Princely Plants – In Memory of the Man

Based on an idea from my pal Mike Maddox to do an “all purple” blog in memory of Prince, I have done just that.  Incidentally, these are all plants I also viewed last week at the California Spring Trials (CAST).  I was able to see Prince in concert twice and he was spectacular.  The wife is a HUGE fan as well and will long be in mourning.  Regardless, I like to think he’d appreciate this collection of wonderful flowers.  RIP.
Today was overcast and cool but that didn’t slow down our garden clean-up efforts on the day before our big Earth Day activities.  Tomorrow we’ll have vendors, booths, food, educational offerings and some live raptor shows too.  See our website for details!  Tidying up the garden was vital.  Kathy, Eva and Kay were out there weeding and fine tuning various areas and always do a nice job.  Bill O. came in to mow and we also saw Vern, Dawn and many others.  Tomorrow morning (8 am – 12 noon) is also our Compost/Pansy Sale at the Horticulture Center.
Cindy did a lot of tidying out in the gardens and with so many visitors coming for Earth Day celebrations tomorrow, the timing couldn’t be better.  John and Terry also accomplished a lot out in the gardens including mowing, collecting debris, blower rounds and getting our newly stained benches back in their locations.  Janice also tidied, prepared a display for the event tomorrow, refreshed the cutting display and prepared for our sale tomorrow which she gets going in the morning.  I took a dent out of my desk pile and continue to prepare for the convergence of events, deliveries and many other inputs that will create our “Perfect Storm” in early May!
‘Primavera Violet’ cineraria (Pericallis hybrida)
 ‘Passion Rose’ African daisy (Osteospermum ecklonis)
 ‘SuperCal Blue’ million bells (Calibrachoa)
 ‘Antique Blue’ African daisy (Osteospermum ecklonis)
 ‘Tiara Mickey Blue Lavender’ verbena (Verbena hybrida)
 ‘Amistad’ friendship sage (Salvia hybrida)
‘Roaring Raspberry’ petunia (Petunia)
‘Hot Dark Lavender’ lobelia (Lobelia erinus)
‘Tuscany Violet w/ Eye’ verbena (Verbena hybrida)
‘Axcent Deep Purple’ rock cress (Aubrieta hybrida)
‘Javelin Forte Purple’ Spanish lavender (Lavandula stoechas)
‘Sanguna Lavender Vein’ petunia (Petunia)
‘Colibri Purple Lace’ million bells (Calibrachoa)
‘Purple Haze’ fan flower (Scaevola aemula)
‘Littletunia Violet’ petunia (Petunia)
‘Samira Deep Blue’ verbena (Verbena hybrida)
‘Sparklers’ petunia (Petunia)
‘Hot Purple’ lobelia (Lobelia erinus)
‘Glow Fluor Rose’ petunia (Petunia)
‘Grape Punch Improved’ million bells (Calibrachoa)