Honey Bee
Ceanothus ‘Victoria’ (Victoria California lilac)
This Ceanothus shrub emits intoxicating honey scent that attracts bees, butterflies, hummingbirds and humans alike
We sometimes eroneoulsy call it a "Butterfly bush", but in actuality it is known as California Lilac
Ceanothus ‘Victoria’ (Victoria California lilac, blueblossom) .
Ceanothus is a genus of fifty or sixty species of shrubs and small trees native to North America. Two deciduous species are native to British Columbia, but both are plants of the mountains and are not generally cultivated in gardens. All Ceanothus species have nodule-forming, nitrogen-fixing bacteria associated with their roots. The same bacteria (Frankia alni) is associated with alders (Alnus species) and oleasters (Elaeagnus species). In much the same way as pea-family plants associate with Rhizobium bacteria, Frankia bacteria feed on the sugars (a product of photosynthesis) produced by the host plant, but “in return,” capture atmospheric nitrogen and convert it into a plant-available form (nitrogen is the plant nutrient required in the greatest amount by plants). The association allows these plants to exploit impoverished soils. Ceanothus are also valued for tolerating alkaline soils, for being moderately tolerant of salt spray and for their unpalatability to deer. The leaves of evergreen ceanothus are usually leathery and small, often noticeably veined or conspicuously puckered. The blue-flowered types are known as California lilac or blueblossom. via
Few evergreen ceanothus are as reliably garden worthy in Vancouver, and C. ‘Victoria’ is consistently rated as the best of its kind. Because of its drought, salt spray and sun tolerance, as well as its ability to thrive in infertile ground, ‘Victoria’ is a popular choice for seaside plantings. The leaves of C. ‘Victoria’ are oval in shape, 0.5 to 2 cm long by about 1 cm wide, dark, glossy green with veins impressed above and prominent below. They are arranged along finely-ridged, green, then brown, well-branched, shoots. When plants are sited in full sun, leaf posture is often more or less vertical, and both the upper and lower parts of the leaves are visible. The small flowers are an exceptional azure blue, borne in congested clusters to about 7.5 cm long, at the tips of the new growth in late May or June. Plants are large, densely branched, wide-spreading, and growing 3 m tall by 4 or 5 m across, flowering into summer and fall. https://www.gardenia.net/plant/ceanothus-concha-california-lilac
Ceanothus natural bee forage.. Happy Spring solstice! Spring has officially sprung!
dr. π (pi)
.
This Ceanothus shrub emits intoxicating honey scent that attracts bees, butterflies, hummingbirds and humans alike
We sometimes eroneoulsy call it a "Butterfly bush", but in actuality it is known as California Lilac
Ceanothus ‘Victoria’ (Victoria California lilac, blueblossom) .
Ceanothus is a genus of fifty or sixty species of shrubs and small trees native to North America. Two deciduous species are native to British Columbia, but both are plants of the mountains and are not generally cultivated in gardens. All Ceanothus species have nodule-forming, nitrogen-fixing bacteria associated with their roots. The same bacteria (Frankia alni) is associated with alders (Alnus species) and oleasters (Elaeagnus species). In much the same way as pea-family plants associate with Rhizobium bacteria, Frankia bacteria feed on the sugars (a product of photosynthesis) produced by the host plant, but “in return,” capture atmospheric nitrogen and convert it into a plant-available form (nitrogen is the plant nutrient required in the greatest amount by plants). The association allows these plants to exploit impoverished soils. Ceanothus are also valued for tolerating alkaline soils, for being moderately tolerant of salt spray and for their unpalatability to deer. The leaves of evergreen ceanothus are usually leathery and small, often noticeably veined or conspicuously puckered. The blue-flowered types are known as California lilac or blueblossom. via
Few evergreen ceanothus are as reliably garden worthy in Vancouver, and C. ‘Victoria’ is consistently rated as the best of its kind. Because of its drought, salt spray and sun tolerance, as well as its ability to thrive in infertile ground, ‘Victoria’ is a popular choice for seaside plantings. The leaves of C. ‘Victoria’ are oval in shape, 0.5 to 2 cm long by about 1 cm wide, dark, glossy green with veins impressed above and prominent below. They are arranged along finely-ridged, green, then brown, well-branched, shoots. When plants are sited in full sun, leaf posture is often more or less vertical, and both the upper and lower parts of the leaves are visible. The small flowers are an exceptional azure blue, borne in congested clusters to about 7.5 cm long, at the tips of the new growth in late May or June. Plants are large, densely branched, wide-spreading, and growing 3 m tall by 4 or 5 m across, flowering into summer and fall. https://www.gardenia.net/plant/ceanothus-concha-california-lilac
Ceanothus natural bee forage.. Happy Spring solstice! Spring has officially sprung!
dr. π (pi)
.