Category Archives: Treasure Coast Living

Six on Saturday – Spring Shift

It’s time for the weekly garden tour hosted by Jim at GardenRuminations Follow the link to see what is going on with gardeners around the world.

In my South Florida garden spring is rapidly shifting into summer. I’m trying to get the garden tucked in for the oncoming blast furnace of heat and humidity. The rainy season officially starts May 15, but the usual May forecast is hot and dry. I’ve decided to try some tropical vegetables. I bought long bean and winged bean seed and have Roselles coming up from seed. I will post pictures when they are coming along. As usual, I have some unusual things going on.

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Desert Roses (Adenium obesum) love the heat. These plants fry is a cast iron pot on my driveway and love it. I rarely water and throw a little liquid fertilizer on them in the spring. A gift from African deserts.

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The last White Bird of Paradise picture, I promise. These are shattering from the heat.

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Some new container plantings and a washed up mermaid were added to my front garden.

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I read up on using Purslane as a summer annual as everything I have ever tried has burned up in the full sun. Charco broiled Begonias are not pretty. My Bronze leaf Begonias will grow anywhere theory was quickly roasted in the SoFla summer. This is a named cultivar (name already lost) of a native Purslane. Despite the propaganda stating these plants do not like rich soil or water – you guessed it. The one planted in the container with rich soil and water is twice as happy as the ones in the supposed perfect gravelly soil! Unless the mermaid has magical purslane powers. Hmmm.

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Several people have asked me about this plant I use in flower arrangements. It’s the ferny thing – it’s called Asparagus Fern (Asparagus setaceus). It’s not the usual thing, it was once grown around here for use in floral arrangements. Native to Africa, it escaped cultivation (have you heard this before??) and is now invasive along with the other types of Asparagus Ferns that are common houseplants. These appeared from who knows where and grow up the stems of the Lobsterclaw Heliconias. They are thorny and pretty enough to use in floral arrangements, so that is how I control them.

This is a new plant in the garden. I realized when I bought this it was quite possible I had eclipsed horticultural norms by having pineapples and bananas in a foundation planting – is this an American term? Pineapples and now a banana are planted in front of my house. I bought this as a Red Abyssinian Banana. Having never seen one before, it doesn’t look particularly red?? Anyone have thoughts? Thank you! My husband has a near phobia of bananas, so I sought out an ornamental.

Happy Spring Gardening to all. Cheers from South Florida!

In a Vase on Monday – Mystic Magic

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I have confessed my love for Salvias on more than one occasion. My favorite, Mystic Blue, has been flowering so profusely it needed deadheading. I did not resist, trimmed all the stunningly large flowers and proceeded to vase making.

With all the rain (11″ in a week measured nearby) the White Flame Salvia and Blue Plumbage are also flowering luxuriantly. They were relieved of a bit of the bounty and all was plonked into one of my favorite thrift store finds – the ubiquitous grey pottery vase.

Being from much further north, this still seems like a midsummer vase to me, and here in South Florida it is entirely possible I can recreate this in July. Since it is mid April, I am enjoying it and savoring the beauty as Florida tends to fry things before their time!

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A closer view. This is simply two kinds of salvia and Plumbago. ‘Mystic Blue’ and ‘White Flame’ Salvia and plain Plumbago auriculata and the cultivar P. auriculata ‘Imperial Blue’. The Imperial Blue is closer to hydrangeas in color, I think. Though I like them both. Oddly, the flowers stick to my greyhounds long noses, so I associate them with my dearly departed Charles, who loved sticking his nose in them and always came out covered with blue flowers.

That’s all the blue news from my garden this Monday. To see other gardens and vases visit Cathy at RamblingintheGarden.

In a Vase on Monday – Coral Rocking the Equinox

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The official time for the Fall Equinox is 1:19 PM today. I am waiting for the axial shift to cool our temperatures. I can already tell the sun is lower in the sky and the shadows on the north side of our house are deepening. The sun angles in South Florida are so different from winter to summer it still throws me off. On a due north exposure, the garden goes from full sun in summer to full shade in winter. Selecting plants is a conundrum. I have gone to pots in these areas.

The garden is celebrating the equinox with coral flowers sprinkled through the beds. I also have coral rocks used as accents as I like local stone incorporated into gardens. Coral rocks are limestone boulders with deposits of shells and other sea life visible on the surface.

The flowers:

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Tropical Red Salvia (Salvia coccinea) is showing up in shades of Coral this week. White daisies are Bidens alba.

