Monterey Bay Nursery plants

argenteum SILVER TREE (not currently in production) mature male specimens, UCSC Arboretum female flowers ripe female seed pods seed pod closeup ready for travel! one of the most striking and dramatic statement plants you can grow in Mediterranean climates. The highly reflective, silvery foliage looks great against any background, including blue sky as you can see in the images. Plants are either male or female, and only male plants are at all showy when in bloom, producing a modestly white colored bract which reflexes slightly. Female seed pods can be over 4" tall, and are quite ornamental, looking much like pine cones when dried (and you can buy them that way). When the pods dry out the ripe seeds are pulled out by a slender filament attached to a wonderful miniature "parachute," and drift away on the wind. This legendary but somewhat (just somewhat!) demanding plant, makes a great focal point or repeating, anchor-theme planting subject for landscapes. Here's what you need: little or no frost below 25-27 F, at least on a yearly basis, with ultimate lows above approx. 23F. You also need a relatively cool summer, average to good drainage in an average to mineral soil, little or no mid to late-summer watering when established, and freedom from strong fertilizers, phosphate in particular.USDA zone 9/Sunset zones 16-17, 21-24. rev 12/2015

discolor ‘Pom Pom’ incredible flowers full grown bush, UCSC Arboretum from above against the sky wonderful foliage male. This is one of my favorite plants, certainly my favorite Leucadendron. A moderate grower to 6' or so, distinguished by oval leaves with a steely blue to grey green color and often purplish tones to the edges or even the entire terminal leaves during cool weather. The subtending cone bracts turn almost blonde white in spring and open widely to reveal the cone-like cluster of minute, hot red and yellow male flowers within. This is a very showy species with good cold hardiness that must have acid soils, good drainage, preferably sandy or mineral soils, and careful summer watering. It needs some irrigation but it should not receive too much, nor receive it too frequently, nor should it completely dry out under very hot, dry conditions. It will tolerate frost down to around 20°F so should be good into the Central Valley and surrounding foothills if you can manage the summer watering. This may be the best selection of the species, though probably a little harder to grow than most. It is well worth special attention. Like all the Leucadendrons, it is a first rate cut flower but this is also probably the showiest of them all. Seems to require SD for initiation but develops late winter/early spring. rev 5/2020

'Ebony' PP23258 foliage and bract colors a branch sport of 'Safari Sunset,' with deep burgundy-black new growth and dark burgundy red and black bracts when blooming. Leaves are shiny black-red their first year, becoming a greener black in their second season. Best against bright green plants or lighter colored walls and fences. Makes a fabulous cut flower, of course! Same specs and paramaters as 'Safari Sunset,' and also female, of course. rev 6/2018

galpinii HAIRLESS SANDVELD CONEBUSH, SILVER BALLS cones distinctive foliage to 6-8' tall, with robust vertical stems that bear fine grey green leaves held in a characteristic propeller twist near the ends of the branches. Silky round female cones appear in late spring and summer. This primarily a foliage plant, unlike most other members of this genus which, while nice for leaves alone, are primarily grown for their showy bracts. This species is more subtle but very noticeable in the landscape and quite attractive. Its cones are still quite attractive as a cut flower. Likes its drainage to be at least average. Female. Sunset zones 8-9, 14-24. rev 2/2014

'Hawaii Magic' PP29636 flower heads mature leaf colors compact growth with very blue foliage, leaves edged in maroon. Bracts open salmon-blond and mature to rich deep violet red. Leaves and flower bracts offer an unusual color combination. To about 4' x 4'. rev 5/2020

'Inca Gold' closeup nice order overhead UCSC, January 2010 the best yellow? Narrow, tulip-shaped flowers to 3-4" tall or more, outer bracts are light to medium golden yellow, innermost are close to ivory white. All are tipped with burgundy and display against deep coral red stems. Narrow, smooth, bright green leaves and an upright open to spreading shape give the plant a willowy appearance. To 6-7' tall by 6-10' wide unpruned, much denser and compact with pruning after bloom. Relatively forgiving and easy to grow in average soils and conditions. ed light yellow to ivory white bracts. To 4-5' tall and wide. Awarded an RHS Award of Garden Merit, high honor! Probably frost hardy to ~25F and should survive lower with varying amounts of damage. rev 5/2020

