Usually I visit the gardens in the spring or early summer, not thinking about a hot day in August. Invited by Wendy and Nadia, I was surprised at the diversity of blooms in August. As usual, the entrance display was excellent, starting with this Hesperantha coccinea, the Scarlet river lily.
Here are three of my favourites from this week, though only one is a bloom. HUGE sunflower, is this Helianthus annuus? These were my favourite floppy leaves, Brunsvigia radulosa. And best tree trunk, Larix laricina.
The big surprise was blooming in the middle of August Franklinia. My old pictures of this tree in bloom are from September-November
Next in the entrance display was Salvia forsskaolii, featured in August's garden blog... Then came the Monarda fistulosa, about half way to the tunnel... Passing through the tunnel to the east garden, we first see a thistle-like Cardoon, Cynara which is a "statuesque perennial equally suited to both the vegetable garden and the perennial border". It was so pretty, I took two photos... Entering the vegetable garden, we were surprised by a black tomato "Indigo-Rose" or Solanum licopersicum from West Coast Seeds. Very pretty, but I don't think it will sell well in the grocery store... Next in the vegetable garden is an Oriental Garlic, Allium tuberosum. I think I would rather look at the flowers than eat the tuber... How many of us have enjoyed a quinoa salad without knowing what the plant looks like? This is a Chenopodium quinoa - it seems to grow on the West Coast in addition to Bolivia, but you have to be patient as it takes 100 days to grow... Ever seen a round cucumber? This Cucumber 'Picolino', Cucumis sativus, has forgotten how to stretch... Next we saw several hybrid anemone, 'Andrea Atkinson', popular in Vancouver gardens in white and pink...
Next, we saw the thistle-leaved Berkheya circiifolia, that bees like very much... Then the Amaryllus belladonna from South Africa... On the return path after the tunnel, we saw a large Forrest's St. John's wort, Hypericum Forrestii... Finally, on the way out, I was enjoying a sandwich by the garden shop, and saw the rare Ginkgo biloba across from me. It had a very distinctive leaf shape, but can't complain as it is supposed to reduce memory loss and slow aging - must try some...
