A place to post and chat about plant pics...

You're both right they are Foxgloves, there are all sorts of Lillies, I have never seen so many buds on plants, The large tree is my Eucalyptus, there is my holly tree and I also have a varigated Holly which has finally taken off this year. Some of my Cycads and Washingtonia, Camaerops, Passion Fruit, Clamatis, Banana all sorts of Citrus. I have been toying with the idea of growing some ornamental cabbage as I have seen some fantastic desplays at our local Garden centre, the pictures are on my phone though so I'll have to see if I can upload them. Hollyberry, I am growing lillies from seed this year just to try them out, I saved the pods last year and I have 4 healthy seedlings. I know they won't flower this year but maybe next?? We'll have to see. I took some pics of my baby Delonix Regia's which are literally growing before my eyes. Here they are. [/ATTACH][/ATTACH][/ATTACH]

 

Ah, I was actually wondering about those vines, thought they might be Passiflora :)

 

Hi Joey,

ome are Passiflora, some are a pink type of Clematis and I also have another variety whose name escapes me but gets covered in spring in lovely soft pink and white flowers. They frow in massive clumps they are a little bit like a clematis but only last for around 2 weeks and then the vines take off.

Nath

 

A couple of pics here of our street in Mexico City. The Bouganvillea just started to come into its best that week.
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Wow, everything looks great, Nath! Love the ornamental cabbage.

: )

 

Took this pic today of my beginning to bloom "Hagley" clematis vine...

 

Very nice Hollyberry, did you grow that one from seed or buy it as a vine already? I'll bet with a bit of training you can get it to cover the whole of that fence.

Nath

 

The cabbages are great arent they? Shame it wasnt my doing but they are planted in beds along the side of the road outside our local garden centre. Those two pics were actually taken in January just before the first real snow they have had here in Nottingham in 17 years arrived.

Must say with temperatures heading towards 34 today and its already 22 at 9am the snow seems a distant memory. Much prefer the warmer weather better for growing.

 

Yes, those cabbages are truly wonderful. I have one that I showed in the picture on page two of this thread, that will actually produce little cabbagey roses, that grow on long stems and everything! I am planting it outside today in the rain. I am so excited to see it. It's a hybrid.

No, the clematis vine was not grown from seed - sometimes I cheat and buy nursery plants, but not often. I don't think Hybrids can be grown true from seed anyway. Actually I have 2 clematis vines, not just the one in the picture. I am new to growing clematis, but have already began to train both vines to meet each other in the middle and cover the entire fence. I am fertilizing both vines on a regular basis.

I was told a bit of light pruning would get them to branch out more also. The other vine is a bit spindly and not doing nearly as well as the one in the pic. Unacceptable to me, to have a dwindling plant, so I have pruned it a bit, gave it a dose of fertilizer, and just made sure it was free of bugs which were becoming a problem - evident from chewed leaves. I believe I have corrected everything and it should soon improve.

Any suggestions you might have also, please, feel free to share. It is a pretty plant for sure. I may weave a morning glory into the clematis', just because it will fill the area quickly, and in the Fall when clematis isn't very attractive here, the morning glory's will still be going strong.

Gardening is has always been about experimenting, for me. It always seems to work out, and encourages me all the more. Today, I am planting many things outside! It is cool and drizzly - perfect for transplanting. I have many vines - including scarlet runner and painted lady pole beans, passion flower, and wisteria that are going outdoors, all grown from seed.

Today is a holiday for us - Canada Day!

: )

 

That is the exact same Clematis i have growing in front of my house .. it is as tall as the house .. and about 4 feet wide .. it just bushes right out .. im thinking of moving it to a fence ...

Marion

 

Please give me the particulars, Marn.

Did you prune it to make it so bushy? Was it full and bushy right from the start, or over time? How old is it? Cool that you have the same one! It's called 'Hagley'.

: )

 

Happy Canada Day, all! It's kind of weird down here - I'll be going to the British Pub to celebrate it :O

And in honour of that day, here are some things that I'm growing!

1. Allemania cathartica, all-yellow form. These smell like fresh honey!
2. Brunfelsia pauciflora - Peruvian Jasmine
3. Crocosmia - these smell like fresh bread to me, but perhaps I'm odd.
4. Delonix regia - I love the flowers!
5. Japanese Iris
6. Lantana, an all-purple form that I'm particularly fond of, and so are the butterflies
7. Leucospermium, which I love for the colour and its endurance as a cut flower
8. Oncidium orchids, no idea which ones
9. Passiflora edulis - Granadilla
10. Pitahaya, which is night-blooming.

