Category Archives: theshrubqueen

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 – Weeds and Wildflowers

It’s been a chilly, wintry week. By South Florida standards this means temperatures in the 40’s F/4C and covering the tomato plants at night. We have also (gasp!) had the heat on in the house. It was a very good morning to don battle gear and prune my lime tree. After completing this thorny task, I went in search of warm colors for a Monday vase. I was heartened to find wildflowers in bloom. I also found a weed and some obliging perennials.

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The weed in the vase is the Green Shrimp Plant (Ruellia blechum). I like these for their green sculptural oddness. They are considered an invasive plant also a larval host plant for the Green Malachite butterfly. I leave a few around for this reason. However, I have yet to see one of these spectacular green butterflies.

Wildflowers are in yellow, Beach Sunflowers (Helianthus debilis); peach spikes are Tropical Red Salvia (Salvia coccinea); Juba Bush (Iresine diffusa) is in the background in fluffy, beige glory.

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Both in red, a couple of sprigs of China Hat (Holmskioldia sanguinea) and Firecracker Plant (Russelia equisetiformus) amp up the warm colors in the vase.

I hope everyone is staying warm and enjoying some cozy winter fun. 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.

In a Vase on Monday – Shrimp and Serendipity

My garden never fails to surprise me. This week it was a beautiful display of deep red flowers from a Red Shrimp Plant. This plant is one of those I forget completely about until it flowers and then wish I had more. I have this thought every year and have yet to propagate any. Maybe it is time.

A few more serendipitous finds allowed me to complete the vase.

The Red Shrimp Plant (Justicia brandegeana) in all its glory. The fluffy grasses behind are Muhly Grass (Muhlenbergia capillaris). The Muhly Grass has reseeded here and there in the garden. I would have never planted it where it landed, but have come to enjoy the randomness of the placement. It also has the benefit of thriving in the driest, sandiest part of the garden.

White Vinca (Vinca rosea) comes up in the oddest places. I have never planted any, yet here it is. Again thriving in the driest part of the garden. The sticks in the vase are from some native grape vines I cut down long ago and never quite made it into a bag to be taken to the curb. I like sticks in a vase and never realized it works better if they are good and dead. These were nice and crispy and easily trimmed into a shape that complemented the vase.

The vase is a stoneware ‘pineapple’ found on a long ago Hawaiian vacation.

Now I am hoping to find a serendipitous dinner prepared in the freezer! It’s possible.

Thanks to Cathy at RamblingintheGarden for hosting. Follow the link to see more vases.

Six on Saturday – Avocado and Friends

I have been absent from SOS the past few weeks. I have been occupied with houseguests, not much going on in the garden, followed by an unexpected road trip to pick up a new hound. My house and garden feel much more like a home with the addition of Handsome Rob, a rescue Greyhound. There was a major garden event this week – my first ever Avocado!

To tour more SOS gardens, visit Jim at GardenRuminations

The avocado. This is a Catalina or Cuban Avocado. To my knowledge, the only variety that is true to seed. These grow wild in the Caribbean, my Puerto Rican college classmate tells me the woods are full of them on his island. Another college friend grew my tree from seed, it has been in the garden since 2016. These are big avocadoes, about twice the size of a Hass. I hope it gets ripe!

The Rangpur limes continue to taunt me – not quite ripe.

The garden provided a few dry season floral surprises this week. A Gallardia pulchella seedling flowering in the shell walkway.

Red Shrimp Plants (Justicia brandegeana). I think the cool weather deepens the color.

Who knew Ti Plants (Cordyline fruiticosa) flowered? This was a surprise to me, they resemble Dracaena flowers.

Meet Handsome Rob – doing what greyhounds do best, holding down the floor. Handsome Rob was a character in the movie The Italian Job. Not the dog, Jason Statham.

That is all from South Florida this week. My fingers are crossed for a bit of rain this week and warmer weather. I have been moving my tomato and zinnia seedlings in and out of the house as we have had morning temperatures in the 50s.