‘Jester’ new foliage at Chris Chaney's open bracts, SF Zoo more color also known as ‘Safari Sunshine,’ this plant has been around a while and we admittedly resisted raising it back when variegated plants were considered oddities. But with the new emphasis on foliage effects now we like it. It is a carnival-striped affair, green broadly edged creamy white to buff yellow, and tinting to coral pink, especially in cool or cold weather and especially towards the tips. When flowering (fall through spring) the bracts turn deep red then blond. Growth is slower than most and somewhat more compact, to 5-7' tall by 6-8' in a reasonable amount of time. Female form, sport of ‘Safari Sunset,' and sometimes referred to as 'Safari Sunshine.' Female, as is its sport-parent. rev 5/2020

laxum BREDASDORP CONEBUSH very close more flowers a very light textured shrub to 4-6' tall and wide, bearing sprays of small male flowers in winter and early spring. New growth is especially fine, feathery and tinted maroon, mature leaves are deep green. This species is native to wetter habitats so while it only needs moderate watering it will always need some to make it through a California summer. Sun to part shade, average drainage needs, hardy to about 25F. USDA zone 9/Sunset 9, 16-17, 21-24. rev 3/2016

linifolium female cones happy plant in Manuel's garden a very nice, well behaved, neat shrub to 4-5' tall and wide, with clean, needle-like foliage and small, silvery, rounded cones on the female plants we are growing. This is rather forgiving of soil and care, and frost tolerant to below 25F. While it doesn't offer showy bract color of it is very attractive in its own way and will fit in well in almost any Mediterranean landscape. Use it for its attractive, very fine foliage and texture, its compact, uniform growth and its very interesting seed heads. Female. Sunset zones 8-9, 13, 14-24/USDA zone 9. rev 2/2014

'Little Bit' first flowers why you grow it new growth a hybrid seedling, with L. salignum as the known female parent (possibly a 'Winter Red') and almost certainly L. discolor 'Pom Pon' as the wind-pollen donor. This is a compact, dense, rounded, arching to spreading shrub to about 3' tall by 3-4' wide or more. In mid-spring it completely covers itself in clouds of very small ivory white flowers with unusual fiery red columns of developing anther-flowers, often with a hard glossy column-center. The individual flowers then slowly open from the base and mature to pale yellow. Bushy, small textured, with bright green new foliage displays against coral red stems. Mature leaves are somewhat silvery green, noticeably fuzzy with distinctively curved silvery tips and a finely-defined maroon margin. The narrow ivory bracts also display characteristic maroon tips and densely clustered tiny silvery hairs. Very showy yet demure when flowering, 'Little Bit' is quite attractive but can be a bit tempermental and demanding, as princesses can be. Except "she" is a "he" (male flowers). She-he likes full to half sun, good drainage, acidic mineral soils if possible and some summer watering in hot-summer climates, best applies away from the immediate crown after established - water the root ball directly until it shows signs it has rooted into your native soil. It makes a good container variety as well. Probably hardy to around 25F, lower with early morning shade. USDA zone 9/Sunset 9 (water!), 15-17, 21-24. rev 5/2020 MBN INTRODUCTION-2013

meridianum ‘More Silver’ SILVER CONEBUSH, LIMESTONE CONEBUSH incredible juvenile foliage flower heads again an outstanding selection, but one of the most demanding species for soils and climate. It is grown primarily for its soft billows of extremely silvery foliage, especially when in juvenile phase, when the thin-textured young foliage moves easily and beautifully in the wind. Mature leaves are longer, greener, less silvery, thicker, more leathery and borne on longer internodes against mature stems that often turn bright coral red where exposed to sun. In winter bright yellow bracts form around the small but quite noticeable mass of brilliant golden yellow stamens. So far this seems to be an obligate-short-day plant for initiation, first showing bract color in from mid to late winter and holding its display through early spring. To 3-4' tall with age (slowly!), spreading to about twice it's height, kept smaller with post-bloom pruning, or cut-flower/foliage harvesting. This one needs good drainage, at least half a day of direct sun and as little frost as possible. It is native to limestone soils but that is probably not required for good growth. We've see leaves turn brown around 28F but some South African sites list it as hardy to USDA zone 8. We don't believe it, certainly not for this particular form, which probably will not survive temps much below 25F. USDA zone 9/Sunset zones 9, 16-24. rev 2/2019

