Osmanthus fragrans ‘Aurantiacus’ (Oleaceae)
Grown by Dick Dunmire in Los Altos.
This large evergreen shrub has been used as a background or hedge plant valued for its handsome 4 to 5" narrow leathery leaves. Upright in habit to 8’ it is tolerant of pruning and can be kept to a dense, compact shape and size. Dick enjoys it especially for its powerfully fragrant small orange flowers that scent the air a block away. Bloom is generally just once a year in autumn. Rarely seen in nurseries today probably because the restrictions of our smaller gardens.
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Pelargonium sidoides (Geraniaceae)
Also from Dick’s garden
This unusual pelargonium makes a neat, foot high mound of gray-green heart-shaped leaves that are fluted on the edges. The small ½ inch flowers are a unique shade of deep reddish purple and are borne on slender stems that branch and elongate continuously. It does well in the garden, tolerant of cold and drought but it is also charming in a container where the flowers can be more easily appreciated. |
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Eleagnus umbellatus (Eleagnaceae)
Grown by Katie Wong in San Jose.
"Autumn Olive" is a deciduous shrub (or small tree) that may reach 15’ in height. Its 4’ wavy-margined leaves are silvery at first, turning bright green as they mature. Katie brought some fruiting branches bearing yellow and pink berries that arise directly on the wood. The fruit is edible and quite pleasant with a sweet-tart flavor.
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Crotalaria agatifolia (Fabaceae)
From Katie’s garden
"Canary Bush", another large shrub (9’ by 7’) with 3-palmate leaves 4 to 5" long. The yellow-green 1-½” to 2" flowers are the usual pea-blossom form but the keel is larger than usual. The "canaries" perch along the 14" raceme in very lifelike poses. The pods that follow the flowers grow to 4" in length and as they dry the seeds rattle: thus another common name, ""Rattle Box". They are native to central Africa and are hardy to 32 F.
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Viburnum opulus ‘Roseum’ (syn. ‘Sterile’) (Caprifoliaceae)
Grown by Barbara Worl in Menlo Park.
"Snow Ball Bush" is a deciduous shrub 8-15’ in height with wide-spreading branches and lobed maple-like leaves. The flower heads are composed entirely of sterile flowers forming a globe, and are reliable bloomers. The foliage on Barbara’s plant has colored up to warm, pinky red this autumn. |
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Pycnostachys urticifolia (Lamiaceae)
Grown by Barbara Worl in Menlo Park.
Barbara bought her plant from Annie’s Annuals, the fount of unusual plants, and the source of some surprises when that little 4" pot grows to be 5‘ high. Called "Blue Witch’s Hat" for the peculiar form of the inflorescence, a cone-shaped spike that begins blooming from the base, forming the brim of the hat. The flowers are a rich cobalt blue and this, in itself, would be reason enough to grow this plant.
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Cosmos bipinnatus ‘Yellow Garden’ (Asteraceae)
I looked at the large flowers of this cosmos that are a soft yellow with white at the center and on the rim and realized that I had never seen a yellow cosmos before. A late-blooming species, growing 3’ by 3’, it is attractive to butterflies. It is available at Annie’s Annuals, as well. |
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Fothergillia major (Hamamelidaceae)
Grown by Barbara Worl in Menlo Park.
Also from Barbara’s is this very attractive small tree, which is particularly lovely in autumn with its round leaves colored in soft reds, oranges, and yellows. It is a tree native to East Coast where it is found in woodlands and swamps, and, as you would expect, it likes rich acid soil and ample moisture. These are not easy conditions to provide here which is probably why it is not more often seen. But somehow Barbara has done it! |
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Dahlia ‘Kaiser Wilhelm’ (Asteraceae)
Grown by Barbara Worl in Menlo Park.
This dahlia has been in Barbara’s garden for a long time and has gotten very tall. It has a nice big yellow flower tipped with red, one of my favorites. |
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Salvia clevelandii ‘Betsy Clebsch’ |
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Salvia clevelandii ‘Betsy Clebsch’
Grown by Glenda Jones in Palo Alto.
This cultivar of S clevelandii arose from a group of plants
collected from the wild and grown in the Santa Ana Botanic Garden. It is unusual in having different colored flowers on a single plant, white through shades of blue, in this case. It is also a smaller, more compact form well suited for garden culture. |
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Clerodendron ugandense (Verbeneaceae)
Grown by Liz Calhoon in Los Altos Hills.
The common name "Blue Glory Bower" may strike you as a bit fanciful but for this flower it’s not an overstatement. This is an exquisite five-petaled flower with four pale bluish- white upper petals and an elongated deeper blue-cupped lip. A vigorous climber to 10 or 12 ft., it is nominally evergreen in its native home or grown under glass but Liz has hers outdoors on a porch where it is regularly cut down by frost. She finds that it comes back each year and heads for the sky. Unfortunately, the flowers are borne in terminal panicles and are a bit of a stretch to see.
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Oberonia toppingii (Orchidaceae)
Grown by Kerry Barrs in Portola Valley.
Over the years we have enjoyed and been amazed at Kerry Barrs’ collection of miniature plants but this month he reached what must be his ultimate goal – plants so small they must be viewed through a magnifying glass! And I had trouble even with that. O. Toppingii bears a 3" flowering spike that may hold hundreds of perfect flowers. Each flower is 1/32" long with 3/128" anchor-shaped lip. It takes a long time to finish blooming.
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Macroclinum aurorae (Orchiaceae)
Grown by Kerry Barrs in Portola Valley
A micro-mini epiphyte with stubby, flattened, fan-shaped growths 1" high. Leaves are green,spotted red. Wiry pendent spikes bear ¼" flowers, blush with purple spotting. They bloom repeatedly all year. A native of Peru. |
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Scaphosepalium rapax (Orchidaceae)
Grown by Kerry Barrs in Portola Valley
This genus is related to Masdevallia, but while there were many miniature species listed this was not among them. Sorry. All these are tropical epiphytes and grow within a narrow range of temperature and humidity. Kerry keeps his in terrariums and with a strict watering schedule. |
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Begonia ‘Little Brother Montgomery’
Grown by Elizabeth Garbett in Los Altos Hills.
Inspired by the article on begonias in "Pacific Horticulture I brought in this sibling of Begonia ‘Connie Boswell’ that was featured in the article. Growing about 2’ high and wide both have striking star-burst leaf shapes, echoed by pale green and dark green patterns on the leaves. I understand that they have Rex begonia blood and this seems to account for Little Brother’s distaste for damp and cold. I grow them outdoors in summer but in the greenhouse in winter. |
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| E. C. Garbett. |
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