Monkey and other Flowers

Mimulus cardinalis overhangs the stream of traffic that flows on and off my front porch.  Sometimes, like this time, a flower falls into the dry streambed and rusted trowel below.  In nature the plant likes a permanent watercourse near its roots, so I need to mind the water in the pot in which it grows.  This is the 'Golden Form' of scarlet monkey flower so that explains the yellow flowers.  I got the plant, a tiny 3" pot, from Theodore Payne foundation last summer and it has grown well in the light shade of the acacia iteaphylla.

Nearby on the porch an old concrete frog from an old neighbor's estate sale stands guard with the lavendar lobelia.  It's nice to remember old neighbors that way.  Concrete lasts a long time, lobelia not so much but there's always more at the nursery; well maybe not this color but it never hurts to have a look.

The coral aloe, Aloe striata, has been blooming for at least a month and is still in good form.  I often see  hummingbirds hanging inside the inflorescence to feed as I sit on the front porch bench tying on my boots. I'll be scouting another one or two of these for spring planting.  Good for the hummingbirds; good for the gardener.

The trail where we walk on an supposed-to-be daily basis is sprinkled with rockroses which have been in bloom for weeks.  The cistus in my semi-shady yard are just starting to get warmed up.  This is the first flower of cistus not sure which one.  Much more rockrosing to come as the sun rides higher every day.


















Thanks for visiting, gardeners everywhere.  Garden well wherever you garden.  Last but not least, I have grown to like Persicaria capitata.  Weed?  Cute!