/Hardy Plumbago, AKA Blue Leadwort, couple of blue flowers in shade under live oak

Crocosmia, unidentified may be ‘Lucifer’ - some stalks okay, some fried, some done

Cucurbita pepo, summer squash - pattypans have a few flowers

Cuphea ignea, orange Cigar flower, just a few

Cuphea llavea – small pink & lavender form (two plants) one not too bad, other 1/4 size of last year, few flowers

Cuphea llavea –red & purple ‘Batfaced’- alive and has some flowers

Cuphea llavea 'Georgia Scarlet', alive and has some flowers

Dianthus – several colors of ‘Telstar’ hybrids in assorted containers - here and there a raggedy bloom

Duranta erecta, Skyflower - not many, but there are some blooms.

Echinacea purpurea - lots of plants, some okay, some not. There are a few flowers

Echinacea purpurea alba? – a white cultivar - one plant didn't bloom at all, other has grand total of 3

Evolvulus glomeratus, Blue Daze, several plants, one in bloom

Gaura lindheimerii ‘The Bride’ (two plants)- even the gaura looks bummed

Gaura lindheimerii, unknown tall rose-pink variety (‘Pink Cloud’?), a few straggling flowers

Helianthus, unknown variety of tall annual sunflower with blooms, buds and some heads going to seed

Impatiens walleriana, bedding impatiens. Two plants in big container secret garden alive and have flowers

Indigofera amblyantha? /pink false indigo - one flower

Jatropha integerrima 'Compacta' - awkward plant with bare stems but has popped a few red flowers

Jasminium sambac, Sambac jasmine alive and has 2 buds

Justicia spicigera/ Mexican Honeysuckle a few flowers

Lagerstroemia indica, hot pink crepe myrtles (5 trees), all have some flowers but clusters small and on fewer branches

Lagerstroemia x hybrida ‘Acoma’ white crepe myrtles (2 trees); they keep blooming if I deadhead and water...so I deadhead and water

Lagerstroemia indica 'Catawba', in container, reddish-purple flowers but only on one side of tree.

Lantana, a yellow upright variety has a few flowers in larger triangle bed; trailing lavender and trailing white had some flowers last week, are looking tired today.

Lavendula heterophylla, Sweet Lavender - not new stalks but have a few new florets here and there

Leucophyllum frutescens/ Texas sage AKA Barometer bush AKA Cenizo – one shrub, quite a few flowers.

Lycopersicon lycopersicum, ‘Juliet’ and 'Early Girl' tomatoes have blossoms;

Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii/Turkscap or Red Wax Mallow (two plants), a couple on back plant and a few more on one in front.

Melampodium leucanthum / Blackfoot daisy Yes! They aren't doing much in front but bloom in the smaller triangle bed in back

Pelargonium hybrid, 'Fantasia Salmon', zonal geranium in breakfast room window has flowers

Platycodon 'Fuji White', is making a lot of flowers!

Platycodon grandiflorus (several plants), Blue Balloon Flower - should deadhead and they might keep blooming

Platycodon 'Miss Tilly' (3 plants), mostly faded flowers - should deadhead

Plumbago auriculata (two shrubs), going nuts and covered in pale blue flowers – must prune back again

Plumeria unknown species/Frangipani, creamy yellow - one tall original plant with two flower clusters and a small rooted branch with one cluster

Plumeria unknown species/Frangipani, rose red - looks like one branch has buds

Poliomintha longiflora, Mexican oregano (3 plants), flowers and leaves looking very raggedy - a very unusual thing for this tough plant

Portulaca - reseeded Moss Roses and Flowering Purslanes don't care if it's 106°F - still blooming

Rosa 'Belinda's Dream', Pink shrub rose- a couple of blasted flowers and a couple of buds

Rosa floribunda ‘Julia Child’, butter-yellow rose - tried to open a couple of flowers - not very successful,

