Technically, spring isn’t supposed to be here until late next week. In spite of that, this little flower opened up on the flowering plum tree in the courtyard. The tree is starting to get its leaves back, and there are many more flower buds getting ready to open. The temperature today was about 83° with the forecast for tomorrow and Friday calling for even warmer temperatures. Click on the image to enlarge.
Several Weeks ago, I planted some paperwhite bulbs in a shallow garden box in the courtyard. In spite of being outdoors and exposed to cooler wintertime temperatures, they are now happily producing these tiny white flowers. Click on the image to enlarge.
Here is a factoid I found at a commercial bulb vendors website:
The paperwhite narcissus, a relative of daffodils and jonquils, is easy to grow and produces small, fragrant flowers on 12 to 18-inch stalks. Most paperwhites have pure white blooms, but yellow varieties are also available.
This is an old photo taken in California a few years ago. This was taken in the back yard of our house in the South Bay area of Los Angeles County.
We know that Lantana attracts butterflies and hummingbirds. We are considering installing some lantana somewhere on the property here. We will probably use them for ground cover near our citrus trees. Click on the image to enlarge.
This is a claret cup cactus (echinocereus triglochidiatus) which is a close relative to our hedgehog cacti (echinocereus fendleri). The difference is that instead of pink flowers, this one will have bright red flowers starting in about a month. You can see the red flowers by clicking here.
I have several bulbs planted in a shallow box in the courtyard. This morning, I discovered that there were buds opening on my paperwhites. It rained overnight and we had a little freezing rain pellets on top of the soil in the box. That’s why you don’t see the brown potting soil in the background – it’s ice. Click on the image to enlarge.
Last week, I posted about four red trumpets after all the flowers opened on the first flower stalk of my red amaryllis. Now, the second stalk flowers are opening. They’re just as red and just as pretty. Click on the image to enlarge.