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Yellow flowers are Thyrallis (Galpinia glauca). The inspiration plant, hanging over the side, is Coral Vine (Antigogon leptopus). The vase was made by the Ute people in the Southwestern US.

And here are the rocks.

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I enjoy my rock collection in the garden. I have some heirloom rocks from my Father the Geologist and other interesting stones rocking the garden with the coral.

Follow this link to visit Cathy’s blog RamblingintheGarden to see what she and other gardeners are rocking in their vases.

Rock on, gardeners. (I couldn’t resist)

In a Vase on Monday – Tropical Fantasy

I recently acquired some fabric called Tropical Fantasy. It features animals lurking in palm trees and giant teapots. I believe this vase fits quite well into that theme. Many bromeliad flowers are the embodiment of a tropical fantasy. I get a head shaking moment every now and then in the garden and ask myself “is that a flower or what?”

Our rainy season is taking a long holiday from precipitation. Scorched is the new normal as temperatures have been over 90 (32C) for the past few weeks. The good news is the humidity dropped. The bad news is this is making the orchids very unhappy. I can’t get enough water on them and have had to pull some up to get them out of the sun. I can’t recall ever having crispy brown orchids.

The components:

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This is the appropriately named “Fantasia” Aechmea Bromeliad. The foliage is a sawtooth edged silvery grey with pink undertones, pretty fantastic.

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These flowers are from two different Aechmea blanchetiana bromeliads. Red stemmed flowers are from the raspberry cultivar and the yellow one is from lemon. The foliage is red or yellow tinged in these two varieties. The Blanchetiana comes in a number of colors, one called iced tea due to the foliage color. These are stunning in the sun. Foliage in the vase is prunings from Dracaena reflexa. These used to be called Pleomele, I think. The one in my garden is (or was!) about 15 feet tall. It was growing over the bottom of the roof so I trimmed it back.

That’s all from the slow simmer setting in South Florida. Thanks to Cathy for hosting our weekly vase adventure into other gardens and climates. To see more vases follow this link RamblingintheGarden.

In a Vase on Monday – Cherry Fizz

The title reflects the glassware and the fruit in the vase. The glass is some sort of footed cocktail glass, inherited from my in-laws, who collected such oddities. The cherries are Surinam Cherries, a sorry excuse for Bing Cherries from the tropics. The flavor can only be described as resinous, redolent of turpentine. I do like to cut them for vases and leave the rest for the natives and wildlife. Apparently, the flavor is something you have to grow up with to appreciate. I have not acquired a taste for these – directions on how to prepare them from locals is another turn off. “Store them in the fridge overnight to get the worms out” is what I was told. Not likely.

Surinam Cherries, in varying stages of ripeness. Red is ripe. The shrubs make an excellent privacy hedge and are indestructible. There is another tropical cherry from Barbados that is rumored to be more palatable. I’m sticking to growing mangoes and pineapples.

The fizz. In white, Lotusleaf Begonias (Begonia nelumbifolia). In red, yellow and orange, Parrotflowers (Heliconia psittacorum). Greens provided by Asian Sword Ferns and trimmed Saw Palmetto frond.

We finally got rain! The happy news from the garden. Spring showers have been few and far between in South Florida and thundershowers were very welcome.

To see more spring beginnings, visit Cathy at RamblingintheGarden for a vase tour.

Six on Saturday – Winter Color

I am joining SOS sharing my new winter flowers and vegetables. The cool season in Florida is the best time of year for gardening. Late in the year I plant vegetables and update annual flowers in my containers. I am trying some new flowers this winter. Gardening is a constant experiment for me.

To tour other winter gardens visit Jim at GardenRuminations.

I think these are Splash Dance Violet Vogue petunias. I did not realize how many different types of the dark spotted petunias there are and recycled the tag. I also did not realize petunias are not toxic to dogs but Callibrachoa is. Sure enough, I left the Callibrachoa out of the dog reach and later observed him trying to take a bite out of the petunias! Details.

The new Callibrachoa the dog did not get to try. I have varying luck with these. They seem to look great for a short period of time and then poof! no more.

This is a new variety of Begonia called Big Pink (Begonia x benariensis). They are said to thrive in shade or sun and can grow up to 28″ tall, which seems unlikely. Has anyone tried them? Below is Big White with Fireball Neoregelia Bromeliads in a container.

The Cherry Tomato and Zinnia seedlings (in bud!) are more than ready to be planted. I am waiting until tomorrow as warmer weather returns next week.

