Que SABOR !

Tea in the Garden. A friend brought back some pumkin Ensaimadas de Mallorca recently, my household went into a frenzy.

This has EAT ME written all over it (click here). There is not a better gift for the season.
Sorry, these are only available in Spain. I'm looking for sources in the US.. I'm not sure they would ship and hold their magic anyway. Please post a comment if you have any ideas.

Maybe wash it down with lightly steeped cupper of this tea
This tea, however, is available and Darjeeling Tukvar is my favorite. I first bought some at Fouchon. They no longer carry it. Marriage Frers a fabulous place for tea in Paris had only their "house mix" online which was flavored with fruit. Nope.

Gulf moisture gives us an entire day of rain

Drying out now, but yesterday was a very uncharacteristic day in October. In my 7 years in S. FL. it has never rained like this so late in the year. It seemed like a day of non-stop torrents of rain, highlighted with atmospheric electrical activity.

The plants seemed to have enjoyed it right nicely.

All this rain can make one Cuckoo 

Begonias; "Carribean Corsair" and b. ricinifolia

Tucked away, sunny but hopefully not too.

Cafe con leches

Watered everyone in well this morning. It's staying dark fairly late in the mornings now, and getting dark too soon in the evening. It is cutting into garden time.

The shrimp plants have begun to bloom, as well as a euphorbia that has almost black leaves and small with balls on the ends of the stems for flowers, a beautiful contrast.

Euphorbia is a huge genus of plants for 2008 species-- according to WIKI, it is one of the most diverse in the plant kingdom.  It was a gift from Leonard, who told me,  BTW, that his Bridal Bower claredendron is coming into bloom soon. See the picture of Leonard on the left column of pics, he is standing in front of this claredendron in full bloom.

My watering schedule depends on the time of year and the type of container and the plant in question. My rhizomatous begonias are watered in a very different way (only when the soil is dry to the touch)than the Buddha belly bamboo, who's root ball should never be allowed to dry.

My coffee, however, stays pretty much the same. I have a Gaggia that makes fabulous coffee, I make cafe con leches for us and use way to much milk but it is tasty.

Here is a pic from the folio.

It's how big??

Back in the saddle

Pieced backed together with some new compositions

Gardenzone10b; fern, bird-of-paradise, croton
philodendron, bougainvillea. Lush. 

There had been three of the birds in one pot. I un-potted them and split them into single plants.Their height and substantial leaves make them striking echoes to have around the garden.

Planted the Burly Marx with one bird. I'm looking forward to the beautiful shiny leaved philodendron pouring up and out of the pot.

A new macho fern planted with a second, the sizable fronds of the fern form a skirt under the banana like leaves of the bird-of-paradise. Sexy tropical.

The jungle of tropical foliage adds depth and coolness to the sober masonry of the terrace.

Bromeliad primogeniture: replaced dead mother pup with eldest son.  Other pups were planted in the big pots around the terrace. Although container gardening generally is about single specimens, having repetitions of a single variety make for a more natural looking environment.

A large litter of pups

The re-potted bougainvillea doesn't seem to be giving up the ghost after having lost half of it's root ball. We'll see in the coming weeks how he'll fare.

Applied a dose of Bayer to the small bougainvillea that was suffering from caterpillars and to the Vietnamese Gardenia who's new leaves were coming out stunted.

The weather has changed, it was one of the most beautiful evenings of the year. Though hurricane Rina is gathering steam near Cuba.

Single and loving it 

You better WORK !

Before 

I had on my London Fog rain coat, rubber gloves and glasses to move this barb wire booby trap.

The root structure was interesting, mostly a dried thatch-like ball of capillaries. Pigheaded, I didn't wait for help in getting it out of the pot. I scooped out soil from around the sides of the pot. In trying to pull the pot off of the root ball, I lost about 5-6" off of the bottom. There were about 6"-7"or more left. It went in firmly into it's new home. The trellis provided support. I tossed a 1/2 bag of lava rock around the ball as I was filling around it with soil.

The next few days will tell all in terms of this pretty boy surviving my clumsiness.

After

 Now, I have a beautiful fairly large yellowish-brown glazed pot that's been freed up to use. Tricky business integrating another pot. It is a narrow beam to balance upon-- to be able to plant in a very handsome pot or to crowd the eye and foot on the terrace.

With dirty hands and feet, dirt under my fingernails, I remain your

Zone10b Terrace Gardener

The big chill

After days of rain from a sou'wester, cool air has blown in. The past two mornings have been in the mid 60's - frigid enough requiring a sweater for pre-dawn dog walks.

The terrace is still pulled apart. Hopefully tomorrow it will still be cool and dry for some heavy labor. Besides transplanting a 14' bougainvillea, the bird-of-paradise shifted in its pot after being on its side for 2 days in the windy rain. It too, will require a new pot.

It's a delicate balance between having wonderful potted shrubs, etc. and having a crowded collection of decorative pots.

Simplicity is a spiritual axiom that serves the gardener well.

Under a winter sky in Georgia. 

