What is going on in N Florida #4

Hi, Marion. I'm sorry, but this is my once in a lifetime effort at cleaning. LOL After this, I plan to retire my broom and dustpan and never bring another stray object into the house that is not for immediate use (as if!) LOL I'm determined to forge ahead with the last few things waiting to go in boxes. I was just now distracted by coming across my vintage 1930's era waffle iron. I wanted to see if it still works after being pushed into a far off corner and buried under other stuff for (how many?) years. It does work! Even though the original cloth-covered wire, square electric cord is frayed in several areas. Now that I have cleaned off the spiderwebs and polished it up a bit, it can go into a box for storage. But maybe someday I will bring it out of seclusion for a DG get-together and we can have "vintage" waffles.

Jeremy

Oh that is a wonderful find Jeremy. Well it really is to bad you are going to retire your broom and dustpan. I guess I will just have to force myself to clean out my own clutter. Problem is my other addiction is fabric--can't part with that. I have serious problems passing a nursery or anywhere there might be plants for sale and a fabric store. I don't think there is any hope left for me at this point in life. Just going to sit back and enjoy both!!

Rain on it's way!! Looks like we are going to have to take the thunder with it also this time.

OK. well, wanted Jeremy to know a lady called yesterday I think and Tracy went and picked up the worm 'stuff' ;-). Will send it to the round up if your coming......unless I get the nerve to open the bag first lol. Actually, I use milorganite...a worm is actually more tolerable. There was more than yours that got left. Tracy saw a pot she really wanted, but, wel, it wasnt hers.
Im either going to have some big news of the week, or none at all. Im a nervous wreck and want it to be last weekend SO bad, but its not. Hate to jinx what might be goodish news.
My yesterday today and tomorrow is just starting to bloom, I havent gotten anything else planted.
Hope to get my tomatos planted next week, got to go to Indialantic this weekend. Which means I best sign off and get myself to the hair choppers, and fast. My Mother would have stroked if she had of seen that mop I sported last weekend. Stroked being another word for...I would have never heard the end of it, how heavy and old it makes me look and all that ;-).

Everyone have a good one. I have a ton of things to go over with Marion, but it will have to wait till after Sunday.

pam

Hi, Pam. Thanks for picking up the worm poop. I bid on it in the silent auction without thinking about not being around when the auction ended. I appreciate your kindness in bailing me out of the commitment and adopting it for me. LOL

Here's a web page I happened to come across this morning in a search to identify some "weeds" that ApopkaJon posted in the photos of the day thread. The web page is from the Florida Native Plant Society and is specific for NE Florida to show exotic invasive plants alongside native plants that can be grown instead. I ashamed to admit it, I'm guilty of having all the invasive plants (and some others not shown on the web page). I justify it by saying I grow them for "educational" purposes so that I can show others how to identify the invasive plants. Pretty slim excuse.

http://www.fnps.org/committees/education/pdfs/alternativesinside1.pdf

Jeremy

Speaking of native plants. With those two big buckeyes blooming at the gardens, I did come home with a couple to replace crepe mertles that are huge but just have never bloomed. The anise bushes were so green and ready to bloom, got one of those too.

This is totally random, but a couple months ago someone threw a kitten out of the car in front of us. We brought it home as the cat rescue did give me much hope. Hard to keep it from being pit bull dinner. Anyway, it has been such a scardy cat after that experience, its at this moment , for the first time, playing with my toes. When I look at it it runs, but maybe its going to make nice after all.

ROFLOL, Jeremy I don't think that is a "pretty slim excuse". I am guilty of having some invasives also but do work at keeping them under control. Humm, am I allowed to say mine are "educational" also ? I want to teach my granddaughters what not to plant? LOL

Pam, I thought your hair was beautiful but I do understand about Mothers--mine hated mine when it was shorter!! Can't wait to chat with you and you will definitely be hearing from me again. Tracey also--she is a delightful lady --be very proud!!!

Well, rains are passed so I think I will venture into town and do a tour of the nurseries. I hear them calling my name.........

Everyone look for me. I am chained to the chair for 3 1/2 more weeks. I will start some seeds Sunday. I was bagging up my hibiscus and mallow seeds and I swear that they do not want to be separated. The darn envelopes came open and some of the seeds came out. Oh well I love surprises!!!!!


