This is the time of year when I venture to California to visit with my mother.  While yet another snowstorm covers up the snowdrops again I visited my mother last week and checked up on the plants that are growing vigorously almost any time of year.  The outstanding elements in January are always the pair of Camellias that dominate the side of the house.

Camellia blooms dripping off the bush

Camellia wall

They grow so easily and flower so vigorously that it seems almost criminal.

Another spot that gets my every couple of months check is the back bed.  The back of the yard was once a lovely flower garden that my Dad planted but it got overrun with nut grass.  My cure was to build up the bed and put in pots with a drip irrigation system that waters only the pots not the surrounding earth.  This I did quite a few years ago and by and large it works pretty well if the irrigation tubes don’t get knocked off or the timer reset.

The back garden

There are now three dwarf citrus trees along the back wall and numerous perennials.  My mother pointed out last trip the value of pinning down the drip irrigation tubes and that has proved to be a very valuable step.  The citrus are yielding less than last year, but everyone is still pretty much alive back there and that’s a major plus.  That’s Cape Honeysuckle with the orange flowers hanging down from the porch.

Cape Honeysuckle (Tecomaria capensis)

This is a vigorous plant with attractive flowers the year round.

It’s a little bit early for the plants in the back bed to be flourishing, but I did notice that because of the heavy rains last month the part of the garden outside of the pots that does not get watered by irrigation was covered withs seedling Calendulas, a number of which were already up to flowering size.

Calendulas self-seeding

One could do worse than having Calendulas go wild.

I added a few plants this trip, as is my common practice.  This time I found a really nice tall Pink Coral Pea.  It fit in very nicely where the Dahlia had been eaten by snails and next to where the Bougainvillea has not made up its mind whether to grow or not.

New Pink Coral Pea (Hardenbergia violacea)

The large vine provides instant color to the bed.  However the joke was on me.  As my mother pointed out we already had two very large specimens of this big shrubby vine at the side of the house.

Existing Pink Cora Pea

Because the nursery plant was well ahead in flowering I didn’t realize that the same plants were already in the yard.  Credit one to the supervisor.

The Supervisor

I also put in a Peacock flower and an Anemone Coronaria, but the final step as an investment for the future was to add a little tomato plant.

Tomato seedling (Celebrity)

This one is surrounded by diatomaceous earth to provide an ancient drying spell against snails which run rampant in California gardens.  We’ll see if it makes a difference to the slimy sort…

My thanks to SpiritKeeper on YouTube for the above reading of Winter’s Beauty by William H. Davies.

Gardens Gone Wild has a photo contest for January with the theme of “Winter’s Beauty”.  As is usual it’s a theme that offers lots of opportunity for interpretation and selection.  The classic picture for me in wintertime is the Ice Cardinal that I posted for the November contest.  But since this is for joy and sharing I ruled out any repeat submissions.  So we shall go prospecting for “Winter’s Beauty”.

It’s always interesting to see how the world looks after a snowstorm, but sometimes the results after an ice storm are even more striking.

Japanese Maple in Ice

But it may be even better when you get closer up to the plants.

Blueberry Row in Ice

What’s missing from these pictures though is the spot of color that Ice Cardinal had.  So another approach is to look at these emerging Winter Aconite fighting back an ice patch.

Winter Aconite (Eranthis hyemalis) closed up for cold weather

Another traditional example of Winter Beauty  is the Japanese Flowering Quince which is ready to flower at the drop of a hat.  Snow is only a minor inconvenience.

Japanese Flowering Quince (Chaenomeles japonica) in the snow

But when you stop to think of it “Winter’s Beauty” isn’t just about the snow.  It’s all around you if you take time to look.  The leftover Northern Sea Oats are still there waiting to be seen against the winter sky.

Northern Sea Oats (Chasmanthium latifolium) against the winter sky

So just following that lead and ignoring ice, snow, and color, I’m going to go with what is an ongoing Winter’s Beauty highlight for me.  Every morning’s trip to the mailbox takes me past a Star Magnolia that increasingly unveils the buds that will in late March open up to beautiful white flowers heralding another spring.  The buds have the soft furry texture of cat’s paws and the little gray-white hairs reflect the light dramatically.  That’s my “Winter’s Beauty”.

Star Magnolia (Magnolia stellata) bud in January

Last year I was struck by the welcome sight of the Witch Hazel in early February.  It was alight with yellow petals at a time when most things were still sleeping off the winter chill.  However, our Boston children had already sent down a picture of Witch Hazel ‘Jelena’ with gorgeous red straps in early January so I was inspired to order a related variety, ‘Diane’.  The first one that arrived was on death’s door so I asked for a replacement.  And even that one was in a soft pot with a lot of loose soil.  So it has resided in a pot with little disturbance since last spring.  Now I notice that it is indeed already opening up with bright red straps.

