Monday, April 18, 2016

Oleander through the Year

Oleander through the Year
Oleander Seeds Bursting from Pods,
© B. Radisavljevic
I can't ever remember living long in any location where oleander shrubs weren't nearby. They are a staple in California gardens and even freeway plantings because oleander isn't fussy about its soil and it doesn't need any irrigation once established. It actually likes a sunny, hot, dry location. In this post I will show you the life stages of oleander flowers -- how oleander flowers begin and end. The photo to the right shows you both the beginning and end of an oleander flower. We will continue to see how oleander changes through the year.

Since oleander is an evergreen shrub, it adds color and texture to the garden year-round with its long blade-like, dark green leaves. It can also be used on large rural properties where deer roam because it's said that deer won't eat it. Perhaps it's poisonous to them, as well as to people. Children need to be taught not to snack on it, since it can be deadly.

The photo below was taken on April 15, when my oleander was just starting to bud.

Oleander through the Year
Oleander Budding,© B. Radisavljevic


This next photo was taken in June, when my oleander was in full and beautiful bloom.

Oleander through the Year
Oleander Blooming,© B. Radisavljevic

When walking my neighborhood in the summertime, I see neighbors with many shades of oleanders ranging from white and light pink to red. Some neighbors have contrasting colors. This neighbor combined white with light pink.

Oleander through the Year
White and Pink Oleander Blooming Together,© B. Radisavljevic


By October, the oleander flowers are beginning to make their seed pods. As the flowers have been pollinated and die back, what's left turns into one of these long seed pods. Some flowers just die back without making pods.

Oleander through the Year
Oleander Seed Pods,© B. Radisavljevic


This last photo in the series was taken in February. It shows the seed pods bursting and the seeds getting ready to parachute away with the wind. See the close-up of the seeds in the very top photo.


Oleander through the Year
Oleander Seed Pods Splitting,© B. Radisavljevic


If you enjoyed this post, please share it. The sharing buttons are just above the comment box at the end of the post. The photo below is especially designed for pinning.

Oleander through the Year

This is my fifteenth post for the 2016 AtoZchallenge, a Blogging Challenge for the month of April, 2016. My theme is plants, since this is a gardening blog. Here are links to the other posts if you missed them.

A is for Apple Blossoms
B is for Bottlebrush
C is for Carnations
D is for Daisy
E is for Elderberry
F is for Flowers
G is for Gazania
Hollyhocks are Edible
Irises Are Garden Survivors
Jupiter's Beard: A Mystery Finally Solved
Kale for Lunch
"Naked Ladies" Bloom in August

2 comments:

Deepa from FictionPies said...

Wow, I like how you've got a flower/plant all set for each alphabet! You sure love gardening! I've been tempted to take it myself but haven't gotten around to. Hoepfully soon! Good wishes for the rest of the A-Z!

BarbRad said...

Deepa,

I could probably some up with several for each letter except the hardest letters. I'm not sure yet what I'll do for X. I'm doing the challenge for two different blogs.

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