Right before our February "week of winter" I was out walking and happened upon a garden near me with a nice little patch of opuntia and agaves—it's the first garden in
this post. I've been wondering how their Agave americana var. striata (an unusual choice for our climate) did through the cold, with Andrew's help I did a drive by recently to see how it was doing. Here's the house...
With it's large maple...
And gorgeous arctostaphylos.
The front garden has a bit of a split personality. Shady on the east side of the sidewalk, sunny on the west—the house faces south.
Here's my last photo of the east side, it's a bit sun exposed and while the palm looks promising I think the strawberries days might be numbered.
The entry screams sun, what with those potted cactus.
And then there's this! OMG... these people have been busy! I am so impressed.
I want to say this is an Agave macroacantha grown in such a way that it's sort of pinched and elongated. But I could be wrong, and Agave macroacantha isn't particularly hardy.
So many excellent spikes! And that's a nice trunk on the Yucca rostrata...
Love it when a bloom happens mid-pad. I'm sorry I missed seeing the flower.
Okay a wide shot now where I can share what really had me excited. Do you see it!? Folks there's an ocotillo planted in the ground just 6 blocks from my home...
Granted it's looking rather dormant, but this will be very exciting to watch! I shot off a text to
Sean Hogan to ask what he thought, does it stand a chance? His reply: "just depends where it comes from.. some certainly doable"...
... and when I asked if he'd seen any growing here successfully he responded: "I had one for a few [years] in NE [Portland], from Ponderosa pine forest in New Mexico’s Guadalupe Mtns but got shaded out. Nice blue leaves. Must get again"—so, there is hope! I will be watching.
Moving along (on my knee scooter, with a camera—I must have been quite the spectacle), there's more gravel in the drive... are they expanding the xeric plantings? Perhaps to the eastside of the sidewalk? Oh! Perhaps there's some interesting action in the back garden??
On the other side of the drive...
The tall tetrapanax...
...are hiding a cycad.
This is the patch of goodness I first spotted last February. It's looking great!
The agave Agave americana var. striata looks wonderful. My plant is working on producing a pup so maybe I'll plant it out once it's large enough.
Beautiful Agave parryi.
Another look at that ocotillo...
And a wider look at the whole planting before I fall back into the car and Andrew loads my 4-wheel scooter into the back...
Oh and if you're wondering about the title of this post... Concordia is the name of our neighborhood. Andrew was having fun playing with a suitable replacement moniker since there are so many agaves popping up around us and came up with the idea of Concordia AZ (for Arizona).
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danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.
I'm chuckling at your excitement as I read this. Who knows, these folks might be doing a drive-by of YOUR house and garden..."Oh, look Frank, they have an Agave ovatifolia growing right by the sidewalk. Wow!" and "Look at their yard. It's awesome." These people might even have your book and could be wondering if Loree Bohls knows about YOUR garden. Ha! It's a lovely garden for sure. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteYour comment had me smiling, thank you. If I were mobile I was thinking I might drop off a copy of my book and thank them for being fearless. Maybe I will once I'm walking again...
DeleteWell, if the owners of this property were motivated to go spiky before your recent heat apocalypse, maybe they're even more focused now. Do you have a spot for an Ocotillo?
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately I don't really. I think any I planted would meet with the same fate Sean's did. That is getting shaded out. Besides I don't know if anywhere around here selling them! Must have been a road trip involved.
DeleteWhat a thrill to have an ocatillo in one’s garden.
ReplyDeleteRight? Or at least in one's neighborhood...
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ReplyDeleteI admire your dedication for finding material. Above the call of duty. At first I thought this was an early shot of your house. I bet people do drive bys of your place for inspiration as this is reminiscent of your landscape. Eager to see how the Ocotillo does.
Oh I'd be out there photographing regardless of if I had a blog, at least this way I do have somewhere to share it...
DeleteAs I know nothing about Ocotillo, I look it up and found this fun did bit on Wikipedia: "While semi-succulent and a desert plant, Ocotillo is more closely related to tea and blueberries than to cactus". Mind blown.
ReplyDeleteKudos to Andrew for being so supportive. How much longer with the cast?
The cast is gone, a big clumsy boot took it's place. Still no walking though, not for a couple of weeks.
DeleteI'm obsessed with the idea of growing ocotillo in Portland. People think it isn't possible in Davis (it is; mine has been in the ground for 4-5 years), but Portland has an entirely different set of challenges, primarily winter moisture, I would think.
ReplyDeleteYes indeed, I agree that winter moisture (as well as maybe lack of sun in the winter?) would seem to be the major issue.
DeleteGreat planting and curious to see how they get on with the Agave macroacantha and Ocotillo. Garden update is needed for next spring :)
ReplyDeleteDefinitely!
DeleteHa, ha, ha we all want what we can't have! Ocotillos, native to the Sonoran Desert, are a dime a dozen here in Phoenix, of course. I do love mine which has been planted at my house for 25 years and is about 15 to 20 feet tall! It blooms on and off all summer. I hope you will give us an update how it does in Portland. I can't imagine it, especially since it is so adapted and responsive to the desert climate. Even here, trying to get an Ocotillo established in a garden is not easy. It can take years before they get used to being planted in a garden, instead of the plant choosing its own spot out in the desert! They aren't really dead, but sure look that way until they ever decide to leaf out!
ReplyDeleteThey are such an incredible plant, the way they (as you say) respond to the desert climate. You're lucky to have one!
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