ajuga - chocolate Chip

Ajuga - chocolate Chip is blooming.

Herb Bowl

I planted this one years ago. I'm sure it is completely root bound, but all the herbs come back year after year. oregano, chives, rosemary, lavendar, and sage.

I was thinking about moving the whole thing into a larger bowl so the plants have a little more breathing room.

Cherry Trees Blooming

Oyster Plant Blooming

Sourgrass

While Michelle and I were out at all the nurseries yesterday she told me that she had just found out that sourgrass was edible, and she was contemplating using it for an ice cream flavor. I wasn't sure what it was that she was talking about, but she said "oh, it grows everywhere you'd know it if you saw it," When we passed by some, she pointed it out and I realized it was the stuff that fills my neighbors backyard and spills under the fence into our yard.

Here's some more info about it, apparently it's South African, and super invasive. Oxalis pes-caprae
Bermuda Buttercup, Yellow Sour Grass, Cape Sorrel, African Woodsorrel, Sour Sob

New Plants

Today I went with Michelle to the Berkeley Horticultural Nursery, which I swear I'd been to before, but it looked completely different! Maybe because it was spring and full of tons and tons or plants. I picked up a 4" pot of Viola Labradorica, and a pint Heliotropium Arborescens. While we were they we saw a display with a bulb that I liked a lot, we didn't see any for sale there but asked what it was called they said "Sparaxis."

Later, we were driving over to the new location of the Oaktown Nursery, and as we passed the East Bay nursery (which we only drove by on the suggestion of Michelle), and from the street I saw the Sparaxis bulbs so I pulled over and picked up a couple. When we got to the Oaktown Nursery new location, it was closed, so I'll have to make another trip out this way soon.

Sparaxis bulbs from East Bay Nursery

Viola Labradorica from Berkeley Horticultural Nursery

Heliotrope from Berkeley Horticultural Nursery

Japanese Maple

 

Japanese Maple - I bought this last year at Home Depot as a very small tree. It's got beautiful red bark, and right now the leaves are sprouting.

 

Here's an image from a couple months ago.

Spring Bulbs

More Blueberries

What can I say - I'm a sucker for blueberries, and they seem to be everywhere this year. I got two more at my local Lowes, a 'Berkeley,' and one I had never heard of before... a 'Toro.' They were $6.95 each. not bareroot, but small 1 gallon containers.

Ipheion Blooms!

Ipheion - 'Rolf Fiedler' - they've come up! These guys do a great job of naturalizing. They are very low to the ground, maybe 4" tall the foliage stays low to the ground, only the bloom gets that tall.

I guess Broccoli is more tasty than Spinach.

Or at least some kind of pest thinks so.

Bromeliad for Valentines Day

 

I got this cool bromiliad with pink and purple flower spikes for Valentines Day.