A riot of color in Kyle's garden

I spent some time with my friend Kyle yesterday. He had told me that his garden was in full bloom. Needless to say I brought my camera, hoping to capture a bit of the magic. Kyle’s garden is one of my favorite places to visit (check my previous posts here) and there’s always something in flower, but right now the garden is firing on all cylinders.

Let’s start in front of the house:

Pops of yellows, reds...

...and purples

Agave ‘Kissho Kan’, Artemisia californica ‘Canyon Gray’, and Chrysocephalum apiculatum

Aloe rubroviolacea surrounded by masses of yellow and red iceplants (Lampranthus)

Aloe rubroviolacea

Purple iceplant draping over a rock – in so many gardens it wouldn't even have a rock to drop over

Salvia ‘Marine Blue’ (right) is starting to flower

Cotula lineariloba...

...can become a nuisance, but Kyle is keeping it in check

Volunteer poppy next to Hechtia texensis

Heading towards the backyard:

The bed of Kyle’s 1946 Ford pickup makes a convenient makeshift nursery

Climbing rose on the gate to the backyard (Rosa ‘Cécile Brünner’)

Metal artwork made by Kyle featuring core samples (Kyle is a geologist by profession and loves rocks)

Walking into the backyard

Color wherever you look

Purple flowers from Alyogyne huegelii on the right

On the patio

Alyogyne huegelii from the other side

A great place to sit and enjoy the garden

New Zealand flax (Phormium sp.), Alyogyne huegelii, and Euphorbia lambii

Euphorbia lambii flower closeup

Another creation by Kyle

As you look at these photos, pay attention to the masterful way Kyle has layered different sizes, colors, and textures. It looks effortless, but it’s not a lucky accident. A lot of careful thought has gone into achieving this effect – and a lot of plants, more than you might think.

Geranium ‘Rozanne’...

...and California poppies...

...in pink and orange

Another bushy iceplant

Chiffon form of California poppies on the left

Without a doubt, the stars of the show right now are the California poppies. In my garden, I mostly have white-flowering poppies (a cultivar called ‘White Linen’). Kyle has a variety of colors – white, pink, lavender – but most of them are the signature orange. The effect is electric.

I don’t know what Rusty thinks of the sea of California poppies behind him (dogs can’t see the color orange)...

...but he loves to lie on the warm pavers

In this spot, the California poppies have all but swallowed the stepping stones

I love that Kyle has let the poppies go wild

View back towards the house

I know I went a bit overboard with the photos...

...but this truly is a spectacular sight

Kyle’s home office shed

From the porch

Orange chiffon poppies

Pink and white poppies next to a Mammillaria bowl

Kyle has the eye of an artist and the mind of a designer. And he never rests. He’s constantly tweaking and refining; moving, and removing; adding and amplifying. Every time I visit, there’s something new to see. That’s what makes his garden such an exciting place to explore.

© Gerhard Bock, 2025. All rights reserved. To receive all new posts by email, please subscribe here.