Moonflower Opening

Crape Myrtle

In the hot days of early fall the Crape Myrtle trees(Lagerstroemia indica), native to India, are in bloom in my neighborhood.

They have a mottled, many branched trunk, a small tree or large shrub.

The flowers are white or many shades of red.

Six Late Summer Insects and One Spider

California Mantis (Stagmomantis californica)

Mediterranean Mantis (Iris Oratoria)

Green Fruit Beetle (Cotinus mutabilis)

Two-stabbed Ladybird (Chilocorus orbus)

Southern Pink Moth (Pyrausta inornatalis)

Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta)

Common Orb Weaver (Neoscona oxacensis)

September in my Garden

Moonflower only blooms for one night and is fragrant.

Succulent Mint (Plectranthus neochilus),which smells more like a skunk than mint.

Kumquat flowers, very fragrant, like all citrus blossoms and attractive to bees.

Cosmos, not fragrant but still will attract an occasional Fritillary.

And the roses: Frederick Mistral which is very fragrant,

Cecile Brunner, not at all fragrant,

and my new rose, Parsons Old China, planted only six weeks ago and covered with flowers is mildly fragrant and about the size and color of Cecile Brunner.

Finally, not a flower but a juvenile alligator lizard (Elgaria multicarinata) which I find all over my garden and are so small that they can squeeze under the weatherstripping of a closed door and come into the house.

UCLA Botanical Garden: Various Plants

Green Calla Lily (Zantedeschia aethiopica)

Cigar Flower (Cuphea caeciliae)

Taro (Colocasia esculenta)

Spear Lily (Doryanthes palmeri)

Hammock Fern (Blechnum appendiculatum)

Kahili Ginger (Hedychium gardnerianum)

Blackberry Lily (Iris domestica)

St. John's Wort (Hypericum calycinum)

UCLA Botanical Garden: Bamboo

UCLA Botanical Garden: Bromeliads