Witch Hazel 'Diane' (Hamamelis x intermedia)

We need to find a home for this little tree this spring.

We’ve just had a week or so of somewhat warmer weather.  Yesterday was 50 degrees again.  And things are starting to pop up.  But this Witch Hazel is definitely ahead of it’s Chinese counterpart which is only just starting to show color.

Chines Witch Hazel (Hamamelis mollis)

It rained heavily over the weekend which helped the ground thaw out and got rid of a lot of the remaining snow.  I was very pleased to see that when the snow melted next the porch the little Hepatica that we got from Asiatica last year (Single Purple) was looking very happy and even starting to put out some buds.

Hepatica single purple from Asiatica

Well, here we are starting off a new year with Garden Blogger Bloom Day.  Sad to say there aren’t many flowers to show from a tour around the property.  Certainly the most spectacular on site is a very nice Moth Orchid growing inside the house.

Stripped Phalaenopsis

As is true with most of our orchids they blossom with incredible staying power, 4-6 weeks I would guess, and the flowers will stop you in your tracks.

It’s a good thing we have the orchids going on because outside there is not much to show this month.  I took a pretty good walk around and saw only the same little snowdrop that has been out for nearly a month now.

Snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis) in January

Otherwise it was a lot of promising buds but no cigars (to borrow a phrase).  We’ve had a lot of freezing or below days that have only just ended with 50 degrees yesterday, today, and tomorrow.  One warm spell has trouble making up for a lot of frigid temperatures.  Things like the hellebores and quince are just waiting in the wings and I see lots of daffodils sticking up their little green spikes.  Scary to think that we are not even at the middle point of the winter as far as the ground temperature goes.  That could make one start to plan a trip to Florida for spring training (which I plan to do this year…).

Of course even when the plants are dormant many of the birds are still here to keep us company.  The red Cardinals are always a comfort when we get up in the morning.  But today I was noting how nicely even the House Finches are colored when they are not side by side with the Cardinals.

House Finch in January

Another surprising element to me is just how much color is left on the male Goldfinches even in the dead of winter.  Is it always this way and am I just paying more attention?

Goldfinch in January

Along with the warm weather we have had a couple of amazing sunsets.  I sat outside and watched this one with a cup of tea last night.  Those red adirondack chairs on the pasture hillside are wonderful for contemplation until the sun goes down and it gets cold enough to chase me inside.  May your winter seed catalog dreams match glowing colors of the sunset…

January sunset

Cooper's Hawk looking back

This Hawk was sitting outside in the maple tree when I went out this morning.  It was not much concerned about me, but seemed to be keeping a keen eye on the yard.  Needless to say there weren’t many other birds hanging around.  I would have guessed Broad-winged Hawk from the markings, but they should have long since migrated for the winter.  This one was not large but showed every sign of living hereabouts.  So my best guess is immature Cooper’s Hawk.

Wow!  Did the holidays just race right by.  I started several postings that just never got to fruition.  First there was the Dec 20th snowfall that exceeded all expectations.

The big snow of December 20th

I had noticed a little snowdrop making an early appearance late on the evening of the 19th and thought (naively) that I would get out early in the morning and snap a picture before the snow got too deep.  Nope.  By the time I got up the snow was deep and getting deeper.  It was a beautiful fluffy snow that was followed by sunshine.  Perfect for sledding.

Our sledding hillside

But when the snow melted after Christmas that little snowdrop was still there looking happy as a clam.

Our first snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis)

And it’s being joined by several others

More Snowdrops on the way

The temperatures have been mostly in the thirties daytime and twenties at night so I was surprised to see that the Hellebores are also showing growth.  Ivory Prince in particular seems to be well advanced in putting out its flower buds.

Buds forming on Helleborus x 'Ivory Prince'

I can see many instances of the daffodils putting up green tips as well as leucojum and meadowsweet.

New growth from the Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria)

But before I could fully enjoy these newly emerging shoots I had one more task from my Fall planting to accomplish.  The weather had kept me from planting the last of my December discount order from Brent and Becky.  So last Wednesday, just before the year ended I went out on a freezing day and put in 50 daffodils (Beautiful Eyes).  The ground was frozen on top but once I broke through the surface with the auger it was easy to put in one last swath of daffodils.  The hardest part was kneeling on the frozen ground.

