Category Archives: amelia grant

Six on Saturday – Clear Sunny Days

My garden tour this Saturday morning was punctuated with an overgrowth of weeds, some plants attaining a size I did not know was possible, fall fruits and wild flowers …and, at long last, clear blue sunny skies with low humidity. Ahh. To join other SOSers on garden tours around the world visit our host, Jim at this link http://gardenruminations.co.uk

One of my fall favorites, Muhly Grass (Muhlenbergia capillaris) is just starting to flower. These usually bloom around the first week of September, so they are late this year. The flowering schedule for a lot of plants was off this year, some sooner than normal, some later.

Another fall fav is the Juba Bush (Iresine diffusa). This wildflower is named after a Caribbean dance called the Juba because of the way they sway in the wind.

The birds are enjoying the berries in the garden. This is called Wild Coffee (Psychotria nervosa) – it is a Florida native shrub, great for butterflies and pollinators. The berries look like coffee, but do not have caffeine.

More late color in the garden. I usually have Beautyberry (Calliocarpa americana) by the first week of September and here it is finally showing some purple.

October is optimal Dahlia planting season in South Florida. For fun, I bought some end of season, cheap tubers, having had virtually no luck with Dahlias in the past. The tubers were wrapped in plastic and kept in the refrigerator for a couple of months and released into the garden this week. I planted the tubers and went out the following morning to find a varmint had dug them up, ate one, and left the others beside the holes they were planted in?! A gourmet, Dahlia intolerant varmint?

I replanted the tubers and added another found slung in front of bed (I am not sure if I forgot to plant it, or the varmints were at it again). Then, I covered the whole thing with a hardware cloth barrier. Take that, varmints!

The experiment continues. I found a bit of tuber on the front porch this morning. I am sure this time it was not me.

That is all from South Florida this sunny Saturday. The Dahlia adventure will be updated. I am now dithering about watering the tubers, though rot is unlikely in the sand.

Happy Gardening!!!

In a Vase on Monday – Household Roos

We have a few roos around the house. The vase this week is a Fitz and Floyd coffee cup I found irresistible in the 80s. I found it on a fantastic sale and decided it would be my cute work coffee cup. The kangaroo looks a bit demented, so this was a perfect desk accessory for a design office. I soon realized the reason it was on sale – the kangaroo hits you in the face when you drink out of the cup. It was reassigned to pencil holding duties.

The other rooing around the house is from Fiona the greyhound. Rooing is a peculiar greyhound tradition. Fiona is a dog with a schedule. Every afternoon around 4:30, we all roo (sing with the dog)

Fiona in action:

Vase details:

Blue flowers in the foreground are ‘Blue Daze’ Evolvulus; yellow spikes are Thyrallis (Galphimia glauca); pink and white spikes are Tropical Red Salvia (Salvia coccinea); blue spikes are ‘Mystic Blue’ Salvia.

Another view:

Background spikes are Sabal Palm (Palmetto sabal) seedling bits and the off white bendys are Juba Bush (Iresine diffusa), a native wildflower with a nice fragrance. One of those things that has to choose where it will live.

Thanks to Cathy at http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for hosting this weekly event. Follow the link to see more vases.

Six on Saturday – Hoomid

The most outstanding feature of my weekly garden tour – extreme humidity. The plants, house and even the doors and windows are dripping rivulets of water. Not a good gardening day. Next week is predicted to bring blessed relief from the soggy environment I keep finding myself in. To see other, less sweaty garden tours visit Jim at http://gardenruminations.co.uk

Reflections and the view outside this morning. The humidity was 80%, it is creeping downward through as the day goes on.

Some plants are enjoying the onslaught. This is a ‘Jill’ Neoregelia Bromeliad pup climbing a palm trunk.

‘Bridal Bouquet’ Frangipani (Plumeria pudica) is soaking up the moisture and still flowering. These are unusual in that they are considered semi evergreen and the shape of the foliage is different from other Frangipani.

Yellow Allamanda (Allamanda catharitica) is running rampant. Vines can be a little scary in South Florida.

My first tomato seedling. The weather has been good for seed germination, although I did get a bit of dog vomit fungus in some of the pots.

Buds on the Soap Aloe (Aloe saponaria). These succulents seem almost architectural to me. One would think they would rot with all the moisture, but they are reveling in it and flowering like mad. I think this shows how sharp the drainage is in sugar sand.

That’s all from the swamp this Saturday. Wishing everyone some crisp Autumnal days. I am awaiting the end of soggy.

Happy Gardening!!

In a Vase on Monday – If you like Pina Coladas..

I was remembering a song lyric from the 80s “If you like Pina Coladas and getting caught in the rain” – the new next line would be to come visit my garden in South Florida. I have pineapples for juicing and so much rain it is seemingly impossible not to get caught in it. I think it has been raining for about 10 days. Fiona the greyhound has somehow figured out when to go out for the least amount of precipitation. Dogs know these things. She is now walking me.

The vase was chosen because it looks like it could be used to serve cocktails. The plant material was limited to tropical to enhance the pineapple. The mini pineapple plant is called ‘Lava Flow’; white flowers are Bridal Bouquet Frangipani (Plumeria pudica); orange and sage tipped flowers are from Soap Aloe (Aloe saponaria).

Another view:

Orange flowers are ‘Choconiana’ Heliconia (Heliconia psittacorum). Greenery is a frond from a Lady Palm (Rhaphis excelsa); fiddle shaped foliage is from Bridal Bouquet Plumeria and a few sprigs of Asian Sword Fern.

That’s all from the swamp this Monday. To see more vases from gardens around the world, visit Cathy at http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com

Six on Saturday – New for Fall

The Fall Equinox has provided us with some blessed relief from the heat and humidity. A high of 83 degrees F (28 C) is very meaningful. My Saturday morning garden tour found some new things in the garden.

To see more SOS Equinox garden tours visit Jim at http://gardenruminiation.co.uk

After seemingly waiting for a few months, I was finally rewarded with a decent Envy Zinnia.

I like to use locally sourced materials in my garden, we added a new shell and salt finished stepping stone walkway and repaired our slightly washed out shell driveway this week. A closer view below:

The driveway repair. I had the shell drive put in about 10 years ago. As it is used the shells get squashed into sand and begin to wash away, leaving me chasing my driveway down the street. The size of the new shells breaks up the force of the rain water keeping the shells in place. These break up and smooth into a more even surface as the driveway is used.

Much to my delight, I found I still had an active wholesale account with a grower! So I went a little crazy. This bed is prepped for the addition of New Gold Lantana and Ice Plant.

Another driveway erosion correction under construction. I found some Zone 10 recommended Dwarf Lirope called Samantha on the growers website. I will be installing the new plants as soon as possible as these arrive bare root. This paver parking pad has a small concrete edging holding it in place and needs some additional support from a planting to keep it stable. As you can see summer weeds are awful in Florida.

That’s all from South Florida. I will be pulling weeds in anticipation of new plants.

Happy Gardening!!

Funky Florida Flora – Bossa Nova Bromeliad

Meet “Bossa Nova” Bromeliad. Bossa nova means new music in Portuguese and is a style of music that originated in Brazil in the late 1950s, a mixture of jazz and samba. “The Girl from Ipanema” is probably the most famous bossa nova tune, and a prodigious ear worm producer.

True Brazilians, these plants were brought to America from Brazil in 1988. This one does make me dance, just a little. It will grow in a full sun southern exposure in an area with great amounts of reflected light and no irrigation, a bit of a miracle in my world. I had not realized until last year these would grow in full sun, they had been sulking for a few years in full shade and were moved into the light during the proper season – fast approaching, November through March is bromeliad relocation time!

Botanically speaking these are Neoregelia “Bossa Nova”. A stoloniferous groundcover, they reach 12-18″ height and 24″ spread. Neoregelia bromeliads typically flower inside the cup and are planted for their foliage as the flowers are not particularly showy. It is reported to turn red around the cup before flowering. I have not noted this in my garden. Maybe this winter I will see some red coloration.

Sulking in the shade below:

Much happier in a sunnier place:

More funkiness to come! Happy Friday!

In a Vase on Monday – Bidens Control

Much like the President of the United States; this Bidens is a love it or hate it situation. It’s Bidens alba, a very cute – but very prolific native wildflower. The white daisy in the vase. My husband was in the hospital last week and during the course of his stay we managed to contract Covid. We are both on the mend. The Bidens took advantage and started flowering all over the place. I have been cutting it as birth control. This plant can put out 1200 seeds per plant. It doesn’t take long to have way too much Bidens. It is also called Spanish Needles due to the appearance of the seeds, they stick to everything (especially the dog!) Seeds can be seen in the photo below:

I cut the Bidens regularly and rarely use it in a vase. I have never had this much. I have grown to appreciate the flower by seeing it up close. It is a favorite of pollinators. However, I am happy to have saved myself from having to pull about 4,000 plants!

The rest of the vase:

Brown Eyed Girl Sunflowers smile from the front. I added a few ‘Purple Prince’ Zinnias and Mystic Spires Salvia for color. The vase is from a long ago florist arrangement.

That is all from South Florida . I’ll be relaxing a bit this week. Keeping an eye on the newly named Tropical Storm Idalia. I am a long way from the cone of danger. Wondering who the heck is Idalia?

Thank you to Cathy at http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for hosting. Follow the link for a world tour of vases.

Six on Saturday – Rain Flowers

I noticed a few things on my Saturday morning garden tour. Slightly cooler weather, slight being the operative word. And an abundance of flowers in the garden from all the rain. A few of the non native salvias have succumbed to something, but most everything else is very happy.

