Wildflower Season Passes

Each year the wildflowers are spectacular. In mid-May they are still blooming in many parts of the state, but in my southern California garden most are past their peak. The poppies (Eschscholzia californica), tidy tips (Layia platyglossa), and gilias (Gilia tricolor, G. capitata) are now going to seed, but earlier they put on quite a show!

California poppy cultivar (Eschscholzia californica)

From Wild Suburbia

I feel a surprising melancholy as I look over the matted gray plants, tawny stems, and silvery seed heads. The question is whether to tidy up now, removing the fading annuals, or to leave them go for awhile. The flitter of sparrows and finches in the brush convinces me to eschew the suburban obsession for a manicured yard and leave the seeds for the birds. Rather than filling a bird feeder, I can pull up a chair, pour myself some lemonade, and watch the birds as they feast on a variety of healthy, nutritious seeds.

Arroyo lupine (Lupinus succulentus)

From Wild Suburbia

In fact, as I look over the garden, I begin to appreciate its seasonality. The garden is transitioning from the exuberance of spring to the quiet of our long, hot, and dry summer. The orange poppies (Eschscholzia californica), yellow and purple lupines (Lupinus spp.), and blue phacelias (Phacelia tanacetifolia, P. minor) will give way to the ecru of cool season grasses (Nassella spp., Melica californica) and the grays of sages (Salvia spp.) and sagebrushes (Artemisia californica). Even as the spectacular blue flowers of the Frosty Blue wild lilac (Ceanothus ‘Frosty Blue’) fade, its shiny, dark green leaves provide a refreshing contrast in my subdued, summer garden.

baby-blue eyes (Nemophila menziesii )

From Wild Suburbia

Three months ago the anticipation of this year’s colorful display was almost unbearable. As it comes to an end I contemplate how I will extend it next year. I will sow seeds over a longer period of time, from October through February. I will include more annuals that bloom into late spring and early summer. Although the deep and soft pinks of the clarkias (Clarkia amoena, C. unguiculata) are still adorning my garden in May and June, next year I will plant more of them and add madias (Madia elegans), tarweeds (Hemizonia spp.) and sunflowers (Helianthus annuus) to provide cheerful yellow flowers late in the season.

penstemon Margarita BOP (Penstemon heterophylla ‘Margarita BOP’)

From Wild Suburbia

And the poppies (Eschscholzia californica) I cut back now will return for a second or third bloom, brightening my summer garden with their brash orange flowers. As the season progresses I will selectively remove and cut back the wildflowers, leaving some seed for the birds, and collecting some for next year.

bird’s eye gilia (Gilia tricolor)

From Wild Suburbia

Looking over my garden, it feels like autumn in the East. Just as I used to look forward to winter as a time of subdued color and reduced outdoor activity, I now take a long, deep breath in anticipation of a slower season. When I first arrived in California I had a hard time distinguishing seasons. Now I find that they are as obvious as the autumn foliage and winter snows of the east coast.