Category Archives: amelia grant

In a Vase on Monday – Fennel Soap

It has been cool and very dry in South Florida. Another ‘reason why people come here for the winter’ week. The succulents celebrated by flowering. I like the architectural aspect of succulents and enjoy cutting them to view the subtle color shading up close. The foliage from the Aloes is left in the garden, it is too sharp to handle.

Silvery grey Graptosedum and its flowers. I did not realize these would set seed until they started dropping on the floor. The ferny plant behind is Bronze Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare). I have been enjoying using this in vases and it would not have occurred to me to buy it for that purpose. It lasts a long time and adds a nice fragrance.

Soap Aloe (Aloe saponaria) flowers. This Aloe blooms about four times a year in my garden. Native to South Africa, it can be used as shampoo. Unfortunately, it seems most people are allergic to it, so I have not tried it!

Happy Monday and Happy Gardening or Garden Dreaming..

Thanks to Cathy for inviting us into her garden every Monday to share our vases. Please follow the link to visit and view the vases. RamblingintheGarden

In a Vase on Monday – Boom!

For some reason there are a lot of fiery colors in the garden. I decided to do a hot colors arrangement. I cut oranges and reds and arranged, then added a Palmetto frond, stood back and thought “that looks a bit explosive” Blowing winter back north. Ironically, the next polar vortex is not predicted to get this far south. Boom! I am perfectly happy not to experience the vortex.

What’s in the vase? A lot of things!

The orange daisies burning in the front of the vase are Mexican Flame Vine (Psuedogynoxys chenopodioides) – who thinks of these names? White star shaped flowers are Graptosedum. White Begonias are Sweet Begonias (Begonia odorata)

Red bell shaped flowers are – you guessed it, Firecracker Plant (Russelia equisetifolium). Chartreuse foliage is an unnamed Coleus or Plectranthus. Red foliage is Piecrust Croton (Codieum variegatum). Palmetto frond is from a volunteer, there are two that grow here and I am not sure if this is a Saw Palmetto or Dwarf Palmetto.

Well, I had a blast putting this one together. To see more vases, visit Cathy at RamblingintheGarden

In a Vase on Monday – Diversity

In light of recent events in the US, it occurred to me plants, like people, have diverse qualities and talents. I think it is safe to say nothing in this vase is considered a good cut flower. Yet, here they are. Thriving and beautiful to boot. DEI in a vase. So much for labels.

Oddly and unintentionally, this vase turned out red, white and blue. The blue vase, a long ago Christmas gift from my brother. Big Pink and Big White Begonias provide focal points and color. Graptosedum succulents add structure and color. Green accents are from invasive Asparagus fern I can’t quite bring myself to get rid of. Diversity, what a concept!

An overhead view:

That’s all from South Florida this Monday. I’ll be in the garden for the next four years trying to regain my sanity.

To see more vases, visit Cathy at RamblingintheGarden.

In a Vase on Monday – Jammin

Most Mondays I read Cathy’s blog RamblingintheGarden. As our hostess for IAVOM, she advises: Pop some flowers in a jam jar and join us. A jam jar has been loitering by my kitchen sink this weekend, so I did just that. I have a jam making snowbird neighbor who always returns with raspberry jam.

Follow the link to see more vases – perhaps another jam jar.

South Florida has been suffering a cold spell for the past week or so. It finally broke on Sunday and I went in the garden searching for color. And found some! Enough to jam pack my jar. The zinnias were a surprise. They were about half the usual size. I suppose the cold weather caused this.

What’s in the jam jar? Nothing edible. The purple spotted flowers are petunias, which make a surprisingly good cut flower. White flowers are Sweet Begonia (Begonia odorata ‘alba’). Pink and orange Cactus Zinnias. The seedheads are from the Firebush (Hamelia patens). Purple spike flowers are Mona Lavendar Plectranthus.

The remaining jammers are Autumn Fern (Dryopteris erythrosora) and in red, Firecracker Plant (Russelia equisetaformis).

That’s all from South Florida this Monday. I hope to get back in the garden this week.