In a Vase on Monday – Garden Limbo

This time of year gives me an odd sort of garden Limbo. If I still lived further north, the garden season would be mostly over. Here in South Florida, I am watching tomato and zinnia seedlings come up – soon to be transplanted into the winter garden. Planting tomatoes in November may never feel normal.

All of the plants in this vase are Florida natives. Two (Bidens and Juba) are in the garden due to Limbo being induced by not knowing what to do with them. I now cut and enjoy them. The balance I planted, the green fruit is from the Gumbo Limbo (Bursera simaruba) tree. Perhaps it is celebrating my garden Limbo?

Closer views:

Two of my favorite wispies are in flower right now. The pinks are Muhly Grass (Muhlenbergia capillaris) and the off white is Juba Bush (Iresine diffusa)

Green fruit is from the Gumbo Limbo tree (that word again?!); white flowers are Bidens alba; purple berries are from Beautyberry (Calliocarpa americana). The crystal vase was a gift from my dearly departed brother, it always makes me smile to remember him. Today is his birthday.

Thanks to Cathy at RamblingintheGarden for hosting. Follow the link to see more vases.

Six on Saturday – Fall Finds

I am joining the SOS gang to share the discovery of my first ripe Rangpur lime this Saturday. I shall be heading to the grocery store soon to buy ingredients for a pie. Gardening is Good! Eventually I end up with a pastel orange “Key Lime” pie.

To see more SOS posts, follow this link Garden Ruminations to visit our host, Jim and travel the world of gardening through the comments section.

The Rangpur lime. This fruit is a cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange. Why it is called a lime I am not sure.

More unusual fruit. This is a Bitter Melon (Monmordica) These grow wild here and are very prolific. Some call them Stinkweed due to the smell of the foliage. They are considered health food for some – I stick with the Rangpur pie.

Fruit of the Jatropha multifida, called physic nut. It is supposedly medicinal, but known to cause mild gastrointestinal distress, I am not sure why you would eat it.

Yellow Elder (Tecoma stans) starting its show.

Nodding Hibiscus (Malvaviscus arboreum) waking up.

Another fall find, the cone of a Cardboard Palm (Zamia furfuracea) – this one has been trimmed off and is nestled in trimmings from a Gumbo Limbo (Bursera simaruba). These are prolific reseeders and not a good thing to get loose in the garden.

That’s all from South Florida this morning. Off to find baking ingredients.

In a Vase on Monday – Rain Delay

I fully intended to put a tropical mixed vase together..until the predicted tropical rainstorm started and hasn’t let up. I had just cut the Heliconias when the bottom dropped out. This weather is a harbinger of things to come this week. Hurricane Milton is brewing in the Gulf of Mexico and is headed my way or somewhere on the Florida peninsula. The weather pundits are babbling away. I rooted around in my vase stash and came up with a red vase for my downsized vision. Sigh.

A closer view of “Lady Di’ Heliconia (Heliconia psittacorum)

I am thankful for simple pleasures this Monday. Fingers crossed for a safe week for all. Thanks to Cathy for hosting, visit RamblingintheGarden to see more vases.

In a Vase on Monday – Swan Song

The pink flower in this vase is a Silver Urn Bromeliad (Aechmea fasciata). The tips go silver and the pale pink deepens to rose as the flowers fade. I like the coloration and have appreciated this flower for quite some time – it opened May 12th! I think I got my money’s worth. They never last very long in a vase, so this is its swan song.

Supporting players in this swan song.

In white, a few Tropical Gardenias (Tabernaemontana diviricata) are still in the garden; varigated foliage is Chicken Gizzard plant (Iresine herbstii). I am told the name originates from the tropical island these plants are from – they were eaten with chicken gizzards. Chartreuse foliage is from an incredibly prolific coleus.

The wispy accents are from another Caribbean tropical, Juba Bush (Iresine diffusa).

We are still dreaming of a fall cool down and thankfully were missed completely by Hurricane Helene.

To join in the IAVOM fun visit Cathy at this link RamblingintheGarden.