Well that means that they're survivors in your zone. And possibly somewhat invasive (if they seed). I do believe the species is listed as invasive in some areas (don't remember which). I do grow it ;)

I wasn't thinking of growing the western wahoo here. I don't like to grow things that are native to the west coast. I've been trying to find seeds for our blue eyed Mary, Collinsia verna, and the only Collinsia seeds available are the west coast Collinsia grandiflora, but I won't grow it. Some milkweed nerds over here are trying to grow the western arid Asclepias species. I think that is too much work to make it worthwhile. We have some problems here with natives that have been let loose from where they were restricted, Robinia pseudoacacia and Phragmites, ect. Some people might think the world would be more beautiful if it was covered in Japanese maples and hostas, but then all our wildlife would be no more. Maybe you don't have as many garden worthy natives in your particular west coast area, but we have more than enough natives here in the east to fill every imaginable ecological niche, and then some. I wouldn't want to dissuade anyone from exploring native gardening because for some people today it might be something that could save their lives. You know, give them hope when they start seeing all the beauty and life, that they've brought into their gardens.

That looks like old mottled green leaves that could be removed and let the new leaves take over. I snip them off so the branch doesn't tear. You'll feel so much better when last year's leaves are gone. The new reddish leaves look good.

We have grown both types of this for probably 15 years and I definitely recommend it! It grows best here in 'the wet corner' - ones I planted in other areas died out. It has survived summer drought in the wet corner but it really seems to like wet soil in spring. It competes well with the ostrich ferns that grow there too. Goatsbeard and hydrangeas grow in that bed too along with smaller/low plants like white corydalis, Jack-in-the-pulpit, and a clump of small hostas. This picture is from the end of June in 2019 with the goatsbeard in bloom by the fence: This picture is from mid-August in 2018 with some of the kirengeshoma flowers in bloom - although this is not a good picture of them! My best pictures of the flowers are on an old half-dead computer in the basement:-) This picture from May 19 2014 when we were doing some drainage improvements on the path by the 'wet corner' shows the area in more detail - you can just see some of the kirengeshoma emerging on the bottom right side of the picture: