It’s April 15th — time for garden bloggers bloom day. I missed last month but there’s been plenty going on. For starters, the aloes have collectively been putting on a good show, as have the Dudleyas (below).

But the name of the game right now in April in my garden is mallow, as in globe mallow, Sphaeralcea ambigua. I’ve got it in red (Louis Hamilton, shown below)….

…pink,

…and orange.

The back yard smells amazing thanks to the Meyer lemon tree blooming.

The freesias are nearly done.

Yarrow is back in the game.

Verbena bonariensis just missed the deadline this month, but will surely be present in May.

Salvia (NOID — I think its salvia chamaedryoides).

And a Mimulus cultivar.

The bush anenome Carpenteria californica is simply stunning.

Here’s a wayward calla lily, planted by a previous owner (but appreciated by this one).

Pride of Madeira (Echium candicans) I got from my neighbor, Rosemary, years ago.

Verbena lilacina ‘De La Mina’ (which I just don’t like as much as bonariensis) rounds out the highlights from the back yard.

In the front, the show belongs entirely to the California Poppy, Eschscholzia californica. This year’s El Niño brought on a front yard sized superbloom of amazing color.

The globe mallows make a statement here, too.

I started with a few of these deep purple flowers years ago, from Annie’s Annuals. They’ve faithfully reseeded ever since. (Cerinthe major purpurascens
“Blue Honeywort”)

The statice flower looks nice but its days are numbered. After witnessing some penstemons at this year’s California Native Plant Society San Diego chapter garden show, I have plans to replace them with natives.

As a parting shot — here are the front window boxes. These succulents are going crazy with flowering this spring. These boxes were already overgrown: now I really know I need to clean them out and replant them. Maybe in May….

Garden bloggers bloom day is hosted monthly on the 15th by May Dreams Gardens.