Hi everyone, I posted a pic under "What looks good/bad March 2015" but I thought it also deserved its own thread. Here's a pic of my Echium candicans this morning just starting to flower for the year.

They are fun short-lived perennials here that I've grown in two local gardens for over ten years now. I give them plenty of sun (or afternoon shade) and water when dry (NO drip irrigation). They flower their first or second spring after at least one winter and live for 2-5 years.

They look AWFUL in summer, LOL, and need barely enough water to survive. They enter a heat induced semi-dormancy and really want only enough water to barely stay alive, say a light soaking every two weeks. They drop their lower leaves in summer but keep the upper ones. Dried leaves are bristly so wear gloves/be careful!

They self-sow around the garden so I usually just let them grow where they pop up, like this one. They're very common in California and I wish they were more common here. I think it's the low summer watering that gets people in trouble--if they're overwatered they suddenly melt in summer. Better to keep them on the dry almost-wilted side.

Anyway, pic attached. I hope you enjoy.

Grant