One of the many treats of visiting my mother for a few weeks, this August, in Oakland California, as all the amazing gardens I enjoyed in the neighborhood where we stayed, historic Haddon Hill, just above Lake Merrit. Northern Californians love drought resistant and dramatic front yards these days, that front lawn is long gone, replaced by a wonderful variety of plants that require much water, as water is scarce and residents do their best not to waste it! What I have noticed in Northern California in general, is that if there are certain plants that do well in any given neighborhood, many jump on the same bandwagon and plant the same thing, which actually is quite lovely and gives a nice consistency. One such plant, that happened to be in full bloom during our visit is called Amaryllis Belladonna, and wow is it ever spectacular! The flower blooms on long stalks with no leaves and the fact that it is a bulb that blooms in August is altogether quite interesting! I was also intrigued to learn that this flower is an amaryllis, as I'm only familiar with the big red ones that bloom in the spring, or even better are forced for enjoyment in December!
I was very happy to see that bulbs for amaryllis belladonna are for sale locally here in Israel, so I may just have to give it a try, though I highly doubt it would bloom here in August, the hottest month of the year, hmmmm, so when then? Okay, I'm going to look into that, keep on reading for more lovely photos and info!
