Agapanthus campanulatus, Lily of the Nile,
agapanthus family, Agapanthaceae
• Perennial from fleshy rhizomes, native to S. Africa• Leaf strap-shaped, parallel-veined, filled with goo!!!• Flowers in umbels; fruit a capsule• Best with afternoon shade in Redding; will grow in
sun if plenty of water; otherwise moderate water• Choose while in bloom for accurate color• Good near pools (little mess), containers• Protect from snails• http://www.tytyga.com/product/Agapanthus+companulatus+Headborne+Hybrids+Bulb
• Evergreen, arborescent shrub• Good performance in wide
range of climates and soils; tolerates ocean winds
• ID: 8-35 ft; lvs 2-3 in, flowers white, in clusters; fruit edible but mealy and usually bland; bark red and shredding
• Forms bred for small size, pink flower color
Arbutus unedo, Strawberry treeheath family, Ericaceae
Aucuba japonica, Japanese aucuba,
silktassel family, Garryaceae
• Evergreen shrub native to Asia• Shade, shade, shade, + moderate
water• Speckled and variegated forms give
a garden a “retro” look
Bergenia cordifolia, heartleaf bergenia, Saxifrage family
• Native to Himalayas• Evergreen, needs shade in
hot climate• Bright flowers in early
spring• Susceptible to strawberry
root weevil damage.• Forms on campus may be
hybrids; leaf supposed to be heartshaped but not
Cercocarpus betuloides, birchleaf mountain-mahogany
• flowers with no petals; numerous stamens
• Fruit a single achene with a plumose (feathery) tail
• Leaves toothed above the middle, entire on lower half, obovate
• Shrub NATIVE to foothills and mountains of CA
• Drought tolerant
Fatsia japonica, Japanese araliaaralia family, Araliaceae
• Native to Korea & Japan• Cast-iron tropical-looking
shrub• Needs full shade in
Redding, regular water• Hates soggy soils,
susceptible to snails; plants that set seed self sow
• Good near swimming pools; ‘Moseri’ is compact
Fatsia japonica, Japanese araliaaralia family, Araliaceae
• Flowers in panicle of umbels
• Leaves palmately lobed, evergreen
• Fruit a berry
Ficus carica, Fig
• Tree to 30 ft• Evergreen leaves, 3-7 deep lobes, surface hairy,
sap milky, plant has a sweet smell• Fruit is a multiple fruit, with many individual
unisexual flowers contained in a fleshy syconium; female flowers mature into drupelets
• caprifigs have male flowers and short-styled females, they are dry and unpalatable; edible figs have long-styled females and produce palatable fruit
• For more fun facts on fig reproductive biology and fig cultivation through history--http://waynesword.palomar.edu/pljune99.htm
Ficus carica, Fig
• Wild figs invade streamsides and moist canyons; the weedy caprifigs pollinate commercial fig crops and ruin the fruit (30% in San Joaquin V!)
• http://www.cal-ipc.org/ip/management/ipcw/pages/detailreport.cfm@usernumber=50&surveynumber=182.php
Hedera helix, English ivy, aralia family, Araliaceae
• INVASIVE—think hard before planting; use only named forms, best in shade, needs moderate water
• Leaves on horizontal growth are different from leaves on vertical, reproducing growth
• (Not seen on campus)
Hypericum calycinumSt. John’s Wort
• From Bulgaria and Turkey
• Grown in Mediterranean climates
• Invades other plantings if not confined
• Medicinally used for mild depression
Nandina domestica, heavenly bamboo, • symbol of joyful good luck for a newly
established household; used like Christmas holly for Chinese Kitchen Day, Dec. 23.
