Tag Archives: Amelia Grant

Funky Florida Flora – Bismarck Palm

00100lportrait_00100_burst20190529095847155_cover

This is the canopy and fruit stalks of a Bismarck Palm (Bismarckia nobilis) – named for Otto Von Bismarck, a very big and very blue gray palm. So big, the fronds are 4 feet across and they can reach 60 feet in height. I frequently see these towering palms dwarfing the houses they are planted near.

A native of Madagascar – a place that must have spectacular Dr. Seuss-like forests. Bismarcks are hardy to freezing and adaptable to a wide variety of soils.

Here are the fruits, they are about 2 inches in diameter and fall indiscriminately to the ground. A bit like a chestnut, one of my greyhounds had a bite of one and immediately spit it out, so I am guessing not so tasty.

00000img_00000_burst20190529095924247_cover

 

Advertisements

In a Vase on Monday – Gifts from Gallardia

00100lportrait_00100_burst20190526103459642_cover

I started a native pollinator garden last year to encourage butterflies. Planting host plants and nectar plants, concentrating on native annuals that will reseed themselves. Theory is native flowers attract native insects- the benefits to me; I won’t have to replant all the time and I hopefully end up with a meadowy mixed wildflower garden. And lots of butterflies. Thus far, the plants are sticking with their own kind and making big drifts, not mixing as of yet.

I recently decided to run my garden specifications through the Native Plant Society “let us choose your plant” web page. Thinking I might get some suggestions to add some other plants to the garden. Ironically, it said no wildflowers will grow in your garden. I guess I should let the butterflies and flowers know about this?

00000img_00000_burst20190526103434963_cover

Here is a close up. The vase is someone’s cast off from pottery class I bought at GoodWill (charity shop) for $2, I have really enjoyed their work and use this vase frequently. The red and yellow Gallardia (Gallardia pulchella – Florida native) is going gangbusters in my gardens, cross pollinating and making new colors. The yellow and orange spikes are from Bulbine (not sure which one), the Bulbine has been flowering for a couple of months and doesn’t seem to be slowing down. This is a new favorite. The foliage and brown pods are from the native Senna (Senna ligustrina) – I planted this to attract Sulphur Butterflies and they appeared soon after it was planted in the garden.

Here’s my new Gallardia color, pink! I am still chasing the Sulphur Butterflies around for a photo-op.

img_20190526_102602.jpg

Funky Florida Flora – Jamaican Caper

00000img_00000_burst20190522092749300_cover

One of my favorite Florida natives (people not included) started to flower last week, the Jamaican Caper (Capparis cynophallophora). This plant is related to the culinary caper, but is not edible for humans – though birds enjoy the fruit. One of the interesting things about this plant is the flowers start white and the next day turn purple.

00100lportrait_00100_burst20190523085230238_cover

The different colors make for a more colorful show and contrast nicely with the olive green and brown backed evergreen foliage. If you look closely at the foliage you can tell something has been munching on it. This is also a host plant for the Florida White Butterfly, many have stayed in my garden after starting life on the Jamaican Caper.

Screenshot 2019-05-23 at 2.42.52 PM

The Jamaican Caper is reported to be a large shrub/small tree. I think it must be fairly slow growing as I have had one several years and it is only 3 feet tall. Although, my husband ran over it with the lawn mower and I moved it during the dry season.

This is a pretty good plant.

In a Vase on Monday – Scentsational Moonlight

20190519_1259542-effects

Once in a blue moon my greyhounds wake me in the middle of the night to be let out. Ironically, last night was the full blue moon and the only reason I saw it was my dogs wanted to go out.

Moonlight is rather spectacular in South Florida, I am not sure if it reflects off the Atlantic Ocean or the general light level here is lower at night and that makes the moonlight brighter.

I usually walk out in the yard with the dogs as there are some rather large predators about in the middle of the night; coyotes, bobcats and the occasional panther. My dogs are usually too big for such things, but a snarfy lady in her bathrobe at 3 a.m. tends to give even a panther pause. Unfortunately, there is some unbridled greyhound joy in chasing Armadillos at three a.m. Oddly, the Armadillos can outrun them.