Rosa 'Mutabilis' (two good-sized plants) still pops an occasional flower

Russelia equisetiformis, Firecracker plant - in light bloom

Salvia coccinea, red Hummingbird sage - many plants and a few flowers

Salvia coccinea, white Hummingbird sage, just a couple

Salvia elegans/Pineapple sage – trying to open flowers but whole stems keep dying off

Salvia farinacea, Mealy Blue sage, two rather new plants, each has a handful of wandlike flowers

Salvia guaranitica 'Black and Blue' - not many but they exist

Salvia microphylla 'Hot Lips' (2 plants), couple of flowers

Scabiosa columbaria ‘Butterfly Blue’/Dwarf Blue Cushionflower, a few buds

Schlumbergera truncata, Thanksgiving cactus

Scutellaria suffrutescens, pink skullcap, two plants - some pink flowers

Vitex agnus-castus / Chaste tree - deadheaded a while ago - has a few buds

Zinnia linearis/ syn Zinnia angustifolia, several plants, abundant white flowers.

GBBD List for June, 2009

My Garden Blogger Bloom Day story and photos can be found at The Transplantable Rose.

Over here you get the list of botanical names and whatever photos Blogger insisted on turning sideways.

1. Abelia chinensis/Abelia, four white shrubs
2. Abelia chinensis two unnamed pink shrubs
3. Abelia chinensis 'Edward Goucher' smaller pink shrub
4. Achillea 'Moonshine', many flowers
5. Anisacanthus quadrifidus var. wrightii, Flame acanthus from Pam/Digging doing really well;
6. Antirrhinum majus, Yellow snapdragons beginning to shrivel
7. Asclepias curassavica, tropical milkweed, two plants with lots of flowers
8. Barleria cristata/Philippine violet. A couple of stray flowers
9. Brugmansia - unnamed variety Yellow Angels trumpet -one flower + buds
10. Calibrachoa hybrids, annual, some from Natural Gardener, some from Shoal Creek Nursery, stressed but still blooming in heat
11. Canna X generalis 'City of Portland'- buds
12. Canna X generalis, unnamed tall, bright green-leaved - has a few red-orange flowers
13. Canna americanallis 'Bengal Tiger' syn 'Praetoria' - big bloom in front garden
14. Capsicum annuum – garden peppers, some flowers
15. Ceratostigma plumbaginoides/Hardy Plumbago, AKA Blue Leadwort, just opened a few dark blue flowers.
16. Consolida ajacis, Larkspur – couple of blooming plants
17. Coriandrum sativum., cilantro - still blooming
18. Crocosmia, unidentified may be ‘Lucifer’, in bud
19. Cuphea ignea, orange Cigar flower, loaded with little orange flowers
20. Cuphea llavea – small pink & lavender form (two plants) one in full bloom
21. Cuphea llavea –red & purple ‘Batfaced’ in bloom
22. Cuphea llavea 'Georgia Scarlet', has red-orange & purple flowers;
23. Delosperma cooperi ? Dark pink flowered hardy ice plant, spreading over gravel walk in Pink Garden - couple of flowers
24. Dendranthema x grandiflora? a few bronze-orange flowers left
25. Dianthus – several colors of ‘Telstar’ hybrids in assorted containers
26. Dietes bicolor, African Iris, butterfly iris in bloom
27. Echinacea purpurea just starting
28. Echinacea purpurea alba? – a white cultivar, one in bud
29. Echinacea purpurea ‘Purple Stars now in flower
30. Evolvulus glomeratus, Blue Daze, several plants in bloom
31. Gaura lindheimerii ‘The Bride’ (two plants), nonstop
32. Gaura lindheimerii, unknown tall rose-pink variety (‘Pink Cloud’?), many flowers
33. Helianthus, unknown, gigantic, annual sunflower with many buds and one open flower going to seed
34. Hemerocallis citrina, still a few buds to open
35. Hemerocallis cultivar 'Vi's Apricot' - a few open
36. Hemerocallis cultivar 'Happy Returns' in rebloom
37. Hesperaloe parviflora, Red yucca - amazingly long bloom time
38. Hibiscus moscheutos ‘Blue River II’, new huge white flowers each day
39. Hibiscus syriacus/Rose of Sharon, white and purple flowers
40. Impatiens walleriana, bedding impatiens. A few plants blooming in Secret Garden container
41. Indigofera amblyantha? /pink false indigo - couple of wands
