something I found on YouTube . . .

Not much I can say - you just have to watch this video for yourself!

'Gilva' & 'Gilva'

The main succulent in this photo should be familiar to those of you who have seen my garden. It is a hybrid Echeveria I've grown for many years under the name 'Gilva' (discovered and described by Eric Walther in 1935 and presumed to be a E. agavoides × E. elegans cross). The plant habit is very similar to E. elegans, offsetting freely and quickly making a nice ground cover. The arching (like E. elegans) flower spikes branch dicotomously (in two - unlike E. elegans but like E. agavoides).

Notice the potted plant in the left foreground. This is being distributed currently by Succulent Gardens as E. 'Gilva'. The rosettes are strikingly similar, perhaps larger, seemingly slower to offset, and decidedly flushed pink at their tips (the plant above NEVER flushes pink - instead turning yellow when stressed). it also produces many more flower stems per rosette, which are un-branched and whose flowers are a bit larger, with a more distinct yellow tip to the petals.

I've been growing these side by side for some time now and while it is sometimes hard to tell them apart, when they reach this stage it is clear they are different plants. I still prefer the original (to me) 'Gilva' as it makes a much more effective ground cover and there are always lots of offsets to start new colonies or give away. The pinker 'Gilva' is certainly a good pot specimen, perhaps better than the former which quickly outgrows any pot.

The dusty miller saga

Forever ago, when I was a teenager, my very first job was working in a local (Santa Clara) nursery. I loved being around all those plants and learning something new about them each day!

One day I was asked by a local gentleman, Mr. Crowley, if we have any ‘dusty millers’. So proud that I knew that we did and where they were, I escorted him directly to them. On our six-pak table, among bedding annuals and vegetable starts, were a few paks of plants with conspicuous felty white leaves, their labels announcing DUSTY MILLER (and nothing more). As I turned happily to see my customer’s expression, I was surprised to see a look of consternation. “Those are the wrong ones!” he scolded. Looking back at the plants, I suddenly realized that these were indeed different from those I’d seen previously labeled in the same manner. Nonplussed, I directed him to my boss who was just finishing up with another customer a few yards away. Later I saw the two of them standing over the same “wrong ones”, engaged in deep discussion. Apparently still unsatisfied, the customer left empty handed.

Years later, I learned that these new dusty millers were indeed a different plant – often still available today under this common name but known scientifically as Jacobaea maritima (syn Senecio cineraria). This is a good Mediterranean climate plant with divided leaves heavily covered with fine white hairs, justifying the common name. But not the one this fellow was looking for.

So, it turns out that I knew where Mr. Crowley lived (he was an acquaintance of my parents) and it was on my way home. Curious, after work was done, I rode my bike home making a slight detour to ride by his house. It was all clear when I stopped in front of his yard – a simple affair: a square of green lawn, bordered by junipers, but at regularly placed intervals were gray-white plants outlining the lawn edge. But some of these seemed to be missing – there were definite gaps in 3 places. As I was leaving, I noticed a full trash can on the street. The lid could hardly contain the contents – masses of ropy stems ending in a few gray-white felty leaves just like those in the garden.

I knocked on the door, but the house was dark and no one answered. As I left, I broke off a number of the stems that looked the least damaged. You see, I had recently learned that you could make new plants from old by striking cuttings, and I planned to experiment with these.

I had very good success in getting these cuttings to grow, and was able to study the plants a bit more closely now that they were in my possession. I came to learn that this ‘dusty miller’ was Centuarea ragusina, the Dubrovnik cornflower, from the Adriatic. When the plants were well-rooted, I now had several. I kept a few for myself, and took the other ten, small potted plants to Mr. Crowley’s house on my way to work one day. Again, no one was home, so I tucked them to the side of the porch with a note. When I returned home, my surprised parents informed me that I was expected at the Crowley’s for dinner where I also helped Mr. Crowley plant his unexpected gifts.

