Category Archives: months 04-06: spring

April thru June

Native Wild Flowers in March

In mid-March, along the walking trail of Cedar Hill Golf Course, Sharon spied some early Spring Gold. I’m used to seeing Lomatium utriculatum waving above tall grass, but it’s too soon for tall grass. This early, they get to bloom lower to the ground, where they might be more protected from the cooling wind? I imagine they stretch for the sun as the grass grows taller around them?

Spring Gold, Lomatium utriculatum , common lomatium; fine-leaved lomatium, common biscuit root, bladder desert parsley, Lomatium vaseyi, garden Victoria, Vancouver Island, BC, Pacific Northwest
photo by SVSeekins

Alongside the striking yellow blooms are some less-showy white flowers. I’m unfamiliar… so I give my iPhone Visual Look Up a try at identifying them. (It’s not a fool-proof test, but it often points me in the right direction.) Results: Migranthis integrifolia. Grassland Saxifrage.

grassland saxifrage, Saxifraga integrifolia Hook., Micranthes integrifolia, garden Victoria, Vancouver Island, BC, Pacific Northwest
photo by SVSeekins

Sharon is great to hike with. She even spotted the Camassia quamash. This is the earliest I’ve ever seen the Common Camas in bloom. I’ve known it blooms earlier than the Great Cammas, but this seems really early.

Walking around Thetis Lake Park, a few days later, I was delighted to see Fawn Lilies blooming. I’ve been searching in vain for their distinctive leaf in my garden. Perhaps this particular location has just the right conditions for them?

Erythronium oregonum, white fawn lily, easter lily, Oregon Lily garden Victoria, Vancouver Island, BC, Pacific Northwest
photo by SVSeekins

Further around the lake, we smiled at the blooms of the Red Flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum). It is a sure sign the hummingbirds will be arriving soon to feed.

Ribes sanguineum, blood currant, oregon currant, winter currant, flowering currant, redflower currant, red-flowering currant, red currant, garden Victoria, Vancouver Island, BC, Pacific Northwest
photo by SVSeekins

Perhaps the hummingbirds arrived already? Maybe, like me, they’ve been tucked away, waiting for a nice sunny day. Well, it’s certainly time to be getting out of the house now! 🙂

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Other places to see Wildflower Meadows:

Silk Tassel Bush, Garrya Elliptica

There are a few priorities we have for the hedging around our property. I easily get swept up by & fall in love with new, must-have plants. This list reminds me of our conditions… and helps me not waste money by killing off new, unsuitable beauties in our garden.

  • 1 –We want some privacy from the busy street corner, so evergreens are a plus.
  • 2– A solid wall of green hedging can be tedious. Foliage varieties are more interesting to me.
  • 3– A thick telephone cable hangs about 15 feet above our northern border, so we shouldn’t plant anything that interferes with this height restriction.
  • 4– The deer graze through our garden a few times daily, so deer resistance is a factor.
  • 5– The mini-climate on the southern tip of Vancouver Island is Dry Summers & Wet Winters. Our drainage is pretty good, reducing the wet winter threat. It’s dragging the water hose around all summer that’s more work & expense than I’m up for. Drought tolerance is key.
  • 6– Essentially, I’m a lazy gardener, so I prefer low-maintenance choices.
  • 7– And, of course, even though I can be led astray by anything decorative, it’s that ‘decorative’ that makes a garden sing. Some seasonal interest is simply an undeniable factor.
garrya elliptica, silk tassel bush, Wavyleaf Silk tassel, Coast Silktassel, Coast Silk-tassel, Silk Tassel Bush, Wavyleaf Silk-tassel, feverbush, garden Victoria BC Pacific Northwest
photo by SVSeekins

A few years ago, in late February, I was exploring the winter garden at the Horticultural Centre of the Pacific. The Garrya elliptica enchanted me. I wanted one of our own. I NEEDED one… BUT I had to check my list of priorities. (Yes, occasionally, gardeners can show willpower against overwhelming plant lust).

garrya elliptica, silk tassel bush, Wavyleaf Silk tassel, Coast Silktassel, Coast Silk-tassel, Silk Tassel Bush, Wavyleaf Silk-tassel, feverbush, garden Victoria BC Pacific Northwest
photo by SVSeekins

So… How does the Silk Tassel Bush stack up? 
Pretty good, actually.

