Thursday, January 15, 2009

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day

I didn't expect to find much to photograph for GBBD today, especially after experiencing a couple of nights of what passes for a hard frost (wow, nearly a month ago!) around here. There are a few stalwarts still chugging along in spite of the cold. A couple of things really surprised me as you will see below.

The first surprise, one of the caper bushes is still blooming. It's planted up against a south facing wall that must absorb and radiate back enough heat to keep the plant from going fully dormant. Most of the other caper bushes are in different degrees of dormancy, depending on their exposure. It probably helps that this variety has a low trailing growth habit, the more upright capers were hit harder by the frost.




Next surprise, a nasturtium blossom. The plant is pretty well zinged by the frost, but like the caper, the part of the plant next to the wall as well as the lower growth survived the frosty nights.

So, lets move on to the stalwart bloomers.


Primula x pubescens (seemingly not "Exhibition Blue")

Sweet Alyssum

More Sweet Alyssum

I let the Alyssum volunteer around the garden because the bees and other beneficial insects love it.


A volunteer geranium which I haven't identified.

For Daphne, a photo of the rosemary in bloom.
I wish I could send you some to brighten your day!


The tiny flowers of Coleonema pulchellum "Sunset Gold"

11 comments:

  1. So beautiful for the temperatures there. Love your Nastrium bloom, especially.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow, what lovely flowers! I have never seen that many blooms on a rosemary! I'm glad I got to see your GBBD post!

    Sue

    ReplyDelete
  3. My, your caper blossoms are really something else! I just love unusual looking flowers and they fit the bill.

    Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love that caper bush bloom. The primula is wonderful, too.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Such pretty colours and blooms in your garden. The caper bush bloom looks spectacular. Reminds me, I've never tried a close shot of nasturtiums--will do it now. Loved it!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks so much for the Rosemary bloom. It is so pretty.

    ReplyDelete
  7. The caper bush flowers are particularly beautiful. Your geranium volunteer looks like a 'Johnsons Blue' (my old favorite) or Rozanne (my new favorite), but there are lots of blue cultivars, so what do I know?

    ReplyDelete
  8. I don't think I've ever seen capers blooming. Is this the same capers that provide the buds that are served as a garnishment on some dishes?

    Thanks for sharing some of your blooms with us for bloom day!

    Carol, May Dreams Gardens

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thanks everyone for the wonderful comments.

    Susan (g-c), thanks for the possible id of the geranium. It is a pretty one and well behaved so I like to let it volunteer when it decides to.

    Carol, it is the same caper that you cook with. I'm trying to get enough plants going to pick and preserve enough buds for my own use.

    ReplyDelete
  10. You have gorgeous blooms. As others have mentioned, the caper blooms are amazing. I love everyone of them!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Thanks Jan, the caper blossoms are pretty, aren't they, and fragrant too!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment. I value your insights and feedback.