Author: FlowerAlley

3 4 Pots

| FlowerAlley

I have three plants that I do not intentionally let out of their pots.

All three have a reputation for going rogue if let loose.

I LOVE all three or I would never chance a release of a new “Kudzu” into my gardens.

I have not had the least bit of trouble with this first one,

Bleeding Heart vine/ Clerodendrum speciosum, thomsonia. 

I have taken cuttings and produced new plants, but it has never escaped on its own.

The second one is also a vine.

Love-in-a- Puff/ Cardiospermum halicacabum  produces puffy pods which contain round black seeds with a white heart on each.

After three years of having this plant, I have only found two escapees near to where the mama plant was the previous summer.

The last one however, Jewels of Opar/Talinum paniculatum has escaped many times.

I always dig up the seedlings and transplant them into pots.

This plant has a long root that may prove impossible to remove.

The beauty of its blooms and pods is what I find irresistible.

The “limon” leaves are edible, but I have yet to eat one.

(My husband has still not forgiven me for bringing some Crownvetch on the property nearly thirty years ago. We are still finding it.)

So these three are for pots, but worth the risk.

ROGUE FLOWER

 

A Pond with a View

| FlowerAlley

We are very fortunate to have a great source for koi and water plants

just a short drive away from us.

Gayle’s Koi in Catawba has been our choice for buying koi and water plants for years.

She has a huge pond full of gorgeous giants.

Butterfly Koi with flowing fins

It is on the side of a hill and seems almost like an infinity pond.

Look at this view!

My son and I went to get several small koi and some water plants last weekend.

water hyacinths
water lkettuce

Water plants are needed to help shade the water during the hot months here in the south.

My son picked out two colorful fish from one of her holding tanks,

while I wandered around enjoying her garden art and unusual plants.

If you are local, I will pass along her contact information.

Gayle is the best.

FLOWER

 

My Five Ears

| FlowerAlley

I have five different Elephant Ears.

I lost my favorite this winter, but found a replacement at the Tropical Nursery in North Myrtle Beach. https://floweralley.org/2018/07/02/an-oasis-at-the-beach/

I got my first big green one decades ago ‘Caladium Esculentum.’ (name on tag?)

I love how these hold water and tip over when they get full.

Then I added some black ears. These get bigger with more water.

Next came my favorite Colocasia, ‘Mojito.’

Then the Coffee Cups.

I loved these until the caterpillars rained down poop into the cups. https://floweralley.org/2017/08/19/coffee-cups-caterpillar-crapper/

Now I have a new one, ‘Frydek’/ Alocasia micholitzana.

This one looks nothing like the label, so I do not trust this name. The leaf shape is the same, but the coloration is different.  This may be due to a difference in the amount of sunlight.

Five different ears with similar shape and different coloration.

I hope you appreciate my cutting my ears off for you.

FLOW van Gogh

 

The Third ‘Top Three’

| FlowerAlley

So far I have shared two of my ‘Top Three’ plants.

Here is number three, blooming while all others are wilting.

It is named Eucomis/ Pineapple lily.

I used to dig them up and haul them in for the winter.

I left this bunch out this year.

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They look the happiest they have ever been.

I will still dig up a few to keep “in stock” just in case there is a really, cold wet winter.

The blooms are tiny flowers in rows along a central column.

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Florets open from the bottom first. Each array of blooms if topped by a tuft of leaflets.

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The effect as a whole makes the blooms resemble tall, skinny pineapples.

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Easy care, late bloomer.

No wonder it is one of my ‘Top Three’.

I do have a smaller type of Eucomis  in pots, named  ‘Aloha’, which is not blooming yet.

FLOWER

 

The Hidden Heron

| FlowerAlley

Slow down.

There’s one over there.

Where?

Right there on the tree.

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Where?

In the middle of that tree.

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I don’t see it.

Well I do.

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Just because YOU don’t see it, doesn’t mean it’s not there.

SLOW DOWN!

FLOW

Heron Yoga

| FlowerAlley

We took at trip upriver last evening.

There is always a lot of wildlife to photograph.

One of the most unusual sights was this heron sunning.

I have never seen a heron in this position.

It was definitely airing out its wings.

It seemed to be meditating.

We watched it for quite a while.

It did do some feather preening, but mostly just stood in this position.

Wonder what its mantra is?

Fish. Fish. Fish.

FLOATER

 

The Last Lilies

| FlowerAlley

Most of the Asiatics have long finished their show.

The daylilies are slowing down.

Crimson Shadows daylily

The Stargazers are turning brown.

But it is not over yet!

The blackberry lilies are going strong.

I started out with a spotted orange type.

Then added a spotted magenta

and a yellow non-spotted candy lily.

These are all Belamcandas.

Other names are blackberry lilies, or leopard flowers.

The name leopard refers to the spots on the petals.

The name blackberry refers to the seed pods which open to expose clusters of black seeds that resemble blackberries.

One of the fascinating things about these is they cross pollinate to produce hybrids.

My two favorites this years are this water-marked form

and this red-orange mix.

I love surprises!  I never know what will show up until the flowers open.

I appreciate any flower that keeps going in this heat.

While the FLOWER wilts, the blackberry lilies bloom.

FLOW

Wild Pond Party

| FlowerAlley

I hate to be in such close proximity to so much promiscuity.

It’s my son’s fault you see.

He installed this new, fancy pond aerator

that lights up and blows bubbles.

Apparently, our amphibious neighbors find it irresistibly titilating .

For the past two nights, there has been raucous calling and continuous splashing outside our windows.

When we finally went out with flashlights to try to intervene,

we found revelers on and under every rock!

Frogs to the left of me, toads to the right…

Things were in such a frenzy, we were forced to retreat back inside.

The next morning, there was evidence of their activities floating all over the pond.

Yes, dear readers, eggs… by the hundreds.

This was a tad too much for a lady to witness.

These wild displays every night are rather shocking.  That underwater disco-ball may have to go.

I hope the frog fraternity has gotten its spawn out of it’s system.

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The same goes for those horny toads!

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MAMA FLOW

No Deer Here

| FlowerAlley

Last week I enjoyed my annual stroll through the gardens

of my friends’ former daylily farm, Whippoorwill’s Call.

There are hundreds of hybrids of daylilies and obviously, no deer.

It is interesting to me how many forms a flower can take in one species of Hemereocallis

if you mix up its genes a bit.

Stargate Portal

Different ruffles and watermarks and tepal markings…

Admiral’s Braid

Here are some of my favorites.

New Journey

I will get the Rumples to check behind me about names.

Tuscawilla Tigress

Of course I was busy talking while photographing, so there are probably some mix-ups.

Always Tomorrow

Check back in a few days if an accurate hybrid name of one of these is important to you.

Jean Swann

If I ever quit talking,

Isle of Capri

I may be able to get something done correctly…but it won’t be as fun.

Druid’s Chant

Aren’t these uneaten flowers amazing?

FLOW