Bonus plants!

I thought in this post that I would address the issue of bonus plants. These are the little seedling plants that pop up in the nursery pot along with the intended plant being sold. Sometimes the extra plant is just an invasive weedy type you'd rather be rid of, but occasionally they are not. I recently came across a particularly nice example at the Regional Parks Botanical Garden - a fully grown orange-flowered Mimulus cardinalis along with a fully grown Salvia sonomensis (the intended plant)! A fellow plant purchaser there had found a pot with about 4 or 5 extra little natives popping up! These little bonuses are one of those small yet wondrous joys in life. I also came across a tiny yellow flowered Calceolaria in an Agastache rupestris from Annie's - both exquisite plants! I think nurseries should encourage these free-seeding lovelies - I was ambivalent about buying the Agastache until I saw that mysterious extra plant peeping over the edge of the pot. It wasn't even blooming yet, and I didn't identify until I had it at home and in flower. I try to do my own part in this - at work I stick all the fallen Tradescantia pieces into other houseplants. These often root on their own, but I ensure success by tucking the stem snugly under the soil.
In addition to these exciting blooms another truly eventful floral happening began a few days ago - my Mirabilis longiflora bloomed for the first time! These flowers start to open at about 5:50 pm and in about 40 minutes they're completely open. They are fragrant - a sweet nocturnal scent, with faint floral notes. I'm also guessing they're moth-pollinated, due to the very long floral tube that I suspect only a moth's tongue could plumb the depths of! I will try to get a picture up soon. There's also a second wave of Salvia blooms beginning - the hummingbirds are zipping with delight at the bounty of nectar!