"Cottaging" in California

I usually hang out on the Cottage Garden forums both here and on Gardenweb, but there's so few Northern CA gardeners on either it's a little frustrating. On the GW CG gallery, someone started a thread of "classic cottage flowers". It made me realize yet again that so many beautiful plants I use are not traditional English country cottage plants. Our climate is too different and I prefer being stingy with summer water (especially with mandatory water rationing looming this summer!).

BUT, we all can, and do, grow plants in our gardens that would make any cold-winter gardener green with envy (unintentional pun, that). They need greenhouses for their citrus and orchids, or have to treat lantana and iceplant as annuals. They don't have our ability to grow mature palms or banana plants as casually as cold-weather gardeners would plant a dogwood.

I looked through my photo collection and highlighted these plants that are almost all zone 9-11 beauties. Plus, they're evergreen year round; many of them in bloom for long months on end.

What do you have in your garden that makes it a treat for those who are "zone envious" to see?
http://s26.photobucket.com/albums/c116/jkom51/CA%20cottage/?albumview=grid

Jkom, YOU HAVE MADE MY DAY! believe it or not...I have "zone envy" for not being able to grow Hostas, Dicentras, etc...so....let's show'em what WE have! : )

zone 9 horticultural treats ?
Bromeliads
Succulents
Southern hemisphere plants

Statice limonium. People always want to know what it is. Blooms all year here although I lost all of it in a freeze a couple of years ago - we all remember that one. So I replaced it all.

Oh yes, those are pretty! Very popular in here in San Diego!

Lavender
Rosemary



Chris

Helleborus argutifolius

Chris

Pacific Coast Iris - what a fun thread!!

Can't forget fuchsia

My favorite fern "Mother Fern" (Asplenium viviparum)

Discovered a whole bunch more to add!

Here's a variegated CA fuchsia:

How could I forget the ordinary but still lovely red hibiscus?

Hunnemania doesn't live long, but it hates summer water which is a real advantage these days:

Here's three at once - Lantana shrub 'Peaches and Cream', blue agapanthus, and a silver helichrysum in flower. We can't count the santolina in the lower left, it can go down to zone 5!

The wonderful Lotus bertholotti "Gold Flash" was put in a pot because when I tried it in the ground, it spread like a misty green blanket but didn't want to flower! It really is much more striking when confined to a container.

Beautiful blue-green leaves and wildly dramatic flower spikes - Melianthus major

The old freeway standby - Red Oleander

An extremely pretty variegated dwarf pink canna. It doesn't like the spot it's in now, so I'll be moving it soon. Like most variegated cannas, prefers a partially shaded spot.

Plectranthus ciliatus is a relative of coleus (I think); I believe this is "Zulu Wonder". The underside of the leaves and the stems themselves are a deep burgundy color. It's a beautiful plant that sprawls 2-3'.

Nice photos of some lovely plants you folks! Here's the mexican evergreen climbing hydrangea 'Seamanii' or 'Seemanii' It's slow to take off but I can't wait for it to take over the fence.

Strobilanthes is a very tender perennial; it's a bit too cold in the winter in Northern CA for it to do well but probably is fine anywhere south of Monterey along the coast.

New Zealand Flax (phormium) 'Sundowner'. I call this my Spiderman plant!

Tecomaria is sold everywhere here, so I was surprised that it too is a zone 9+ only.

Japanese Maples can grow in a lot of places but they grow here and the Pacific Northwest best of all it seems. I have to fight most of mine to keep them in their places.

Lovely shots everyone. Ahhh makes me glad to live here! My garden is really new, so I don’t have too many specifically zone 9-11 plants blooming. The mimulus behind the mini rose in this shot is one of my new favorites though, and it’s supposed to be hardy to zone 9.

This is a pic of my mandevilla from last year. It’s growing like crazy right now, but not flowering yet.

Geraniums flowering all winter is a definite plus

I love my lemon bushes! This one is a meyer lemon.

Anyone grow any orchids outside? I'm reminded that a friend once rented from an elderly lady who filled every fire escape landing (fortunately they never had a fire, LOL!) with dozens of cattleya plants. She was in the Jordan Park area of San Francisco (fog, but not as bad as the Sunset) and had grown them for decades.

It was a glorious sight, walking up the stairs and seeing the windows on every landing open with blooming orchids in all colors. I was more impressed with hers than with Rod McClellan's nursery or the SF Flower Mart - she made it look so simple! The building was pure Art Deco with all the original trim, which made it all fit together with casual elegance.

I only have one spot warm enough, but I'd rather save it for my roses and dahlias [grin]. I noticed one person in our neighborhood does raise them against a western wall, but his property's microclimate is more protected than mine.

Cymbidium orchid on my front porch. I grow 3 others on the porch but this is the only one with open blooms.

Sedums and succulents

All kinds of color in April already!!

Succulents in the ground year round

My Cymbidiums stay outside year round, unless it's a bad extended frost

Beautiful as usual Sue. You are queen of the succulents. :-)

Sue, I love your succulent arrangement! Mine never looks that "filled in"...Doss, what are those gooorgeous iris on you porch? Amazing!

The purple ones are "By Design" and Holiday Parade. The pink ones are "Hot Ziggedy".

Thanks! Will check on plant files!

Does this qualify as cottage? A work in progress but this part was looking pretty brilliant and felt like cottage to me.

I don't think that you could possibly get any 'cottagier' than that stellapathic. Stunning. I sure want to walk down your path.

Here's the perennial garden right now. It's bearded iris season!