My first Cuban or Catalina Avocado was a bust. It fell off the tree before it was big enough, there is usually twice as much fruit around the seed. I gifted the seed to a friend – in ten years or so, she might have an avocado. I am hoping for some Christmas 2025.

I am getting back in the garden this sunny Saturday morning. It is 67 degrees F/19 C, good gardening weather.

Happy December to all!

Six on Saturday – June Things

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.

Heliconias for South Florida

Looking to add some tropical vibe to your garden? Look no further than one of my favorite tropical plants, Heliconias. Heliconias come in many different varieties, two of the most common and easiest types to grow in South Florida’s Zone 10 are Parrot flowers and Lobster claw Heliconias.

Meet the Lobster claw Heliconia (Heliconia rostrata). Featuring large, shiny banana-like foliage and thick stems that support large hanging bracts of red and yellow flowers it is difficult to picture a more tropical plant. They originated in rainforests of South and Central America as understory plants. It is written that the flowers evolved to this shape to attract tropical hummingbirds to pollinate them. In my garden, the hummingbirds aren’t around at the same time as the flowers, so I am guessing this is a phenomena that happens much further south.

While some Lobster claw Heliconia can grow to 15 feet tall, these are usually more tropical types in an actual rainforest. The plants grown in Zone 10 are usually smaller and can be damaged with an extraordinarily cold snap.

Lobsterclaw Heliconia are easily grown in a partial shade setting with ample moisture. They like rich, well drained soil and benefit from compost in the planting hole and mulch. I grow them in my garden on the north side of the house under the edge of the roof. They are very happy and provide cut flowers in the summer.

This is a smaller Lobsterclaw Heliconia in my garden. I enjoy cutting these for smaller vases.

Here is a parrot for the garden. Heliconia psittacorum AKA the Parrot flower. I would characterize this as a tropical flowering perennial. They are leafy, grow about two feet tall, enjoy a moist, part shade environment and can spread like mad if happy. I have had these produce flowers almost every month of the year. I believe they slow down with extremes in weather (drought, heat, cold). Below is the “Lady Di” Parrot flower.

This is another long lasting cut flower. I have a few in a vase by my front door.

Six on Saturday – New for Spring

Spring plant shopping is irresistible for most gardeners. Buying a few new things for containers, resupplying herbs and shopping around my own garden for new finds was on the SOS agenda for the week. Here is what I found around the garden this Saturday morning.

The updated herb container on my front porch. I have been looking for thyme this winter and finally found some English thyme. I can’t recall having English, but it probably won’t last the summer. The pink Dianthus won’t either, but I will enjoy them while they last and hopefully the rosemary in the back of the container will take over, if we don’t eat it all first.

A new mixed container. This is purple agastache, white calibracoa, silver helichrysum, and chartreuse coleus (or whatever they call it nowadays) I am not sure which is the thriller or filler – the agastache or coleus.

One of the orchids from last week is just opening.

At long last, flowers on the Catalina Avocado! Seven years in the garden.

I haven’t seen these in a while. Flowers on the Aechmea ‘burgundy’ Bromeliad. I can never figure out what inspires bromeliads to flower.

The big Begonia nelumbiifolia in flower. The flower spikes are about three feet tall. This is an impressive Begonia and forms tubers like potatoes.

That is it from my garden this Saturday. For more spring tours or maybe a fall tour from the Southern Hemisphere – visit Jim’s blog, gardenruminations and follow the links in the comments section.

Happy Spring!!

Six on Saturday – Spring Promise

My Saturday morning garden stroll revealed that spring comes early in South Florida. The scents and sights are promising tropical fruits and flowers later this year. To participate in the blog phenomena Six on Saturday and tour gardens around the world, visit Jim’s blog and follow the links in the comments.

A new arrival in the mail greeted me yesterday – a nice rooted cutting of ‘Gardenmeister’ Fuchsia. This will have to be a sort of a reverse house plant. Outside in winter and indoors for summer. Summer heat and humidity will kill this outside. Should be an interesting experiment.

Buds on the Graptosedum.

Buds on the Shell Ginger (Alpinia zerumbet). I am hoping for flowers next week. This is the only ginger I have any luck with. It is over five feet tall.

The back garden smells wonderful. The scent is from the Rangpur lime tree flowering more prolifically than it ever has.

Thai dessert mangos (Nam Doc Mai) setting lots of fruit.

That’s all from South Florida. I hope everyone is seeing signs of spring.