Many years later I wanted to put Centaurea ragusina in a garden but I could not find it through any of my usual sources. I had to substitute another gray leafed plant but I kept a look out for this species. Occasionally I felt I might have found it, only to be the victim of mistaken identity (the names of this and related plants are constantly confused with each other). One day, while visiting a nurseryman friend in France, I discovered Centaurea ragusina among his stock! Soon, gifted this by my generous friend, I had this plant again growing in my garden (as pictured above).

what is a mediterranean garden - part V

Continued from . . .

taking a break - photo by Marialuisa Wittlin, on Flickr
Your mediterranean climate garden should allow for you to live/enjoy your life. It is easy for us to feel that if we are out in our private landscape, there is always work to be done (and we should be doing it). This can be true, but we also deserve to use the garden for doing things other than keeping up the garden. It might take a little practice, but I imagine anyone can master it.
      Keeping to simple, low maintenance designs and expectations will help. because our gardens are virtually year 'round, we need not work under a deadline to ensure that one seasonal opportunity to make the garden really shine. Our plant choices might be in their peak at any season, depending upon species. In fact, with a little cleverness, we can have plants coming into their best at specific times, different from their garden mates. Except for the overall summer dormancy (during which we may still find some plants performing), there can be a few or a number of plants in bloom and with seasonal interest through fall, winter, and spring.

Easy care Aloe arborescens
blooming in winter in
southern Italy - photo
by viaggiealtro on Flickr

In this way, no time of year is overwhelming. Some newcomers to this type of garden are daunted by the fact that there could be something to do any day of the year. But if one can shed the expectation that the garden is inevitably a lot of work, then the pleasures of puttering in the garden throughout the year are found. The more your plant selection is aligned with the mediterranean climate, the more your charges will work for you instead of requiring mitigation due to inappropriate growing conditions.

what is a mediterranean garden - part IV

Continued from . . .

Now that we understand that our gardens can be a venue for all manner of activity, how to we design our gardens accordingly. Seating areas are always important - veritable rooms can be created outdoors, complete with walls if desired. Segmentation of even a small garden space can make it seem larger than before. Having space that are unseen until one arrives in them adds a pleasant surprise. Plus more than one person can feel 'private' in the same garden.

A paved generous pathway
between two garden rooms.
Le jardin provençaux de Pierre Bergé

Paved surfaces, preferably permeable, also help create the room-like quality to garden spaces. On a stable surface furniture can be placed, either permanently or spontaneously. There is also the added benefit that despite a cloud-break in the morning, the pleasant afternoon (not uncommon for mediterranean climate weather) can easily be enjoyed without having to endure soggy grass or ground.
      Paved of graveled surfaces also protect roots and keep the soil cooler/moister during our hot, dry summers. Many mediterranean climate adapted plants prefer to get their roots under such surfaces - it is like the stony terrain to which they are native. Perennials that spread at the roots will often be found moving to the edge of paving, deserting the supposedly better conditions of the open bed. By the same token, the painstaking removal of all stones from the soil is unnecessary. (this would not include a garden that is devoid of soil, the ground being composed on only stones - which is another problem)
Well designed paving adds a great deal to the 'bones' of a garden, providing interest and character regardless of whether plants are dormant (in summer, remember) or not at the peak. The design of such surfaces should be in keeping with the overall design. Craftspeople sometimes get carried away with their expression - their resulting art should not command undue attention away from the rest of the garden. it is better to create special places for such follies, creating the sense of surprise upon arrival mentioned previously.
      At all times, the material used for paving should be of a local source. Not only does this help ensure that your garden is in keeping with its environment, but also aligns with current green concepts (i.e. your material was not shipped from far away in addition to being torn from the natural landscape).

Straight-cut, stacked recycled concrete wall with tumbled crockery gravel, design by Shirley Watts (see Gardenporn blog article).

Recycling is always an option as well. There are an ever increasing number of salvage or recycle outlets opening throughout urban areas so that such material can be reused instead of dumped into a landfill. Be innovative. Open you might to the potential of any durable objects that could be used or incorporated into your surface.

what is a mediterranean garden - part III

Continued from . . .

