First 2017 look at the aloes at UC Davis

Rain, rain², rain³. I don't remember the last time we had so much rain. And fog. That had been absent, too, in recent winters. The difference between this January and the past half dozen Januaries couldn't be greater. At the same time, it feels like plants are a bit slower getting going, maybe because they're busy trying not to drown.

I took advantage of a break in the rain to check on the aloes on the UC Davis campus. As you'll see, a few are blooming already but others are still weeks away. This matches what's going on in my garden.

Aloes in the mist outside the Botanical Conservatory--a common sight this year

Yellow-flowering form of Aloe arborescens

Aloe litteralis

Aloe camperi 'Cornuta'

Aloe striata outside the Botanical Conservatory greenhouses, dug up from somewhere else and waiting to be replanted

Aloe africana, toppled over under the weight of its leaves

Another toppled aloe, this one an Aloe marlothii hybrid of impressive height (see next photo)

This is what it had looked like in February 2014

I assume it fell over in one of the recent rain storms because the soil had gotten too soft

Another view of the toppled Aloe marlothii hybrid

Aloe africana in the alley between the Sciences Lab Building and Haring Hall

Aloe suprafoliata with rotting leaves. I'm afraid this will happen to some of my aloes, too.

Aloe hereroensis looking great. The fuzzy thing in the center is an emerging inflorescence.

Aloe ferox (left) and Aloe marlothii  (right) outside the Sciences Lab Building

Aloe marlothii (left) and Aloe ferox (right) outside the Sciences Lab Building

And a couple of non-aloe bonus images:

Purple fountain grass and heavenly bamboo

Rosemary and heavenly bamboo

I'll check back on the aloes in a few weeks.