‘Pisa’ flowering full grown shrub, UCSC Arboretum cones Mills Garden another closeup female. A L. coniferum x floridum cross, being a wispy, fast, narrow grower with rather willowy, very silver foliage and yellowish bracts surrounding small, cone-like female flower clusters in spring. To about 6' tall by 3-5' across. This one needs good drainage and relatively frost free climates. Excellent to cut for foliage as well as for its nice female cones. rev 2/2014

'Red Gem' backlit wonderful flowers ruddy, fuzzy new leaves juvenile foliage a very nice variety for its brilliant coral red flower bracts which age to light salmon-blond, sometimes almost ivory white. The dark green foliage with deep red new foliage color is notable also. This is close to 'Safari Sunset' overall, a recross in fact of L. laurifolium with L. salignum. Bracts are somewhat shorter and darker red but still quite luminous. Some consider this to be superior to 'Safari Sunset, being a little slower and smaller (approx. 4-6' vs. 7-12') and with a more compact habit better suited to landscape applications. Leaves are greener in both juvenile and adult phase, and there is much less bronzy color than in it's sister. One reliable characteristic separating the two is that this variety sports small, dense clusters of very short, soft, silvery hairs at the very point of each leaf tip, almost resembling a spine. In 'Safari Sunset' those are completely absent except for a very few on perhaps 2-3 of the innermost, fully mature flower bracts. This is another female selection, with a long season of color and forming persistent and useful ornamental cones. Hardy to close to 20F. Sun to part shade, tolerates wet soils in winter but needs demands drier summer conditions, outstanding as a container plant. A superb cut flower of course! USDA zone 9/Sunset zones 8-9, 14-24. rev 9/2024

'Reverse Polarity' PP30284 peak bloom mature foliage more bloom sunset glow a reverse-sport of 'Jester' I found in a block of that variety, with a subtler golden center-variegation pattern replacing the stark white leaf-margins of it's parent. Paradoxically the lighter leaf centers actually become deep red at peak bloom while the edges become light red and eventually glowing strawberry blond. The effect is really noticeable up close, which is why the new introduction really shines when in flower, and especially as as cut flower. Overall the color is a little warmer and brighter than either the original 'Safari Sunset' or its first known sport-offspring 'Jester.' Juvenile foliage can emerge mostly green, with just a few streaks of gold, mature leaves become increasingly colored, especially as plants age and with restricted fertilizing. Plan on it reaching 7-12' tall and wide unpruned, depending on age and growing conditions, roughly the same as its two sisters. This should finally be available (in modest quantities) later this year (2019). rev 5/2020 MBN INTRODUCTION-2017

‘Rising Sun’ closeup, best color bloom what you want late spring UCSC Arboretum closeup, late spring summer, against the sky a really good L. salignum x laureolum hybrid, with the fastest and most copious generation of showy flower bracts than any other variety, by far. You just can't keep this variety down. Flower size and color are both very close to 'Safari Sunset' ("the one to beat") but it has slightly thinner bracts and very slightly smaller flowers that are a shade lighter in color. It also has redder stems and is more resistant to pathogens. Vigorous, upright grower to 6-8' tall and wide unpruned, with an open habit.Can bloom any time of year on new growth which initiates with daytime chill. Excellent vigor, easy to grow, makes a great container plant for a few years if kept cut back. Female. rev 2/2019

'Safari Goldstrike' blooming in late December a large, lush, cut flower variety that bears ivory white flower heads and bracts, aging to deep golden yellow, against large bright green then dark green leaves and attractive burgundy red stems. The bract edges and tips become tinged and flushed with orange and peachy sunset shades, and the narrow bract edge and tip continues to darken until it is deep red. To about 6' tall and wide, growing with a dense, mostly upright habit and clean green foliage. Female form. Demands good drainage and not very much frost. Male. rev 2/2014

