The March of Progress

It is a rainy day here in Redondo Beach and the LA basin as a whole. The region desperately needed the water, though it will cause some flooding and mud slides in the burn areas from recent fires. Nevertheless, it's a quick change from the sunny and warm weather than has caused my greenhouse to bulge with overgrowth. I've even taken to cutting some of the 4" pots back, which I almost never do for fear of hurting the juvenile plants. But today, as I noted, it is gray and cloudy. A day that I can't poke the flowers and do the rounds. So, instead I'm taking inventory and plotting my scheme for Spring.

In doing so, I recently pulled up a pot that just couldn't sustain its four original inhabitants. A more foolish and younger version of myself didn't realize how stunted the adult plants would become in this pot. So, with cuttings taken, rooted, and thriving in the greenhouse, I start from scratch on that pot and three others. One from the recently deceased P. parritae (which keeled over quite literally and suddenly), one from P. Raspberries and Cream which despite some flowers and fruit also met a composted fate, and one from P. Donna Brigham, which just didn't thrive where I had positioned it and wasn't a favorite to begin with. So, I have four empty pots...Oh, I have 5 if I count the small one.

There are a few jewels in my collection. I have a P. cirrhiflora doing quite well in the greenhouse. I have a P. membranacea doing just fine outdoors in a little pot. And, I have a couple of P. gritensis and P. lindeniana seedlings that are slowly maturing. With loefgrenii on the way (again) and a few other nice plants on the horizon, I need to strategize. First, what do I have occupied...

Oh wait, I recently put a few plants in the ground in the front yard. P. racemosa 'buzios', P. umbilicata, P. tulae, and P. caerulea are all enjoying the rain today. OK, back to the pots...

Container 1:

• P. holosericea 
• P. 'Manta' (xiikzodz × coriacea) 
• P. foetida 'urbaniana' 

Container 2: 

• P. racemosa 'buzios' 
• P. × belotii (alata x caerulea) 

Container 3: 

• P. x 'exoniensis' (antioquiensis × tripartita var. mollissima) 

Container 4: 

• P. 'Sunburst' (gilbertiana × jorullensis) 

Container 5: 

• P. trisecta 

Container 6: 

• P. cirrhiflora 

Container 7: 

• P. membranacea 

Container 8: 

• P. serrato-digitata
• P. glandulosa 

Container 9: 

• P. macrocarpa
• P. 'Mission Dolores' x P. anioquiensis

Container 10: 

• P. Erl (P. 'Blue-Eyed Susan' x P. 'Blue Bouquet')
• P. luzmarina x (? x ?)
• P. actinia x (? x ?)

In the Ground:

• P. edulis 'flavicarpa'
• P. racemosa 'buzios'
• P. umbilicata
• P. tulae
• P. caerulea
• P. 'Cherry Tart' (cupraea x (yucatanensis and biflora))
• P. subrotunda

Plants in 4" Pots: 

• P. New Hybrid 2
• P. gritensis 
• P. tarminiana 'alba' 
• P. lindeniana  
• P. morifolia
• P. membranacea "Strybing Variegated"
• P. sidifolia x (miersii x kermensia) 
• P. pinnastipula
• P. stipulata (April)
• P. loefgrenii (April)
• P. discophora (April)
• P. nephrodes
• P. x decaisneana (alata × quadrangularis)
• P. 'Blue-Eyed Susan' (incarnata × edulis) × (incarnata × cincinnata)
• P. 'Sapphire' (edulis × caerulea)
• P. 'Raspberries and Cream'
• P. nigradenia
• P. palmeri
• P. bogotoensis
• P. umbilicata
• P. tulae
• P. caerulea

That's a bunch of plants needing space to root. So here's the plan:

1. P. membranacea gets up-potted to the largest pot which formerly house P. parritae.
2. P. lindeniana gets P. membranacea's old pot and some black bamboo stakes.
3. P. gritensis and P. loefgrenii share one pot.
4. P. decaisneana and P. nigradenia share one pot.
5. P. bogotoensis, P. discophra and, P. morifolia share the last pot.
6. P. Blue-Eyed Susan and P. nephrodes will join P. Erl in its pot (extricating the other two).
7. P. tarminiana 'alba' and P. New Hybrid 2 will need a brand new pot