Sandy

I was happy to see that my Red Buckeye plants that I grew from seed that I gathered when working at the Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens are still alive. I thought I only had one, then found another, and then another that I had put off in the "shrub and tree and grass garden" and forgot it was there until the solid canopy of Incense passion vine had died back in winter. Speaking of invasive plants - Passiflora 'incense' is my biggest mistake -- climbing to the top of oak trees, engulfing my neighbor's chain link fence, slithering through the dark, nutrient deficient yellow sand under my house and popping up on the other side of the yard more than 100 ft from where it was first planted! Lovely big purple passion flower, nice aroma of warm honey, and a good larval food for the Gulf Fritillary and Zebra Longwing butterflies, but if anyone offers you some, you must question whether they are truly a friend with your best interests in mind. LOL That warning even goes to the people that I've passed it along to, but I always send it with dire warnings to keep it in a pot surrounded by a sea of concrete.

Pam - it is nice to know your kitty is coming around and getting more accustomed to you. Cats, of course, definitely have a mind of their own and only they will decide when and if you have been deemed worthy of their attention. LOL Sounds like you have done a great job in rescuing the kitty.

Jeremy

This message was edited Mar 26, 2010 10:55 AM

Thanks for that link on invasives/non-invasives Jeremy....

Worm poop? My favorite! I was just playing in my worms....

Marion, when I said that I had been there...done that...where Loreen was concerned. I was SO not kidding. At least Loreen will wear jeans lolol.

Kitty is now pawing at my fingers on the keyboard. Unbelievable. hahahaha went to pet her, no more kitty on the table ;-)

I think Jeremy said its worm casings not poop. Im not realy sure if they are not one in the same. There is just something about casings I dont want to put my hand in.
When I was little and we had a place on the lake, I was the only one that would ever bait the hooks. Didnt bother me at all. I loved cathing those brim.

Some of my kangaroo paws are blooing today. The send a yeloow kinda daisy like flower out of the end of the paw.

This message was edited Mar 26, 2010 1:01 PM

castings...yep, worm poop. Yummmmmmmy Stuff.

Worm castings (with a "t" as in "cast off") = worm poop. Worm castings, I suppose, sounds a little more socially acceptable. LOL

I just spoke with Smart_Raven (Adam and wife) from Douglas, Georgia. They are on their way down now (about a 2.5 hr drive!) to pick up some Hoja Santa/Root Beer Plants/Piper auritum. I got a D-mail from them about a month ago requesting the plants, but we just today scheduled an immediate pick-up time. I expect them to arrive around 7 PM. Anyone that wants to drop by around that time for a mini, impromptu, get-together, come on down! If there is still enough daylight, we can make a quick tour of my garden and I can point out the little niblets of green that are beginning to pop up in defiance of the freezes of this past horrendous winter.

I have hummus and crackers, green and regular (unsweetened tea), and can go pick up a few more snacks. If you want to drop by, just give me a call (904) 764-4278, or just show up! All are welcome! I'll give Sidney a call to see if she can drop by.

Jeremy

Thanks but sorry my chain will not reach that far right now.

Sandy

Jeremy thank you for the link ....... THe invasive link that Jeremy posted .. I half 1/2 of those invasive plants .... but I have the other type of EE that grows wild here and I think that the Florida Native Plant Society is wrong on the Colocasia esculenta in identifying them. Jeremy remeber when I had listed the EE - Xanthosoma sagittifolium - Yautia - That I was selling on Craig's list and in the marketplace that I thought was the Colocasia esculenta that The NE Plant Society has on their chart. Well The EE's - Yautia - It looks exactly like the Colocasia esculenta when it is young within the first 2 years of gorwth. But I'm not an expert on these things. Any how, Speaking of Invasives I just picked up an Asparagus Fern that someone was throwing out. ITs HUGE!! Its in a 5 gallon container. Its a beauty. Go figure! lol ... I've never had any luck growing them. I always have killed them. I guess I need to look up how to grow them. Or if anyone can give me some pointers. I always had them in full shade ... Can they handle morning / early afternoon sun? I also found a pedistal and a concrete planter ... and a bunch of 1 gallon planters and a few decrotive planters.

In my mind an "invasive" is a plant that can not be controled like the virginia creeper ... those little buggers ... the seedlings are every where.... grr


Sandy whatcha looking for?


