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A tribute to the flowering clichés of summer


Tree with light pink flowers
Crape myrtle trees add color and dappled shade to so many Sacramento-area yards in summer. (Photos, except where noted: Kathy Morrison)

Crape myrtle and others are colorful delights


Street with crape myrtles
Raspberry and purple crape myrtles brighten this street.
(Photo courtesy Sacramento Tree Foundation)
On a hot summer day, when everything outdoors seems slightly fried,  it's so refreshing to turn a corner and see a crape myrtle tree in full raspberry-tressed glory.


Crape myrtles got me thinking about a few other "cliché" flowering plants --- none of them California natives --- that keep our summers from being bloomless:

Purple-blue flower
Agapanthus blossoms entice pollinators, too.

-- Agapanthus, also called lily of the Nile ( Agapanthus africanus ). But it's not a real lily. The ultimate local landscaping cliché is a clump of these periwinkle-flowered shrubs planted under a crape myrtle! They're hardy and require little maintenance, just needing to be divided every few years. And when they're not blooming, they fade into the background with their strappy green leaves.

Daylily blossom
Daylilies are so gorgeous, worth growing even if the beauty
is fleeting. Below, gazania blossoms are favorites with native bees.
Bottom, lantana is popular in my neighborhood, with good reason.


-- Daylilies ( Hemerocallis spp.). These also aren't real lilies. The showy blooms of these tough perennials come in so many different color variations, but around town you're most likely to see the gold ones called 'Stella de Oro.' The Amador Flower Farm, in Amador County's Shenandoah Valley, specializes in daylilies; the farm's website offers lots of information on cultivars and growing requirements. Like agapanthus, they need dividing every few years -- free plants!

-- Gazanias ( Gazania rigens ). I'd grow these flowers even if their only good point was their attractiveness to bees. But the daisy-like blooms stand up to heat, come in many colors and reseed easily if you let them. I have clumps in my front garden that have survived years with very little maintenance.

-- Lantana ( Lantana camara and L. trifolia , in particular.). Clumping shrubs with many variations in bloom color, lantanas are another favorite with pollinators, especially butterflies. Many cultivars are available. They can be frost-sensitive, but I kept one alive for many winters by using a little frost blanket. They also do well as potted plants.


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Garden Checklist for week of Sept. 29

Make the most of cool mornings and remember to keep new transplants hydrated. Their roots appreciate the warm soil, even though they may wilt in this heat.

* October is the best month to plant trees, shrubs and perennials.

* Before planting, add a little well-aged compost and bone meal to the soil, but hold off on other fertilizers until spring. Keep the transplants well-watered (but not wet) for the first month as they become settled.

* Dig up corms and tubers of gladioli, dahlias and tuberous begonias after the foliage dies. Clean and store in a cool, dry place.

* Treat azaleas, gardenias and camellias with chelated iron if leaves are yellowing between the veins.

* Clean up the summer vegetable garden and compost disease-free foliage.

* Harvest pumpkins and winter squash.

* Now is the time to plant seeds for many flowers directly into the garden, including cornflower, nasturtium, nigella, poppy, portulaca, sweet pea and stock.

* Plant seeds for radishes, bok choy, mustard, spinach and peas.

* Plant garlic and onions.

* Set out cool-weather bedding plants, including calendula, pansy, snapdragon, primrose and viola.

* Reseed and feed the lawn. Work on bare spots.

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