42. Jatropha integerrima 'Compacta' couple of flowers
43. Jasminium sambac, Sambac jasmine, a few buds, one flower
44. Lagerstroemia indica, hot pink crepe myrtles just beginning
45. Lagerstroemia x hybrida ‘Acoma’ white crepe myrtles (2 trees); full bloom
46. Lantana, unknown varieties both upright and trailing – lavender, white and gold, in bloom
47. Lavendula heterophylla, Sweet Lavender still covered in flowers!
48. Lavandula intermedia 'Provence', fragrant, two plants, couple of flowers
49. Lilium hybrid 'Aruba', Pink oriental lilies in bud
50. Liriope muscari/Lilyturf, in long lines all over the place, a few in bloom
51. Lonicera sempervirens, coral honeysuckle in bloom
52. Lycopersicon lycopersicum, flowering but probably too hot to set fruit
53. Malva sylvestris 'Zebrina' a few stray blooms
54. Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii/Turkscap or Red Wax Mallow (two plants)have flowers
55. Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii, white form of Turkscap/Wax Mallow (two plants in secret garden),couple of buds
56. Melampodium leucanthum / Blackfoot daisy - 6 plants live! they have flowers!
57. Myrtus communis nana/ dwarf Greek myrtle - few stray flowers
58. Nerium oleander/ double yellow oleander 'Mathilde Ferrier' - still buds and flowers
59. Nicotiana 'Perfume Deep Purple', annuals from Shoal Creek a few flowers
60. Ocimum basilicum, Basil - keep trying to bloom and I keep cutting off flowers
61. Pavonia lasiopetala, pink rock rose, makes flowers but leaves are always mildewed
62. Pelargonium hybrids– assorted bedding geraniums, red, white & coral - all in bloom
63. Pelargonium hybrid, 'Fantasia Salmon', zonal geranium in breakfast room window, in bud
64. Perovskia atriplicifolia, Russian Sage (two beds), floppy but making flowers
65. Platycodon 'Fugi White', has flowers
66. Platycodon grandiflorus (several plants), Blue Balloon Flower - great bloom
67. Platycodon 'Miss Tilly' (3 plants), doing fine
68. Plumbago auriculata (two shrubs), many pale blue flowers
69. Plumeria unknown species/Frangipani, creamy yellow, in bud
70. Poliomintha longiflora, Mexican oregano (3 plants), all blooming
71. Portulaca - reseeded Moss Roses and Flowering Purslanes, all blooming
72. Punica granatum 'Nana'/ dwarf pomegranate, couple of flowers
73. Rosa ‘Champagne’ mini rose, delicate pink , two plants couple of roses
74. Rosa floribunda ‘Julia Child’, butter-yellow rose - fighting blackspot, trying to make buds
75. Rosa 'Mutabilis' (two good-sized plants) nonstop bloom
76. Russelia equisetiformis, Firecracker plant - blooming nicely
77. Salvia coccinea, red Hummingbird sage flowering well
78. Salvia coccinea, white Hummingbird sage, flowering well
79. Salvia coccinea ‘Coral Nymph’, coral pink Hummingbird sage, a few flowers
80. Salvia elegans/Pineapple sage – a few flowers
81. Salvia farinacea, Mealy Blue sage, wandlike flowers, in bloom
82. Salvia greggii, many plants in creamy white, deep rose, true red, cherry red, most have flowers
83. Salvia guaranitica, Majestic blue sage, in bloom
84. Salvia guaranitica 'Black and Blue', in bloom
85. Salvia microphylla 'Hot Lips' (2 plants), nonstop flowers
86. Salvia X 'Nuevo Leon' (several borders and containers), many small violet flowers
87. Scabiosa columbaria ‘Butterfly Blue’/Dwarf Blue Cushionflower, a few flowers
88. Scutellaria suffrutescens, pink skullcap, two plants dependable pink bloomer
89. Sedum, little varieties with white flowers
90. Tradescantia geniculata, groundcover , in bloom
91. Verbena bonariensis – full bloom all over the place
92. Vitex agnus-castus / Chaste tree - started flowering last week
93. Zantedeschia unknown species/Calla lilies, spotted white, three flowers
94. Zephyranthes 'Labuffarosea', Pink rainlily, one flower
95. Zinnia linearis/ syn Zinnia angustifolia, several plants, reseeded and in bloom