The last daffodils planted for the season

Though I certainly pushed these to the limits of the planting season, I was ready to plant more when I finished.  But I guess I should focus on the seed catalogs next.

The other planting was our Christmas tree.  Here’s what it looked like for Christmas on the inside.

Christmas tree at night

And then after planting at the bottom of the 2nd pasture.

2009 Christmas tree planted

Now to those seed catalogs  :)

Red-flowered Camellia sasanqua

Well for over a month now this little red-flowered Camellia sasanqua has been blooming its little heart out for us.  And as of this Garden Blogger’s Bloom Day this the one and only fully legitimate flower we have to report.  One gold star for the Fall-flowering Camellias.  The lovely little (and I stress little) Camellia Japonica that we had flowering last month has had all it’s branches chewed off by deer.  We’ve had temperatures down to near 20 degrees and most flowers that were hanging on until the beginning of the month have gone South for the Winter.  We do have a few plants that are volunteering buds that might be ready to pop if we get so much as short warm spell.

Red Japanese Quince (Chaenomeles japonica)

This Quince has already flowered once this Winter and is just aching to flower again.

Daphne odora 'aureomarginata' in bud

The Daphne has the virtue that it hangs around all Winter looking as though it’s ready to pop into bloom and although it will bloom early it usually waits its turn till early Spring.  The foliage looks great almost all the time though and provides an nice backdrop to the flowers and buds.

Inside the house however we are blessed not only be the beautiful Cattleya that I posted about earlier this month but an Amazon Lily that is having a banner year.  Last year it pushed up a single flower stalk in January.  This year,in honor of the kids coming early for Christmas it is in full flower.

Amazon Lily flower clusters

This is a good-sized plant that prospers under a regimen of all Winter in the well-lit living room and Summer on the shady deck.  It usually flowers twice a year but this year we’ve hit the jackpot.

Amazon lily (Eucharis x grandiflora) from below

The flowers last for a month and at the end you have to put up with beautiful glossy foliage — what is there not to like? Especially on a cold and wintry Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day.  :)

First snowfall touches the branches of the dogwood in the front yard

We had our first snowfall this weekend.  It was no more than a couple of inches but it did cause me to bring into the basement the last of the plants that I had left outside (the jasmine, a lantana, and a hibiscus).  Temperatures dropped below 25 which is my threshold for those plants that I had known from Southern California.  The clean white snow shows everything to good advantage so I went around taking a few pictures before it all melted.

Flowering quince in the snow

Tulip Poplar in the snow

Blueberries wearing snowy cottonballs

Adirondack chairs in snow

I know I should take those chairs in for the Winter but they look so good out there on the hillside.

Our neighbor's pond

Looking up the pasture from the bottom of the hill

Well, maybe the title exaggerates a bit.  But the first of the orchids has come into bloom and it’s a lovely Cattleya.

Cattleya orchid under the kitchen lights

The orchids seem to thrive on living out on the deck in the summertime and then coming to a table the sunlit laundry room for the winter.  At least one of the other orchids is budding up nicely.

I went out this week on an annual run to purchase a living Christmas tree.  As for the last 5 years or so, I drove to Taneytown, about 40 min away, to visit Sewell’s Farm where they specialize in both cut and live Christmas trees.  I was disappointed that despite what the web site said they didn’t have any White Pines or Douglas Fir, only Colorado Spruce, Norway Spruce, and Concolor Fir.  I ended up with a Colorado Spruce which I think will actually be quite nice for a change.  I don’t like the prickly branches of the spruces, but the Colorado is nicer than the Norway and they are actually very pretty trees.  The bluish tint and the way the needle’s curl seems to make them appear decorated even before we’ve started.  Plus they smell very nice as well.

Colorado Blue Spruce for Christmas 2009

Putting up a live tree is an ongoing tradition for us which I described in posts last year (Our First Christmas Tree and Christmas Trees Redux).  Every year is a little bit different challenge of lifting and shoving to get it in place, but we like sharing the Christmas morning with a living tree.

We had a great Thanksgiving celebration up in Boston.  But on our return I found that we had been visited not just by deer (that happens all the time) but by a very angry deer.  Our poor Coralbark Maple was totally demolished.

Deer devastation of the Coralbark Maple

Detail of the deer damage

I haven’t got anywhere on the property where I’ve seen this kind of destruction.  It’s almost as though they were angry that they couldn’t get into the garden anymore.  I had only just planted the maple this year.  I doubt that I can take back to the nursery and say that it just didn’t grow…