Welcome to April’s bloom day, the back yard edition.

Natives make a big showing in April, including anemone, Carpenteria californica.

… a white Ceanothus whose identity I can’t recall,

And the little Ray Hartman Ceanothus in the backyard,

Sphaeralcea ambigua ‘Louis Hamilton’ is still at it, as gorgeous as last month,

Dudleya pulverulenta crazy octopus arms inflorescence. This plant has a common name of chalk lettuce. That cracks me up.

The Desert Museum palo verde just started blooming….

… though the wild form blue palo verde Parkinsonia florida has been at it for a few weeks now.

Verbena bonariensis has just started flowering this week. I had a few of these plants last year (they succumbed to powdery mildew) and they were a well-behaved 24″ or so. This year — this new plant is a good 5 ft tall. I guess it’s healthy?

Verbena de la Mina is also flowering. I admire this plant’s toughness but I prefer bonariensis’s style.

Penstemon heterophyllus X ‘Margarita BOP’, with some NOID esheverias

A mimulus of unknown variety:

A NOID salvia from Lowe’s and Salvia clevelandii…

I think that’s it for the backyard natives. Here’s a photobomb from one of the cats.

The yellow aloes (maybe A. barbadensis? I really have no idea) are still flowering in a couple of different spots.

A calla lily left over from some previous owner’s garden plan (it’s not like I have a plan myself)

Oops! Natives I forgot… Salvia chiapensis, with photo bombing from the other cat this time. Yes, the cats are the same color. I swear there are 2 of them.

And another salvia, chamaedryoides I think

The yarrow is just getting started.

The Ito peony is stunning right now. Except that it really needs some deadheading. Note the chihuahua standing on the patio. I took this in the morning, when the sun just started to hit the back garden. She was warming herself up in the sunlight, staring off in to space (she does this a lot).

Aloe stricta (I think) and blue elf aloe, with desert penstemon and more yarrow in the background.

I’m not sure of the identity of this plant (Lepismium cruciforme maybe? A Rhipsalis of come kind?) but it’s got tiny pink flowers right now.

Speaking of Rhipsalis, check out *this amazing plant* (!) Isn’t it stunning? (Ok, its not flowering this month but I figure, so what). I picked this up on Saturday from Here. More about that adventure in a post later this week.

I also got this amazing plant on Saturday, Albuca spiralis. It smells like vanilla cake.

Good lord, I’m not even done with the back yard yet.

We’ve got Gomphrena ‘Fireworks’…

Anigozanthos…

… and some flowering Aeoniums:

I leave you with a parting little dog shot. Happy flowering!

Garden bloggers bloom day is hosted by Carol at https://www.maydreamsgardens.com/2018/04/garden-bloggers-bloom-day-april-2018.html.