May Dreams Carol will have the roundup and links to the other blogs participating in GBBD.

Chicago Botanical Garden in 1988

Like many of you I've been eagerly enjoying the tweets and posts and photos from the bloggers who are meeting in Chicago this weekend.

Mr McGregor's Daughter has posted a photo of the wonderful Carolus Linnaeus statue as it looked for the Chicago Spring Fling participants yesterday. The statue seems to be unchanged but apparently a vegetative barrier keeps the public away from the sculpture. On the chance that someone might be interested, I hunted down an old photo.

Carolus Linnaeus Statue, Chicago Botanical Gardens, 1988

The set-up was a little different 21 years ago in 1988 when this picture was taken. Everyone had their photo taken with Linnaeus, sort of like every kid in Chicago having a picture taken sitting on one of the stone lions at Brookfield Zoo. The protection seems like a sensible decision. The Linnaeus statue is composed of many individual representations of plants and animals, very unlike the smooth lions.

Here in Austin's Zilker Park several large gates are decorated with representations of the plants and creatures found in Central Texas.

Thanks for the photos and notes, Chicago Flingers!

A Pacific Giant Delphinium in Austin

A few people wondered how I grew this delphinium which was budded for GBBD on May 15th and is now opening blooms. They're not generally recommended for Austin so growing it wasn't part of a plan...it just sort of happened:


April 2006, dig out St Augustine grass to make a triangle-shaped bed. Buy an obelisk and add it to the bed. Grow things in this bed for 3 years, continuously adding compost & decomposed granite. Water, weed and use Hasta-gro, Liquid seaweed and John's recipe.


In winter 2009 plant sweet peas to grow on obelisk. By March 30, realize drought followed by hail equals no sweetpeas. Stop by Shoal Creek Nursery on way home from somewhere else and impulse-buy a vigorous plant of Mixed Pacific Giant Delphiniums for less than $2. Add more compost, plant, water in with seaweed. Water a couple of times a week for 6 weeks and rejoice when we get a short spell of cooler weather just as bud stalks emerge.


Since the flowers are semi-double white, the variety might be 'Galahad'. I will think of this genuine Knight of a Delphinium as an annual, a consolation prize for the failure of the usually dependable larkspurs/annual delphiniums. (EDIT: Added this second photo May 21 - weather heading back to 90's so it may not last longer than a cut flower - but cost no more than cut Delphiniums and I had the pleasure of watching it grow and unfold)

GBBD List for May 15, 2009

The Addendum is where the list of botanical names is kept - photos appear on the main Garden Blogger Bloom Day post for May 15th at the Transplantable Rose. All of these plants have made flowers - a few like the daylilies and the passion vine sometimes have only buds one day and flowers the next. These 'Prairie Blue Eyes' daylilies had flowers open on May 14th and 16th with buds on the 15th.As you can see, the image is rotated, something that happens every GBBD. When uploaded to Twitter it worked perfectly. I don't know why Blogger wants the perovskia to grow upside down. I also don't know why it disappeared the number on the list. There are 101 items.

