Bloom Day - March 2010

Welcome to Bloom Day in Northern California! Since I've been sharing so much of what's going on in my garden lately, I thought I'd append my bloom-day post with some photos taken around the neighborhood. This perfect Camellia in front of my hairdresser is my favorite color and form for this flower.

And what could be a better companion for pink Camellias than blue Forget-Me-Nots?

Walking around the block I spotted this Euryops. This is one of those ubiquitous plants that people keep long after their useful life is over; but they DO give the earliest yellow daisy of the year, so I'll give them a little love today.

Pink Jasmine (Jasminum polyanthum) is a real fence-stealer, but what a lovely soft fragrance.

Blue Potato Bush (Solanum rantonnetii) is another rampant grower; around here it is often trained into lollipop standards, but what it wants to be is a big sprawling shrub.

In front of the high school is a large drought-tolerant bed that deserves to look better than it actually does. There were a few gems though, like this Grevillea...

And this Ceanothus, one of the best blue spring flowers around.

The new landscaping in front of the elementary school included some red Carpet Roses, which are growing a little wild, but still pretty!

India Hawthorn (Rhaphiolepis indica) is another incredibly overplanted evergreen shrub that nobody even notices, except in March and April when they are a ball of pink. Meh.

Home again to admire the lush stand of Dutch Irish growing in the park strip, the legacy of a previous owner. They always remind me of my former mother-in-law, Jane, who passed away 5 years ago this week; she particularly loved these colors.

Blueberry flowers are the cutest things...

Moonlight Nasturtiums are back and ready to rumble!

And finally, some early Abutilon blooms; I'm sure our resident hummingbird is pleased, this is one of their favorites!

Thanks, as always, to Carol from May Dreams Gardens for being the heart of Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Visit her site for links to Bloom Day posts from all over the world.

"We can have flowers nearly every month of the year."
Elizabeth Lawrence