While walking the pathway to the pier where the cormorants were located, we not only saw the brown pelicans and harbor seals, but we saw several beautiful plants. Here are a few. And be sure to visit Red's blog, too. She has some beautiful close-ups that I didn't get.
This first photo is some sort of rock rose. Red hasn't found it's proper name for it yet. I leave all the scientific names for her to locate. As you can tell in the next photo, these rock roses (or whatever they're called) came in various colors.
This is a Matilija poppy. It definitely has that "poppy" look to it.
And this is the all familiar (to us here in California) statice.
Here is a close-up shot of the flower.
Now this is a type of tree mallow. Why it's called that I don't know because it is a shrub not a tree. When I first looked at it I thought it looked like a Rose of Sharon. Red thought it looked like a hibiscus.
Here is a close-up of a couple of the flowers. Aren't they beautiful? I just love the color and shading. If you take a closer look you can probably see some dew drops on the petals. Don't forget to click on the photos to see a larger image.
This was another beautiful plant, but I have no idea what it is. The flowers were kind of like what we would see in a verbena or lantana. And its leaves looked more like a penstemon.
And here is a close-up of the flower.
And this last photo is a group of what is called society garlic. And believe me, it really smells like garlic! And yes, that is Red off to the side looking in her field guide to see if she could identify the flower in the photo above.
13 comments:
Beautiful photos. Loved the tree mallow flowers and the dew drops.
All the flowers are so pretty. I have a couple of tree mallows that I planted alongside the garden and house. I think they look like hollyhocks but with long fronds like a climbing rose (without thorns.) Only one survived our cold winters and we bought two more but they don't have the long fronds like the first ones. The flowers do look a lot like a Tree of Sharon, too.
Nice! Nothing like a virtual garden on a day that's cloudy and gray (as it is here, as I write this)>
What beautiful flowers. Thanks for sharing them with us.
Thanks, Martha. Isn't it funny how blah looking the plant as a whole looks (well at least in my photo it seemed to be). And then the close-up of the flower is so striking.
Hi Linda. I wonder if this tree mallow is a relative of the Rose/Tree of Sharon. And you're right about it looking like a climbing rose without thorns. Yet like you said the flowers look like a hollyhock or what we thought looks like an hibiscus. They all seem to have similar looking flowers. And all very striking and beautiful.
Hi Wren - I'm glad I brought you some virtual sunshine! ;o) Would you believe the day we took these pix was a cloudy day -- or what you may know it as a day with thick marine layer that the sun would not burn away. At least the cloudy day helped with taking photos, especially close-ups.
Thanks for coming by, Jan, and commenting. I'm glad you enjoyed them.
All the flowers are so pretty--makes me wish I could SMELL them all, except for the garlic one. That just doesn't go with flowers!
Lovely flowers. I thought the Rose of Sharon was one of the hibiscus family.
Your flower photos are lovely. All the coastal humidity seems to keep flowers happy all summer long.
I was wondering if you could suggest some pretty places to check out in the Seaside/Marina areas? And the coast north of Marina? I'm driving over that way in a couple of weeks and am sorely lacking in knowledge of off the beaten path pretty places. Thanks.
Nice garden walk, Mary. Many don't care for Rose of Sharon but I like what it has to offer - lots of BEES.
Such a lovely variety - loved seeing all of them!
Donna, you made me laugh, but it's true! You wouldn't think flowers and garlic smells would mix.
Ruth, yes, the Rose of Sharon is part of the hibiscus family. I guess that's why Red described it as such. And I remember seeing Rose of Sharon when I was growing up back East, and I remember seeing it last summer, too, when Red and I visited the East Coast. For some unknown reason I did not connect the hibiscus name with Rose of Sharon, yet I realized the flowers had that hibiscus look.
Thanks, Zhakee. Yes, I do believe many plants really love that coastal humidity. It seems to give plants just the right amount of moisture. And then add in the number of days these plants endure the cloudy days, or at least many hours of fog/marine layer. As for places to visit around the Seaside and Marina areas, let me check for you and I'll leave you a comment on one of your posts.
Mary, you made me smile when you mentioned bees. Do you have a Rose of Sharon in your yard? I guess why I remember Rose of Sharon so much from my childhood days is because it must have been one of my mom's favorite plants. Little did I realize that it was a part of the hibiscus family.
Shelley, thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed them. It's obvious that all the plants/flowers I featured here are certainly not in my garden. We live in a much drier climate on this side of the Santa Cruz hills. ;o)
The Statice may be common in your area, but I have never seen it. It is beautiful. I have added you to my blog list.
Leedra, thanks. I have added you to my Google Reader, and I still need to add you to my blog list. Thanks for stopping by.
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