1. Abelia chinensis/Abelia, four white shrubs in bloom
2. Abelia chinensis two unnamed pink shrubs in bloom
   
3. Abelia chinensis 'Edward Goucher' smaller pink shrub
4. Achillea 'Moonshine' many flat yellow heads
5. Ajuga, unknown species, purple-leaved bugle weed
6. Antirrhinum majus, Yellow snapdragons living and producing flowers since Christmas 2007
7. Asclepias curassavica, tropical milkweed, just a couple of buds open
8. Bryophyllum daigremontianum, Mother of Thousand, just a few remaining flowers
9. Bulbine frutescens 'Yellow'/ yellow bulbine will keep blooming with deadheading
   
10. Calibrachoa hybrids, annual, some from Natural Gardener, some from Shoal Creek Nursery in hanging baskets and troughs. One basket hangs outside the breakfast room window and the hummingbirds come to it
    
11. Canna X generalis 'City of Portland' one plant in container near shed
    
12. Canna X generalis, unnamed tall, bright green-leaved with red-orange flowers
    
13. Capsicum annuum – garden peppers, had a few peppers, still a few flowers
14. Castilleja indivisa, Texas paintbrush, grown as annual, one plant fading, one still blooming
    
15. Citrus x meyeri, Meyer's Improved Lemon, a few buds on the one in the pot
    
16. Citrus aurantifolia? Mexican lime, in container
17. Clematis unknown hybrid, one reddish-purple flower
18. Conoclinium greggii, Gregg’s Mistflower - closely related to C. coelestinium, the mistflower I grew in Illinois, but leaves are quite different. Lavender blue flowers in front bed.
    
19. Consolida ajacis, Larkspur – one plant with a few flowers and a couple of surviving plants with buds
    
20. Coriandrum sativum., cilantro, all gone to flower
    
21. Cuphea ignea, orange Cigar flower, many little orange flowers
22. Cuphea llavea – small pink & lavender form. Plant near back door blooming but the one in triangle garden not happy
23. Cuphea llavea –red & purple ‘Batfaced’, a few flowers
    
24. Cuphea llavea 'Georgia Scarlet', just budding
    
25. Delosperma cooperi ? Dark pink flowered hardy ice plant, spreading over gravel walk in Pink Garden;
26. Dendranthema x grandiflora?. - ordinary cushion mums in several places, blooming pink and off-white
27. Dianthus – red, white and pink shades of ‘Telstar’ hybrids in assorted containers
28. Dietes bicolor, African Iris, butterfly iris, a few every day. Best bloom it ever had.
    
29. Evolvulus glomeratus 'Blue Daze', in Secret garden and near gate, but plants in containers still leafing out
    
30. Feijowa sellowiana / Pineapple guava- the shrub in secret garden still has flowers and buds but one on patio seems done for year
    
31. Gaura lindheimerii ‘The Bride’, two large plants plus seedlings
    
32. Gaura lindheimerii, unknown tall rose-pink variety (‘Pink Cloud’?), many flowers
33. Hemerocallis cultivar 'Pinochio', dwarf, burgundy, brought from Illinois, one plant near gate another in Pink Entrance Garden
    
34. Hemerocallis cultivar 'Vi's Apricot', brought from Illinois. Now divided into 6 small plants.
    
35. Hemerocallis cultivar 'Prairie Blue Eyes', brought from Illinois, has 3 bloom stalks
    
36. Hemerocallis cultivar 'Happy Returns', almost through with bloom cycle. Will deadhead and may rebloom in 6 weeks
    
37. Hesperaloe parviflora, Red yucca, tubular, slow opening flowers all along one long stalk
38. Hibiscus syriacus/Rose of Sharon a few purple and a couple of white flowers
    
39. Hippeastrum hybrid Peach & White, #5 of seven kinds in Bulb Garden
    
40. Impatiens walleriana, bedding impatiens, white, lived over winter in Secret Garden
41. Jatropha integerrima 'Compacta', couple of buds at top
    
42. Justicia spicigera/ Mexican Honeysuckle, a few open, orange flowes
    
43. Lantana, unknown varieties both upright and trailing – pink & yellow, white and gold and lavender
    
44. Lavendula heterophylla, Sweet Lavender, lots of stalks
45. Lavendula stoechas, Spanish lavender, just a few left
    
46. Leucophyllum frutescens/ Texas sage AKA Barometer bush AKA Cenizo – one shrub, a few flowers - supposed to be a sign of rain and an inch fell today.
    
