Lay my weary bones to rest

Potted plants do best, it's been my experience, when their soil is kept evenly moist. Very good drainage is a must, or they'll drowned. The soil should allow water to run through easily while still retaining some moisture. I try to take into consideration the amount of foliage that sucks water out of the soil as they transpire, the weather- heat, humidity, etc., and the type of plant.

How would the plant grow in it's native environment? Many rhizomatous begonias grow in loose, moist soil full of organic matter, which I've found to be very trickly to emulate on my windy, sunny terrace.

Thank goodness, as time goes on, I'm finding other unique plants that seem to be able to take a lickin'  while still being lush, tropical, specimens: philodendron, solanum macranthum, buddha belly bamboo, bougainvillea, plumeria, gardenia, jasmine, bower vine, croton, macho fern and, yes, I have found some begonias, U402, a shrub-like begonia, being a remarkable example as it's a non-stop bloomer-- and such a pretty habit.

It's been NON-STOP at work lately and I've been too tired to spend time in the garden-- beyond a few cups of PG Tips (black as night with a bucket of cream and a little splenda).

Into the frying pan

Giant potato leaf with shoe for scale
I wear size 10

The good thing about the newly arrived, arrestingly hot weather, is that I loose at least a pound on the tennis court due to profuse sweating-- 10A off the courts. The downside.. it's too hot to garden past early morning, or before the gloaming.

Nothing to show today. The highlight in the garden will be spot watering where needed. I've been making special 'enhanced' water for some; I made a mix of copper fungicide (a squirt) and a cap full of SuperThrive for the solanum macranthum. Mixed in some acidifier in for jasmine and bleeding heart. The bamboo is curling it's leaves to slow transpiration, I'll give it a good drink. It's probably time for some food for that boy.

Mini bracts on this bougie
good for bonsai

Saw some beautiful mature bougainvillea bonsai at Richard Lyons Nursery last week. I had bought a bougie there on an earlier visit with a 5-6" diameter trunk approximately 8" high trunk. It had small branches coming out of top and sides. I need to study how to choose which branches to cut off and which to keep and groom.

Pop!

Bromeliad achmea 'zebrina'  flower stalk continuing to unfurl orange, flag-like sepals

40 days and 40 nights

Rain is blowing in again. 24th day in May, 24th day of rain. It's taken well by everyone, except, by my dear begonias. Too much moisture beginning to rot the leaves on some of the plants.

Regarding plumeria, which I love, keep it tightly potted. This specimen is growing in full and fierce (snap).

Richard Lyons Nursery

Made a pilgrimage to Homestead to visit Richard Lyon's Nursery. Worth the drive. The two times we've been, we've been given a complete golf-cart tour.  I would go back just to see the huge stands of mature bamboo. The 'ghost bamboo' being my favorite.

A traveling companion bought a 'lil' gem' magnolia. My prius has folding seats and it fit just fine. I recently traded in my metal from the Bavarian Motor Werks for a Prius.. No regrets at all. I'm getting 500 to a 10 gal tank of gas! And, I have room for plants.

More later.


http://www.rarefloweringtrees.com/



The color orange

Bromeliad achmea 'Zabrina' beginning her (slow) swan song. Hopefully, I'll get some pups out of her  before she passes.

 .

Time; an integral part of plant growth.

As time passes and some care is applied, the garden has a new, rich, fullness that gladdens this gardener's heart.

Time is a healer.
The solanum macranthum aka giant potato tree rebounds saucily from a  severe pruning (amputation). It's been warm and humid, which this one seems to love.  I've been feeding it with fish/ poop / SuperThrive tea-- which the entire garden seems to love.  

Time for some blooming here.
Giving this one regular iron and soil acidifier along with food . I'm a mile away from the ocean and the salt in the air sweetens the soil too much-- when grown in a pot. In ground the natural leaf mold probably keeps the ph a little friendlier. This is total conjecture. No science at all, none. This gardenia's scent is a vanilla / ylang-ylang -ish-- well worth the effort. 

Let the wild rumpus begin.. philodendrons on the terrace.

Philodendron 'monstera deliciosa' (sharply incised palmate leaves center) sharing a large pot with blood orange and creeping fig.  Like the burle marx below- this girl will mound up and then cascade over the edge of the pot. At Fairchild Botanic Garden  these grow up any trunk it can cling onto, heading toward the light at top of canopy. The deliciosa in the name refers to it's fruit, which is poisonous until ripe. It is supposed to be a dream to taste when ready. 

Philodendron 'Burle Marx' (shiny mallet leaves center) overflowing it's pot. It's little trouble on my porch. It likes even moisture and I feed it every few weeks, etc. It takes 6 or so hours of sun. 

The nascent summer

Don't want to go more than two or three days without a post.

The rhizomatous begonias outside are looking a little tattered but are putting out new growth and seem happy protected from wind and direct sun and rain by the bower vine.

b. 'Gryphon' inside is doing well. It receives bright indirect light, in a light soil rich in humus. I water once a week or so, using a weak liquid feed. Today I sprinkled a little Plant Dynamite around the base to kick some new growth out of it. Hopefully the stronger food won't make the new leaves too heavy to be supported in an attractive way.. gotta be careful overdoing the food. If there was a pill that made everything perfect, I would buy two. Hence my heavy hand with fertilizer. Better to hold back.

The warming weather is bringing with it growth that can be seen from one day to another. An exciting time in the garden. The variegated oak-leaf croton is getting somewhat leggy. Time to selectively started cutting back branches to promote fullness.

The problem with fertilizing young plumeria is that the new growth is bare. I'm not sure how new growth would react to a cut back. I'll try it in on inconspicuous branch and report back.





A bed of hyssop in my first garden (not on a terrace). Ossining, NY

Green is a calming color

It's begun to rain fairly regularly the past few weeks. A friend said that rain in May meant a slow hurricane season. Let's hope so. It's been very quiet now for 6 -7 years. We have moved from a wooden beach shack built in 1937 to a brick shit-house of a condominium, with thick glass, concrete walls and hopefully a sturdily sealed roof.

The giant potato tree has begun to revive from my pernicious surgery. Some surgeries take off limbs if necessary, my work left the limbs and removed the body. See the greening below.

It's growth is my own

And a little spray of lime for the eye, with beautiful bromeliad 'zebrina' as backup.

This too was seized by the wild scissorhand,  but will come back nicely with some beautiful deep purple bracts which POP with the variegated lime green of the leaves (and the light blue pot).

Steady on

Nothing but the 'other' type of work lately, far from my pots and soil.  Still, managed to spend a few hours with L. looking around some nurseries on Saturday. I bought a bower vine at one no name nursery (literally un-named) for $9.95. Here is a pic of the budding young vine.

One of my favorite vines- although not scented, it's simple flowers are very sweet to look at.
A great candidate for a tropical cottage garden. A wicked grower once started (and fed and watered).

Supermoon



Twinkle, twinkle

More of this and that

M. sent me a photo of a very simply but industrial strength trellis on new construction, which looks like it could provide enough strength for bougainvillea (and other favorite climbers). A garden should have all masonry covered with life!

I want this simple trellis

Finally planted branches of potato tree I had lopped off a few weeks back. Doesn't look like much here but we'll see.. (one of two 3 gals shown  here):

Let's get busy Mr. Potato Head (solanum macranthum)

From Bushwick (animal shelter) with love. A centenarian still in the garden.



Ray in the garden. Notice creeping fig climbing- another le must de jardin.

More later.