Brandy

Brandy mine get ,sun, I never did any thing with it in fact I wish it would die. The yard boy may have manage t finish it off.

Sandy

I was also surprised to see the Colocasia esculenta listed as the invasive Elephant Ear. I think most of what we have here are the Xanthosoma sagittifolium, but I defer to DGer LariAnn of Aroidia Research to tell me which is which and what is what amongst the big green Elephant Ears. I may be accused of botanical racism, but they do all look alike to me. LOL From what I've read in the past, we don't have any native Florida Elephant Ears, they are all imports, but LariAnn may have better info about that also.

Asparagus Fern (the more "ferny" loosely structured type that is Asparagus densiflorus 'sprengeri' http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/1850/ will grow just about everywhere - full sun to fairly deep shade. It may not get very large in deep shade, but it will hang in there. If you were able to kill it (an honor few of us have attained LOL), it was most likely due to over-watering. Though they are commonly called "ferns," they are not ferns but are truly related to edible Asparagus, and prefer a much drier soil. The Foxtail type (A. densiflorus 'Meyersii' http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/31438/ ) is probably a bit more demanding for care requirements, but I think it will grow in most of the places that 'sprengeri' will grow without much irrigation, fertilizer or other attention. My impressions of 'Meyersii' is that it is not as invasive as 'sprengeri'. I inherited the climbing type (S. setaceus http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/2575/) when I bought my house. It can be even more invasive than 'sprengeri'. I let some of it grow because it makes a nice backdrop to add to vases with flower arrangements, but when it gets tangled into the top of Crepe Myrtle trees and other trees and shrubs, it is a pain to remove (literally, the little thorns all along the vine will easily rip into your hands and arms). While working at the zoo, I got some of the A. virgatus (no photos in Plant Files, so I guess I will need to get some of my plant). It doesn't seem to be at all invasive from what I have seen. It stays in a relatively small clump with long, flowing frothy wisps. Like the other Asparagus plants, the little white flowers are mostly insignificant, but the tawny orange tiny berries in fall are nice. I'm also growing edible Asparagus, A. officinale, but haven't gotten a crop out of it yet, probably because I've not done the proper pruning so far.

Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) is a native plant and, in my opinion, could never be considered invasive (it was here first, you are invading its territory with the plants you want to grow LOL). It can, however, be considered a "weed" if it grows in spots where you don't want it to grow. Just as I suspected, somebody somewhere considers it worthy of selective breeding for cultivars, and Plant Files does have two cultivar varieties from which you can choose. http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/adv_search.php?searcher[common]=&searcher[family]=&searcher[genus]=Parthenocissus&searcher[species]=cinquefolia&searcher[cultivar]=&searcher[hybridizer]=&searcher[grex]=&search_prefs[blank_cultivar]=&search_prefs[sort_by]=rating&images_prefs=both&Search=Search&searcher[species]=quinquefolia

I had a lot of fun with Smart_Raven and wife for their visit tonight. I probably talked their ears off because once I get started droning on about plants and rattling off botanical names and fascinating factoids, I am hard to stop. I invited them to join us for the May get-together at Creative Concrete and do hope they will come down for that. I know you all would enjoy meeting them also. Anyone that will drive more than 2 hours to pick up a plant is my type of people.

Jeremy

Virginia Creeper must be the strong, cord-like like vine that trips me in the yard...

So Lowe's sells lots of that lantana
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/578/
How come?

Think I'll give them a copy of that sheet. Also
http://www.fleppc.org/list/List-WW-F09-final.pdf

I won't get on that soap box for now. Instead...

I bought a pot of baby coontie seedlings a couple of weeks ago. Interesting native plant. The 91-year old woman who started them said they needed to be transplanted right away, which I did yesterday with some trepidation given the status they have. There were 11 with fat-little-finger sized tubers. Though I read they do better in the ground, I just gave them three deeper and bigger pots with garden sand (ammended with composted manure and compost) because I'm not sure where to put them. Probably should have asked for advice before I did the transplanting, since they are such special plants. Do you think I should have just used unammended sand? Sometimes natives don't like supplements.

Good morning y'all.

4paws sorry can not help you there.

I have a couple of passion flowers that have come back. One is Lavender Lady, do not know the other. Both of my Duchman's pipe vines are coming back. will have to protect them from the butterflies until the get bigger.

Sandy

Good morning everyone,

It seems with the EE's Colocasia esculenta the ones that are listed in the NE Florida Plant Society ... They sell at Lowe's Home Depot and Walmarts as bulbs. And there are a few Nurseries that sell the Colocasia esculenta. Like 4paws has mentioned Lantana is sold everywhere also. Normally its the solid colors. Same with the Mexican Petunias ... how is the black stem less invasive than the green stem ... from what I can tell they are not. Target sells the red wild mex petunias. I bought one awhile back before knowing better. And what about the dwarf ones ... It seems all of the Rueillas have exloding seeds and will spread and do spread like wild fire. Nandina is also sold every where ... I guess if these plants aren't sold in the big companies and in nurseries maybe they wouldn't be as many and wouldn't be as invasive ... I think all but 2 are sold in the nurseries here ... I guess gardening people need to get together with the dept of ag and say something to them. did you know that the florida dept of parks and rec shop at Lowe's & Home Deopt especially the Regency ones? We run into them all the time ... lol ... And even some of the things they buy are on the invasive lists ....

Anyway ... I'll stop now ... I'm starting to get riled up...

Did you know that if you are are Military and have a valid (non expired) military id there is a dscount at lowes? And there are other discounts they give ... they wouldn;t tell me what they are exactly ... they were too busy. lol ... But I plan on finding out =D lol If anyone else knows PLMK =D

With my coontie when I bought mine, I was told morning sun and afternoon shade .. I too transplanted mine into a bigger planter ... unsure of where I want to plant mine. I actually need to transplant it into the ground soon or put it into a bigger planter ... It was last fall when I transplanted mine It has grown quiet a bit since.

I have a Clematis blooming right now ... I guess I need to take my passion flower out of the GH ... lol I need to take it all out ... boy that'll be a chore...

Brandy



This message was edited Mar 27, 2010 10:34 AM

Lowe's also sells Mexican Petunia (Ruellia tweediana), about as invasive as you can get. There is currently no law that prohibits selling invasive plants (other than a few that have special status). The Florida Exotic Plant Pest Council (FLEEPC) is merely a volunteer board of botanists and other concerned persons that create the list to advise the public and nurserymen (who often want the more popular landscape plants that are invasive removed from the list) about plants that have been shown to be displacing native plants in their habitat or may have the potential to do so. http://www.fleppc.org/list/List-WW-F09-final.pdf FLEPPC doesn't have any legislative authority to prohibit plants, but the list can be used by state or local governments as a guide to determine whether a plant should be prohibited. Among the few plants that have special status and are prohibited by law from being sold (or even possessed in plant parts or seeds without a permit) are Water Hyacinth (Eichornia), Water Lettuce (Pistia), Melaleuca quinquenervia, Schinus terebinthifolius, Casuarina equisetifolia, Casuarina glauca, and Mimosa pigra.

The USDA maintains lists of noxious weeds that are a concern at the federal level to agriculture or natural habitats (http://www.plants.usda.gov/java/noxious?rptType=Federal ), and Florida has its own list of noxious weeds (http://www.plants.usda.gov/java/noxious?rptType=State&statefips=12 ) which is compiled by the U of Fla IFAS. I'm not certain how these lists are used. It seems they exist mostly for guidance in management plans instead of actual prohibitions (except for a few that are "quarantined"). Some counties or municipalities in Florida may have their own rules for invasive plants that are of special concern in that particular location.

Jeremy

Coonties (Zamia floridana or Z. integrifolia -- the classification of the Zamia plants is up for grabs by the botanists currently http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/2215/) will adapt to about any soil (except maybe clay or limestone). I have them in my very sandy soil in both part sun and in fairly deep shade and they perform about the same in both locations. They are fairly slow growing, especially when grown from seeds. They will remain only a few inches tall with just the seedling leaves for about the first year. You probably won't see any large leaves from them for 2 - 3 years if they are grown from seed. My plants are still not large enough to make seeds, but I still have Coontie seedlings popping up in my yard that I didn't plant. They are probably coming from seeds deposited by squirrels or birds that are eating seeds from other plants in my neighborhood. Be careful to wash your hands after handling the seeds or wear gloves. The seeds contain a neurotoxin that may possibly be absorbed through the skin. Keep children and pets away from the seeds, for sure.

I was surprised to see Nandina growing at the Kanapaha Botanical Gardens when I was there for the festival last weekend. Except for the strictly prohibited plants, it basically comes down to a personal decision to grow or not to grow (as a botanical Hamlet might say LOL).

Jeremy

If my memory serves me correctly, Charlotte County has such rules especially regarding the lantanas. There maybe others on the list.

I have several containers of the foxtail ferns and they are both in the sun and in filtered shade--made it through this winter much to my surprise. My asparagus ferns (in containers) look as thought they will not survive.

Jeremy, I can understand getting riled. There are lots of things to get riled about. I'm sorry to say, but my immediate area of FL, is behind the times. Trash burning is rampant and the authorities send a fully equipped fire truck to stop it (ABSURD,usually too late, and a waste of time and tax money when one ranger in a truck could handle the job, or even a police officer, but the officer who was here last week while a neighbor fire was generating lots of smoke, told me it wasn't his job!), horribly running, no-tag, polluting cars that are so loud they drown out conversation from 100 feet away, garbage on the sides of roads....I know my subdivision isn't the fanciest, but still.... Oh yeah, the dogs I rescued last week have an owner who doesn't answer the phone or have a machine that takes messages (it did the first time I called) OR return calls...yet the county will do nothing about them being dumped here other than tell me I can have the chip changed to my name in 10 days. Great. So it's not ok to dump animals, but there is no punishment if it's done. I suppose if I have the chip put in my name, I can then surrender them to the "no kill" shelter in Ocala...or the county shelter...it'll tear me up to do that, but they eat A LOT. I think they've doubled in size since Friday night...

I feel the need to be a strong activist again here. I've fought against trash burners, polluters, and animal abusers everywhere I've lived since the age of 10 (starting with my own family, as it were), can't stop now.

Born to it, I guess. My mom always wanted to know why I can just shut up and mind my own business, but it's everyone's business, isn't it?

So hopefully my coontie babies will be ok. Each has two leaves on it so far. What would you suggest for native companions for them when they get to the ground?

Last fall I bought about 2 dozen sad, sad bougainvilleas from Lowe's and I'm happy to report that all that I planted are still alive (except the one the dogs took) and the only ones still in pots that kicked were the ones I gave special treatment to. YEAH! I love bougies.

Hi, 4Paws! Activism is a wonderful thing, I think. In today's world, though, it becomes difficult to decide which causes to champion when there are so many wrongs to be righted. I usually end up following my own feelings and fighting for the situations that fall flat in my face and need to be dealt with immediately.

You might speak to your county or municipal authorities and see if they will switch the duties for open burning regulation to whatever local environmental or pollution control agency you may have. That worked well for Duval County. When I was in the field as an inspector in my former job with the Jacksonville area Regulatory & Environmental Services, it was one of my tasks to take citizen complaints about open burning. The fire department would only be called when there was a real danger of the fire getting out of control. I'm sure it saved a lot of money and left the fire department personnel on hand to deal with actual emergencies. After several years, the air pollution inspectors in the field were given ticketing power by the local municipal code. We could write citations with a $50 fine for illegal open burning, and I wrote a few though by that time I was mostly kept in the office because my supervisors found that I could string a few words together in a somewhat coherent sentence. Later on, I believe the regulations were changed in Jacksonville to require a portable air curtain incinerator to be used to reduce emissions from open burning for land clearing debris, but the ticketing authority still exists for residential violations of open burning.

As a native companion groundcover around your coontie plants, you might try Partridgeberry, Mitchella repens http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/1110/ I have some of it here and can share some. I am hoping to come down for the roundup at your place. Another choice would be Gopher Apple, Licania michauxii http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/68509/ I had some Gopher Apple plants doing well in pots, but they didn't seem to survive the transplant to the garden soil. Hopefully, they just went dormant and will return sometime soon.

Jeremy

Paws ... with your bougies ... where what kind of lighting do you suggest for them. One I recieved that looked dead winter 2008/2009 that a neighbor was throwing out & we found one in a bunch of containers that a landscaper was throwing out & I have a friend out in Oklahoma that is sending me hers ... she's tired of bringing it in every winter ... I never know where to plant these ... the 2 are in planters right now ... I just got those out of the GH yesterday.

Here in Duval county dropping off a dog is considered animal cruelty and one can goto jail or even fined for that ... especially if you have evidence they know who the owner is ... You may want to contact your Animal shelter about that I you haven't already.

