Archive for the 'Rhododendron' Category

Early Spring Flowers

The lilacs in our yard have been in bloom for the past two weeks, but they look to be at their peak right about now. These are photos of one of our Lavender Lady lilac bushes, which is more full of flowers than it ever has been. The fragrance of lilacs is really like no other flower. The fragrance is so strong that I can smell it at a distance of about 10 feet away. We are also growing California Rose and Blue Skies (descanso hybrids for mild winter climates) and Sensation lilacs, but our Lavender Ladys get the most flowers by far each year.

This is a photo of our one of our azalea bushes, which has been growing in our backyard since before we moved in. It is a well established bush at this point that doesn’t seem to need much care. Azaleas of course prefer partial shade, but this one seems to be doing well in full sun.

I can’t remember the name of this plant. It’s a small perennial bush. My mom gave it to me about 2 years ago. It has been flowering in our yard for the past 6 weeks, but its flowers are starting to fade now. This photo was taken about 3 weeks ago. Its flowers look like tight clusters of ‘lily of the valley,’ but it’s leaves are very distinctive and evergreen.

April 01 2012 | Lilacs and Rhododendron | Comments Off on Early Spring Flowers

More spring flowers

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These are more pictures of flowers that are blooming in our garden this spring. The first picture is of a Cecil Brunner climbing rose. Each spring, they are filled with hundreds of cute miniature flowers for a few weeks. But they only bloom once a year. The rest of the year they grow profusely. A bit too profusely in my opinion. I stopped watering them two years ago to try to stunt their growth. But it didn’t work. They still grow dozens of new thorny vines every few months during the growing season. Pruning the new growth has only slowed them down a little. I planted them next to the fence, so they might be getting water from the neighbor’s yard. I am probably going to cut them back severely in a few weeks.

The second picture is a purple rhododendron. I have had this bush about 6 years, and it has bloomed reliably every year. I really love of the color of its flowers.

Rhododendrons like shade in warm climates, acidic soil, and lots of water. Ours is planted in partial shade, although our soil is not particularly acidic. I give it azalea/rhododendron fertilizer once a year in the spring and that has be enough to get it to flower.

The last picture is group of lavender bearded irises. These irises were here when I moved into the house. I almost never water or fertilize them, and they have produced very few blooms. This year they have more flowers than they have ever had. In our climate, we get very little rain from May through October. Bearded irises are supposed to be drought tolerant. I am not sure if they don’t bloom much because they are not getting enough water or fertilizer or both.

May 03 2009 | Flowers and Irises and Rhododendron and Roses | Comments Off on More spring flowers