Greyfield Inn

Из Форт-Лодердейл с любовью

Tornado touched down in several places in the county last night. A house near work was blown apart. Trees blown over, etc.

Needless to say the terrace got a good blowing over. The tall cane begonia, Irene Nuss, has been stripped of a good many leaves. Really nothing harmed. The bird-of-paradise went over on her side, but that's the best for it in a strong wind, which would otherwise rip the large, fan-like leaves apart. I look forward to the weekend to make things right.

It's time for a trip to Fairchild Botanic Garden in Miami for a photo cataloging of the begonia beds, and maybe  begin one for the palms as well.

Naughty shears gone wild!

In a moment of  (bored) sadistic insanity, I cut the clarendendron back from a ball with a diameter of 3' to the size of a bony human hand. I'll document the recovery.

Tornado watch until 10pm -- rain keeps coming down

Fletus nubes

I spoke too soon about the arrival of the dry, blue days. It rained all day. Prepared the large pot for the bougainvillea. Covered drainage hole with broken pot and then with 1 1/2". Laid weed guard on top of rock and covered that carefully with soil. Tested it for drainage, it drained very quickly. Added Perlite to the MiracleGro. Need to mix thoroughly when I have time.

Planted the trumpet vine in a 5" clay pot. Stuck bamboo root eyes I cut off Buddha Belly in pot with plumeria-- just until they sprout.

This picture from a sunny day (in the near future).
Is philodendron 'Burly Marx' a good choice for this fairly large pot? 

Trumpet Vine

Big shout out to my fellow gardener and friend Adrian M. who was nice enough to send me a cutting of trumpet vine. I can't find any references of being growing south of zone 9.  However, here is an interesting link for all gardeners in the sunshine state: Florida Vines. According to this, the vine will grow all the way down to zone 10.  It will be an interesting experiment.

Another sou'easter here today, overcast and the pm was a solid rain.

Campsis radicans, Hopefully another climber. 

Disarray, the best time to clean house

In disarray, but a good time to clean

You can see from the picture below, that the bougainvillea would not get enough direct sun if I pleached it in the middle of the wall, because of the bamboo. I'll have to leave it in pretty close to the corner. It might be pretty to clean the lower part of the plant almost in topiary form. The top spray of branches can be held in place with fishing line and eye hooks. Ideally, I'd simply untie fish line and lift it into new pot. I'll probably have to lay on it's side, unpot, and the lift into new pot. Long sleeved shirt and protective glasses are in order here. 

With bamboo to the left, it would not receive enough sun
positioned in the middle of the wall. 

The shrimp plant is coming into bloom too

I watered and fed both of the bougainvilleas today with Bougain, which costs a little more, but it seems to keep them happy. I feed fairly often when they are in bloom and they stay fairly floriferous. The purple shrub is the big bloomer. From now until the spring rains, it goes through flushes and the entire plant seems to be purple brackets. 

I'm pleased with fairly hearty growth of the creeping fig and cereus. Where I've planted the fig, it's heading for the wall to grab hold and climb. I'll post a picture of the cactus beginning to send out the clinging rootlets. 

Work to do-- tomorrow.

A lot of work to do tomorrow. There's the re-potting of the bougainvillea, the bromeliade J Zinn, a macho fern. I received a cutting of trumpet vine from my friend Adrian's garden on Fire Island. I've got a large terracotta pot that's going to be available, I think I'll pot new macho fern and trumpet vine together and find a nice place against a wall for the vine to climb. 

REMEMBER-- paint the inside of your terracotta pots with roof tar. The south Florida sun just won't allow unglazed clay. The soil dries out in 10 minutes.

The cereus is getting a grip on the walls. It is very exciting. Although I am expecting uneven growth, it's a totally different creature than creeping fig, it should be an interesting wall cover-- especially when in bloom.

Another picture from the folio. A lonely looking spot for such a monument. Perhaps a tombstone for some forgotten prince.

Templo de los sueños, romantico, pero no es tropical.

Discipline and design

Easy to forget that a garden is like a furnished room. Pieces should be considered for placement before being placed. Plant furniture has the additional considerations of light requirements, protection from the wind, etc.

I'm afraid the star-burst Clerodendrum Quadriloculare might have to go. It's growing in and although  I love the deep greenish purple of the leaf, I'm not sure there's room.

I also have to tackle that issue of vines and the handrails. I don't have the busty cascading effect that I want at least on the center rail. The chalice vine I've planted might fill it up, but the rectangular planter might not be big enough in the long run. There is always something isn't there?

There is nothing more romantic than this.



The plans for Munstead Wood are to me like a stern teacher with a ruler



The results, however, turn out to be flowing perennial borders, stuffed with carefully chosen plants, each with their own function-- color, height, texture.


I am going to make a draw out a plan of my terrace. I'll post it when it comes to me.

Other voices, other terraces

My first Terrace. PH B off of CPW in NYC. 
Gus, a prince.  Edie in the background with yellow roses. It was a narrow, but fun terrace. Southern view-- roof tops of the upper west side.