‘Safari Sunset’ UCSC Arboretum, full size another plant, UCSC flowers closeup several cut flower growers have told me this is the best red variety for cut flower use, being the biggest, brightest and most luminous of all. It produces large, blazing coral red to fiery red chalice-shaped bracts with deep strawberry blonde centers at full maturity. Individual bracts are quite wide, enhancing the overall show of color. This L. laureolum x salignum hybrid reaches a moderately open 7-12' by about as wide at full maturity, depending on site, care and whether pruned or harvested for its top-quality cut flowers and foliage filler. Established plants can initiate and come into full color 2-3 times per year depending on climate, reliably so in any moderate-summer-temperature locations. Flower initiation occurs on mature, seasonally-ripened stems which experience a modest amount of chill (~50-55F) under daylight conditions. This selection can be frustratingly variable between juvenile-phase and mature/flowering foliage, it's easy to think you have a different variety. New juvenile growth is relatively narrow, notably silky and a sombre dark green to dull bronzy or maroon green. Mature (blooming-age) foliage is much brighter green turning rich, dark green, with brighter red tips and is held on much redder stems. This is a relatively cold hardy, forgiving, durable and easy to grow variety with moderate to excellent vigor. Female. rev 10/2024

salignum SUNSHINE CONEBUSH this species, described in its Wikipedia article as "possibly the most common Proteaceae species in South Africa," is rather variable in texture and appearance. Forms range from ground covers through moderately large upright shrubs. Wild individuals are usually yellow, most forms in horticultural are red or pink. Pollinated by beetles. The selections below seem frost hardy to at least 25°F, possibly much less. Use them in USDA zone 8(a?)/Sunset zones 7-9, 14-24. Adventurous gardeners should try them in the warmest parts of USDA zone 8a and Sunset zone 7. Cape Region. rev 2/2019

'Blush' young bracts mature bracts originally selected for cut flower production, this variety is short, very compact, with rounded bluish leaves on short internodes. Purple-red bracts indicate forming flower heads, they turn brilliant red with ivory and strawberry inner bracts while flowers are opening, sometimes the entire head turns white. Eventually they turn glowing burgundy red and clasp the spent cones. To 3' Fine textured foliage, upright growth to perhaps 3'. Female flowers. Very, very nice! rev 2/2019

'Ceres 2'    whyyou grow it    typical middle aged plant    full blown maturity    favorite angle    particularly nice blond and warm ivory white to strawberry pink flower bracts, medium size plant. Faster, taller and wider than the very similar but ultra-compact 'Blush.' This UCSC Arboretum variety, one of four 'Ceres' seedlings they planted out, is I think easily the best of the lot. It makes a very good container plant for at least a few years, tolerating wide fluctuations in soil moisture levels without complaint and responding well to pruning. Of course it is a superior cut flower, one of the best. To about 6' tall and wide, unpruned. Typical growing conditions, full to mostly full sun, at least average drainage, mostly fall-spring watering but with enough summer watering to get it through in hot areas. Irrigate away from the crown if at all possible, and little or no fertilizing is usually called for beyond iron or trace element treatments. rev 2/2019

‘Chief’    best color    another picture, in bloom    willowy growth    reddish foliage    a fast, moderately dense, upright shrub or even small tree with pruning, to about 6-8' tall and wide, with a whippy or willowy habit. Leaves are quite narrow, dark green to bright green, to 2" long, and each has a dark red tip. The stems are bright to dark red and contrast nicely with the clean foliage, especially in late winter when the older leaves are lighter in color. The brilliant yellow stamens of the small male flower heads are subtended by small, very showy dark red outer bracts and very thin, bright citron yellow to blonde colored inner bracts, which color in winter and last until early spring. Sometimes the inner bracts even show a red zone at the center, for a nice bicolor effect. When colored up the flowers and bracts form a wonderfully showy canopy on the outside of the bush and almost look like clusters of minute Eryngium flowers. The new growth emerges dark maroon red, and is almost as showy as the bracts, contrasting quite strongly against the green foliage as it does. This species can be cut back very hard if needed for size or renewal reasons, even to the ground if called for, resprouting well from dormant buds on old wood or from its persistent, fire-resistant rootstock. However it should be cut back after bloom (spring) but no later than midsummer or you risk cutting off the mature growth which will bloom the following winter. It is an outstanding cut flower/foliage form that is commercially produced. This is a very adaptable variety, probably the easiest one to grow of all, and this species is the mostly widely distributed of the genus. Likes full or mostly full sun, at least average drainage, and occasional summer watering. Male selection. rev 2/2014

