A gorgeous protea in bloom

Even here in coastal Northern CA, we do get frost days and tropicals have to be sited carefully. Monterey/Carmel are 75 miles south of us and much more temperate. While walking along the bike trail in Monterey, this shrub of proteas was in full bloom and in the sunshine, an absolute show-stopper. It's amazing to see a tropical living so happily outside; even in Oakland/East Bay we can't grow these easily, if at all.

Not everyone discovers this paved trail which runs parallel to, and is just above, Cannery Row, for a mile. The south end dead-ends where the magnificent Coastal Trail begins. You can then walk all the way around the rocks and beaches looking out over the Pacific, from Monterey to Pacific Grove and all the way into Carmel. Asilomar State Beach in Pacific Grove is wonderful, and few tourists go to it.

That is a beautiful protea. I would love to grow some here, but I am in an "iffy" zone. But, I am willing to try again. And thanks for the information on the bike trail - though I do not bike, it sounds like it is a walking/biking trial?

Yes, you can walk on the bike trail. The best place to walk, though, is Asilomar State Park - the Coastal Trail runs right into and through it.

In Monterey both residents and tourists use the bike path/Coastal Trail. But the further into Pacific Grove you go, after a couple of miles the tourists drop off and the Trail is almost empty except during high season (summer)/weekends. We were walking the Trail in Asilomar on a Wednesday afternoon and except for the beach area, we saw only 2 people in over two miles in the mid-afternoon. It's an amazingly beautiful walk - check the tide times when you can see the waves crashing over the rocks.

Monterey/Carmel is a great area to visit. We're retired so we can go mid-week and avoid the usual crowds.

Lovely, and wonderful to see. I understand that protea does grow in my area, but as yet I haven't had a chance to. It's a lovely idea for a walk. Do you think I could make it? I can walk all day, and even do some relatively easy climbing, but I'm slow. I hope to be able to see that area when we travel north again. : - )
Either way it's a beautiful photo, and very generous of you to share their location. : - )
Thank you, jkom. : - )
WIB,
SW

Both the bike trail and the Coastal Trail are flat and easy to walk on. However, the Coastal Trail is narrow, so best walked when it isn't quite so crowded. The Coastal Trail is just packed dirt/sand; the bike trail is paved.

If you don't want to risk walking on the dirt (or it's raining), the Coastal Trail is mirrored almost the entire way by homes across the street where there is paved sidewalk, so you can still see the ocean.

Love protea! Unfortunately, I moved to a zone that gets a bit cooler nights than even when I lived in San Jose so I'll just go visit these in the SF botanical park.

Beautiful plant! Since this plant has adapted to the local climate, has anyone collected seeds from it and tried to grow them? Or are they not self fertile? I wonder which species this plant is... I recently read about a species that's supposed to be the most tolerant of conditions in the Bay Area - it can handle some frost and also grow in moderately alkaline soil - called Protea repens. The plant in the photo above does not appear to be that species though (and I can't find non-white varieties of that species for sale anywhere).

The above plant is a Leucospermum, not sure which species though. Sue--you might be able to grow it; I've had some make it through the winters here and I live in a bit of a frost pocket. They don't like my clay soil much though so I've lost a few because of too much moisture over the winter.

Doh, I have a couple of those! They will be my testers for the first winter here. I'll check a couple of local nurseries too.

Well, Sue, if you and Ecrane can grow them, I should be able to too. I need to find a species that doesn't get too big. Any suggestions?

The ones I've grown have been cultivars of L. cordifolium--I think they get ~5-6 ft or so. I don't know if you'll find any that stay much smaller than that.

You could plant them in large pots. Mine are in large pots and I've seen them at nurseries in big pots too.

This is the one I want:
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/240507/
Lots of cool ones to pick from!
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/b/Proteaceae/Leucadendron/none/cultivar/0

jkom - how big was the protea in the photo that you posted? Do you or anyone else know the name of that plant in the photo? I really like the flower in that one.

Sue - Home Depot has some large pots on special this week. I may just get one. Maybe they won't get so big in a pot?? I am thinking about 4 feet at the most. I don't have much space in my small corner urban lot.

Ecrane - have you ever collected seeds from your L. cordifoliums or started cuttings from them? I don't see any available in the local nurseries, so will most likely have to order one. I went to a proteaceae farm in Hawaii a couple of years ago, and the variety was amazing.

Probably one of these Leucospermum cordifolium.
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/b/Proteaceae/Leucospermum/cordifolium/cultivar/0/

I've never seen seeds on them, and things in that family can be a bit tricky to start from seed. I've never tried cuttings so I have no idea how easy they are. If you don't mind a little bit of a road trip, Sierra Azul Nursery in Watsonville (between Gilroy & Santa Cruz) sells lots of Leucospermums as well as many other Proteaceae family members such as Protea, Grevillea, Leucadendron. It's an amazing nursery so I think it would be well worth the drive but that's up to you of course! If you do go there, it's probably worth heading over to Santa Cruz afterwards for a visit to the UCSC arboretum--they've got lots of them on display in their gardens and also sometimes have them available at their garden shop.

Sue - thanks for your answer, and Ecrane - thanks for your info. Next time I am in the Watsonville area, I'll take a look. It has been years and years since I have been to UCSC (not since college-shopping days with my kids) so it is time for a trip there too.

I have a "Succession 1" Leucospermum in my back yard that looks pretty much like the one in the picture this year. This is the first time it has bloomed in four years, but it's been covered with blooms for a couple of months now and is still going strong. I can't seem to coax a bloom out of my "Veldfire" Leucospermum, though.

The Monterey/Salinas area is pretty good for Proteacea in general, it seems, although a couple of Proteas I was growing in pots fell victim to a fungal infection and died. Sierra Azul is a really nice place to see and buy them.

That protea was on a raised bed, and of course I don't know how old it was. Size was about 3-4' tall and at least 3' across.

thanks for the info. 3-4 feet may be doable. I wish I had a little bigger lot, but not sure I would be able to handle it all the time though.