I am joining the SOS gang this Saturday with six items of interest from my garden. Mine are always a bit different as I am borderline tropical in my South Florida garden. It seems odd but South Florida is still considered subtropical, though the area I am in is often referred to as Tropic Florida. My opinion, I am on the northern edge of tropical.
That said, it occurred to me the signs of spring in the garden are relatively universal. Mine include dirty feet, fertilizer in the foyer, plants waiting to be planted, garden beds renovation…and more.
To see more signs of spring – it is double SOS, Six on Saturday and Signs of Spring! Visit The Propagator at http://www.thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com
I am changing a vegetable bed to a butterfly garden. The is the anchor plant in the bed, a Sapphire Showers Duranta. The butterflies found it about 10 minutes after I planted it.
The bed, under construction. The Sapphire Showers is to be underplanted with Bush Daisy (Euryops pectinatus). Bush Daisy is a South African native that is supposed to attract butterflies and thrive in well drained soil and summer heat. I have plenty of both. This is my first experiment with Bush Daisy.
My feet are perpetually dirty. This container has been changed from spinach and cilantro to Petunia exserta and Red Alstromeria for summer. The Red Alstroemeria originated in a college friends mother’s garden went to my mother’s garden, then to another friend’s garden – who eventually brought some to me. They have suffered in either the heat or the soil; so I decided to try them in a container in part shade where I might remember to water them.
Summer veg seedlings on the porch so I remember to water them twice a day. My summer veg is a little different – the seedlings are Roselles, a Hibiscus with edible flowers. Not visible yet, Greek Columnar Basil and Blue Pea Vine for the butterfly garden.
Pots of lavendar Pentas await planting in summer containers.
Newly planted Sunshine Mimosa (Mimosa strigillosa). This is in the butterfly garden, it is a native perennial groundcover with pink powderpuff flowers and attracts butterflies.
A sign of spring in South Florida, buds on the Frangipani. The humidity has kicked up a notch, not quite to its full summer power yet, but this is a definite sign that summer is on the way. The sweet fragrance from the flowers will be perfuming my nightly forays in the backyard with the greyhounds.
My six signs of spring this Saturday, Happy Gardening!
The Shrub Queen 
Your garden is coming along. I think we are all hard at work on those spring chores.
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Thank you, I think spring garden chores are universal. We can think of more and more things to plant!
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The butterfly garden is coming along nicely. I like the duranta. Almost like a wisteria in miniature. Such a lovely, rich color. Should be lovely in combination with the yellow bush daisies and pink (?) Mimosa.
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Thank you, it is a bit like Wisteria, but not nearly as scary. The Mimosa is pink and nearby..
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This variety of Duranta is very attractive. My sister-in-law (who lives on Reunion Island ) sent me seeds of Duranta repens. The plant has grown well for two years now but I still have no flowers… Maybe this year?
There are always great discoveries in your Six every week … the frangipani soon open is one of these, especially at this season for us who can’t travel yet…
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i have some D. repens – do they call it Pigeonberry? The flowers are closer to Plumbago on that one. It does take a while to flower. I like them for the foliage color.Thanks, I feel like the Frangipani is teasing me.
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Pigeonberry is a solanaceae , not the same family than duranta I think. (I didn’t know the pigeonberry name though : the French name is « Douce- amère »)
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Love the French version, though I couldn’t hope to pronouce it. Pigeonberry may be the Florida common name. I think there are a lot of different plants called Pigeonberry.
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My aunt who lived in “Leisure City” loved her Frangipani.
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Frangipani is a gift for the insufferable heat of summer…I love them, too. Where is Leisure City?
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Near Homestead.
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You have nice straight toes! 😉 It’s either your genes or your mom made sure you didn’t wear tight shoes growing up. Mine are a mess. 😉
Love the Duranta and the pink Pentas … bet they’ll both be happy in your garden.
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LOL, block feet courtesy of my New England Yankee father! I was not good about wearing shoes ever..I am ever hopeful the nematodes don’t like the new flowers as well as they did the vegetables.
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I think Calendulas repel nematodes…
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The nematodes ate them!
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Oy, vey! Tagetes, too?
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I solarized.. added worm castings followed by red wigglers organic compost and calendula..not sure marigolds will help.
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Frangipani! I miss those from Southern California. I intend to bring back cuttings from all of the cultivars at my colleagues home, or at least the original cultivars that he got from his childhood neighbor. Unfortunately, they are sensitive to frost, even the mild frost that we get here. I need to grow them under eaves or in pots that can be moved. The big common sort are more resilient.
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yes, they are a lot of fun…get some.
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I intent do. I just have not been to the region in a few years. I plugged many cuttings prior to that, with the intention of collecting a few on a later trip, but by the time I returned, he had used them all on job sites.
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Your garden is full of plants getting ready to bring sunshine. I love frangipani too, but it won’t grow here….far too frosty. I have an enduring memory of a very old one in the garden of the house we first bought, and its glorious perfume in a hot humid Sydney summer.
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I am not looking forward to summer but I am looking forward to the Frangipani..
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A butterfly garden is such a great idea and you have some lovely, colourful flowers there.
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The Sapphire Showers is really pretty. Another new plant to me and a reminder to try and find more butterfly friendly plants this summer. 😃
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Oooh! This is going to be SO fun to watch. I love the Sapphire Flowers and the Frangipani already…the lavender Pentas too!
Your warm weather sounds luscious right now — a “wintery mix” has hit my area today. Snow flurries and chilly air, but it will soon pass.
Have a great week, my fellow barefoot gardening friend!
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