GBBD

Happy Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Special thanks to Carol for hosting Bloom Day at May Dreams Gardens. I wasn't sure if I would get a post done this month. It was gray, wet and windy most of the weekend, which didn't lend itself to taking photos.

The penstemon pseudospectabilis looks so healthy this year. It has already started to peak and the blossoms are starting to fade.

Another photo of penstemon on the left. The rose queen salvia in the upper right corner has become one of my favorites. And the primroses in the bottom corner are more plentiful than they've ever been. 

Everything is coming up primroses. The primroses started blooming earlier than they ordinarily do and have ensconced many of the flowers.They surround the penstemon, columbine and ultraviolet salvia.

I feel like a woke up one day and there was an unexpected sea of pink of primroses. A parting photo of the front garden on an overcast day.

Morning Light

I'm more of a night person than a morning person. Some evenings I suffer from fits of insomnia. After falling soundly asleep last Thursday, I woke up Friday morning around 4:00 am. I was wide awake and couldn't return to a restful dream state. I washed a load of clothes. Probably looked at some gardening blogs. Hmm, I can't recall much more.

At 7:00 am, I decided to go see how the flowers were doing. I put on a hoodie and hoped that none of my neighbors would observe me taking photos of the plants in my pajamas.

As I sat outside, peering at the blooms, the sun made its way overhead. Lighting larger and larger swaths of the flowerbed.

The light is so concentrated that the two ultraviolet salvias that I planted last summer were aglow. They replaced two Spanish lavenders that started to take over the small flower bed in my front yard. In less than a year they've grown to their full height. It's a hybrid that was introduced by Lauren Springer Ogden and Scott Ogden. I'm not sure if I love them, but they attract pollinators.

Some people find Mexican evening primroses invasive, but since I put in a drip system a few years ago, they don't seem to have spread so much. I enjoy the cascade of pink that doesn't require much attention.

I went to check out what was happening in the backyard. Some of the firecracker penstemon were translucent.  

I couldn't help taking more photos of the Missouri evening primroses. They seem more delicate in the morning. Alas, I had to get ready to go work.

Wordless Wednesday

Penstemon and Primroses

This post was inspired by Stacy's post called Mezzo Piano at Microcosm. I read the post a while back, but it still resonates with me.

Infrequently, my garden feels like a symphony. With the Oriental poppies raising the conductor's baton to start the bloom season. And the flowers blooming in succession. One plant taking the cue from another. This year the garden feels more like a chorus with a bunch of soloists shining momentarily in the spotlight. Now I have a duet moving to the front of the spotlight, the Rocky Mountain penstemon (penstemon strictus) and the Missouri evening primrose (oenethera macrocarpa). 

The penstemon reseeded itself in the front of the perennial bed in my backyard. To call it a perennial border would be an overstatement. Unfortunately, the wind scattered the penstemon seed directly in front of the Missouri evening primrose (oenothera macrocarpa).  In more temperant years, I would have found the penstemon homes with friends. However, the intermittent freezes and warm weather have made it inconvenient to transplant them. 

All the stages of blooming are intermingled together in the photo below. I love to watch them in the early evening and again the next morning.

 

Both the penstemon and primroses are so vivid in the undiffused sunlight of Santa Fe. The penstemon seem ultraviolet and the primroses fluorescent. I will enjoying seeing the interplay of this duet for a few more weeks.

Wordless Wednesday

Happy Early Mother's Day!

I love all the seasons, but spring is my least favorite in Santa Fe because of winds of up to 70 mph and unpredictable weather. This year Mother Nature has been more temperamental than in springs past. It was 70 degrees today. However on Sunday, it was 26 degrees and tiny snowflakes fell as I grilled veggies for dinner.

Christian Dior Hybrid Tea Rose and Penstemon Pseudospectabilis

I live in Zone 6, but I seem to be able to plant Zone 7 plants on the south side of my house. The Christian Dior rose was doing great until the snow flurries on Sunday. It usually rebounds. The photo above was taken before the snow this week.

Penstemon Pseudospectabilis

The shadows look like happy dancers in the late afternoon light. My penstemon pseudospectabilis (Desert Beardtongue) always provides some Spring cheer. The blooms are smaller than usual because there seems to be a cold snap every time I plan to fertilize. I guess the fish fertilizer will have to wait!

Eschscholzia Californica (California Poppy) and Aquilegia Chrysantha ???? (Columbine )

One of the many blessings of gardening is that other gardeners share their wealth. My friend, Patria gave me one of her columbine volunteers over eight years ago and it performs on cue around Mother's Day every year. The original plant was a gift to Patria from her daughter. Happy early Mother's Day to all the moms I know!

Friday Fave Five (F3)

Penstomania! Part 1


I've been gardening in Santa Fe, New Mexico for the last 10 years, maybe more. Initially, it was more misses than hits. I'm from the South where there can be more rain in a day than there is in a whole year here. No kidding! One day it rained 14 inches in New Orleans! Lawns are so dense it feels like walking on a cushion.


Therefore, I didn't realize the intricacies of gardening in the high desert.  Not sure if it had to do with being a new gardener or if I hadn't learned to adapt to the aridity. When I first moved into my house, I would just dig a hole, add some gravel, plant, refill the hole, and water. No wonder my plants didn't do well. I tried planting a rose garden. That didn't work out at all. I finally stumbled upon products to amend the soil, which changed the gardening landscape for me (literally).


However, in the last few years, I started growing native plants, which have worked out better.  Many of them are xeric and don't require lots of water. Among my favorite native plants are penstemons (also known as beardtongues). My five favorite penstemon are:


Friday Fave Five (F3)

1. Barbatus (Schooley's Coral) 
2. Pseudospectabilis (Desert Beardtongue)
3. Strictus (Rocky Mountain)
4. Palmeri (Palmer's/Pink Wild Snapdragon)
5. Digitalis (Husker Red)

Penstemon Barbatus (Schooley's Coral)

My favorite penstemon is Schooley's coral. It hasn't been long lived in my garden. I replaced three of them last year. Come back in the summer to see their amazing color!

Penstemon Pseudospectabilis (Desert Beardtongue)

I think I just like saying pseudospectabilis and find interest in how the leaves are variegated. They're my first penstemon to bloom.

Penstemon Strictus (Rocky Mountain)

Penstemon strictus (Rocky Mountain) are the easiest to grow and don't require lots of attention. They have reseeded themselves through two layers of landscape cloth and a couple of inches of gravel in the "patio" area of my yard. I always seem to be looking for friends who might be interested in taking a few off my hands. 

Penstemon Palmeri (Palmer's/Pink Wild Snapdragon)

The palmeri are tall and regal. I look forward to seeing them grow wild around Santa Fe. 

Unfortunately, the penstemon digitalis (Husker Red) did not come back this year. I bought three small plants at K-mart one year before I discovered local nurseries and had the resources to frequent them. Dr. Dale Lindgren at the University of Nebraska propagated them and they are named after the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Not sure if I will replant. They are not drought tolerant and require more water. 

New Mexico Plants

Searching for a great plant that will grow in New Mexico? The Office of the State Engineer has a website for plants that grow here, New Mexico Plants. The browse page let's you browse plant categories by the Latin or common name. It has some of my favorite perennials, like penstemon and salvia. There is also a search function for specifying your region of the State, plant color, water requirements, etc. But my favorite choice on this page is animal attractions. Hmm, not sure if aphids, snails, slugs, and borers are attractions. And the best for last is that you can add plants from your search to a shopping list. Happy planting!

Sedum

Helped a friend clean out her garden and loved the shadows against the wall by the trellis.