A Zebra Longwing, the state butterfly of Florida, sipping nectar from a Firebush (Hamelia patens var patens). A good thing.
Another good thing, my Bottle Palm (Hyophorbe lagenicaulis) is finally making its bottle trunk. Eventually the old fronds fall off and the palm looks like it is sitting on a green wine bottle. This has taken about five years.
The bad thing about these next plants, they are so slow growing it is almost not worthwhile planting them. Both are Florida natives and come with the native hype…
This is a Thatch Palm (Thrinax radiata) It has been in the garden for about five years and might be 18″ tall. I am not sure I will live long enough to see an actual palm tree form.
A Satinleaf (Chysophyllum oliviforme), the back sides of the leaves. This is reportedly a tree, and sounds romantically wonderful when described by growers who have seen it blowing in the wind. At six years old and possibly a foot tall (the ferns dwarf it) I have to lie down beside it to experience the romance.
The front side of the leaves.
And now, the bugly. This is the dreaded Lubber Grasshopper, another hyped Florida native. These can be 3 or 4 inches long and love to eat plants. Filled with poison, they only have one natural enemy, a bird called a Loggerhead Shrike, the bird impales the grasshopper and leaves them around to dry out and then eats them. I find them dead in the shrubbery from time to time. I am also an enemy and have frightened my dogs gleefully stomping them.
That is my six for this Saturday. Stop by http://www.thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com to see more posts from around the world.
Happy Gardening..
The Shrub Queen 
Great photos, don’t like the look of that grasshopper!!
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Thank you, it is an evil grasshopper
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I didn’t realize palms grew so slow. But come to think of it, I have seen nurseries with really big mature palms for sale. I would guess most of the houses around here started out with the larger ones.
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Yes, and you don’t want the fast growers. Did Laura miss you? My niece in Katy did not even get rain.
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We did not get a drop. The forecast kept changing, but we were prepared. East of us they really got it bad and may not have electricity or water for a long time.
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Ugh, good for you and bad for those east of you..our Florida lineman are over there fixing things
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Caravans have been heading that way from here.
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Good, seems odd so little of this is on the news.
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Big cities get all the news. We are getting some news from Orange, TX. Lake Jackson was flattened and won’t have water or electric for a long time. Houston is collecting supplies. Many people were sent to Austin and all the hotels were full when they got there. There are way too many disasters at once. We can’t forget CA.
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Yes, it seems the same thing happened with Michael last year. Still devastated in that area. The speed that the Gulf hurricanes can gain in a short period of time is scary. Way too many bad things going on now.
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Dwarfs aren’t so bad… 😉
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So far..
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Fantastic photo of your Zebra Longwing.
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Thanks, complete coincidence..if I had been trying to find one I wouldn’t have been able to.
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Yep. That’s how it works.
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Seredipity?
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The butterfly is beautiful and the evil bug…fascinating if not exactly beautiful!
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A good description of the grasshopper.
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You have such lovely foliage in your garden, and a beautiful butterfly too. The grasshopper looks menacing though. We recently have seen shrikes in our garden, near the Robinia which has enormous thorns…..
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Thank you, Cathy. The butterflies are a treat to me everyday I have numerous Zebras in the garden. Happy when the Shrikes find the grasshoppers.
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Hey, that thatch palm is not so bad. Actually, the leaves are rather pretty, like those of a windmill palm. I would expect an 18″ tall palm to have only those long grassy juvenile leaves, like those of Mexican fan palm. The only problem is that this is all it has done after several years. I intend to try growing it anyway, even if I never see it as a tree. I will not grow any for landscapes though; just my own garden. (The seed are already here, so I am obligated.)
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It is a pretty little palm, I love the bigger ones. The leaves are more grey. Windmill Palm foliage is skinnier and much darker green.
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In pictures, I like the tall and lanky trunks of the thatch palm. It looks leaner than the common Mexican fan palm. I would prefer the windmill palm without the fur, but it is too much work to shave, and out of reach when tall.
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When I find a nice Thatch Palm. I will send you a picture.
They don’t really look like windmill palms.
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They are taller and more ‘relaxed’ looking. Windmill palms are popular because they are so easy. I happen to like them, but they are common.
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Wow…tropical beauties there, with a big nasty bug, which is rather handsome, but with such greenery around it is not surprising that you find it in your garden.
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Thanks, it is a nasty bug, but very striking in yellow and orange armor.
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Friends of ours are besieged with the dreaded Lubber Grasshopper. We went over for cocktails on their back deck and were told to quickly come in…they are having trouble with the unwanted grasshoppers coming in the front door. Thankfully I haven’t seen any in our garden.
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Yuck, my least favorite bug here. I have never had one get in the house, though I think they are afraid of me.
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