It is the middle of the month now, the middle of November at that! Time for a look at what is blooming in the garden with Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, hosted by Carol at May Dreams Gardens.
This is a lush season here in the desert, as temperatures are quite comfortable. It might be even lusher if we could get some rain, but so far that hasn't happened. Perhaps a little later... Meantime, here is what the garden is doing. This month I divided the plants according to seasonality, only to find that this is not at all a precise way of doing it. Still, we shall try...
Plants returning to bloom
The first set of plants comprises the long autumn/winter/spring bloomers - or so I expect. At any rate, they are not autumn-only and should give color for months.

Next is a trio of flowers from various plants of Salvia greggi. Although this is a classic autum/winter plant, none are blooming as well as I would like, presumably because most have gotten too woody. The white flowers on the right are from a seedling growing next to "Autumn Moon" (center). The blooms are a bit small, but it is intriguing to have a nearly all-white seedling of this normally brilliantly colored Salvia. The usual color is shown in the first flower, another seedling.
It's wonderful to see blooms on Callistemon californica "Baja Red" now. It has had a slow start, poor thing, planted in a spot that had been a trail for our rabbit-hunting BettyTheDog. I need to put up some sort of barrier to keep it from getting constantly trampled! The brilliant bottlebrush flowers light up the area beneath the nearby Lagerstroemia.


Autumn-blooming plants
These are plants with a shorter burst of bloom for the autumn season, though this is a very imprecise definition, as the Muhly grass will give months of beauty from the drying stems, and Chrysactinia may well throw off sporadic blooms at any time of the year.

Plants that bloom through Summer
These are the plants that have flowered reliably throughout the summer, some of which are expected to stop soon, such as Hamelia patens; others, like Russelia, are truly everblooming.






Plants with occasional Bloom
Some plants seem to know no seasons, but they are happier now. The Eremophila is rarely without flowers; and Leucophyllum frutescens blooms in response to rain or humidity, regardless of the time of year.


And a surprise...

November is a beautiful month in the desert!
Weather Diary: Partly cloudy; High: 84 F (29 C)/Low: 56 F (13 C); Humidity: 14%-45%
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Kris P (Wednesday, 16 November 2016 17:53)
November IS a wonderful month in the desert! My own Gaura has pooped out again after our recent stretch of hot weather but I may try cutting it back another time to see if I can get yet another cycle out of it this year. As to the Salvia farinacea, I too was amazed when I saw the plants rebound in my brother's garden in the San Fernando Valley - I'll have to see if it's as accommodating in my own garden. Fingers are crossed that we both get some rain next week, Amy!
Amy@Smallsunnygarden (Thursday, 17 November 2016 13:58)
Kris - We've had a very sudden cool-down here, but no rain in sight so far... definitely still hoping! Gaura is so good here, I'm always vaguely surprised it's not a SW native. I planted the small Bellezza White recently, but it was torn to shreds (rabbits, I assume). It's trying to make a comeback now - hope it succeeds... ;-)
Cathy (Friday, 18 November 2016 02:37)
It is so interesting to see how plants react to a completely different climate - your blue salvia is beautiful, and to think it has recovered and is flowering again makes me wonder where these plants get their energy from! I also love your Gaura. I have a pale pink/white one which has come through two winters now. When do you give yours a 'trim', and how much do you cut back? This was a lovely post Amy, with so many pretty things! :)
Amy@Smallsunnygarden (Saturday, 19 November 2016 18:31)
Cathy - Thanks so much! I have no idea how some of these plants continue to churn out the flowers; some remind me of the magic mill of Norse fairy tales...! With the Gaura, I cut back when there is new growth showing at the base of the plant. Last spring I cut to that new growth; in early autumn I cut back by about two thirds. Both times it has responded well. I love the motion it brings to the garden.