GardenBanter.co.uk - View Single Post - Garden tasks just for today.... What are yours ?

David E. Ross · 20-05-2009, 04:48 PM posted to rec.gardens

On 5/19/2009 5:49 PM, wrote [in part]:

I need to

Tie up the peony bushes.... row of about 15 feet... the buds are getting
ready to bloom and they need a lot of support. Going to cut back the buds
to 2 per branch... probably will dump a load of miracle gro bloom booster.
They put on a pretty display... white, white with red and 'Taki' (rose)
Plenty of flowers to give out to the neighborhood. They should be in
bloom in 8 more days.

Peonies!! I had seen them in bouquets from florists in the past but saw
them on the plants for the first time last year at Winterthur and
Longwood. They were magnificent. I asked at nurseries near my home and
was told that they are impossible in my climate; most nurseries here
refuse to stock them.

But I have roses in bloom in December; they would bloom in January if I
didn't prune them. My dwarf lemon tree blooms on and off all year long;
I have three large ripe lemons on the tree right now. My alstroemeria
is in constant bloom year round. And my wife can send me out in front
to cut some rosemary for a recipe she is cooking; the rosemary bush is
about 30 years old and taller than I am.

Here, lilacs are marginal, even those specially hybridized for mild
winters. While I have lady tulips (Tulipia clausiana), the traditional
"Dutch" tulips will not naturalize and bloom a second year; they must be
treated as annuals. Dogwoods and rhododendrons are mostly unknown here
(but I do have some nice azaleas).

Each climate has its positive and negative aspects for gardeners.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary