I looked back to last year and noted my first mango! was picked on June 2. We are a few days behind this year, but I am thrilled to introduce the first victim of my serrate knife – to be chopped, pureed and made into a Mango Key Lime pie this afternoon! This is a Glenn mango, flavor profile sweet and peachy with hints of citrus. Ha! just like wine speak, I think they taste coconutty.
The indestructible Red Shrimp Plant (Justicia brandegeana) is starting back up. This is another amazing plant, dump it in sugar sand, forget about it, and it still keeps going.
Another great summer red (not wine again) is the Petunia exserta. These are sort of viney and meandering through the White Flame Salvia.
The orchids I placed in trees are establishing nicely and loving the humidity (unlike me). This is an unnamed Dendrobium in a Catalina (or Cuban) Avocado.
I tried a new mix of open pollinated Zinnia seeds for summer. These are called Zin Master Mix and I am more than curious about what I am going to get here. The plants are gorgeous (I thought they were going to die) I have a bunch of these plants and was planning to try some in the ground, but we have been overrun by Marsh Rabbits this year and they find the Zinnias to be an extreme delicacy. Another gardening dilemma. These rabbits are so confident they build nests inside the fence with a greyhound! These are in a big pot with a chartreuse Coleus and under planted with Blue Scaveola. No idea what color Zinnias are. Hope it works.
The Marsh Rabbit – looking for Zinnias in all the wrong places.
That is all from my garden this Saturday morning. To tour other SOS gardens, visit Jim’s blog, GardenRuminations and follow the links in the comments. I will be hopping into the kitchen to bake.
The Shrub Queen 
Your Glenn mango key lime pie should be delicious. I really like shrimp plants but have not seen any planted in our part of Florida. Everything sounds good in the garden except those darn bunnies.
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I hope so, I make key lime but haven’t tried it with mango. I wonder if you are too far north for shrimp plants? Vero is a bit different. Probably not, I have a blog friend in Houston that grows them. Maybe just not popular.
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I ate a mango today… but from the supermarket. 😂😤
Yours looks great! Speaking of zinnias, are these the chartreuse Coleus in the foreground with a bright color?
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Thanks, I just eat and eat the mangoes and bake and end up with a few bags in the freezer. They never last very long. Yes the bright color is coleus – the cuttings from the tree form I was working on a couple of weeks ago recycled.
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Congrats on your first mango! It is always a thrill harvesting from one’s own garden. 🙂
Today I harvested dill to freeze for winter use, a basket full of garlic scapes and enough snow peas for dinner. I am feeling quite pleased with myself! ;D
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It is a thrill and I just took the pie out of the oven. Mmm I have never gotten more than two snow peas at a time when I grow them, though I love them fresh from the garden. I would be thrilled with that, you must have a lot of plants.
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I planted the whole packet, so I’m hoping for some yummy yields.
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Well, that is exotic, growing your own mangos, it looks wonderful. I am glad to see you are keeping your Petunia exserta going, I have lost mine. Marsh rabbit? How is that different from our common or garden rabbits? Apparently it is just as destructive, even if it has a fancy name.
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Mangoes are common shade trees here and grow by the side of the road. My neighbor is the exserta fan and keeps them going. That is the best one I have had and she grew it. Marsh rabbits are peculiar to Florida I think, they have shorter ears than other rabbits and are just as destructive. It is odd to me they are here as there is not a marsh nearby. I also have something called Jesus Lizards in the garden that like marshes. Weird.
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Jesus lizards? I wonder how they got their name. Are they very saintly?
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No, they have paddle shaped feet that make them look like they can walk on water. They run around like little T Rex dinosaurs. I thought I was hallucinating the first time I saw one run by. Also called Brown Basilisks.
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Wow, great examples for Six on Saturday! The pie sounds delicious (enjoy!), and the flowers are beautiful!
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The red shrimp plants will grow anywhere. If a stem hits the ground, I have another new plant. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the Petunia exserta. It sounds like it would grow here. We have Mexican petunias, but the proper names are not similar. I’ll keep my eye out for them.
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The red shrimps are great. I have never seen the exserta for sale. They are native to cracks in rocks in South America, I think they would love your garden. I bought some seed and grew them and my neighbor took up the task and she grows them.
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The Glenn mango looks like a winner and I love the description. I would like the coconut flavor.
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I think it’s my favorite..
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Brent actually mentioned that he suspects that the big mango tree that I remember in Los Angeles is likely a ‘Glenn’. I do not know why he only now mentioned it. I had asked about that tree for years. Supposedly, it is a cultivar that ‘can’ grow here, although its fruit could be of inferior quality. I will not know until I try. Even in Los Angeles, I think that if they perform well, they would be more popular than they are. I really do not know.
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Hope the pie was good Amelia! Is the Petunia in the ground? I have found they are very tough little plants in summer containers…. although one was completely eaten by slugs in a night last week! (Do you have slugs?) Good luck with the zinnias. 😃
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Mmmmmm, Mango! I’m sure it was delicious.
Good luck with the zinnias, I struggle with them here it’s just too hot. I hope the rabbits find a better place to make their home.
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