Six on Saturday – Lime in the Coconut

I’m joining the SOSers again this Saturday sharing six items of interest from my garden. Winter brings tropical fruit and flowers to the garden in South Florida. I have been enjoying Rangpur limes for the past couple of weeks. I just noted my new Finger Limes are flowering and bearing fruit! The bees have been busy and the first mango of the year has set fruit. Exciting times.

To see other SOS garden posts, visit Jim at GardenRuminations.

The Australian Finger Lime, also called Caviar Limes, looks like caviar when squeezed out of the rind. These are native to low lying areas in Australia. I am looking forward to trying this. Once again facing the “when is it ripe?” dilemma.

Fruit setting on the Australian Finger Lime.

The weather this week was cool. A good time to do battle with oddly growing tropical fruit trees. I donned my leather gloves and arm covers and pruned the Rangpur limes. See why above. The branches that bear fruit have some serious thorns.

The trunks of the Rangpur lime are smooth and the fragrance is wonderful when pruning. It is a pleasant experience if the thorns on the branches can be avoided. This lime tree has taken a strange shape. I hope I have cleaned it up and made the fruit easier to pick next year.

The first tiny Nam Doc Mai mangoes of the year. I was happy to see the bees at work on the flowers this week. Sometimes it is too windy for the flowers to bee pollinated and you get no mangoes. Interestingly, I have flowers on the opposite side of the tree this year. Last year all the fruit was on one side. 100 days from flower to fruit on mangoes is the mantra. I am not so sure about that!

As the song goes “Put the Lime in the Coconut” here’s the coconut. These are baby coconuts on a tree in my neighbor’s yard.

That’s all from South Florida this Saturday. Happy Garden Dreaming..

In a Vase on Monday – Posey Sink Shooters

I wouldn’t think of drinking a shot of tequila. But I love to keep a shot glass filled with flowers by the kitchen sink. This glass is from my niece’s wedding. Its intended use is a tequila vessel, however, it has been used frequently as a vase. I have been told on more than one occasion I would like tequila if only I had some good tequila. I tried and it still tastes like dirt to me. Maybe it’s horticulturally related – I am not too fond of Agaves and they are the source of tequila. The same goes for Juniper and gin.

The crystals are Fools Gold – Pyrite. Another good luck crystal vibe for the New Year. Heirloom rocks from my father the geologist.

A closer view:

In pink, the Zinnia I was complaining about recently. I have grown to love it. In blue, Plumbago (Plumbago auriculata), the Hydrangea of the tropics. The purple foliage is Aerva, a weed from Africa. I like it despite its origins. White and coral spikes are Tropical Red Salvia (Salvia coccinea). Fluffy seedheads are from Muhly Grass (Muhlenbergia capillaris – I hope I didn’t make that botanical name up)

Here’s another sink posey from last week. Zinnias and Heirloom Pentas.

That’s all from my kitchen sink this week. To see more vases from the world over, follow the link to visit Cathy at RamblingintheGarden

Six on Saturday – Winter Gardening Adventures in South Florida

I have recovered from my SOS slump and got it together to take some photos of South Florida winter gardening fun. To see more potential examples of winter gardening fun, visit Jim at GardenRuminations.

I had a little surprise encounter while picking Rangpur limes. This is a corn snake, non venomous and a good snake to have in the garden. They eat rats and other things you don’t want around. Unfortunately, this one is a very similar color to the fruit. They usually don’t bite, unless, say you try to pick them. Fortunately, I realized what it was before I tried to pick it!

The Rangpur limes are having a good year. We have had Rangpur pie, chicken marinated with garlic, black pepper and fresh oregano and limeade. I am going to channel my Southern old lady and make some Lime Sour bar cookies (I had to find the biscuit pan first). I have frozen juice and zest for pies, given limes to friends and neighbors and still have a few left on the tree. I stopped picking them before I almost picked the corn snake.

More of the weird and wonderful in my garden. This is a Strangler Fig (Ficus aurea) seedling seeking ground from the top of a Sabal Palm. The fruit from the Strangler Fig is left by wild life in the crown of the palm. It sprouts and eventually sends a tree back down to the ground. The tree roots and grows up around the palm and “strangles” it. Very Harry Potter.

