Category Archives: heliconias

In a Vase on Monday – Caveman Style

On Sunday morning I got in touch with my inner cave woman and went to the garden to bag my vase. I didn’t use the prop in the photo, instead a pair of clippers was used to hunt and gather some summery flowers from the garden.

The prop. It’s a Native American stone ax head. This is an heirloom from my father, the geologist, who frequently found these near rivers on his field trips in the Southeastern US. I suppose they were using it for bashing fish (or bashing something?!)

The vase is a jar tucked inside a paper bag. It occurred to me the colors would look nice together so, I gave it a try. Lesson learned from this. Put the jar in the bag first. Then add flowers and water.

The flowers: in white, ‘Miss Alice’ Bougainvillea; yellow sunflowers are ‘Brown Eyed Girl’, still flowering at about seven months in the garden; yellow spikes are Thyrallis (Galphimia glauca); bigger red flower is Miniata bromeliad (Aechmea miniata); red bell shaped flowers are Firecracker Plant (Russellia equisetfolium); white daisies are Bidens alba.

The other side:

Even cave women like a little fragrance, the white flowers are ‘Bridal Bouquet’ Frangipani (Plumeria pudica); a few varigated leaves of ‘White Java’ Copperleaf (Acalphya wilkesiana ‘Java White’); and a ‘Lady Di’ Heliconia (Heliconia psittacorum) is in the mix in red and yellow.

My vase is in the bag this Monday. There will be no fish bashing in the garden. Thanks to Cathy at http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for hosting – follow the link to see more vases.

In a Vase on Monday – Country Challenge

I am holding out hope for cooler weather as the dog days of summer officially end on August 11. I doubt that will bring an end to our daily high temperatures of over 90 F, but one can dream. September brings an average high of 89. October is when the real cool down begins. Rain is still copious and all the more tropical summer flowers are relishing the moisture and flowering with reckless abandon.

I challenged myself this week to create a vase with gardenias that wasn’t all white or seemingly formal. This is the easy, breezy, country casual gardenia vase. Tropical version.

The vase started out in a mason jar. Very casual country. The clear glass showed too much of the weird and thick tropical stems of the bromeliad and palm. Who ever thought stems would be distracting? The vase needed clothes. A basket a friend sent with a gardenia plant (I killed it, G. jasminoides) was pressed into service.

The red and yellow flowers are parrotflowers (Heliconia psittacorum ‘Lady Di’); the red and blue tipped flowers are miniata bromeliads (Aechmea miniata); white flowers are tropical gardenias (Tabernaemontana diviricata); white green stems with berries are adonidia palm (Veitchii merrillii) unripe fruit; striped foliage is martin bromeliad (Neoregelia martinii); ferny accents are asparagus fern.

Another view:

Thanks to Cathy at ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for hosting this weekly array of floral abundance. Follow the link to see more vases.

Happy Gardening!!

In a Vase on Monday – Helfire and Romans.

The title sounds downright biblical. But it is not. I have seen Florida’s weather this time of year called Hell’s Front Porch – that seems pretty accurate currently. So I decided to see if I could do an all hot color arrangement. Using Hel – icona, Fire – bush, and Roman – Red Salvia. I think the Heliconia flowers lend a flame shaped touch to the arrangement.

I just found out there are dog day Cicadas in Florida. More unintentional biblical reference. They seem especially loud this year, lending their song to underline the heat and humidity. It is interesting how sounds can emphasize weather. Despite the heat the garden continues to thrive. This is largely due to consistent downpours from afternoon thunderstorms. The Firebush has grown almost three feet since May. They are foundation plants and I need to trim them back so I can see out the window! Expect more orange in vases in the near future.

A ‘Lady Di’ Heliconia (Heliconia psittacorum) bud looking flame like and surrounded by Firebush (Hamelia patens var patens)

A few sprigs of ‘Roman Red’ Salvia joins the crew. This is one of the best Salvias to cut, lasting longer than the the Tropical Reds and Mystic Spires. The greenery is from palms. A bit of Lady Palm (Rhapis excelsa) in the foreground and a trimmed Sabal Palm (Palmetto sabal) providing a grey green backdrop.

The vase is a thrift store find. I may need to revisit that store, I have really enjoyed this vase.

That is all from South Florida. Where I am doing as little gardening as possible. Thanks to Cathy at http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for hosting. Follow the link for a vase tour of gardens.

Happy Gardening!!

In a Vase on Monday – Parrots and Poinsettias

Here’s another set of strange bedfellows from my garden. I would consider this an unlikely combination anywhere but South Florida. The parrots are Parrotflowers (Heliconia psittacorum) and the poinsettias are a native Floridian Euphorbia called Florida Poinsettia (Euphorbia cyathophora). I like the little bits of red on the foliage accenting the colors of the flowers.

