(California Dogtooth Violet, California Fawnlily)

Elegant woodland perennials from the middle latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, erythroniums are grown for their exquisite flowers and for their often strikingly marked leaves. Appearing in spring, the yellow, pink, white, or violet flowers nod from wiry, erect, leafless stems that may be green, purple or brown. Usually one bloom is borne per stem. Resembling small lilies, the flowers have six backswept segments that give them the appearance of taking flight. A starburst of yellow or purple anthers...

(Dogtooth Violet)

Elegant woodland perennials from the middle latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, erythroniums are grown for their exquisite flowers and for their often strikingly marked leaves. Appearing in spring, the yellow, pink, white, or violet flowers nod from wiry, erect, leafless stems that may be green, purple or brown. Usually one bloom is borne per stem. Resembling small lilies, the flowers have six backswept segments that give them the appearance of taking flight. A starburst of yellow or purple anthers...

(Henderson's Dogtooth Violet, Henderson's Fawnlily)

Elegant woodland perennials from the middle latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, erythroniums are grown for their exquisite flowers and for their often strikingly marked leaves. Appearing in spring, the yellow, pink, white, or violet flowers nod from wiry, erect, leafless stems that may be green, purple or brown. Usually one bloom is borne per stem. Resembling small lilies, the flowers have six backswept segments that give them the appearance of taking flight. A starburst of yellow or purple anthers...

(Giant White Dogtooth Violet, Giant White Fawnlily)

Elegant woodland perennials from the middle latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere, erythroniums are grown for their exquisite flowers and for their often strikingly marked leaves. Appearing in spring, the yellow, pink, white, or violet flowers nod from wiry, erect, leafless stems that may be green, purple or brown. Usually one bloom is borne per stem. Resembling small lilies, the flowers have six backswept segments that give them the appearance of taking flight. A starburst of yellow or purple anthers...

(Apple Blossom Escallonia, Escallonia)

Bearing masses of pretty flowers over a long season, this medium-sized, dense evergreen shrub makes a handsome four-season ornamental for gardens with relatively mild winters. A hybrid dating from the early twentieth century, it has upright, sometimes sprawling branches set with small, narrowly oval, glossy dark green leaves. Plants may sucker modestly from the base. Opening from pink buds, the clustered soft-pink and white flowers appear in abundance in late spring and more sparingly through much...

(Dwarf Red Redclaws, Escallonia)

Bearing masses of pretty flowers over a long season, this dense, small to medium-sized, evergreen shrub makes a handsome four-season ornamental for gardens with relatively mild winters. A hybrid that traces its ancestry to species from South America, it has erect branches set with small, narrowly oval, glossy dark green leaves. Clusters of small, five-lobed, rosy-red flowers are borne in abundance in late spring and more sparingly through much of summer.

This sun-loving shrub prefers well-drained,...

(Escallonia, Newport Dwarf Redclaws)

This is a superior small evergreen shrub for low maintenance landscaping, particularly in the space conscious city garden. It descends from Escallonia rosea and Escallonia rubra, both natives of Chile and Argentina. Growing slowly into a broad, waist-high mound, its upright branches are densely furnished with small, oval, toothed, glossy dark green leaves. The leaves emit a sweet fragrance in warm weather. The clusters of small pink to red flowers are borne in abundance in late...

(Tufted Poppy)

Tufted poppy is a California native annual that is well-adapted to garden and container use. Bright yellow cup-shaped flowers rise above delicate, gray-green, finely dissected foliage in summer. The numerous four-petal blossoms release a light scent.

Tufted poppy likes sun and poor, well-drained soil and withstands very dry conditions. Challenges to success of this pretty perennial are excessive moisture that can lead to fungal and rot problems. If well-sited it will reseed and may return year...

(Sundew Poppy, Tufted Poppy)

Sundew poppy is a California native annual that is well-adapted to garden and container use. Scented lemon-yellow cup-shaped flowers rise above delicate gray-green finely dissected foliage in summer.

Sundew poppy likes sun and poor, well-drained soil and withstands very dry conditions. Providing strategic watering in summer will prolong flowering but be aware that excessive moisture leads to fungal problems and numerous types of rot. If well-sited it will reseed and may return year after year.

(California Poppy)

What would the California landscape be without blankets of golden orange California poppies? These tough wildflower jewels are equally becoming in the garden and there are quite a few interesting cultivars to choose from. California poppy is a variable species native grasslands of California and Oregon, though it has become naturalized in other parts of the country. It may survive as an annual or short-lived perennial and is very easy to grow if given the correct cultural requirements.

The lacy...