Once again, our Lily of the Valley has these cascading bell-shaped flowers. The tiny white buds hang in clusters from the potted plant in the patio. Each flower is less than a half-inch from its stem to the bottom of the petals. Very pretty!
Umbrella Tree
About a year ago, our Umbrella Tree (Schefflera actinophylla) was severely damaged by a frost (must be global warming). The leaves turned yellow and fell off and little was left other than a four-foot ‘cane’ (one of several thin trunks on the tree). It turns out that Southern California is just barely in the ‘comfort’ zone for this exotic tropical plant. In warmer climates (here as well but rarely) the tree will produce stalks of flowers and fruit at the top.
Fortunately, the tree revived and is back in business producing these beautiful clusters of green leaves. I took this shot after the rain came and went the other morning. Click on the image for a nice big view.
From Floridata
Brassaia, octopus tree, umbrella tree, or just plain “schefflera”, is an erect shrub or small tree getting up to 40 ft (12 m) tall. The plant grows with multiple trunks, each topped with a small crown of large showy leaves. The compound leaves form an umbrella shaped rosette which gives the tree one of its common names. Ten to fifteen stalks of bright red flowers appear in summer and are followed by round dark berries. Schefflera is commonly grown as a house plant where it stays in a juvenile condition, rarely exceeding a couple feet (60 cm) in height, and never blooming.
The California Poppy
Poppies are again blooming in abundance in Southern California. I took this picture at the Point Vicente Interpretive Center last weekend.
Table Setting
Homemade pizza, spinach salad, beer and fine silverware make for a great weekend meal.
The topping for the pizza is pancetta (Italian bacon), grilled zucchini, marinated artichoke hearts, acorn squash and chopped black olives. All topped with Havarti and Mozzarella cheese.
The silverware is a fork and a .357 magnum.
Bok Choi
Last year, we planted some bok choi (a type of Chinese cabbage) in our garden. The bok choi liked it here and now we have them all over the garden, One of the perks with this edible plant is the fact that it produces these beautiful flower clusters on a stalk.
California Brown Pelican
One of the prettiest sights you can see on the California coastline is pelicans soaring along the cliffs. This is a breeding-age California Brown Pelican – the red markings under the bill and other color attributes indicate the pelican’s age. I took this photo last Saturday when we were at Point Vicente.