I have tried growing the usual Christmas poinsettia in the garden and failed. The Florida version is a wildflower that appears from time to time. Having read up on it a bit I should probably pull them out. It seems they are one of those perverse plants that is hard to grow from seed if you want it – but a prolific reseeder if you don’t. If I don’t act soon the next thing could be a mowed poinsettia lawn for the holidays. Not a festive look.

A closer view:

The Parrotflowers are orange and red and yellow. The orange ones are Heliconia psittacorum “Choconiana”; the reds H. psittacorum “Lady Di”. These are very tropical and did not appreciate the 30 degree temperatures in January and are just recovering. The flowers are smaller than usual for some reason. Yellow spikes are from the Thyrallis (Galphimia gracilis) shrub.

The Florida Poinsettia foliage. Another common name for this is Fire on the Mountain. Where they found the mountains in Florida we will never know.

That is all from sweltering South Florida.

Many thanks to Cathy at http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com for hosting this weekly meme. Follow the link to see more vases from gardens around the world.

Happy Gardening!!

In a Vase on Monday – Lobster, Asparagus & Rose`

Lobster with a side of asparagus and a glass of rose` sounds like a rocking dinner. A large quantity of melted butter would be necessary for this gastronomic delight and another side dish, roasted potatoes, I think. Hmmm. Well, this vase is not for dinner, though the conceptual components are there and the rock was necessary to hold the plants in place.

I know summer is in full force when the Heliconias start to flower and the solstice was their day. There are flowers still opening and this is really the best Heliconia year to date. I am guessing the vast rain fall helped. These flowers are so dramatic they need little embellishment, kind of like lobster.

The flowers:

The Lobsterclaw Heliconia (Heliconia rostrata). These are planted outside my Living Room windows to give a rainforest vibe to the view. This is sort of a large, leafy plant but very linear and easy to see through so I have enjoyed the view.

The Asparagus Fern accents the Heliconia and is held in place by the rock. The vase is a rose` bottle from a dreadful bottle of rose` I bought from Aldi based on an internet rave review. The last rave review I ever bought wine from, though I have enjoyed the bottle as a vase.

The rock:

The rock. My father was a geology professor who loved crystals and especially tourmaline and quartz. This is black tourmaline and a quartz crystal likely found somewhere in North Georgia where I am from.

It is closing in on dinnertime in South Florida and I am wishing for the above ingredients! No such luck this week

Thanks to Cathy for hosting IAVOM, to see more vases follow this link http://ramblinginthegarden.wordpress.com

Happy Gardening!!

Six on Saturday – Caterpillar Condo

It’s time for the weekly world garden tour. My South Florida garden has a wealth of butterflies and tropical flowers loving the heat and humidity more than I do. I let some native passionflower vine (larval host plant for butterflies) ramble through a mixture of flowering nectar plants and I have some astounding butterfly action going on in the front garden. Pairs of Gulf fritillary butterflies circle each other and then land on the passionvine where the ladies lay eggs. Caterpillars from both species of butterflies (Gulf fritillary and Zebra Longwing) that host on the vine are currently in residence. The caterpillars moved off the vines and now there are chrysalis hanging on the front porch. I am watching day by day hoping to see new butterflies emerge.

The Gulf fritillary looking for nectar.

Zebra Longwing doing the same thing.

Gulf fritillary caterpillars on the passionvine. The passionvine is Florida native Passiflora suberosa. It is not a particularly attractive vine and bears small flowers and blueberry sized fruit. I did not plant this, it came up from the garden gods and I let it go to ramble through the Dwarf Red Ixora shrubs creating a caterpillar condo with a full service restaurant.

The much less colorful chrysalis of the Gulf fritillary.

And we have to have some tropical flowers and fruit. The flowers today are Lobsterclaw Heliconia (Heliconia rostrata)

Fruit of the week – Papaya. This is the Papaya tree started from seed last fall. I planted the seedlings in the garden in May. They are almost three feet tall now and looking a little spindly. I have read it is possible to have fruit in nine months. At this point, the trees won’t be able to support it.

That is all from sultry South Florida this Saturday. To enjoy the world garden tour visit Jim at http://gardenruminations.co.uk

Happy Gardening!!

Six on Saturday – Steamy

Ample moisture from seemingly everywhere has made June the wettest month in recent memory. The windows on my house are fogging up with the humidity in the air outside. The plants in the garden are enjoying long soaks and the tropical flowers are bursting with joy.

I am sharing my steamy, tropical joy with the SOS crowd today. To see Saturday tours from less steamy places, visit our host, Jim at http://gardenruminations.co.uk

Cattleya orchids growing on tree trunks opened their first flowers this week.

Aechmea rubens bromeliads opened this week as well. These flowers last several months and are very sharp.

One of my summer favorites, the Lobsterclaw Heliconia (Heliconia rostrata) is slowly opening.

Another bromeliad, the name of this one escapes me. If I ever knew it.

Yet another bromeliad, the pineapple. This one is coming along – it was grown from the top of a grocery store pineapple, so I have no idea what it will be. These homegrown pineapples are usually very good.