47. Lilium unknown Easter Lily type - couple of trumpets on two plants in Bulb garden
48. Lobularia maritime, Sweet alyssum, alive, but fading in heat
    
49. Lonicera sempervirens, coral honeysuckle (just a few flowers)
50. Lycopersicon lycopersicum, tomatoes
    
51. Magnolia grandiflora 'Little Gem' , one flower a day for past week
    
52. Malva sylvestris 'Zebrina' a couple of flowers on surviving plants
    
53. Mazus reptans, tiny blue flower on ground cover
54. Melampodium leucanthum / Blackfoot daisy- think there are 5 plants, each with a few flowers
55. Myrtus communis nana/ dwarf Greek myrtle- just a few flowers, three shrubs in ground
    
56. Nerium oleander/ double yellow oleander 'Mathilde Ferrier', double yellow, fragrant, near steps to veranda
    
57. Nicotiana 'Perfume Deep Purple', annuals from Shoal Creek
58. Ocimum basilicum, Basil
59. Oxalis crassipes 'Alba' (dotted around and in containers), several blooming
60. Oxalis regnellii 'Atropurpurea' (dotted around and in containers), couple of flower
    
61. Passiflora X possibly 'Lavender Lady' Passionvine - see above, buds and blooms
62. Pavonia lasiopetala, pink rock rose, makes flowers but leaves are always mildewed, even with sun and air
    
63. Pelargonium hybrids– assorted bedding geraniums, red, white & coral, in containers
    
64. Pelargonium hybrid, coral, blooming in breakfast room window
65. Penstemen tenuis, Gulf coast penstemon- planted a couple of months ago- buds and blooms
    
66. Perovskia atriplicifolia, Russian Sage (two beds), floppy but making flowers
67. Phlox sublata/Creeping phlox in lavender blue, very long bloom season
    
68. Pisum sativum Sugar Snap, sugar snap garden peas - flowers and peas - ate a few raw!
    
69. Plumbago auriculata (two shrubs), going nuts and covered in pale blue flowers – recently pruned so the back door could shut
70. Plumbago auriculata var. alba (one plant), one flower head
    
71. Poliomintha longiflora, Mexican oregano (3 plants), all blooming
72. Portulaca - reseeded Moss Roses and Flowering Purslane, in newer triangle garden
73. Punica granatum, pomegranate - might be 'Wonderful', a few flowers, no fruit seems to have set
    
74. Punica granatum 'Nana'/ dwarf pomegranate, two small plants, ornamental
    
75. Rosa 'Belinda's Dream', Pink shrub rose-one battered flower, several blooms
    
76. Rosa ‘Champagne’ mini rose, delicate pink , two plants, more buds than leaves
    
77. Rosa floribunda ‘Julia Child’, butter-yellow rose, still has buds
    
78. Rosa 'Mutabilis' (two good-sized plants) nonstop bloom
79. Salvia coccinea, red Hummingbird sage, reseeded in triangle
    
80. Salvia coccinea, white Hummingbird sage, reseeds near patio
    
81. Salvia coccinea ‘Coral Nymph’, coral pink Hummingbird sage, in Secret Garden and in Entrance garden
    
82. Salvia farinacea, Mealy Blue sage, wandlike flowers, replacements for winter killed plants, still in pots from nursery
83. Salvia greggii, in creamy white, deep rose, true red, cherry red
84. Salvia guaranitica, Majestic blue sage
85. Salvia guaranitica 'Black and Blue'
86. Salvia leucantha, Mexican Bush Sage, a few flowers - big season is fall
    
