Winter 2003, The Central Coast of Paradise

When you take a flower in your hand
and really look at it,
it's your world for the moment.
I want to give that world to someone else.
I want them to see it whether they want to or not.
Georgia O'Keeffe

This is a small field in Nipomo which has a lot of the California Native Wild Mustard. This plant will cover the Coastal hills with thousands of acres of the most brilliant yellow flowers that will bloom until early summer. We used to play in the mustard fields as kids, the five and six foot tall plants provided cover and concealment for our mock battles. This is one of the reasons that California is called 'The Golden State'.

Coreopsis is a plant that puts out leaves in the winter only in this area. The blooms light the hills on the coast for a few weeks, then as the weather intensifies to summer and the rains stop, the plant will drop its leaves, and settle down into a summer dormancy that will last for about six months. At that time the plant is just a succulent stick with branches reaching form the ground and appears dead in all aspects. But the first rains of fall will bring back the fresh green leaves, and the hills will return to greens, yellows and blues from the tawny summer state.

Acacia baileyana variety purporia. These are good trees around the home if there is room enough. While a bit flammable, they are disease and pest resistant as well as drought tolerant. These plants bloom in the late winter in a remarkable display that last for just a couple of weeks.

After the flowers fade, the plant maintains a dignified display with its finely cut leaves of a regal blue/purple hue.

Ceanothus is also called 'California Lilac". This California Native plant puts out a fine display of flowers along the branches. This plant has hundreds of species and varieties. In general that all bloom in the late winter, putting out a floral display on hillsides that are covered with the plant. This is one of the plants that regenerates quickly after a fire. Some burned-over areas may have entire hillsides that will be predominantly Ceanothus for some years after a fire. While the plants are beautiful for a few weeks each winter, look to improved varieties that will provide some nice character the rest of the year.

This plant in white, and the one above it with baby-blue flowers were both growing within twenty feet of one another. Ceanothus hybridize easily, so there might be a wide variation in flower in a small area.
Ceanothus are highly recommened as a plant for the suburban or rural housing area. But they are easily injured by watering in the summer. Treat them like native plants, and don't coddle them. Help them a bit to get good growth and hardiness, but don't spoil them, they aren't your grandkids!

This shows the deep blue the plant can sometimes take on. The shading of colors is all dependent on the variety and species.

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