Alcatraz Island is a small island in San Francisco Bay, 1.25 miles offshore from San Francisco, California. The island was developed in the mid-19th century with facilities for a lighthouse, a military fortification, and a military prison. Here are views of Alcatraz from Pacific Heights.
A plumeria’s deep-green, long, leathery leaves grow in dense clumps at the tips of its branches. From early summer through fall, clusters of five-petaled flowers bloom amid the leaves. Large and aromatic, flowers can be white, cream, yellow, pink, lilac, or red. In Asia, plumeria flowers adorn Buddhist and Hindu temples. Captured these in Cerritos, California.
Wax begonia is a compact, mounded, succulent, and fibrous-rooted plant with fleshy stems and green to bronze leaves. Loose clusters of cymes in leaf axils, single or double and in various colors. Found these in Santa Monica, California.
Fairy Snow White Balloon Flower is an interesting clump forming perennial so named because the buds puff up like balloons before they open. This compact Platycodon produces white bell-shaped blossoms with delicately contrasting blue veins in mid through late summer. Captured in Santa Monica, California.
Seaside Pussypaws found in Santa Monica, California. Very limited information on this variety of flowers.
Found these flower buds in Santa Monica, California, but can’t identify them. If you are aware of this type of flower, please share your knowledge in the comments section.
The Regal Pelargonium has unmissable flowers that bloom in a trumpet shape. The flowers have six petals in bright purple, bright pink, pale pink, dark red, pillar box red or white. And the extravagance of the flowers is matched by the softness of the velvety leaves which also have a lovely scent. Captured in Santa Monica, California.
Also known as marsh rosemary and lavender thrift, sea lavender is a perennial coastal plant that can often be found growing in both salt marshes and along coastal sand dunes. Despite its name, it is not actually related to the lavender plant. The plant creates leathery, spoon-shaped leaves, red-tinted stems, and delicate purple blooms that appear in summer. Found these flowers in Santa Monica, California.
Leucospermum ‘Scarlet Ribbon’ (Nodding Pincushion) – A dense compact shrub produces an abundance of 4 inch wide pincushion flowers. The multi-colored flower heads start a salmon pink color and then open to expose the orange-yellow perianth styles and shiny red tepals that look like ribbons. Captured in Santa Monica, California.
Lily of the Nile, with Latin name Agapanthus (African Lily), is a marvelous perennial that blooms from spring to summer, producing magnificent floral-scapes. The flowers are funnel-shaped and typically blue, purple, or white in color; the clusters are borne on long stalks. Found these in Santa Monica, California.
Tree mallow (Lavatera maritima) is a perennial semi-evergreen shrub that produces pale lavender flowers throughout the spring, summer and fall. It prefers a dry Mediterranean climate. Captured this flower in Santa Monica, California.
Grevillea, commonly known as spider flowers, is a genus of about 360 species of evergreen flowering plants in the family Proteaceae. Grevillea is very fast growing and can live 50 to 65 years. This evergreen has a rugged look. It can grow to be over 100 feet tall, but most mature trees are around 50 to 80 feet. Captured these flowers in Santa Monica, California.
Lantana are fragrant natives of tropical regions in the Americas and Africa. These broadleaf evergreen shrubs are drought-hardy in landscapes and cold-hardy to slightly below freezing, so they can be grown as perennials in Florida and other warm regions. Found these flowers in Santa Monica, California.
The blooms of Bougainvillea aren’t actually blooms at all. The showy paper-like structures are a modified leaf called a bract. These bracts hide the actual flowers inside, which are small and trumpet-shaped in whites and yellows. The showy bracts are typically found on new growth, with the showiest display following their winter dormancy. Captured in Santa Monica, California.
A tropical vine with lots of color, Bougainvillea plants are tough as nails, which includes their nail-like thorns. These plants put on a spectacular show of color in spring on their fresh new growth. Bougainvillea is native to Central and South America and commonly cultivated in South Florida, Arizona, South Texas and Southern California. Here is a collection from Santa Monica, California.
Artichokes are such interesting things. While we consider the artichoke a vegetable, even though it’s a thistle and more specifically, the part that we eat (and that most people ever see in the store) is actually a flower bud — and sometimes called a head. Artichoke plants produce stunning purple flowers that are great for attracting bees and other beneficial insects to your garden. Found this artichoke in Santa Monica, California.
Grevillea, commonly known as spider flowers, is a genus of about 360 species of evergreen flowering plants in the family Proteaceae. The flowers are zygomorphic and typically arranged in pairs along a sometimes branched raceme at the ends of branchlets. Captured these in Santa Monica, California.
The Fortnight lily goes by many names, including African iris, butterfly iris, Wood iris, and scientifically Dietes iridioides. The name Fortnight lily is based on the blooming cycle of the flowers, where new blooms come up approximately every two weeks. Spotted in Santa Monica, California.
The hibiscus is a member of the mallow family which has nearly 300 species including trees, shrubs, perennials and annuals. The beautiful, exotic-looking flowers are short-lived, typically blooming for only one day. Once finished blooming, the flower will close up and drop off. There is also a shell-like structure supporting the flower. This too withers and drops a few days after the flower fades. Here are images of white and red hibiscus flowers spotted in Santa Monica, California.
The most popular of all plants for shade, Hostas are prized for their marvelous foliage. The thin spikes of lavender or white, trumpet-shaped flowers that appear for several weeks in summer are a bonus, and they are a favorite among hummingbirds. Here is a Hosta lily ready to bloom in Santa Monica, California
Photos by Ravi 