While all this was going on, I noted a lovely scent in the air. I decided my neighbor’s magnificent Arabian Jasmine was blooming again, took one more look at the moon, collected my greyhounds and went back to bed.

Sunday morning I realized the scent was from my garden. I have Bridal Bouquet Plumeria, Tropical Gardenias and Sweet Almond in flower and all are in my vase. The Tropical Gardenias (Tabernaemontana divericata) are draped over the right side. The Sweet Almond, draped over the left side (Aloysia virgata). The flowers in the middle are Bridal Bouquet Frangipani (Plumeria pudica) a favorite of mine just starting for a long summer run.

20190519_115152-1Here is a closer view, mostly the Bridal Bouquet Plumeria.

20190519_115918

The vase has been in the foyer for several hours. I think the lovely scent I enjoyed in the moonlight was the Sweet Almond.

Funky Florida Flora – Little Harv

20190507_080217

Another of my garage sale finds, ‘Little Harv’ has been graciously flowering and producing pups for the past five years or so. An Aechmea Bromeliad created in South Florida in 1978, ‘Little Harv’ is fairly common in landscapes in this area. I would hate to see Big Harv as the little one can reach almost 4 feet of height.

Here is a close up of the bud, you can see the prickly edges of the silvery foliage and its coloration. The bud started up about a month ago and the flower opened two weeks ago and will usually last a few more weeks.

20190424_173256

In A Vase on Monday – Branching Out

20190512_110304-1

I am madly trying to get the gardens straightened up before summer starts scorching me, causing retreat to the air conditioning thus causing the weeds to reach Jurassic proportions. While cleaning up I noticed two palm seedlings growing about a foot away from my house. Much too close for comfort.

Palms being monocots are easily gotten rid of by cutting off their one growing point, the apical meristem. Then, you can put the palm fronds in a vase on Monday and join Cathy’s meme at Link to meme to see more vases. I did exactly that and cut a few branches from some flowering shrubs that needed it and then looked around for some accenting flowers.

20190512_110253-1

The result is a big vase in my foyer this Monday. The whole arrangement is about 3 feet tall, the vase a Christmas gift from my husband some years ago.

In my big vase are: fronds from seedlings of the Sabal Palm (Palmetto sabal); orange and red flowers are from two different Firebush (Hamelia patens and var. patens). I may have the only pollarded tree form Firebush in Florida. The blue flowers are from the Plumbago shrub (Plumbago auriculata), a pretty and utterly indestructible shrub; the white flowers are from the White Geiger (Cordia boissieri), a tree native to Mexico.

20190512_110133-1

Maybe this is upcycling instead of recycling prunings. Hmm.

A Belated Happy Mother’s Day to all.

Funky Florida Flora – Coral Plant

20190510_124236-1

It occurred to me this morning there are not too many plants that would work in this narrow space in my garden (about 18″ wide). This is a very funky plant, a Jatropha  multifida, called the Coral Plant. I thought initially the name was based on the color of the flower, but then realized the flower does resemble an actual coral.

20190510_124242-1

The foliage on this plant resembles something else. Cannabis, however, all Jatropha is poisonous, so I would resist the urge to smoke it and keep it away from children and pets.

The Jatrophas are interesting plants, tropical – this one is native to Mexico. They do best in South Florida or where temperatures stay above 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Common to members of the Euphorbia family, they exude toxic, milky sap and can become a nuisance by its tendency to produce a lot of seeds. However, the seeds contain oils that have been proposed for use to make sustainable biodiesel fuel. They just haven’t quite figured out how yet.  Click for the Biodiesel story.

Despite the fact this plant is widely reported to love sharp drainage, full sun and noted for its extreme drought tolerance – it suffered in such a place in my pollinator garden and is much happier in its new skinnier digs with its own tiny irrigation bubbler and protection from the western sun. Butterflies continue to enjoy the flowers and I will as well now that the Coral Plant is in a happier place.