‘Golden Tulip’ why you grow it young Los Gatos landscape loading dock buds just starting to color previously sold by us as 'Golden Tip,' which is actually the common wildflower name in South Africa for the wild plants. Confusing. This form is a Jeff Rosendale selection of a Mike Astone field cut-flower seedling. Jeff recognized that its commercial cut-flower flaws (shorter stems, often-horizontal branches leading to upright-bent flower heads) actually made it more useful and better adapted for garden/landscape applications. The shorter stems give it a more compact, presentable form, the partially spreading habit makes it better at covering more ground and thereby suppressing weeds. Named for the elegant shape and color of its terminal bracts, which range from light blonde through golden yellow, usually with ruddy strawberry highlights at the bract edges with age. To about 3' tall and 5' wide, narrow of petal and bract, graceful of growth and habit. The foliage is quite blue grey and offsets the strawberry and blond to light gold bracts and burgundy stems quite nicely. Fall and spring bloom, moderate cool-morning chill requirement needed (mature stems). Female form, so colorful bracts are showy for a long time. rev 2/2021

'Red Tulip'    at its best    loading dock     mid-stage color    a little past   fully mature   another of several originating from local cut flower grower and Protea Family specialist Mike Astone, who evaluated his own seedlings and selected for bloom timing, bract color/form and cut-stem performance. This one features ivory to blonde interior bracts at flowers half-open becoming deep red and tulip-like when clasping the mature cone. Grows to 5' tall by 7' or so across, initiates with chill and/or short days. Of all our current selections 'Red Tulip' is closest to 'Summer Red,' with similar growth parameters and identical cultural preferences. Tolerates frost to around 25F, survives occasional lower freezes. rev 2/2019

'Strawberry Blonde' early stage    mid-stage    late stage   lots o' bracts, really nice foliage too!   dense habit    bought in as liners of 'Summer Red,' this is a cut-flower variety of unknown ID (if you know, let us know). Besides being great for cuts it's also got superior container and landscape qualities as well. Bracts start out ivory white and light pink with violet-burgundy tips then deepen to clear rosy pink and finish deep salmon coral when the cone is out of flowers. This has up to 22 colorful bracts over 1" on some heads, maybe the most numerous of any we've grown. Dense, narrow leaves are quite blue in color, set on very short internodes against bright coral red stems. I'm guessing 3-4' tall by 4-5' wide but we'll see. This is an easy chill-initiator. rev 2/2021

‘Summer Red’    winter flowers    new growth fall-spring flowering in interior or Southland climates like the rest, but can initiate in any season on mature growth which experiences daylight chill. New growth is an attractive red, usually seen in late spring and early summer. It has a delicate, quite graceful habit and presentation, narrow leaves, and bears narrow, tulip-like terminal bracts which color to a deep strawberry coral red with paler interiors beginning in early fall and lasting into spring. Both juvenile and mature leaves show diagnostic tiny tufts of short hairs at their very tips. Open growth to about 4' by 6', fine textured, with terminal bracts elegantly displayed. Female form. rev 2/2019

‘Winter Red’ why you grow it, UCSC    why you grow it II, UCSC    very old plant, UCSC    mature foliage, bronzy new growth, MBN    September 2014 bloom, MBN    mature foliage, cool weather, MBN    April, mature bracts clasping spent cones   a dense, compact variety that produces a dazzling display of color, usually beginning fall or winter. Broad, tulip-like bracts are ivory white lined with light pink as flowers begin to open, then mature to brilliant strawberry pink when flowers are half-open. When full mature bracts turn intense burgundy red and clasp the spent cones, providing a show of color for many more months. Juvenile leaves are short, blue green and tinted a nice, deep burgundy purple with cold. Mature-phase leaves are longer, lighter green, with light bronzy-red new growth but also purple when cool. Both phases show conspicuously short internodes. Bracts can begin to color from September/October through February/March, total display of color can last through May or even June, depending on the year, plant maturity and seasonal maturity of branches. When in full bloom the entire outer visible surface of the plant turns intense, deep red. Female selection. rev 2/2019