High Desert Gardening Archives – Page 14 of 29

Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening High Desert

Garden Happenings

By JM PerezApril 25, 20141 min read597 views

What a lovely week we had. Easter came and went giving way to yet another blessed week.

One of my many Pendula Yucca will soon bloom with ivory showy bell-shaped flowers on its single upright stem lasting from late Spring through Summer. There are about five young shoots growing at the base of the evergreen mother plant. The ones I transplanted last year have all survived; they are healthy and fast growing.

One of the self-sown Gaura Lindheimeri seedlings has flowered within its first 3 weeks. I am still finding more seedlings around the garden area, which I am immediately transplanting.

Young Gaura Lindheimeri. — *(3 weeks old) self-sown Gaura Lindheimeri.*

Remember the ‘Little Pete’ Rose Sucker? Well, I found a new sucker growth last week and another one emerged. I tore it off from the rose bush after carefully removing the soil around the roots of the plant. It came off attached to a thick root, so I decided to plant the sucker somewhere in the backyard after cutting off the top by about half and surprise, surprise ! I noticed new tiny growth sprouting on the stem this morning. I know it’s still too early to celebrate, but it sure brought a smile to my face.

After almost five years, I lost my evergreen Grevillea Noellii shrub. While pulling the dead plant out of the planter and getting poked by the needle-like leaves, I found a tender seedling in the planter.

The Sun is shining bright. Today is a good day.

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By JM Perez

Rabbit Nature Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening

Beautiful Weather

By JM PerezApril 19, 20141 min read495 views

The weather has been really warm lately in the High Desert. We are still in Spring, yet it often feels like Summer. I wake every day feeling grateful for the weather because I know in some States and Countries it is raining and/or still snowing. Yesterday I captured the moon as it was still up in the sky prior to driving my son to school.

A few of my miniature Hybrid Roses are blooming.

A few of my Sunblest Hybrid Tea Rose flowers are starting to produce rose buds within the rose flower. I read somewhere that this phenomenon is called proliferation and is usually caused by pollinating insects and or temperature change. According to the website HuntingtonBotanical.org, proliferation is not a disease but caused when the apical cells are multiplying so fast that they do not stop dividing when a flower is produced, but they keep on dividing and produce a cluster of new buds in the center of the earlier flower.

We’ve caught a glimpse of Squirrels attempting to access the Sweet Almond Tree in the front yard in search for food as well as Cottontail Rabbits in the empty lot behind our Home.

Wishing you all a Joyful and Holy Easter Weekend!

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By JM Perez

Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening High Desert

Lovelies In The Garden

By JM PerezApril 13, 20142 min read944 views

Today is a beautiful day and things are looking up around here. The past couple of days have been really warm and rather than going outside to soak up some sun, I have remained indoors during the heat of the day. Squirrels are getting out in search for food with the Sweet Almond tree being their main target. The unwanted rodents have been digging at the base of the backyard fence to gain entry into the front yard with no success. We are looking into various fruit tree protection methods. Click here for some ideas.

The garden is lively with little surprises and beautiful blooms, amongst them the gorgeous Cytisus San Francisco below, also known as San Francisco Scotch Broom. From Spring to early Summer, the semi-evergreen shrub is covered in abundant sprays of fragrant yellow and ruby-red blooms.

Cytisus Scoparius 'San Francisco' — *Cytisus Scoparius ‘San Francisco’.*

The sight of this Purple Freesia and its pleasant sweet scent brightened up my day.

I have found so many tiny self-sown Gaura Lindheimeri seedlings around the gardens. I transplanted a few into pots and the rest around garden beds. It’s a great and inexpensive way to grow a garden. This drought tolerant flowering perennial will flourish in full sun and various soil types such as sandy, rocky and loamy (partial shade works too). The plant blooms profusely from Spring until frost.

To our amazement we discovered new Oleanders growth poking up through the dirt where we dug up the mother plant last Fall. In addition to being extremely poisonous, this drought, heat-tolerant and fast-growing ornamental shrub is very hard to eradicate. Last month’s three-day rainfall was enough to stimulate root growth. We dug a trench and disposed of the remaining roots. I will continue to monitor the area to ensure no shoots return.

Wishing you graceful moments in your own Garden.

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By JM Perez

Vintage Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening High Desert

Rose in a Vintage Cruet

By JM PerezApril 11, 20141 min read617 views

I spent a good part of my morning in the garden snipping off dead flowers from my Roses. It appears that Spring and Fall are the ideal seasons for my Roses to thrive and produce gorgeous flowers. All of my Rose bushes have a distinct, strong fruity fragrance and I enjoy living the moment. They make beautiful cut flowers too.

I cut a few fresh flowers which I placed in my Vintage Cruet (Chicago Peace® Hybrid Tea, Scarlet Knight, Queen Elizabeth and Iceberg Floribunda). Doesn’t it make a beautiful centerpiece and display?

I am still learning about pressing and drying flowers for keepsake. Click here to learn how to make dry flower arrangements.

Linking up to Beverly’s Pink Saturday.

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By JM Perez

Spring Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening High Desert

The Sweetheart Rose

By JM PerezApril 4, 20141 min read1.2K views

For two and a half years we had a couple of Potato Vine growing in the front yard, alongside the arches. The plants were thriving until early last year when they died. We had quite a rough Winter and they didn’t survive the repeated freezes. We dug them out last Summer and replaced them with climbing Roses.

Cecile Brunner Climbing Rose (also know as The Sweetheart Rose and Climbing Mademoiselle Cécile Brünner Rose) were quite small when I purchased them and have doubled their size since then. I trained the main canes of my ‘John Cabot’ Rose to grow horizontally on a trellis to encourage the plant to put out more blooms and it is always full of flowers. I planted the Cecile Brunner Climbing Rosebushes on each side of a Vintage wrought Iron Arch set, a gorgeous decorative feature in my front yard, by the garden gate, leading to the backyard. These arches will support and showcase the plants.

During the coming days, I will begin training the Roses to grow horizontally on the arches, to create a beautiful and inviting gateway. The Rosebushes bloom profusely from mid-Spring until frost with fragrant light pink blossoms.

Click here, here or here to learn about Training Climbing Roses.

Linking up to Beverly’s Pink Saturday

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By JM Perez