Protea Obtusifolia: The Limestone Sugarbush

Craving more autumn protea inspiration? 🌸🍂 Meet obtusifolia, or the Limestone Sugarbush, a striking protea that captures attention with its beauty and resilience. Native to the rugged limestone hills of South Africa, this plant thrives best in natural, rocky habitats, providing a bursts of color during the colder months.

What makes this protea so special?

🍃 Lush, Rich Green Foliage: The leaves of this protea are broad, deep green, and robust, perfectly complementing its vibrant blooms. These tough, leathery leaves help the plant conserve water through the summer months.

🌷 Stunning Flowers with a Bold Color Palette: Obtusifolia’s flowers bring unforgettable beauty to bouquets and arrangements. The bracts (modified leaves surrounding the flowers) start off a deep red waxen hue that gradually fades into a delicate cream at the base. The central dome of the flower is a stunning crimson red, topped with a soft, white tip… a true contrast that catches the eye in every season.

🌱 Winter Blooms That Linger into Spring: Limestone Sugarbush typically blooms from fall through winter, with some flowers holding onto their beauty well into the spring.

🌟 A Hardy Survivor: Known for its ability to thrive in poor, well-drained soils, including limestone, obtusifolia is a symbol of resilience. It’s drought-tolerant once established and requires minimal care, making it a favorite for both seasoned gardeners and beginners alike.

Whether you're a protea lover or a newcomer to the Proteaceae family, obtusifolia is sure to capture your heart with its grace and vibrant charm. 🌿

December Articles of Interest

Resendiz Brothers Earns BloomCheck Certification

Resendiz Brothers Protea Growers was one of the first three farms in the country to earn BloomCheck certification when the program started in 2013. In another first, they’ve become one of the earliest farms to renew their certification.

“I really felt that it was important that our customers realize that we’re dedicated to sustainable farming, that we respect the land and we’re environmentally friendly,” Diana Roy business manager for Resendiz Brothers, said of becoming an early adopter.

Read more here.
_____________________________________________________________

Les Hodge | A hardy work of exotic, alien beauty

Leucadendrons are tough, easy-to-grow plants given their preferred growing conditions of deep acidic soil in full sun with plenty of air circulation.

Many can withstand strong, salty winds so are suited to coastal areas. Most will take light frost and are drought tolerant once established, making them a good choice for our hot summers.

The flowers are woody cone-like structures giving rise to the leucadendron's common name of cone bush.

Read more here.
_____________________________________________________________

30 Amazing Protea Wedding Bouquets

Protea plants, also known as sugarbushes, have become a favorite in the wedding world. The blooms—which are native to South Africa—come in a number of different varieties, and each is beloved for its unique shape or color. These include the big king protea, the unusual pincushion protea, and the aptly-named blushing bride protea. Whichever you like, we recommend incorporating it into your wedding bouquet for a bold and beautiful arrangement. For inspiration, look no further than these unique protea wedding bouquet ideas.

Read more here.

UCR Botanic Gardens Fall Plant Sale

Fall is a very popular time of the year for outdoor markets and fairs of all kinds. And when garden opportunities arise we always try to participate in the local favorites. Autumn also happens to be the best time to plant perennials like proteas, shrubs, bulbs and even wildflower seeds. Did you know that plants established in the fall and winter grow faster in the spring and require less water when summer comes?

This month we returned to the UCR Botanic Gardens nestled in the foothills of the Box Springs Mountains on the east side of the University of California, Riverside Campus for their 36th annual plant sale. This spectacular event features an vast collection of plants including drought tolerant California Natives as well as plants that attract hummingbirds or butterflies and plants that are suitable for vegetable or flower gardens.

It’s also a fabulous time of year to visit the UCR Botanic Gardens - not only to enjoy this living plant museum with more than 3,500 plant species from around the world, but to wander through the four miles of scenic trails or just relax on a bench and enjoy the beauty.

In the Field: Eucalyptus macrocarpa

Macrocarpa is a very distinctive species of eucalyptus having what Australians usually refer to as a “mallee” type habit of growth. A species that has amazing characteristics including interesting foliage, beautiful flowers, and fascinating bark. Because of the dryness of the habitats in which it evolved, this eucalyptus tends to be extremely drought tolerant, with evergreen, often wax-covered leaves, which appear in different shapes as the plant matures. Macrocarpa’s large, bluish gray leaves are very interesting and look spectacular in arrangements.

Macrocarpa flowers from early spring to mid-summer producing blooms larger than a silver dollar, with brilliantly colored stamens in vibrant vivid pinks and stunning reds. The gum nuts which follow the flowers are also an interesting feature of the tree… they’re very large and have a wonderful powdery grey covering.

The UCR Botanic Gardens 44th Annual Spring Plant Sale

Spring is a popular time for fairs and sales of all kinds, and when garden opportunities arises, we always try to participate in a few of the local favorites.

Last week, we ventured out to the UCR Botanic Gardens nestled in the foothills of the Box Springs Mountains on the east side of the University of California, Riverside Campus for their 44th annual spring plant sale. It’s the Gardens most popular event of the year and they always have a wide variety of plants for sale. Plants that attract hummingbirds and butterflies, drought tolerant and California Native plants as well as plants that are suitable for cut flowers use…like our Protea, of course.

It’s a fabulous time of year to visit the UCR Botanic Gardens - not only to enjoy this living plant museum with more than 3,500 plant species from around the world, but to wander through the four miles of scenic trails or just relax on a bench and enjoy the beauty. Enjoy these photos…

Flannel Flowers: A Symbol of Purity

Did you know Flannel Flowers, a popular Australian native wildflower, has became sought after as a symbol of purity in many festival and religious ceremonies?

These dainty flowers have a daisy-like appearance with a raised textured center.  Each bloom has 10 or more floppy petals that are soft and feel just like 'flannel'.  Some varieties of flannel flowers have petals with light grey-green tips, but for the most part, the flowers are white.  The leaves are silver-grey and velvety in texture as well. 

When these fabulous flowers are mixed into bouquets or designs along with protea, grevillea, fillers flowers, leucadendron or eucalyptus they add a unique touch of sophistication, elegance and purity.

i-do.com.au

Polka Dot Bride - Fetching Flannel Flowers

Butterfly Philosophy

What to look for:

• Buy when flowers are half to fully open and have a fluffy appearance.
• Avoid bunches with droopy brown tips.
  

Flower Care:

1. Keep cool at all times.
2. Strip leaves from the bottom half of each stem and wash thoroughly.
3. Re-cut at lest 1/4" off each stem and place in cold water.
4. Always use a preservative as this will help the buds to open.
5. Replace water every 1 to 2 days.
6. To dry, hang upside down in a well ventilated room.

Interesting Facts: 

The 'flannel-like' texture of this flower is due to a film of fine hairs that cover the whole plant. The hairs reduce the loss of water from the plant, protecting it during times of drought.

The Flannel Flower has been chosen as Australia's national symbol to promote mental health awareness because of its inherent beauty and strength.  Several varieties are commonly found growing wild in the bush throughout Australia.  The Flannel Flower, as with all native Australian plants, needs to be adaptable and enduring in order to survive.

The flowering heads can be cut off and placed in a bowl of water.  Treated in this way these 'floaters' will last considerably longer.