This and that, mid-June 2026

It’s almost mid-June. Don’t get me started on how quickly time is flying by! After a weird winter and a long and mild spring, summer is here with a vengeance. Temperatures above the century mark are forecast for the next few days. I did some advance watering to help the garden handle the unaccustomed heat. To make matters worse, it’s pretty windy, too. Think convection oven. Fortunately, this heatwave looks to be fairly short. Back into the low 90s next week.

Remember the rat(s) that nibbled on my Astrophytum cacti a while ago? I caught one in early May and foolishly let myself be lulled into complacency. Of course that wasn’t the end of it:

Another Astrophytum asterias nibbled on in the greenhouse

Oddly enough, the cacti that were chewed on were all astrophytums. Nothing else. I have no idea what it is about astrophytums in particular, but clearly rats and mice prefer them over anything else in my greenhouse.

With two electric rat zapper traps going, it was only a matter of time until I caught something. And I did:

Just a mouse, but better than nothing

I won’t be so quick this time to let my guard down. The traps will remain baited.

On to more pleasant things in the garden. Seeing pretty agaves always puts me in a good mood:

Agave (potatorum ‘Spawn’ × isthmensis) × shawii, with a cardón (Pachycereus pringlei) on the right

Agave shawii × potatorum

Mangave ‘Bloodspot’ × Agave titanota

Agave ‘Sierra Azul’ (Agave cerulata × kristenii) surrounded by Mexican tulip poppies (Hunnemannia fumariifolia)

View from the front porch, creeping devil cactus (Stenocereus eruca) in the middle

Agave desmetiana ‘Galactic Traveller’

Agave impressa (bottom), Hechtia ‘Oaxaca Sunset’ (top)

Several cycads are flushing, i.e. pushing new leaves. This doesn’t happen often: maybe once a year, maybe once every other year. Cycads are sloooooow and can live for decades.

Encephalartos friderici-guilielmi (I’ll never remember the correct spelling of this species)

Dioon edule

Dwarf form of Encephalartos horridus, no flush, but still beautiful

A few random snaps from the front yard:

Potted echeverias, mostly Echeveria agavoides cultivars (they handle the heat better than other echeveria species)

Farewell to spring (Clarkia amoena), a California native, is typically the last wildflower to bloom in the spring, hence the common name. It’s also known in the cut flower trade as godetia.

As much as I enjoy the flowers, I’m getting tired of the messy look. I look forward to removing the plants and reclaiming a semblance of order.

Our chaste tree (Vitex agnus-castus) is bigger and more floriferous than ever. In the daytime, there are so many bees in the tree that you can hear their buzzing from many feet away.

One of my more recent plant purchases is Euphorbia geroldii, commonly known as thornless crown of thorns for its superficial resemblance to the real crown of thorns (Euphorbia millii):

I got it recently at the UC Davis Botanical Conservatory for all of $15

It’s been pushing flower after flower — a pleasant surprise

A couple more recent purchases. I’m not sure how well they’ll do here, but they were both clearance-priced, so I have little to lose:

Echeveria ‘Suyon’, a Korean hybrid known for its “bouquet” look

Greenovia dodrantalis (now known as Aeonium dodrantale), aka mountain rose for its dense cupped leaves (see photo here). It’s native to Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Like aeoniums, it goes dormant in the summer and is susceptible to rot when watered too much. Just a little H2O now and then to keep the roots from desiccating, at least that’s what I’ve gleaned from online sources. We shall see.

Aloe bloom season has long peaked, but I have so many species and hybrids that there’s always at least one in flower. For the past month, the standout has been Aloe tomentosa, native to the Arabian Peninsula. What makes this species so special are the hairy white flowers borne on tall, branched inflorescences. As an extra bonus, the flowers are long-lived, lasting four to six weeks. I have two Aloe tomentosa; the photos below are of the younger and smaller one. The other one grows under our Santa Cruz Island ironwood tree and is hard to photograph.

After a big flush of flowers in mid-April, the cactus craze has calmed down a little, but it seems like there’s something in bloom every day:

Acanthocalycium spiniflorum

Rainbow hedgehog cactus (Echinocereus rigidissimus ‘Rubrispinus’) in glorious flower

Rainbow hedgehog cactus (Echinocereus rigidissimus ‘Rubrispinus’)

Echinopsis ‘Sleeping Beauty’

Echinopsis ‘Celeste’

Echinopsis ‘Magic Eyes’

Fence-top planter with echinopsis

Echinopsis ‘Freda’ in the front, ‘Spring Blush’ in the back

Echinopsis ‘Freda’

Echinopsis ‘Super Apricot’

Echinopsis ‘Super Apricot’

Veradek Corten bowl with multiple echinopsis. I have the tags for all of them — except this one.

Whatever it is, it has a beautiful flower

In November 2022 I sowed seeds from 12 different German echinopsis hybrids. In July 2024, I had 82 baby cacti. Of those, I kept about 60. They recently got moved to 1 gallon pots. Now I need to wait until they flower before I make the final cut. Specifically, I’m looking for large bi-colored flowers and/or ruffled or serrated edges. Fingers crossed some will bloom next year. It’s getting challenging taking care of so many pots.

German echinopsis hybrids moved to 1 gallon pots

But there’s more. More echinopsis grown from seed (in this case open pollinated ‘June Noon‘) as well as Gasteria excelsa and Aloe ‘Hellskloof Bells’ seedlings:

And, most recently, Aloe wickensii and the Aloe bulbillifera hybrid from the sidewalk bed that flowers almost continuously throughout the year:

The craziness is showing no signs of abating as I continue to collect seeds.

More Aloe bulbillifera seeds

What will I do with all these plants? That’s a very good question. I have a hunch a plant sale is in my future.

© Gerhard Bock, 2026. All rights reserved. To receive all new posts by email, please subscribe here.