  • 1 —Evergreen check
    — It is a broadleaf evergreen. Once established, it creates a great background to show off the plants in front of it.
  • 2– Interesting Foliagecheck
    — The small, oblong leaves are unusual.  They’re shiny & dark green on one side & slightly woolly on the other. The leaf edges are a little bit wavy. They’re different from anything else along our shrub border. That creates interest.
  • 3– Mature Height under 15 feet fingers crossed
    — The specimen at HCP is about 12 feet tall. Most websites I found call G. elliptica a shrub growing about 6-16 feet tall. Others say it can be a small tree that might interfere with our overhanging wires. We could risk that, right? Besides, I don’t water much, & I reckon this will limit the Tassel Bush from getting too big. 
  • 4– Deer Resistancefingers crossed
    — Credible websites say Wavyleaf Silktassel is deer resistant, but I’ve learned that each herd & situation can change that answer. However, these leaves are tough & leathery, something deer tend to avoid unless they’re super hungry. So it’s worth a chance.
  • 5– Drought Tolerancecheck
    — The leaves are also a bit waxy. This hints at its drought tolerance. The Tassel Bush is native to the coastal range of Oregon & California, where it grows in warm, dry conditions. I reckon there’s a good chance this species will naturally migrate north to become native here as our summers get longer & drier. Hopefully, our winters won’t get too much colder — G. elliptica is listed as zone 8, tolerating cold to -23 C (-10 F).
  • 6– Low-Maintenancecheck
    — All the websites I researched said ‘low maintenance’… so it must be true, right? I hope so. The 12-foot shrub I admired that January at HCP was at least 3 feet taller by the following October. I suspect the volunteer gardeners there practice a bit of selective pruning to keep it the size they prefer. I’ll likely be OK with a taller shrub, but I’m also up for getting the loppers out if needed.
  • 7– Seasonal InterestBINGO!
    — The catkins are forming in early autumn. Still, because there’s so much attention on the fall colours, these catkins catch little attention. By January, it’s a whole other story. All winter (and even through April), when there’s little else to marvel over, Garrya elliptica becomes the show. The catkins grow into wonderfully long, striking tassels.

That’s it — Garrya elliptica passes our test.
What else could we want? 

The only thing missing is the assurance that Silk Tassel Bush has wildlife value in our area. Usually, it takes eons of co-evolution for these values to develop. I’ve convinced myself that Oregon & California can be considered ‘adjacent’ to our Pacific Northwest. It’s certainly closer than Asia & Europe, where some species we included in our garden originate.
So why not?

We sourced a Garrya elliptica & installed it along our mixed shrub border.

The Garrya we planted has yet to make itself really comfortable & perform to its best. In a few years, it will look more like the specimen at the HCP. 

With G. elliptica, each plant is gender specific. A male shrub creates only male flowers. A female creates only female flowers. The male catkins are super long compared to females. I don’t know for sure which gender our shrub is, but I’m happy to see the tassels! Time will tell. Either way, I’m pleased with our decision.  🙂

garrya elliptica, silk tassel bush, Wavyleaf Silk tassel, Coast Silktassel, Coast Silk-tassel, Silk Tassel Bush, Wavyleaf Silk-tassel, feverbush, garden Victoria BC Pacific Northwest
photo by SVSeekins

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Winter Wet

The sound of the early traffic splashing along a wet road woke me. Now, looking through the kitchen window, I wonder if it’s still raining. I gaze out at the white sky, unsure if I need an umbrella for our morning walk.

Then I notice the base of our apple tree.

winter wet - gravenstein apple tree, garden Victoria, Vancouver Island, BC, Pacific Northwest
photo by SVSeekins

Because the creeping buttercup in our lawn is determined to invade this little bed of Primula Wanda, I keep a sharp edging along its border. Today it looks less like a wee ditch & more like a moat.

winter wet, primula wanda, cyclamen coum, garden Victoria, Vancouver Island, BC, Pacific Northwest
photo by SVSeekins

The moat is brimming. Last night’s deluge has filled the water table & it’s saturated right up to the surface. Roots must be swimming in wet! Are the worms drowning?

The Royal Horticultural Society says these primulas prefer moist but well-drained conditions. Fortunately, we live on a slope & the excess moisture in the soil will slowly drain away as the rain eases.

winter wet, primula wanda, garden Victoria, Vancouver Island, BC, Pacific Northwest
photo by SVSeekins

But this winter flooding is what makes conditions on the southern tip of Vancouver Island so different from most. We have a
Winter Wet & Summer Dry climate.

Of our 35 inches of annual rainfall, only 5 inches arrive in our prime growing season (May through September — 5 inches in 5 months!).
We get more than that in November alone (6 inches).
Our summers are dry & our winters are wet.
Very wet.

Who else gets the bulk of their moisture in winter?

  • The Mediterranean basin
  • Central Chile
  • The western cape of South Africa
  • Micro-climates on the southern edge of Australia

It makes sense that the Cyclamen & Tulips from the Mediterranean do well here. Likewise for Australia’s grevillea & Chile’s Monkey Puzzle trees, and my favourite South African import: Red Hot Pokers.

I don my rain gear & head outside. Who would have thought we’re so different from the Marine West Coast Climate of the rest of our Pacific Northwest? No worries, I can appreciate our own little niche in the world.

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