Flowers of the China Hat (Holmskioldia sanguinea) sometimes called Chinaman’s Hat. These are native to the Himalayas, seems strange to me they grow here.

This is a Mona Lavendar Plectranthus. These are fairly common around here, generally used as annuals. I use them in containers. They last a year or two and are very hardy. This container has Licorice plant (Helichhrysum petiolare), a charteuse coleus, and Starry Night Petunias.

The container next to the Mona Lavendar is planted with Wishbone flowers (Torenia fournieri). I am not sure which named variety this is – it is my first time trying these. So far, so good. I am enjoying the color.

There, slacking off did not happen this week. I am wishing everyone good gardening surprises. No snakes in the lime tree.

In a Vase on Monday – Celebrating New Beginnings

My vase this week was created to celebrate new beginnings in 2025. My latest batch of zinnias is finally flowering and providing some much needed color in my garden. South Florida has been unusually rainy and overcast for the past week. The sun-starved Floridians are getting restless. I have included a amethyst and clear quartz crystal for healing and positive energy.

The happy color hunt started with the zinnia discovery. I must have planted some Green Envy seed – because there it is! I rooted around in the garden, dodging rain showers and found that the Tropical Red Salvia had gained new life from all the rain. I plucked a few other happy rain-sated flowers from the garden and concocted my vase.

The close up:

In the back, dark and ferny, are sprigs of Copper Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare). The purple flowers are ‘Mona’ Lavendar Plectranthus. The pink stars are Heirloom Pentas (Penta lanceolata). Leaves in the foreground are from Sweet Begonia (Begonia odorata). The tubular orange flowers are Firebush (Hamelia patens). The coral and white spikes are Tropical Red Salvia (Salvia coccinea). The vase is a crystal rose bowl that belonged to my mother.

That’s all from less than sunny South Florida. I’m wishing everyone a happy, healthy and colorful 2025!

To see more vases, visit Cathy at RamblingintheGarden.

In a Vase on Monday – It’s Back

The Christmas spirit finally caught up with me and I decorated my tree and filled the holiday bus with flowers. The Walkers shortbread tin is making its eighth holiday appearance, I think. This year I was scrambling to find red flowers – then spied the Nodding Hibiscus in full bloom. Santa provided some other appropriate colored plants from the garden and a full holiday bus was created.

Closer views:

In red, Nodding Hibiscus (Malvaviscus arboreum) are the star of the show. In white, ‘Big White Green Leaf Begonia’. I hope these root as I would love a few more and the nursery is sold out..Christmas dreams.

The backdrop is provided by Bronze Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) and Piecrust Croton (Codieum variegatum). Sounds like dinner ideas!

Rob the Greyhound is questioning my decision about wearing the reindeer antlers..looking for a treat.

Happy Holidays to all and here’s hoping Santa brought Cathy an internet connection. To see more vases, follow this link RamblingintheGarden

Six on Saturday – Solstice Colors

Despite living in South Florida for a decade, I am still surprised by what grows where and flowers when. Today is no exception. Flowers on tomatoes and zinnias on the Winter Solstice still bend my mind. I do love the clear light this time of year. The tilt of the earth softens the strength of the sun. This effect renders nicely in photos.

It is Saturday and I have been slacking off on my SOS posts, but am back. To see other solstice posts, visit Jim at GardenRuminations.

The cactus zinnias just started to flower. I planted these in the ground rather than pots and will be interested in how they fare. So far, so good.

There seem to be several of these. I am wondering if I planted a batch of Envy zinnias. The rain washed away the labels..

Heirloom Pentas (Penta lanceolata). These are big Pentas – they can reach four feet. I have not seen these anywhere else. Sold here for butterfly gardens.

First flowers on the cherry tomatoes. It seems to take much longer this time of year to get fruit.

Autumn Fern (Dryopteris erythrosa) in full color. These are my favorites from my garden further north. I am surprised I have managed to get it to grow here. A very pampered pot on my front porch. Doused twice daily with dog bowl water.

Rangpur limes nearing ripeness. I baked a pie this week. Ginger snap crust with toasted coconut and Rangpur lime filling. It is gone.

Happy Holidays to all and Cheers to longer days.

Thanks to Jim for hosting.