Annuals

Ceratotheca triloba 'Lilac'

 Also known as African Foxglove, this sturdy and beautiful plant is very attractive to the bees. I actually watched one bee fly around and climb into each open flower and then slam itself into every bud! It is one of those plants that definitely surpassed all my expectations.

Begonia x tuberhybrida 'Illumination White'

 

This plant I successfully overwintered, using two different "methods." One just sat in a pot on my windowsill. All the leaves fell off (due to the extremely hot and dry wood heat?) and I would very occasionally water it with a small glimmer of hope that it was just lying dormant. Sure enough, late February, the dry dirt patch put up a new shoot! There were a few others that I wintered over in a bag in the root cellar, and they also survived, but are much less vigorous. This particular begonia actually trails and is a perfect plant for containers because all those lovely blooms hang over the side giving the planting a beautiful skirt. When the flowers are just opening they have a hint of green that turns buttery as they open.

Nemesia strumosa 'Blue Gem'

 

This is a pot on my deck filled with a few things that I wanted to get to know better, left overs from some jobs, and a few things that I overwintered in the house. The red flower is Emilia jauanica or Tasse flower, there is Senecio 'Blue,' Angelonia 'Dresden Blue,' Ptilotus 'Joey,' Sedum reflexum 'Blue Spruce,' and Origanum rotundifolia 'Barbara Tingey.' The Oregano looks a lot like 'Kent's Beauty' and it is the same species, but I do think that this 'Barbara Tingey' cultivar is much better. It is not nearly as fussy and it was very happy in a pot over the winter, tripling in size!