• native to Asia• Leaves can be more than 3x pinnately
compound• Tolerates low water if in shade, better
growth with more; do not prune, or cut old canes to ground, or lop heads off
• Part or all shade best in hottest climates• White blossoms in branched panicles in
spring; isolated plants often don’t fruit heavily; good fall color
• All parts of plant poisonous, hydrocyanic acid; do not eat berries (but birds can)
• Evergreen or semievergreen (dep on the winter) shrub native to Japan
• ID: arborescent shrub 5-10 ft high x wide; scent of orange blossom in spring
• Iffy north of here, but worth trying• Moderate water, best in part shade;
‘Wheeler’s Dwarf’ good near pools• Forms: plain green, variegated
Pittosporum tobira ‘Variegata’ tobira, mock orange
pittosporum family, Pittosporaceae
Rhododendron spp. Azalea
• Bloom season is early• Very showy blooms• Native to many parts
of the world
Teucrium fruticans, bush germandermint family, Lamiaceae
• Opposite entire leaves, gray or dark green on upper side, nearly white below
• Flowers strongly bilabiate (2-lipped) with lower lip much larger than upper
• Not particularly aromatic• Flowers pale lavender to azure
blue• Can be sheared (but why would
you do that?
• Trailing groundcover, shiny oval leaves, lavender blue flowers
• Vinca minor: leaves under 2 in., plant 6 in high; variegated and white-flowered forms
• Shade in Redding, little water• Grows in any soil, competes successfully with
surface tree roots, is invasive in forest settings• Shear or mow in winter before new growth
begins• More restrained than Vinca major. Less Likely to
invade adjacent plantings
Vinca minor, periwinkleDogbane family, Apocynaceae
Coreposis verticillata‘Moonbeam’
• From eastern and southern United States
• Blooms from summer through autumn
• Attracts butterflies• Plant spreads
aggressively by rhizomes
Cotinus coggyria, smoke tree,
• Multistemmed, deciduous large shrub or small tree
• Leaves alternate, oval, entire
• Green-leaved and purple-leaved forms; flower clusters pale pink to purple
• Flowers & fruit tiny—’smoke’ made of pedicels from aborted flowers
Euphorbia characias, Mediterranean spurge
spurge family, Euphorbiaceae
taprooted, evergreen perennial
Euphorbias
• All spurges exude milky latex when cut—irritating to skin
• Odd flowers with naked pistils, turning into three-lobed capsules
Gazenia rigensTreasure Flower
• Native to South Africa• Widely cultivated• Naturalized in
Austraila• Flowers in late spring
and throughout the summer
Hemerocallis ‘So Sweet’Daylily
• From tuberous roots• Invasive in some
parts of the United States
• Flowers typically last no more than 24 hours
• Native to Eurasia
Hesperale parvifloraRed Yucca
• Native to Chihuahua desert in Texas and Mexico
• Narrow evergreen leaves with fringe of white threadlike hairs along edge
• Red flowers attract hummingbirds
• Drought tolerant
Lavandula, lavender
• As mint family members, have opposite leaves, square stems, bilabiate flowers
• Flowers in terminal spikes• Both are evergreen shrubs with
lavender fragrance• Native to the Mediterranean• Main difference is in the flower
spikes—L. stoechas has thick spike with colored bracts on top; L. angustifolia has thin spike with no bracts on top.
Nerium oleander, oleander
dogbane family, Apocynaceae
• leaves long and narrow, with white midrib, blooms late spring to fall
• Many cultivars • Needs little water once
established,• Takes clay, salty soils, air
pollution
Nerium oleander, oleander
dogbane family, Apocynaceae •prune to guide growth by cutting oldest stems to ground before spring growth, or lop to ground to renew;
•problems = leaf scorch, a bacterial disease spread by glassy-winged sharpshooter insect.
•PLANT HIGHLY TOXIC, DO NOT BURN PRUNINGS
Parthenocissus tricuspidataBoston Ivy
• Vines cling to walls with suction discs at the end of a tendril. Very hard to remove.
• Native to China and Japan
• Ivy League schools used this ivy since English Ivy freezes
Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’,
• Clump forming perennial, dies back to the ground in winter• Blooms in autumn; pink flowers fade to brick color; flowers in
flat topped branched clusters• Leaves succulent, oval, toothed• Easily propagated by division or axillary sprouts (like brussel
sprouts)
Zauschneria californica, California-fuchsia
• Native rhizomatous perennial; dies to the ground in winter
• Tubular 4-petaled red flowers in autumn—attracts hummingbirds
• Inferior ovary• Fruit a 4-parted capsule; seeds
with a tuft of hair for wind dispersal
• Several cultivars available with silvery or green leaves; leaves may be narrow or broad, height from 1 to 3 feet