Giant Chalk Dudleya or Giant Live Forever, this is in our estimation the largest and showiest of this genus native to the West Coast of North America from Oregon to Mexico. This spectacular succulent is native to the northern coast of Baja where it attaches to volcanic cliffs above the ocean. To 12″-18″ wide in a year or two the softly spiked rosette is covered in fine white powder (bloom) that can be rubbed off- that can result in a less pristine white form. Avoid pawing or poking the foliage. In spring to summer 18″ stems support clusters of orange/pink/yellow downward pointing flowers. Very pretty and it draws hummingbirds and butterflies. A fantastic container plant that can live for years happily in succulent cactus mix. Protect from severe cold (below 26ºF) and put containers in a cool unheated greenhouse in autumn. Or move to a dry under eave position. Water deeply and infrequently and able to tolerate summer water much better than others. Our Oregon native Dudleya farinosa can be kind fussy about that. Very easy to grow. Part shade to full sun. Shockingly beautiful plant. This and many Dudleyas have been vastly and illegally over collected in the wild. Ours are raised from seed which is not difficult and is even more of a pity that they are stolen in the wild.
Zone: Zn9b 30º to 25ºF
Ipomea purpurea ‘Grandpa Ott’s’
Can’t imagine summer without morning glories. This old time favorite we love for the intensity of the color as well as length of bloom. This rapidly twining vine gets going after truly warm weather arrives. Funnel shaped glories unfurl early in the morning and are resplendent until afternoon. Longer on cooler/ cloudier days. To 8′ in a single season for average to enriched soil in FULL SUN with regular summer H20. Easy to send scrambling a teutier, fence, lattice. Very fun to grow. Annual vine that is not so rambunctious as to smother even low perennials, to large shrubs. Remember that the flowers always point towards the strongest sun- which is south.
Pelargonium ‘Black Boar’
Sumptuous zonal geranium with deep black and green foliage and vibrant coral pink flowers non-stop for months. To 20″ tall and as wide. Seems to go up for a while but always ends up with horizontal stems. Blooms heavily and constantly- Very pretty delicate appearing flowers. This is a fantastic zonal for containers, its thrives in rich soil with regular irrigation. Rich, soil that drains. Add a table spoon of all organic fertilizer at planting. This guy loves food. Tender to cold. Over winter in an unheated but not arctic garage or try something new next year. This plant has become a real favorite of ours. Its also a fantastic conservatory plant and might work as a houseplant in a very sunny window. Full sun to very light shade.
Pelargonium ‘Garden Bouquet’
I’d swear this is just a species pelargonium and probably there is at least some pure species in the parentage. Its a remarkable tender plant that blooms its brains out for months non-stop. These pale pink and dark purple studded flowers decorate a hazy, wiry frame of very slight foliage. Its pretty and it gives the constant bloom a very wild flower mein. Forming a rounded shrub to 20″ x 20″ in a season. It grows fairly rapidly in rich soil enriched with all purpose granular organic fertilizer. Excellent in mixed containers and unflinching in the most blazing conditions. Full sun. Also, cheerful by itself in a large terra cotta pot. The blooms begin in May for months it is never without flowers. Regular water. Mixes well with tender (and hardy) succulents. One of my favorite containers is this plant in the center surrounded by trailing Sedum palmeri. Hardy to about 27ºF- and worth overwintering as a houseplant in a very bright window. Give it good air circulation. Excellent performance at the Oregon Coast.
Tibouchina urvilleana
Princess flower is a tender shrub that becomes a rapturous cloud of velvet purple flowers for all of summer. Three inch wide flowers have the wonderful backdrop of velveteen clad deep green leaves. To 4′ x 4′ in a seasonal container. Full sun to very light shade and rich soil with regular water. Appreciates a handful of all organic fertilizer halfway through the season. Over winter containerized plants in an unheated garage. Cut back hard, fertilize and place outside when all danger of a freeze has passed. In very protected gardens near the beach this shrub may be grown in the ground. To 8′ tall x 4′ wide. Freezes back below 27ºF and is root hardy to the low 20ºs. Mulch in autumn. Princess flower hails from the mountains of Brazil.