Flowers A-Z: C is for...

...Cosmo

We discovered huge orange cosmos in Debbie's garden (as is the case with many of our plants) and were thrilled to see they come in a smaller variety in shades of pink and purple.  We've tried growing them from seed and have been successful in the past, but this year we're still waiting to see if any new ones will pop up.  They're annuals, but they last through spring, summer, and early fall, and they reseed themselves that whole season.  They're beautiful for their bright, daisy-like petals, as well as their leafy, ferny greens.  Once happy, they can get a few feet tall!  And we love that they're sun-loving plants...one of the few that do just fine in our hot, dry summer.

...Cilantro

You really can't live in the valley and not appreciate the value of cilantro, for what would our salsa be without it?  The tough thing is it does like a bit cooler weather, so it can get bitter once summer comes and heats everything up.  Cilantro actually can get quite large!  I'm hoping Kelly will post a picture, so you can see her cilantro "tree."

...Calla Lily

We have one big white calla bush, and then two small pink callas we purchased this year.  They like a bit of shade and will die back, but their beautifully-structured blooms are worth it!  We didn't get a ton at one time this year, but one every now and then kept us stocked for the Lent and Easter season.

...Camellia

Our poor camellia is suffering right now.  I just can't seem to find a happy spot for it, but in the next couple of weeks, I plan on trying one more transplant.  Supposedly they're easy to care for, but mine needs the perfect balance of sunlight and shade.  (If you know our yard, you know shade is hard to come by.)  There are different varieties, of course, some that like more sun than others and some that bloom in the summer, but ours is a fall-blooming light pink.

...Campanula

This came from Debbie, so I know little about them.  They're huge now, almost ready to bloom, so I'm excited to see what we'll get!  That's the most exciting part about this season!

...Crape Myrtle
These trees are a Central Valley favorite.  They are a sun-loving tree that produces gorgeous blooms all summer long.  We have red, white, and pink in our yard.  They lose their leaves in the winter but come out in the spring, then make their clusters of flowers in the summer.  Right now, they're just filling out their leaves.  We look forward to their blooms!

We also have columbine growing in our yard, but it just looks like a mound of little leaves.  Hopefully we'll get to see some flowers next year.

And that's C!  Tomorrow is D -- dogwood, daffodil, daisy...