Monday, April 18, 2011

Plant Nerd Road Trip - Part 2

nerdtripheader2

After heading back to Sean's to drop off our hard-won purchases from the morning stops, we headed off to Cistus. We had originally intended to go to both Joy Creek and Cistus, but realized on the way out there that we were not going to make it to both. We decided to save Joy Creek for another excursion and headed off to Cistus.

trio in greenhouse  098
Upon arrival, we wandered for a bit before meeting up with Sean once again. He enthusiastically showed us around many of the greenhouses, where we got to hear stories of where plants had come from, their hopes of how they'd fare, etc.

Before I get too much further, I offer a disclaimer...I'm not terribly knowledgeable about exotics and tropicals...so if I horribly mis-identify something, I hope you can forgive me :-)

bronze corydalis  110

red epimedium  109
Bronze-Leaved CorydalisRed-Tinged Epimedium Foliage
Love the foliage on this Corydalis...ad of course, couldn't resist more Epimedium foliage.

a thing of beauty macro  105
Hypericum?

loree in search of danger  103

intent ryan  102
Loree in search of dangerRyan, intent on a new find

weedy beauty 2  097
Sometimes even the weeds can be beautiful!

sambucus  101
Sambucus???

purple geranium  108

lovely teucrium  106
GeraniumTeucrium scorodonia
I totally "heart" the purple foliage on this Geranium...and how lovely is that Teucrium with that amazing crenellated foliage and those dusky purple stems (yes, I like purple)...they even make a great combo!

mystery foliage  086
Not sure what this was...but it was striking.





sean  100

talking in greenhouse 1  074
Sean HoganSean, Ryan and Derrick chatting

hellebore  084
Double-Flowered Hellebore

hot pink grevillea  079

mystery plant 2  078
GrevilleaCandy Corn Plant ;-)

fern 1  081
Fern Frond

polophyllum 3  090

jack in the pulpit 3  088
PodophyllumJack in the Pulpit
I've seen so many Podophyllums around town that are just not impressive...these were amazing with their huge leaves, some beautifully mottled. I love the tops of this particular Jack in the Pulpit...how cool is that blue and green striping!

restio  068
Restio
I almost got this, luckily Loree warned me it wasn't hardy for us...bummer :-(

saxifrage  072

propogation spigot v  070
SaxifragaPropogation Irrigation
Next up we visited the propogation house, which was full of little treasures in the making, including the above Saxifrage...how rad are those red stems and leaf edges!!! I hope this one is available to purchase someday.

echium  065
Echium

jack in the pulpit  067
Jack in the Pulpit

yucca  064
Yucca filamentosa

yellow oxalis  099

heuchera 2  096
Oxalis and Allium?Heuchera

mahonia berries  066
Mahonia berries
Last but not least, are the amazing berries on this Mahonia...just when I had gotten bored of seeing these all over town, this one pops up and all is forgiven!

So there you have it, a fun-filled day with some fellow plant geeks. After the shopping was done, we returned to Sean's house for a delicious meal and some more plant talk...does it get any better?

11 comments:

  1. How fortunate you are to have friends to visit nurseries with.

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  2. You saw some really cool plants! And it must have been great to go with friends!

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  3. The pic of Sean looking into the camera cracks me up. He was certainly posing for the camera, but just from hanging out with him the couple times over that great weekend, I can tell that he's like that all the time.

    I'm lusting after that bronze leaved corydalis. When we saw it in person I wasn't jealous because my C. 'Bronze Beauty' seedlings are doing quite well, but then I remembered. Mine are yellow flowered! Now I need that plant.

    I also hope to get my hands on that red-edged saxafraga and the purple leafed Geranium and the Teucrium and the Justicia (Candy Corn Plant).

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  4. Too bad your photos didn't turn out so good. HA! As usual, gorgeous.

    You really shouldn't let the hardiness zone stop you from enjoying the Restio. Mine was fine outside for many winters, until things turned ugly a couple years ago. Just keep it in a pot and you can tuck it inside when the temperatures dip!

    Your Grevillea photo has me wanting to add that one to my collection!

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  5. loree, I'm pretty sure that Grevillea is x gaudichaudi. If you feel the need to justify it for the danger garden, one of it's parents is acanthifolia. The leaves are quite stiff and if you imagined really hard the leaf tips are rather sharp.

    that restio would look great in a black pot

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  6. What a fun place to visit and see so many different plants. I love that dark leaved geranium Scott. There are some beautiful foliage in these plants.

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  7. Wow. Where to begin? It's all so lovely! You've got me in the mood for shopping trip!

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  8. James: Very much so...quite a difference from my partner who groans at the mention of nurseries ;-)

    Alison: Yes and Yes!

    Ryan: Hahahaha...totally...I don't think he's ever been a shrinking violet ;-) Ahhh...now you can have both Corydalis someday...I'm sure they'll turn up where you least expect it (who would have though at the Leach sale, of all places!) There were truly too many wonderful plants...I'm really craving that Saxifraga and the Teucrium...and I've seen other purple-leaved Geraniums, just none that vibrant...sigh.

    Danger: hahahahahaha...thansks! Good point about the Restio...I could probably find a spot in the house during the winter...I really am quite fascinated by it's coloroing. You and Ryan are going to have to start a Grevillea farm soon ;-)

    Lona: Totally...so much fun and such great plants!

    Kate: Yay for plant shopping...spring is finally here!!!

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  9. OMGosh, give me more! I love these photos, Scott. What a treat. You simply must take an extra memory card on your trip to Joy Creek and take LOTS of photos and post them. Pretty please.

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  10. I'm thinking the plant you suggest as Sambucus is a Pseudopanax lessonii 'Nigra'... gorgeous, in any case, and your photos are very nice indeed. It was clearly a wonderful day and with wonderful folks.

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  11. No, it does not get any better. How fun to shop with fellow bloggers/plant lovers like Loree, at such an amazing nursery as Cistus. Gorgeous images -- I'm drooling.

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