Speaking of roses, here is a great link: tips for growing roses in zone10b. You must use roses grafted onto a R. fortuniana  rootstock. Check out the link for types especially suited for the heat and humidity. The Bermuda roses sound like one of the easier to grow varieties.

No protest here

Plumeria in its new home. Hoping I'll get a few
more canes with the larger pot.

Hoy, me compre dos hermosas jardineras-- son fabulosos

Today's great finds about $70 a piece. The darker pot for the bougainvillea, the other, covered in lichen, is for the plumeria.

I found them at Flamingo Road Nursery. Perfect sizes.  They are both unglazed terracotta.
I've planted the plumeria, in a Miracle Gro potting mix after weighing the pot down with a bag and a half of lave rock. I'm not sure about the potting soil for the bougie. The pot has great drainage but the Miracle Gro by itself strikes me as a too rich.

A Sou'easter... waiting for the rain to stop

Waiting in my 'to do' queue:

Nicely shaped bromeliade

Need to un-pot, separate pups, and start a new plant.

Later that night..... I came upon a large bed of smaller, bright green bromeliades.  They were under an oak tree, so I'll have to find a shady spot for the one that broke off in my hand as I was admiring it.

Undoing the tighten up

Purple bougainvillea, a showstopper when in bloom
(which is soon to arrive)

You can see on the left the actual size of the purple bougainvillea in question and the pot below which is maybe 18" high.

I'm going to get all scratched up repotting this sweet thing.

Then there's the purchasing of the new beautiful pot, for as little as possible of course.

When is tight, too tight?

Welcome to Zone10b:

 кто вы русские читая мой блог? делаете вы любите садовничать в вашей замороженной земле? вы phishing для моего номера кредитной карты? Возможно вы уже имеете его. Я плохой садовник. добро пожаловать друзья. посмотрите меня вверх по когда вы в Fort Lauderdale. Добро пожаловать в zone10b

Salut copii de Cezar. Cum gradina ta să crească? Ai cresc nuci de cocos sau napi sau sunteţi phishing pentru numărul meu de card de credit?
 În orice caz, eu sunt sărac, şi sunteţi binevenit. Bine ati venit la zone10b mea.

Groeten aan je windmolens. Hoe gaat uw tuin groeien? Heeft u groeien begonia's in uw velden met de tulpen? Ben je een eenzame hacker op zoek naar mijn waardeloze creditcard?
In ieder geval, ik ben arm, en u bent welkom. Welkom op mijn zone10b.

Good morning, Fort Lauderdale

Looking East 7:10am

Light watering with some Miracle Gro. Coffee. A picture of the sunrise. That was about it on the terrace today.

Should I repot the purple bougainvillea? 




Bon Nuit

The early hours, zone10b

  6:30am walking the dog

No time for anything on the terrace except a cup of coffee. Watered creeping figs, cereus and bamboo with weak Miracle Gro. I need to get some high nitrogen food for the bamboo, it's canopy needs some greening though I read recently that the internode swelling on the buddha belly occurs when there is little food or water given to the plant.

There are still, however, exciting things happening here. The creeping fig, recently planted in different spots, has been getting busy with  the masonry. Several plants are sending up creepers that are adhering. And, one of the cereus planted with creeping fig, has started to send out rootlets that have attached themselves to the concrete. Explanatory pics to be posted.

It would be very exciting to get that cacti growing on the walls.

I need to get burly marx planted in a protect spot on interior wall where it might be able to grab ahold of wall. May have to use Liquid Nails to glue it up in the beginning.

Cereus rising

Growing by leaps and bounds

Jet stream clears the air

Seasonal Skies
[photo: me]

Lower level cumulus clouds scattering to reveal higher cirrus.

Clean, thin wisps. Refreshing to look at. It's still hot in the direct sun.

Gave everything a deep drenching. Still warm enough for evening water.





Heliconia seen on my dog walking route



Sunset

And a FINE looking morning met me at my door!

With the autumnal equinox past, and the winter solstice approaching. the days are already markedly shorter. However in S. FL we are heading into the beautiful dry season-- tempatures ranging from 70's down to the 40's in the depths of winter. For now, the days will still be hot in the direct sun, but the morning and evening temperatures will be slowly dropping.

As the days begin to cool, I'll start  pulling back on the watering. By mid-winter, watering once a week might suffice. Like the summer, wet roots rot. Especially cool wet roots.

Walkin' the dawg

The serious roots of a Ficus Banyan on my dog walking route.

75 or so degrees in the morning same in the late pm. Nice dry day though the sun was direct and could put a hurting on ya. We played tennis around 2pm and my body panicked in the bright heat.

Took advantage of the still air of the afternoon and swept. Nice not to have the wind blow the swept piles of leaves around before they can be collected.

Watered everyone after the sun had set behind wall. Below please find a picture of a leaf of the begonia 'Caribbean Corsair' that I recently aquired. It has the texture and look of a stiff silk brocade. Deep rich reddish-brown. Quite handsome.

b. Caribbean Corsair

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