OK, so the seasons are all different - so what? Why does that make a difference?
      I had occasion to travel to the Southeastern US for a wedding. Knowing of my interest in gardens, my wife and I were introduced to those locals who were gardeners themselves. As the wedding was held in early summer, there was already a fair bit of heat and humidity in the area. After spending hours being entertained indoors (with ample air conditioning) and admiring the garden outside through the windows, I decided to venture out to get a closer look. After stepping out the door, I was taken aback by just how hot it was and the humidity was already enveloping me like a warm wet towel! I abandoned my quest and retreated indoors. The host spotted me and informed me that she never goes into the garden after 10am or before 6pm during this time of year!

Le jardin provençaux de Pierre BergéPart of the beauty of a mediterranean climate is how many months of the years you can spend outdoors, at least much of the day. Sure, there'll be hot days when it is best to stay inside, or better yet find a corner in deep shade in which to sit where one can get the benefit of an occasional breeze. but much of the year, especially fall, winter, spring, there is very pleasant weather and clear skies. Doing anything that is possible outside becomes the norm. And consequently, planning your outdoor spaces to accommodate such activity become important.
      I once read that English gardens are meant for strolling, which means that it is generally not pleasant enough to tarry in one place or even sit still, and Mediterranean gardens are meant for sitting, meaning that in this climate spending a fair amount of time in the outdoor space is very pleasant, even desirable. In corporating different areas for eating, reading, relaxing, or even working in your garden will offer you the opportunity to learn this for yourself.

what is a mediterranean garden - part II

Continued from . . .

Being familiar and comfortable with our local mediterranean climate is one thing, but understanding how it influences how we live and make gardens is another, perhaps something more subtle. Those who come to this region from elsewhere are often surprised at how different things are, but that feeling gradually fades and is not always considered later.
      One of the first surprises is how ‘up-side-down’ the seasons are. When California was being marketed as the best possible place to live back in the mid 1800s, they often featured rose bushes in full bloom in the middle of winter to appeal to those snow-bound during that season in the eastern US. While locally, it is not at all uncommon to find roses in flower in winter, they seldom put on the abundance found in spring. But there is a lot of growing going on during our mild winter months.
      Since we only get rainfall during late fall, winter, early spring, and winter temperatures rarely drop to freezing in many parts of mediterranean climate California, it makes sense that this is the growing season. Spring for us actually does start in what others would call winter. Many plants have been putting on growth since the first rains of fall and there is a veritable impatience to get blooming in January.
      So, in contrast to many garden books and magazines, instead of bracing ourselves and our gardens for the onslaught of cold weather, we end up with a period in which active growth resumes with vigor. Wait a minute! Resumes? From what?
      Those who have lived through more than one mediterranean summer learn to appreciate the coming of cooler, moister weather in the fall. Locally, we experience approximately six months of zero rainfall. While we do not reach the high temperatures of some interior valleys and southern counties, towards the end of this dry season we’re ready to be done with the dust and the dried up vegetation. Many plants have gone into a state of suspended animation in order to get through. Even with supplemental water, plants know what’s going on and seldom perform as they might in summer rainfall regions.
      This is our real dormant season – many plants have actually adapted a summer dormant strategy, dying down to bulbs, corms, roots. Or they might avoid the dry period all together as an annual, completing growth and flowering before the onset of dry skies. Even evergreen plants slow their growth, make smaller leaves, or even lose some of them.
      We can also go summer dormant – with climate adapted plants we needn’t be out in the hot summer sun watering our plants, helping them through the heat and dry which they are not evolved to withstand. We can relax. We can vacation. We can rid ourselves of the expectation that our gardens will be at their crowning peak during the difficult mediterranean summer.
      I once had a client who complained that each summer when her kids were out of school and they traveled back east to visit the grandparents, there was no one who would consistently water her dahlias, florist’s Gladiolus, her marigolds, her spike Delphiniums. Upon her return, she inevitably found these plants doing poorly. Over the course of a year or two, I kept suggesting to her that she abandon these summer growing, summer thirsty flower for those more adapted to our climate patterns. That there were flowers that could be had in abundance in spring and even in winter and fall – all times in which she was home to enjoy her garden. Eventually she started to understand and followed my advice. Now she is very happy with her garden and, guilt free, leaves it to fend for itself during the summer while she is gone.