Sammy, it's too bad that you had to see SD in this drought. My parents lived in San Diego for a number of years, and I visited them often - I always marveled at the beautiful plants and flowers, especially in neighborhoods that were fairly near to the ocean. But, of course, San Diego was always basically a desert next to an ocean - an ideal climate for growing succulents, which were magnificent. I myself live in Sacramento, and yes, we are near the fires. It's a bad year, as all the vegetation in the foothills and the mountains is so dry. And, while it's true that drought years (like earthquakes) are part of living in California, many of us are feeling that this drought cycle could be a long one. Some people have plowed up their front lawns and put in drought-tolerant plants. We who love roses are hoping that we can baby them through - many of the roses in the Old City Cemetery Rose Garden have come from places in the foothills where they survived on their own without anyone caring for them for years, so we know that they are survivors! I hope that you can visit San Diego later on under happier circumstances. And I'm glad your daughter is OK!

Mirco & Laura: I was also thinking the flower looks like a C. perforata. :) Jeff: Plenty of Dudleyas out in the backcountry in SD County. I often see them cliffside along highway 78 on Banner Grade, east of Julian. Always tempted to pull over and take some pics, but most of the locations aren't exactly safe to be doing that. They sure do seem to like rockfaces and cliffsides. *CG*

Which Las Pilitas? The Santa Margarita store may have limited hours, since it's mainly wholesale, but the Escondido store is open most days from 10 to 4. I think they're closed Tuesdays and, probably, major holidays. All that said, I like Tree of Life better. The sheer quality of their stock is superior, they have better availability, and they are more open to questions about propagation. In fact, the main reason I got into propagating my own plants is because Las Pilitas (which is an easy 25 minutes away) were always telling me they were going to finally have some stock "next month," but "next month" never arrived. I'm talking about easy-to-grow things like "Dara's Choice" Salvia. So I just started growing my own to get the plants I want.

Joakim, When you say "bay area", it isn't altogether clear whether you are referring still to San Diego, or will also be visiting the San Francisco Bay Area, or the Monterey Bay Area, which are both rich in plant places to visit. If you are coming to the San Francisco Bay Area, be sure to visit San Francisco's Botanic Garden which is in Golden Gate Park. You should also try to visit the Berkeley Botanic Garden at UC Berkeley, up in the hills above town. They have a nursery at the entrance where you can buy rare plants. Also in Berkeley/Oakland, there is The Dry Garden Nursery on Shattuck Ave, right on the Berkeley/Oakland border, which will have lots of unusual plants, but no daylilies. There are several large daylily growers in San Diego County, and if Buena Creek Gardens Nursery is still open, (I heard rumors they are closing?), this is located in north San Diego County in the town of San Marcos. If Tom Piergrossi's nursery is also still open in November, (can any local San Diegans tell us more?), he has been having a going out of business sale and is also located in north county San Diego. The Santa Cruz Botanic Garden at UC Santa Cruz is also well worth a visit, and is likely to have lots of Australian and South African Proteas, Leucospermums, Leucadendrons, Grevilleas, Hakeas, Callistemons, etc in bloom in November, and will show you lots of possibilities to grow in Portugal, but availability of these types of plants is much more limited over there. If you are also interested in seeds, these may also be an option at any of the botanic gardens, as well you should look up www.seedhunt.com for seed of lots of mediterranean/South African/Californian plants. One last nursery if you are down in the Santa Cruz/Watsonville/Monterey area is Sierra Azul Nursery in Watsonville. They have a great range of less common plants, and would also be likely to stock many of the things you may see at UC Santa Cruz Botanic Garden. If you would like to specifically see our California natives in a garden setting, then also include the native section at UC Berkeley, and the nearby Tilden Park Botanic Garden. If you will be in the Santa Barbara area at all, there is also the great Santa Barbara Botanic Garden which is located up in the hills behind the mission. November is still a little early for most California natives to be blooming, but some of the stars this season would include the early blooming Ribes sanguineum, and the beautiful berries on our California Toyon. A few of the earliest blooming Manzanitas and Ceanothus shrubs are also just starting. If your visit coincides with the Ruth Bancroft Garden being open, it is also well worth a visit to Walnut Creek to see this garden. Their winter hours are abit more restricted, but you can visit their web site to see when they're open. A trip out to Point Reyes National Seashore would also bring the possibilities of seeing some early coastal California wildflowers, or a hike ontop of Mount Tamalpais. Carmel is also well worth a visit, and the drive just down the coast from Carmel to see abit of the Big Sur coast line is always spectacular. To really see California at its most colorful in bloom, it is probably better to visit in mid March to mid May, when our natives are at their peak, but in ornamental gardens and the botanic gardens, there need never be a day without flowers or color here in coastal California. Another great nursery to visit would include Annie's Annuals in Richmond, Ca. This is just 10 minutes north of Berkeley in the East Bay. She also has a great website with lots of pictures of plants for our mediterranean climate, see www.annniesannuals.com to get an idea.