It's this! The curls of a very sexy Agave salmiana 'Medio Picta'...
An extremely gorgeous agave. I wanted to take it home, it wanted to come home with me. It was a match made in heaven.
Well, sort of.
More curls!
These belong to Albuca spiralis..."Rare bulb from South Africa with curly leaves. In habitat the bulb remains below ground. Generally hardy, but keep dry. Will get 8" tall. Cute green-yellow classic Hyacinth-like flowers. Early spring flowers are replaced by the corkscrew leaves in summer. Very good draining soils"...
It stayed behind too.
Color! Oh my, color! A pink house with yellow and orange trim, you don't see that everyday. Yes I had to pull over and take a closer look (and okay yes, it was all about the agave).
Walking back towards the corner. I wonder if they have a roof deck out over the garage?
The grevillea bloom matches the house.
But this is the traffic-stopper, well for me, most probably wouldn't even give it a second glance.
The mama plant was taller than me (at 5ft 3in) and there were oh so many pups, one even came up at the base of the stairs. Poor thing's been stepped on...
As you probably noticed in the first photo the lower leaves have been cut back in deference to the sidewalk users. I wonder if, when it finally blooms, it will be allowed to complete it's life cycle or be cut back to keep the intersection safe?
We move on. Now we're in Oakland at The Dry Garden. There will be a future blog post on this amazing nursery but for now, there are curls.
Agave gypsophila 'Ivory Curls' to be exact.
"hey this looks safe, nobody will mess with me here..."
So many curly agaves, so little space in the car (and money in the wallet)...
I love the curls on that South African bulb. The eye-stabbing pink and yellow house, not so much. I don't mind them painting their house those colors, but not for me.
ReplyDeleteSomehow it seemed almost at home (the house color) in Berkeley. Bonney Lake, WA, not so much.
DeleteThe pictures of this so colored house with this variegated agave americana are gorgeous!...
ReplyDeleteAll thes variegated agaves are fantastics. I would like to find the salmina one...
I hope you can!
DeleteAll I will say is this: The Bay Area is an expensive place :-)
ReplyDeleteI've been in loved with that 'Ivory Curls' for a long time. If it were a tad hardier, I'd chance it. 25°F means the leaves will start to develop spots at 27°F or so...
Maybe it could be in a container and come into the house, by a sunny window, for the winter?
DeleteOooh, love that Albuca. A brave house, especially with the morning glory.
ReplyDeleteThe bright blue with the pink center looks fab with the house though, no?
DeleteImpressive!
ReplyDeleteCertainly not your average days sights in Portland, OR....
DeleteWhoa, the colour of that house, what a bold statement! And did any of those Ivory Curls go home with you? They are beauties that's for sure!
ReplyDeleteNo, they stayed right there at the nursery.
DeleteLove love love the colors, how fun! And expensive plants but oh-so-lustworthy. Wow.
ReplyDeleteKinda reminds me of your back garden bold color scheme!
DeleteAgaves and curls...what next?
ReplyDeleteUhm...a trip to Kennedy School?
DeleteThat huge agave coupled with the house color... it just looks wrong. Incredible, but crazy. Maybe it's the plant color... variegated plants just shouldn't be that size!
ReplyDeleteShouldn't be? But they are...
DeleteThe house is way fun! Love the huge agave out front which looks especially spectacular with the hot colors behind it. The two agaves that tempted you are very handsome!
ReplyDeleteWould one (or both) have come home with you?
DeleteOh my! I've wanted that Albuca since I first saw it on Pinterest. I've also coveted an Agave gypsophila for ages. I clearly live in the wrong part of the state!
ReplyDeleteNothing a little road trip couldn't fix.
DeleteThat albuca is so cool (and the agaves, but I don't feel I even have to say that anymore, it's just assumed right?). The house looks like a toy. I'd never do it and can't say I necessarily like it, but it's pretty fun! The hacked limbs of the agave in front of the house remind me of one I drive past sometimes out the front of a house. It's in the middle of a hedge. So the hedgetrimmers do their job, and the poor agave wedged in the middle gets the old trim too. I'm surprised they haven't given up and removed it by now, it's such a sorry sight!
ReplyDeleteOh that sounds so sad Amy! WWTT? (do take a picture sometime if you think of it)
DeleteWow - I've never seen one of those Albucas before... so cool! And I love the sign to The Dry Garden - heck, that grin says it all! If I were you, I would have rang the crazy house doorbell, and asked for a pup or two!
ReplyDeleteNah, I have a few Agave americana 'Variegata' plants already. They're not terribly hardy so putting them in the ground here usually means death.
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