Jeremy, thank you soo much for the information... I know that some plants if caught mailing or transporting out of Florida & several other states - if caught iscan be up to a $4000.00 fine & jail time for repeat offenders. Especially palms and Citrus ... and a several others that have had pest / fungus and etc issues ... One has to have speical permits "stamps" even Orchids are like this ... I have found out from several different people ... Especially from Dave himself about the selling of plants apparently he was approcahed about people sending invasives and trying to fine him ... I'll have to find the d-mail ...


Have a great day everyone
Brandy

This message was edited Mar 28, 2010 10:26 AM

Actually, selling any plants in Florida without a Dept. of Agriculture license can result in fines and penalties. I've held off on trying to sell plants anywhere until I can apply and get the license, which seems to be a fairly easy process with only a $25 fee (unless you produce thousands of plants to sell, then the fee is higher), and a short on-site inspection to make sure your plants aren't infested with fungi, canker, viruses, etc. I'd rather be safe than sorry and am holding off on selling plants until I have dotted all the legal "i"s and crossed the "t"s.

Citrus coming in or out of the state is very strictly regulated, due to the threat to the citrus industry if some pathogen gets carried in and infects the state's crops. I actually came across a state law in some previous research that makes it illegal to bring any tropical plant into the state, including such things as hauling in a Diffenbachia in your car trunk or backseat. I don't have the specific legal citation for where that law can be found, but it is buried somewhere in all the Florida Dept. of Agriculture rules and regulations. I'm also not sure if that law applies to buying tropical plants and having them mailed from a vendor that doesn't have a phytosanitary license from their state (such as casual sellers on eBay or DG Marketplace), but it probably does apply.

Jeremy

I don't post here very often, but have been following this thread.

To all of you on the subject of "Coonties", I have a very large one that we have to thin out every couple of years to keep it a manageable size. Mine is in full sun, but they will do well in shade. I planted some of the seeds in a pot a few years ago & forgot about them, was a pleasant surprise when they came up. They are VERY slow growing when from seed, but can-not say the same from root divisions!

It is getting to be time to thin mine out again, so anyone interested in divisions should let me know soon.
Unfortunately, due to the size, I can't ship them, so will have to make other arrangements on getting them or if you can make it to the gathering on May 8th, can bring them then. Will have to know ahead of time since I have to have hubby dig them out for me.

Jeremy,

I agree on the grow or not to grow thing!!! We have the Nandina & love it! Have taken root divisions over the years & are building a living fence of them. Much less invasive than a 'True' bamboo, & if it goes beyond the borders we have chosen for them, either move the shoots or mow them over.

Pretty much the same with the "Asparagus Fern"---- brought one with us from our old house about 11 years ago & keep it contained in an area surounded by the house & walkways. Still-----the little birdies like the seeds & manage to deposit them in my other flower beds, whether I want them, or not! Depending on my mood at the time, will either transplant them or throw them away.
Since I haven't had much time or enerjy to get much work done in my yard, I now have about 4 of them that are hanging basket size & quite a few more that are smaller. Will give them away to anyone that wants them but will need to know soon or they are history!

Hope to see as many of you as can make it at the party on the 8th.!

No telling where the birdies will plant seeds...or where wind and water take them; that's why, when it comes to plants that are considered invasive (not just in MY way, but in the wild) which propagate by seed, I don't take a chance. Nuisance and invasive are very different; nuisance is more individual, invasive is global in who/what/where is disturbed. Those that spread through the ground, I keep in pots.

Yep, you're right, one needs to pick such battles, there are so many and it seems dirty air/environment and sad animals have always been put in front of me.... I used to also fight for human rights, but...can't say I'm all that for humans at large any more, except little ones.

Camillia, do you have photos of your coontie?

bsgardens, I am no expert on bougies, but it seems they prefer neglect, little water once established, and lots and lots of sun. The only other place I've grown them was in CO in a giant southern window with full sun all day in 44 gallon pots. I had two that framed the wall-sized window. bloomed from late August until April, and never went outside. They were sad plants from a garage sale infested with scale when I got them, which I killed with swabs of alcohol. I am so hoping to have mountains of them around the perimeter of my yard, along with the Sweet Viburnum (for sound and dust reduction from the road, and for privacy) planted last Thanksgiving.

I hope lots of folks can make it to Molly and my round-up....