If there was ever a cure for winter garden blahs, it’s finding a few bromeliads in bloom. Bromo-Seltzer was actually widely considered a hangover cure and was sold in the US until the mid 70s, when it was determined to be poisonous (sort of). I have this feeling my father took it and then moved over to Alka-Seltzer.
It has been grey, overcast and rainy for most of the past week. We have had to wear pants (gasp!), long sleeves and the occasional sweatshirt. The true native Floridians have broken out down jackets (it’s 65F). I finally got out in the garden to do some pruning this morning and stumbled over these beauties. The rain has given many plants a growth spurt and they are growing when they usually don’t, requiring more pruning.
The cast of the cure:
Some call these the tulips of South Florida. They usually bloom a bit later, similar to early tulips. These seem more like fruity drumstick candy for Barbie to me. They are Quesnelia testudo bromeliads, the foliage has such sharp tips I would be hesitant to plant any more.
Purple flowers are Portea ‘Candy’ bromeliads; the foliage behind them is Aechmea blanchetiana, showing winter coloration (foliage is usually chartreuse). Green foliage is from Asparagus Fern (Asparagus aethiopicus). This is considered invasive here and I find them once in a blue moon. The vase was a gift from my brother. It is heavy enough to hold these weighty flowers.
Hoping for blue skies and fair weather.
Thanks to Cathy for hosting this weekly meme. Visit her at http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for links to vases from other gardeners around the world.
The Shrub Queen 
Those are so bold, much appreciated on a gloomy day. Hope you get your Florida sun back soon!
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Thanks, me too! I feel like we are in Ohio.
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Your Bromos are lovely….lots of great color to cheer up any winter blahs!
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Thank you, they are kind of weird but fun.
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Your bromeliads are gorgeous and certainly brighten up a rainy day. How many things have we taken or eaten and now found out it was bad? Luckily, we’re still alive. The natives here also bundle up in the 60s and I’ve been here so long, I will slip something a little warmer on.
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Thank you..margarine comes to mind. We are slowly but surely getting Floridized, my husband was never cold before and now he is.
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When I moved here I could not figure out why no one was swimming in December.
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I hope you didn’t ask.
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I was young and probably did. 🙂 I had so many questions. I was in the first big way of Yankees and everyone was very Texan at the time.I didn’t know what they were saying and they didn’t know what I was saying either. I have two sets of vocabulary, one for here and one for home. On top of that, I taught all Hispanics. More words and customs to learn.
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Wow, a stranger in a strange land. I am southern and think Texas is weird still. My mother was a true southern belle and she always excluded texas and florida from the south.
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Many consider Texas western, but I think my end is more southern.
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Cool! That pinkish purple is weird. Does it fade to be more pinkish as it ripens? I had no idea that half of Good & Plenty grows on bromeliads.
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They are actually going to seed if you notice the black tassels, they eventually turn white then brown.
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Ah, so that is where the white half of Good & Plenty comes from!
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More Floridian curiosities, Amelia – and so effective too, definitely suitable for brightening up grey days. I had to smile at the down jackets for 65 degree days!!
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LOL, I agree, they are curious. I never know what i might find.
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A hearty combination! The colors are commanding but the shapes as well. Your brother made a nice vase selection. Have a great week.
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Thanks, Susie. They are meaty flowers.
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Your bromeliads are spectacular, Amelia. Few in my slim collection ever bloom. I laughed at your reference to true Floridians bundling up when temperatures hit the mid-60s as the same is true here – whenever I see someone walking about in shorts and tank tops during what passes for winter here I immediately think “tourist.”
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Thanks, Kris. they are such odd plants and it is amusing to see what comes up next. Tourists in shorts – yep!
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Great vase… Kind of reminds me of a tropical cocktail with fun swizzle sticks!
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Thanks, Eliza. I don’t think I would drink anything with a bromeliad in it!
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😀
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Hang in there, your cold can’t last forever lol
Those colors are amazing, what an exotic vase especially considering you’ve just plucked it out of the yard!
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The cold is giving way to high winds!
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oh my gosh, here too!
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Gorgeous flowers Amelia! That hot pink is quite striking and sure to keep you warm. (65°C sounds pretty pleasant actually! LOL!) Here it’s 10°C below today (14°F)! But I can understand it is not what you are used to and hope you get some warm sunshine again soon. ☀️
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Thank you, Cathy. 14! yikes.
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What striking flowers Amelia – completely alien to me but perhaps they grow in some garden greenhouses here under cover and with heat. Glad to hear that your dad survived the experience of Bromo-Seltzer. If the temperature was 65F here I would have a smile on my face and a short sleeved top 😂
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