Front yard succulents aglow at sunset
I haven’t done much actual gardening this summer. Instead, I’ve been enjoying the fruit of our previous labor. The fact that it’s been in the high 90s every day for more weeks than I care to count also has something to do with it.
With work keeping me extra busy this year, all I often get are a few glimpses of the front yard in the golden light just minutes before sunset. Here are some of those moments captured with my camera.
Cleistocactus strausii and Agave vilmoriniana ‘Stained Glass’
Agave vilmoriniana ‘Stained Glass’
Gaillardia × grandiflora ‘Goblin’, needing deadheading but still going strong
Pineneedle milkweed (Asclepias linearia)
Sago palm (Cycas revoluta)
The larger of the two succulent mounds off the front porch
Ocotillo (Fouquieria splendens) just now losing its leaves in response to the heat and (relative) lack of water
Cowhorn agave (Agave bovicornuta)
Parodia magnifica, blooming for the 2nd time this summer
Echinopsis ‘Johnson Hybrid’, also blooming for the 2nd time this year
Echinopsis ‘Johnson Hybrid’
After such a long break in actual garden work, I’m eager for the summer to run its course so I can remove the casualties and replant those bare spots.
You caught the light perfectly. That Cleistocactus looks other-worldly.
ReplyDeleteI love how the Cleistoscactus glows when backlit. You can see it from the dining room table.
DeleteI always love to see plants in context with their neighbors. Great photos!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Dave. I sometimes focus too much on photos of individual plants but you're right, the context is important.
DeleteNothing like an 'in person' visit to help me visualize what you have captured with your camera.
ReplyDeleteSo true! I hope the next time you'll be able to hang out a little longer.
DeleteWhat a soul nurturing thing it must be to get out there and walk around your "new" garden -- or heck even just look at it out the window. These photos capture the magic.
ReplyDeleteJust getting a glimpse here and there makes me feel happy. Much needed in times of stress!
DeleteThe Echinopsis--what a gorgeous rich color. Leave a few Gaillardia flowers--they bring seed-eating birds into the garden. Fun to watch, in that golden light of afternoon.
ReplyDeleteAs you can see, we've fallen down on the job of deadheading the gaillardias so there'll be a lot to eat for the birds.
DeleteTo think I almost tossed that echinopsis because the stem isn't perfect. But what cactus in nature is perfect?
Everything catches the light so wonderfully! I really can't wait to see how those beds progress over the next couple of years -- really going to be amazing!
ReplyDeleteYou and me both! I honestly have no idea how this area will shape up. What I don't want is an inpenetrable jungle of spiky plants.
DeleteYour cowhorn agave really makes me miss my cowhorn agave! I've got a dwarf in a pot that just doesn't measure up. It's all looking fabulous. I'm assuming that's E. antisyphlitica in the foreground, first photo, looking all upright and righteous!
ReplyDeleteDo get another A. bovicornuta. It has the coolest teeth :-).
DeleteYes, that's a E. antisyphilitica. I brought it back from Arizona last winter. It thrives in the heat. What an unfussy plant!
So beautiful and inspiring! Thank you for taking the time to photograph your garden. Just gorgeous.
ReplyDelete