Camellias

Three camellia shrubs are growing in my garden.

In January they start to bloom.

Blooming in my Garden Now

Cymbidium,

Alstroemeria,

Magnolia soulangeana,

Hibiscus,

Alyssum,

and Rosemary are all in bloom right now.   The Rosemary is visited by the bees and hummingbirds.

Avocados

All winter and into the spring I can pick avocados from my tree.

They combine well with greens and oranges from the garden.

Giverny

I always think about my trip to Giverny,

Monet's garden in France.

Monet planned his garden to paint and

every plant could be part of the picture.

I had a small pond once.   I added a water lily and fish and Pickerel Weed (Pontederia cordata).  Then the raccoons came in every night and ate the fish and killed the water lily, but the Pickerel Weed kept on growing.

Cup of Gold Vine

The Cup of Gold Vine (Solandra maxima) is native to Mexico.

It is a vigorous growing, winter blooming vine at the edge of my garden.

In between trimmings, it sends out long shoots high into the trees which dangle down with a single blossom on the end.  It gives my garden the feel of a jungle.