Wednesday Vignette

I'm joining in on Wednesday Vignette, hosted by Anna of Flutter & Hum, with an evening edition double feature. These photos were actually taken a couple weeks ago, but I haven't gotten around to sharing them until now. I have so many of those photos. I'm sure I'm not the only blogger who does.

The first is a scene from Pomarius Nursery. Poncirus trifoliata 'Monstrosa' (also called 'Flying Dragon') twists between two red phormiums, with a pair of Cycas revoluta (sago palm) fronds arching down in the back. I don't think I've ever read anything about the fall color of Poncirus trifoliata even being noteworthy. Isn't it beautiful, though? It seems to color up wonderfully in the PNW. It's not just this specimen. The one in my garden had wonderful color, too, though not quite as orange. I would have included a photo of mine, but it's a much smaller, thinner plant and it didn't have many leaves this summer. Some type of ant was coming out to the edge of the woods where I had planted it and chewing the leaves off to drink the sap. I moved it to a new location this summer, but by then it had stopped producing new foliage. Hopefully, I moved it far enough away from the trees that those particular ants won't find it again.

The second image was taken on a foggy morning at Cistus Nursery. The camera on my phone had a little trouble adjusting to the light. In person, it was ethereal and beautiful (if you like foggy fall mornings, which I adore). The blue-grey foliage of the Eucalyptus perinniana in the background made it fade into the fog around the edges, the oak further back and to the right even more shrouded. The Aesculus californica in the foreground may not have spectacular fall color, but I find the hints of yellow foliage and the structure of the white-barked, lichen and moss encrusted trunks and branches indefinably charming. I plan to add several of these to my garden.

Comments

  1. Wow - my Dragon doesn't have the rosy blush that this one does, but I love its bright yellows. I too love foggy mornings. The Aesculus has such beautiful form. That name sounds so mythological - wonder what the story is on the naming of this tree...?

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    1. I like yellow Dragons, too. They deserve more attention for their fall color. According to Wikipedia: "Linnaeus named the genus Aesculus after the Roman name for an edible acorn." So, not especially mythological. Everything just sounds that way in Latin.

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  2. I always love Poncirus when I see it (which is always on-line and never in my local garden centers).

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    1. Maybe since so many other citrus grow in your area (with added water) there's little interest in one that produces fruit that most people consider inedible. Personally, I think the fruit is wonderfully aromatic and, once fully ripe, has a nice, tart flavor that combines citrus and pineapple. Apparently there's a bitter resin in the skin that ruins the taste for most people, though.

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  3. Both lovely photos, you work in very beautiful places. I enjoyed the bright yellow (with just a touch of pink at the base) foliage my Poncirus trifoliata produced this autumn - but I think that orangey glow would have been even better.

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    1. Yes I do! I'm very lucky. I like just the bright yellow that Poncirus usually seems to have, but I agree that more orange is better. I know mine was quite stressed this summer, and I imagine that the ones in containers were hard to keep watered. Maybe you should let yours dry out a bit more?

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  4. Cistus must get wonderful fog, being so close to the river. We hardly ever get it here, so when we do it's a real treat. I'm sure many of us envy your work environments.

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    1. It seems like it's been foggy there almost every morning that I've been there (twice a week) for the last few weeks.

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