Plants I'm Growing: First Blooms--Scabiosa Farinosa, Salvia Sonomensis (May 8, 2012)

First blooms yesterday, May 8, on two plants in the garden, Scabiosa farinosa (pictured), and Salvia sonomensis. The scabiosa is a mounding plant with unusually thick, leathery leaves for a scabiosa. It does well in our hot summers with comparatively little supplementary water. The salvia is one native to this area--as the name suggests. The scabiosa bloomed on May 4 in 2009, April 20 in 2010, and on May 2 in 2011, calculating years of 351 days, 377 days, and 371 days, averaging to just over 366 days, or close to an actual year.

Plants I'm Growing--First Blooms: Scabiosa Farinosa

First blooms of 2011 yesterday on the low-growing scabiosa Scabiosa farinosa. This has been a very tough, reliable, drought-tolerant plant--much more robust than most scabiosas. It has pretty, glossy leaves and small, neat lilac-colored flower heads. Scabiosa farinosa bloomed on May 4 in 2009 and April 20 in 2010, calculating years from first flower to first flower of 351 days and 362 days.

Plants I'm Growing--First Blooms: Scabiosa Farinosa, Sulfur Buckwheat, Echium Wildpretii, "Altissimo" climbing rose

First blooms today on Scabiosa farinosa, a leather-leaved mounding variety of Scabiosa that does well in our hot summers. Although this plant has a tendency to die out in the center, new growth will sprout from almost anywhere, so holes tend to fill in. It grows easily from cuttings, too. This plant bloomed on May 4 in 2009, so it's comparatively early this year. A year according to this plant was only 350 days.

The first tiny flowers in some of the clusters on our sulfur buckwheat plants (Eriogonum umbellatum) opened today, although the plants still look quite closed up. This plant bloomed on April 17 in 2009. A year according to sulfur buckwheat was therefore 368 days.

First blooms today also on Echium wildprettii--only a few an the long stem are open. It will be a week or so before this plant becomes a brick red torch, attracting bumblebees and hummingbirds.

One bud on the climbing rose "Altissimo" opened today as well. I love this sturdy, deep red, single-petaled climber. Stunning in full bloom.  This flower bloomed on April 6 in 2009, calculating a rather long year this year of 379 days. Despite the range in years calculated by the three coming into bloom today that I have data for, the average of the three comes to 365.6 days--very close to a calendar year.

Plants I'm Growing: Yellow Rose, Other Roses, Scabiosa, Ceanothus "Skylark"

Yellow rose today, but blasted by the rain--unseen perhaps. Other roses the same. We've had more rain today. A bit melancholy, but it's a good thing. Following the two inches we got Friday through Sunday, it looks like we'll get at least another inch or so today. Very welcome indeed.

First blooms today also on the "Skylark" Ceanothus, the pink and purple Linaria purpurea, and on Scabiosa farinosa (pictured). This is an unusual Scabiosa in that it has thick, leathery leaves and it's quite drought tolerant once established. It's extremely easy to propagate from cuttings. It has a tendency to die out in the center, but if you clip away the dead leaves, the bare stems will sprout as soon as they see regular sunlight again. Forms round mounds about two feet across.