We have been eating Pickering and Glenn mangoes for a couple of weeks. This is the Thai dessert mango, Nam Doc Mai, finally showing some signs of ripening.

There, six from steamy South Florida.

In a Vase on Monday – Juba – lation

My favorite cool season flowers are starting to show their colors. One is the Juba Bush (Iresine diffusa). I am jubilant that the Juba Bush has reappeared. I thought it was gone. This is a native wildflower that I mistook for Amaranthus and left it in the garden only to discover its wonderful chartreuse to creamy white flowers. Juba is the name of an African dance that was imported into the Caribbean where these wildflowers are also native. The dance involves a lot of hip movement and swaying – the plant’s movement in the wind reportedly mimics this?! I wish this grew under my Gumbo Limbo tree, that would be perfect.

The Juba Bush. It is the creamy white flower; ‘Lady Di’ Heliconia is in the background.

The other fall indicator is the red Nodding Hibiscus (Malvaviscus penduliflorus) at the base of the vase. This is another volunteer that I have embraced as I love the flowers. Like many Hibiscus (it is a relative and Mallow family member) the shrub is rangy and not particularly attractive. For me, the flowers make it worthwhile and I enjoy them all winter. It also needs no supplemental water and the leaf cutting bees love it.

The Nodding Hibiscus:

The rest of the vase:

The orange flower is a ‘Choconiana’ Heliconia (Heliconia psittacorum); white daisies are the native Spanish Needles (Bidens alba); ferns are the evil invasive, Asian Sword Ferns. I keep the Sword Ferns at bay by using them in vases.

Thanks to Cathy at http://www.ramblinginthegarden.com for hosting IAVOM. Follow the link to see more vases.

Happy Gardening…

Six on Saturday – Survivors

I am joining the SOS crew today sharing my summer survivors. This summer has been brutal, temperatures over 90 degrees F most days and very little rain. Add to that the demise of our irrigation system, I water what I can and am admiring what is surviving the onslaught. The tropical plants are outshining the native plants in the garden this summer.

Chocociana Parrotflower (Heliconia psittacorum). These small Heliconias are hunkered down under a Firebush and are doing quite well. Of course, I do have to squat down to see them.

Lady Di Parrotflower (Heliconia psittacorum) and native Tillandsia growing near the trunks of Miss Alice Bougainvillea.

Spinach tree (Cnidoscolus aconitifolius), a tropical subsistence vegetable I planted for the butterflies is doing remarkably well with no help from me. The flowers provide nectar for butterflies. The leaves may be cooked like spinach – if you know how to prepare it, otherwise it is poisonous. I leave it for the pollinators.

Chandelier Plant (Medenillia cummingii) is flowering again. Third or fourth time this year.

Schlomburgkia Orchid slipped out of its pantyhose noose. I reinstalled it with string. This orchid has put on four new canes this summer, but can’t quite get its roots in the trunk. I hope this works.

Several people have asked what the Beautyberry (Calliocarpa americana) shrub looks like. This is it. It has dropped a lot of leaves in favor of the berries.

That’s my Six for this Saturday. Hanging on with the orchids in the garden, waiting for fall. To see more posts, visit http://www.thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com.

Happy Gardening!!

Six on Saturday – Morning Finds

It’s time for another Saturday morning walk around my garden. The heat and moisture lovers are lifting thier heads and showing their colors.

This is a Silver Urn Bromeliad, most people call these Fasciata, as the botanical name is Aechmea fasciata. I associate these with the Atrium trend from the eighties when these were commonly used as a long lasting color plant in interiorscapes. This one flowers and produces pups every other year in my garden.

Another tropical that enjoys humidity, the Choconiana Parrotflower (Heliconia psittacorum). I am wondering what Choconiana is??

A little less tropical but another seasonal indicator, the flowers on the Beautyberry (Calliocarpa americana) signal the start of summer. On the flip side, the lurid purple berries, borne around Labor Day, mark the end of summer..

The architectural buds on a Soap Aloe (Aloe saponaria). I think these were inspired by a few rounds of thundershowers this week. The foliage bases have greened up as well. It is possible I fertilized them and forgot about it…

Another architectural plant, the Bridal Bouquet Frangipani (Plumeria pudica), started flowering this week and will most likely continue until November. This is a semi evergreen, columnar variety of Frangipani. I have a number of these as they are great accent plants around fences and narrow spaces. They are lightly fragrant at night.

A little foliage to end this Saturday’s walk. This is Goudaea ospinae, no idea of the common name. It used to be called Vriesea ospinae gruberi. It’s a varigated Bromeliad and adds a lot of color to deep shade. This supposedly will flower with yellow spikes. I was wondering how much shade it would take, so it has been sitting in its pot in the shade garden for at least two years, another incredibly hardy Bromeliad.

There, my Six on this Saturday. To see more SOS posts, visit Jon at http://www.thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com.

Happy Gardening!!