To take a world tour with SOS gardeners, visit Jim at http://gardenruminations.co.uk

Rain lilies (Zephyranthes or Habranthus) are having their best year ever. I like the name Zephyranthes better, the other one sounds like a dinosaur. Why do the botanists have to change these names constantly?

Meet Bidens alba, sometimes called Spanish Needles due to the sharp seeds. These are fortunately cute and last a long time as a cut flower. A Florida native wildflower – they are unfortunately prolific and require pulling lest they take over the garden.

Another one of my butterfly plants, ‘Sapphire Showers’ Duranta (Duranta repens). This one is a tree form and not very happy about it. It keeps sprouting at the base. Its current form is blob.

An all around good wildlife plant, this is the fruit forming on the ‘Sapphire Showers’ Duranta. These will be attractive yellow berries soon and the birds will enjoy them.

The Dragonfruit or Pitaya has put out a huge new shoot. I am not sure what to think of this as it has been sitting in the garden, doing nothing for years.

The garden announces the peak of hurricane season. These are called hurricane lilies, and other common names. They are a bromeliad, Billbergia pyramidalis. The peak date for hurricane activity is September 6 or thereabouts and these are usually in full bloom by then.

That is all from my garden. Eastern South Florida remains hot and rainy. The west coast is in drought. Go figure. I may try to beat the rain and pull some weeds.

Thanks to Jim for hosting. Happy Gardening.

Six on Saturday – Steamy Summer Florals

Saturday is here again. I took a steamy tour of my garden this morning. The humidity was at 90 percent! I wasn’t sweating, but my skin had condensation on it and so did the windows in my house. The plants continue to thrive and I have a new weed, Rice Paddy Weed.

To join the SOS World Garden Tour – visit Jim at http://gardenruminations.co.uk

The Purple Prince zinnias are gaining strength and size. I am hoping for long stemmed cut flowers. Unfortunately, I usually get short stemmed zinnias.

Hummingbird or cypress vine rambling through white salvia. I am probably going to regret this when all the little seedlings come up – until then I will enjoy the little pops of color.

New flowers on the Medinillia cummingii. So tropical. These grow in tree tops in their native habitat. The green orchid bees love the flowers.

Brown Eyed Girl sunflowers continue to flower. I got these in February and they are still blooming. Oddly, they have lost their brown eye.

Mexican Honeysuckle (Justicia spicigera) is a summer standby.

Another stalwart in the summer garden, Spiderwort, the wildflower is sprinkled around sunny spots in the garden. I love the blue and am not sure which Transcandentia this one is.

Here is the Rice Paddy weed. A new one in my world. I thought it was an old fashioned penta (which would have been great!) so I left it in a pot and came to find out – it is an invasive weed in swamps and rice paddies that can produce 250,000 seeds each flower. As my garden is non-water holding sand I am not feeling afraid but getting rid of it shortly.

I have a question for you gardeners. I have been waiting to try this natural weedkiller, Torched, that is non toxic. It was supposed to be available in smaller quantities than a gallon ($74 gallon plus shipping) but the manufacturer decided against the smaller bottles. Would you pay about $90 US to try this?? Thanks for answering, I am curious. Here is a link:

https://www.southlandorganics.com/products/torched-all-natural-weed-killer?variant=43855976661237

That is it for this Saturday. I wish you Happy Gardening.

Six on Saturday – Small Things

Saturday has rolled around yet again and it is time for the worldwide garden tour called Six on Saturday. To complete the tour visit Jim at http://gardenruminations.co.uk.

Sirius the Dog star is still shining in the night sky, so we are deep into the dog days of summer. It seems the world is a hotter place these days and my garden is no exception. Most days I walk outside, look around, think of several things I should do and then retreat into the air conditioning.

One of the many things I enjoy about gardening is the details of flowers, seeing something new or noticing how plants grow.

These are African Horned Melons, grown by my neighbor. They are very seedy and should be ‘mixed with yogurt’. I tend to avoid vegetables that require yogurt to be palatable and decided to dry these. Christmas ornaments, anyone?

The flower of a Neoregelia Bromeliad.

A new Gumbo Limbo (Bursea simarouba). These trees are native to South Florida and the Caribbean. They are called living fences in some places as a limb can be stuck in the ground and a new tree will grow. A few months ago a UPS delivery truck knocked this branch off another tree, I trimmed the leaves off and stuck it in the ground. Voila! a new tree is growing.

These zinnias are positioning themselves to stay out of the midday sun. It makes for a curly stemmed zinnia.

First summer zinnias. Purple Prince and Envy.

This is not from my garden, but a common summer sight in South Florida. The Royal Poinciana (Delonix regia) These are often called Flamboyants, for good reason. I don’t think there is anything quite like this.

The dog days end in approximately three weeks! I think my dog has the right idea of what to do until then.

That’s all for this Saturday from inside the house!

Happy Gardening!!