87. Salvia microphylla 'Hot Lips' (2 plants), nonstop flowers, but they're all white - no lips!
    
88. Salvia roemeriana /Cedar sage, red flowers in shade, still blooming
89. Salvia X 'Nuevo Leon' (several borders and containers), many small violet flowers
90. Scabiosa columbaria ‘Butterfly Blue’/Dwarf Blue Cushionflower, steady buds and flowers, two plants
91. Scutellaria ovata, Heartleaf skullcap, from Pam/Digging. Thought it was lost but reappeared this spring and made a couple of flowers
92. Scutellaria suffrutescens, pink skullcap, two plants dependable pink bloomer
93. Scutellaria wrightii, blue skullcap, three small plants, sparse flowers.
    
94. Sedum, little varieties with white flowers
    
95. Trachaelospermum jasminoides, Star Jasmine, Confederate Jasmine, evergreen vine with white, fragrant flowers. Three vines, on veranda, side fence and shed, almost at end of season.
96. Tradescantia geniculata, groundcover , in bloom, tiny white flowers
    
97. Tradescantia pallida, syn Setcresea pallida/ Purple Heart, many lavender flowers;
98. Verbena bonariensis – doing well this spring, has seeded around and is blooming in 4 different borders
    
99. Viola spp– just a few remaining Pansies and violas still alive
100. Vitex agnus-castus / Chaste tree, just forming buds
101. Zinnia linearis/ syn Zinnia angustifolia, reseeded from last year - just a couple of buds.
     

Making A Lavender Stick

Making a Lavender Stick was written by Annie in Austin for the Annie's Addendum Blog

Welcome if you came here from the May 6th "Thought Pops" post at the Transplantable Rose!


Lavender Sticks are a sweet little thing to make. I read about them years ago in a chapter of Elizabeth Lawrence's book Through The Garden Gate. If you can find the original version her narrative is enchanting. Here's an approximation of what Miss Lawrence said:

The sticks must be made immediately after cutting, or the stalks may break rather than bend. Cut stalks when the first flower opens - they need to be a least 8 inches long but can be as long as 18 inches. (What I grow is Sweet Lavender, which has longer flower heads than some of the other fragrant varieties. The shape and length of the stick will be slightly different with each variety.)

You'll need an even multiple of an odd number. That could be 14 which is 2 X 7, or 18 which is twice 9, 22 which is 2 X 11, etc. If you have enough you could cut 30 which is twice 15.

You also need a few feet of 1/4 inch baby ribbon - or whatever narrow ribbon you can get. Lay the stalks together with the tips of some spikes sticking up beyond the others, making a flowering head about 6 inches in length. Tie one end of the baby ribbon tightly around the stems just below the lowest flower. Then you will make the ribbon and stalks into a basket shape by gently bending the stems back over the flower heads, first weaving the ribbon under two stalks, then weaving it over the next two, and so on....going around and around until you've made the stems into a basket enclosing the flower heads within the ribbon/stick weave. Take your time, slide the ribbon gently and keep it all flat. The size of ribbon, length of stem and closeness of weave will combine to make each stick look a little different. The number of stalks you use will also make them look quite different - 14 is a very slender stick. When you've woven past the flower heads you can tie off the end and neatly clip the stem ends. I like to tie the end of the ribbon into a loop that can be used to hang the Lavender Stick at nose-level.

Don't worry if the technique sounds confusing - it becomes apparent once you have the ribbon and stalks in your hands. The resulting little baskets of lavender used to be hung on clothes hangers or layered with sheets in linen closets. As the lavender dries the weave keeps the flowers inside.

I like the Lavender Sticks for themselves, but am just as pleased with the connection to Miss Lawrence, the garden writer we all love.


Making a Lavender Stick was written by Annie in Austin for the Annie's Addendum Blog

Cactus & Narcissus

We saw this plant combination last February at the San Antonio Zoo. I remembered it when reading this post and its comments at GardenRant on how tough many bulbs can be and whether they look okay next to succulents. What do you think?