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Flowers on January 1, 2019 |
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One of the advantages of gardening in the Houston climate is of course the
perseverance of many plants through the mild winters. So far this cold season,
we had one moderate freeze (down to 26F or so) in November 2018, and a
few lighter frosts following that. The freeze did in the most tender plants
(exit basil, plumeria, and portlandia), but left most others either unscathed
or just burnt at the most exposed edges. As a result, we still have lots going
on in the garden as we enter 2019. The rest of this page is a (non-exhaustive)
photo log of what's still flowering.
Without a doubt the most exuberantly flowering plant in the garden now is our
Copper Canyon daisy. It didn't start flowering
until mid-autumn, but is now at the height of its bright-yellow peak, with its
foliage perfuming the air at the slightest brush.
Other daisies that are still sticking with it are the low-growing gerberas
and gazanias, which were tender in our old garden in Pennsylvania but come
through the winter just fine here; and the last flowers are still hanging on to
the climbing aster, although its mass of flowers
has mostly faded since its peak a month ago.
Gazania
Gerbera - Transvaal daisy
Several salvias are continuing their all-season bloom into
January as well. The flowers of S. coccinea are finally starting to peter out,
but S. microphylla 'Hot Lips' and S. involucrata
are still going strong.
Salvia microphylla 'Hot Lips'
Salvia involucrata
Two neighbors in the back fence border: Thryallis
(Galphimia glauca) has bloomed from late winter onward, but is no longer covered
in yellow as it was through most of the season. On the other hand, our
shrimp plant took its time to start producing
flowers this year, but appears to be at its peak now that winter has arrived.
The fading flowers of our thryallis
Shrimp plant in full regalia
Among the taller border dwellers, the duranta keeps producing its wonderful purple-and-white
flower chains (it was killed to the ground by last winter's hard freeze, but
returned from the roots strongly; we hope that this winter will be kinder), while
the Turk's cap (Malvaviscus 'Big Momma') has taken
on a sparser guise but still produces its popping-red never-quite-open flowers.
Duranta, charming as ever
Turk's cap in glowing scarlet
From the ranks of the climbers and sprawlers, several specimens keep the show going. The
star jasmine still throws out occasional pure white
flowers, and the passionflower continues to pop open its amazing flowers every
so often, but the stars here are the bleeding heart vine
(Clerodendrum speciosum 'Red Wine'), which is somewhat hidden in a shady corner
of the border, and Cape honeysuckle (Tecomaria capensis),
which lifts its bold orange-red flowers as high as it can, supported by the back
fence.
Clerodendrum 'Red Wine', demurely pretty...
...unlike Tecomaria capensis, which proudly displays its bold blooms
And then there's all the others – from low-growing Oxalis regnellii
sporting blooms on both its green and purple forms, to various roses, two
species of Cuphea, Okinawan spinach, and cilantro, which has
only recently started blooming. Oh, and the poinsettia we saved from last year's
holiday season. Just a sampling below...
Oxalis never stopped blooming
Rosa 'Sunny Knockout' looks better now than it did all season
Cuphea 'Vermillionaire' keeps treating us to its cigar flowers
Cilantro/coriander lends a fresh fragrance besides its modest flowers
All of this color, plus the fact that many non-flowering plants are still
sporting attractive foliage, makes daily traverses of the garden, pulling a
weed here, snipping some deceased annuals there, a pleasant endeavor. Thoughts
of gardening efforts in 2019 are already brewing...
Visitors to this page have left the following commentsTina | Feb 03, 2019 | Great set of plants, all hale and hearty in Houston, I'm sure. I love Copper Canyon Daisy, so full of sunny joy! I never had much luck with the Cuphea in my garden, too much shade and heavy soil, I think. |
suzy jackson | Sep 26, 2020 | Christmas flowers are also becoming 'a thing' here in east anglia (the dryest part of the UK0 Salvias especially can be relied upon for a sterling show...and ease of propagation means I have far too many salvia greggii and microphylla. |
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