 

Sorry girl .. i couldnt give ya any info .. it was allready here when we bought the house .. we have only been here since last Dec .. it was allready there all dried out and hanging .. i know it hadnt had anything done to it for a few years so it was just let go .. and this spring i never did a thing .. the only weird thing they did to it and im guessing it was there from the start is there is a big square cinder block around the base of it i guess to cover the roots .. the main stalks are really thick .. they remind me of grape vines... my puppies have chewed one or two of them ..but it hasnt effected it at all .. if i want to move this clematis i would have to break the block.. i have another clematis on the other side of the window and it dont have the cinderblock or anything else around the base and it aint doing as good ..it is very tall and leggy but it is a different type .. im thinking about moving it also but i will putsomething around the base .. i have been told they dont like haveing a bare base .. plant some other flowers or put something there to cover it ..

I will get some pics of it to show ya how big and the base ..
im pretty sure this clematis is pretty old .. I think the lady lived here since around 1994 ..i found pics of her backyard garden just starting and it was dated "94"

Marion

 

Great pics again Lorax! And happy Canada Day to all my Northern neighbors! To celebrate, I'll post a pic (when I get to work, where I can upload consistently) of my first seed trade from Canada, via Hollyberry Lady :)

edit- Or rather, the first seedling I've been successful with.

 

Cool that you're celebrating Canada day too, Lorax! Your pics are terrific! Wow. That passiflora is unbelievable! Thanks for sharing those beautiful peeks with us.

Yes, Marn I have both my clematis vine roots covered too, with big rocks, so no worries there. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

: )

 

Cool, Joey - looking forwad to seeing the pic...

: )

 

Look what I am going to be eating in a few days! My very first 'Tennessee Cheese' sweet pepper, ripening in my window. The peppers are said to be as sweet as candy...

: )

 

Here is a variety of Capsicum annuum, although I'm not sure which since I put all of the different cultivars in one pot :P

Needless to say it should be HOT! :D

 

I don't know which kind of pepper the 1st shot is, but I do know thay will be hot too, when they go from yellow to red! Looks like that will be soon.

Also, the last two shots are my 'Jerusalem Cherry' plant grown from seed indoors, still going strong. It's poisonous, but extremely ornamental...

: )

 

Have a great Canada Day Hollyberry, and Lorax enjoy the pub, thats one British Tradition We have really gotten into. Hollyberry I pruned my clematis down to 2 feet above the ground last fall and now it is back up above the garage roof again and quite bushy. The pruning encourages the long shoots to form that carry the flowers. I have put one morning glory next to the passion flower and at the side of the clematis with the same hope of weaving it into the other vines to quickly cover the fence. I have since found out that Morning Glory can be quite invasive and spread like wildfire all over just like Deadly Nightshade or bind weed as its sometimes called so you will have to keep tight control of it and not let it spread shoots up all over out of the ground. The root system can be quite extensive. Lorax I love the Delonix Regia as you know its one of my favourite trees and my four saplings are growing like mad especially in this heat, 34 degrees today and 86% humidity, its been hotter in the UK than Barcelona and the Bahamas, if you have watched any of Wimbledon and the Tennis you will see that Britain is in the middle of a heatwave and long may it continue, it gets light at 3.30am and deosnt get dark until nearly 11pm great growing weather. Its been 46 on my patio in the sun today.

We have been eating our own lettuce and cilantro today from the garden in our tacos and I cut a load of aleclga which is like spinach to make una sopa de crema de acelga. Delicious.

Anyhow I digress and I have to repot the smallest of my Delonix into a wider pot as I have found they don't need depth so much as width to spread their roots. The experiment is really paying off.

I'll post some more photos later on when get chance to take some.

Nath

 

Thanks Nath - had a terrific Canada Day in the gardens.

This morning, I woke up to another variety of lily just beginning to bloom - called 'Cappuccino'. I just love it! Will take more shots when they open even more.

The last two peeks are my indoor and outdoor 'Musa Basjoo' banana pups, doing quite well, so far. They were sent to me from someone on this very forum, from B.C., Canada...

: )

 

Hey all :)

I've had quite a bad aphid infestation lately, magnified by the ants that have been farming them. Today I finally had a chance to stop by the hardware store and get 3000 ladybugs to set loose on them! I had a great morning making sure they had enough to eat ;-)

Here are some pics I took of the process. You can see the ladies were clumping at the bottom of the bag then falling onto the pavement below, so I put some pots and plants below to pad their fall a bit. Then I found that it would be easier for them to get around if I arranged a few twigs going from pot to pot.

Anyways, hope y'all enjoy the documentation :D

edit - An interesting article about a new finding regarding the relationship between ants and aphids:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sciencea.../Ants-subdue-their-aphid-prey-with-drugs.html

 

Also, BEAUTIFUL lilly Sherry! Also the clematis pics earlier, equally stunning. I always start getting ideas when I see such visually captivating plants, and how I want to grow all of them in the same place :)

 

Yay ladybugs! I need to get some to take care of my ants as well.

 

Thanks Joey.

: )

Wow - I bet you won't have anymore aphids real soon! Good luck.