Whatever the weather may be doing - and it has rung a good many changes over the last couple of weeks - it is time for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. So here is a look round at what is flowering in July.
The most reliable sources of summer color are the indefatiguible Caesalpinia pulcherrima...
...and my assorted colors of Catharanthus roseus.
The Lagerstroemias are also summer stalwarts, but they were hit hard by the recent lack of water. "Dynamite" is still blooming, though lightly, while "Rhapsody in Pink" has paused and is only thinking about flowering. Both plants still appear healthy, which is more than I dared promise myself a couple of weeks ago. It certainly demonstrates that the crape myrtles need a little more water than the desert natives, but none of the latter supply this kind of bloom in July!
One tropical I cannot coax out of its disgust at the dry conditions, is Hamelia patens. The flower stalks continue to droop and the flowers themselves won't open. Quite a contrast to the game little Salvia farinacea below it! Though the latter certainly needs a good trim!
The other day I caught sight of one of our little hummingbirds (I think it was Modeste, our gentle little Costa's hummingbird) flitting around the Hamelia, unable to find any flowers from which she could glean nectar. I promised her to put priority on getting the nectar-bearing flowers back in bloom. Hamelia refuses to cooperate, but the rest are coming along. Here are some of the best: Salvia greggi, Cuphea ignea "Vermillionaire", and Russelia equisetiformis "Big Red".
She was sipping out of the scanty flowers of Lavandula multifida (left, below). I find it interesting that the hummingbirds enjoy some of the lavenders so much. This and "x Goodwin's Creek Grey" are the favorites.
Meantime a single stalk has opened on L. x intermedia, which makes it the first summer-blooming lavender in the garden. As you can see from the center photo, the first stem can hardly be said to still be flowering, but others (far right) are coming.
One of the surprises of this month's bloom day is rose "William Shakespeare 2000". It got a little extra water at a critical time and has responded generously with a light scattering of fragrant bloom.
The miniature roses were beaten back by the heat and drought, but they are normally the first to bounce back. Here are the usual lavender and cream/pink, doing their best given the season. Their shortened petals and pale colors are one of the usual responses to the excessive heat, so not a cause for concern.
Their neighbor has surprised me this summer. After nearly dying - repeatedly - last summer, the dainty Salvia "Summer Jewels" has been fairly reliable this year.
Then there is an unexpected bit of bloom from the still-standing hollyhock "Creme de Cassis". I keep promising myself to cut it down now that the seven foot stalks are faded and brittle after their wonderful early summer showing, but I haven't done it yet (see my last post); and now and then my dubious delay is rewarded by a small, fresh bloom peeking out from the brown and tattered mess. Here is one.
It is plants like the autumn sages (Salvia greggi) that give me the most hope for the later part of summer. I still feel I have a real lapse as the season wears on toward autumn. But it is much too early to think of autumn...!
Thank you to Carol at May Dreams Gardens for hosting this monthly look at what is in bloom! This is the leanest time of the year in the desert garden, unlike so many gardens which are reveling in the riches of July. But that is how the weather goes...!
Weather Diary: High winds followed by mild rain; now a dust storm warning; High: 107 F (42 C)/Low: 78 F(26 C)
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Kris P (Saturday, 15 July 2017 23:26)
Yes, you must keep your promises to the hummingbirds! Given your high summer temps, I'm always surprised by how much you have in bloom. The miniature roses never cease to amaze me and you have hollyhock flowers too! I've never succeeded in growing hollyhocks - they're rust magnets here. I still need to get myself a Caesalpinia - and a miniature rose!
Marcelo (Sunday, 16 July 2017 02:43)
Amy, you have a gorgeous display of colors in your garden and your roses look healthy with very green foliage I guess in the desert blackspot isn't a problem, here where I live humidity is always high and that makes blackspot and powdery mildew go rampant all year round. I have 3 Lagerstroemias and they seed themselves around a lot, I have given lots of "babies" to friends and neighbors because I don't have room for more trees in my garden. Have a great sunday!
Diana Studer (Sunday, 16 July 2017 17:20)
My autumn sage is a leggy mess that battled thru the Dusty Miller. Must try some cuttings as our sunbirds also love those flowers.
Jeannie (Sunday, 16 July 2017 20:25)
Oh my. An English Garden in the desert. I am quite impressed.
Happy Bloom Day!
Jeannie @ GetMeToTheCountry.Blogspot.com
Amy@smallsunnygarden (Monday, 17 July 2017 02:18)
Kris - I was very surprised to see one of our hummingbirds since I thought they had all left for milder summers elsewhere. She should have plenty to feed from as we've gotten another bout of rain tonight - it's looking like being a wet monsoon season this year!
Amy@smallsunnygarden (Monday, 17 July 2017 02:51)
Many thanks, Marcelo! Yes, I am fortunate with the roses as there is little blackspot here. It was my worst enemy in my earlier garden... along with deer and cold winters! I can only imagine having Lagerstroemia seedlings to give away - how wonderful! Have a great week!
Amy@smallsunnygarden (Monday, 17 July 2017 02:55)
Diana - Autumn Sage does get leggy, doesn't it :/ That is lucky for me, though, as my favorite one layered itself in mulch without my realizing! It's a wonderful nectar source for the birds - about the top favorite here, other than Justicia californica. I think I am running a hummingbird cafe... ;-) I would love to see more of your sunbirds!
Amy@smallsunnygarden (Monday, 17 July 2017 03:47)
Thanks so much, Jeannie! I suppose it's an unusual thing to try... but maybe none the worse for that... ;-) Thanks for stopping by!
Brian Skeys (Monday, 17 July 2017 11:12)
I hope the rain has revived the plants and helped to feed the hummingbirds.
Amy@smallsunnygarden (Monday, 17 July 2017 20:07)
Brian - The rain (and we've gotten even more since!) has done wonders. And I saw the little hummingbird again this afternoon, so apparently all is well! :)
Steve (Tuesday, 18 July 2017 01:54)
I must try some of the exotic plants you grow. As the climate gets warmer I have found that plants that would not have survived our winter now do. I guess you could say that is a plus of global warming but I am not so sure about the longer term prognosis.
Amy@smallsunnygarden (Tuesday, 18 July 2017 22:56)
Steve - That will be exciting to watch from a gardener's perspective at any rate! Perhaps different climates will have to trade plants around in warming temperatures, but it is good to know we have them available. (I have been so grateful for all the work done by Australian collectors and plantsmen.) Perhaps not surprisingly, most of the flowers in today's post can grow happily with a good deal more moisture than we get here, so might be good candidates... ;-)