What's Blooming

    There are literally thousands of interesting individual plants in the Arboretum's collections.  At any time of the year there's something blooming, and there's always plenty to see. Our very wet winter has produced an unusual abundance of varied blooms in the gardens this summer. Well worth a visit!
   To help you decide where to start, below we present a sample of some of the specimens that are currently worth seeking out in our gardens. To aid in your quest a map of the Garden can be found here. Follow the World Tour signs to view many of these blooms. You may also access a larger selection of what's currently blooming in our gardens by checking out the photo gallery on the Garden Snapshots page.

California Entrance Garden
  The California Garden, on the right as you enter the Arboretum & Botanic Garden, boasts many special plants of interest to gardeners. Many of these were originally selected in the wild by Garden staff, and have since been propagated and released to the horticultural trade.
   Highlights this August include the Epilobium canum (California Fuschia), that is great for a bird and butterfly garden, and, among many of the Eriogonums in the garden, the Eriogonum fasciculatum var. foliolosum (Leafy California Buckwheat). Other natives include the Heterotheca sessiliflora ssp bolanderi ‘San Bruno Mountain’, which is covered with bright yellow daisies, and the Salvia apiana (White sage), which is also referrred to as bee sage or sacred sage.

South African Garden
   Many brilliant colors and fascinating plants can be found throughout the South African garden. There is a variety of colorful Leucospermums and Proteas currently in bloom, including the Leucospermum cordifolium 'Dennis' Red' and the Protea repens ‘Summer Pink’.
   Among the other plants on display are the vibrant Erica cruenta, one of the  many of the ericas in bloom, and the eye catching Mimetes cucullatus, that is among the easiest of the protea family to grow.

New Zealand Garden
   Many New Zealand plants and trees have become familiar to California gardeners and many special forms of these plants are on display. There are a number of Hebes currently in bloom, including the delicate Hebe acutifolia and Hebe 'Wiri Grace'.
   Among the varitety of other plants currently in bloom are the spectacular Metrosideros 'Maungapiko', (see banner image above) that displays a profusion of beautiful red bristly flowers. Others include Weinmannia racemosa (Kamahi), a medium-sized tree that produces masses of creamy flowers in summer, and Metrosideros perforata, that displays white flowers in dense, terminal, fluffy, clusters.

Australian Garden
   A stroll through the Australian Gardens is always a feast for the senses. There is a wide variety of banksias and grevilleas in bloom of every form and hue. Both are great favorites of the hummingbirds that zip around the garden. One current example is the Banksia baxteri (Baxter's Banksia).
   This summer also offers variety of other plants of interest, among those currently in bloom are the Anigozanthos ‘Burnt Orange’, that is attractive to hummingbirds, Beaufortia orbifolia (Ravensthorpe Bottlebrush), a plant in the myrtle family with bright red flowers, and Ceratopetalum gummiferum ‘Fairley’s Coral’, a tree that displays a profusion of coral, pink flowers.

Learn about banksias from Melinda Kralj, Australian Garden curator, and the Outback Howlers.

Aroma & Succulent Gardens
   The Aroma Garden contains salvias of all shapes and sizes, lavenders, oreganos, thymes, and many other drought-tolerant perennials and shrubs can be seen. You will see many plants that produce their aroma from their flowers, and many which produce their aroma from their leaves.
   A wide variety are currently in bloom this month. Among the numerous colorful Salvias are the Salvia ‘Sally Greenwood’, with velvety purple flowers, and Salvia greggii ‘Orchid Glow’, that displays bright magenta blooms. Other blooms of interest include the Agastache mexicana ‘Sangria’, that has lemon-perfumed foliage, and the Vitex Agnus-castus (Chaste Tree), a multistemmed shrub with bright blue flower panicles.