Tropical Plants and Gardens #119

I didn't know those bloomed, very interesting. Thanks for posting it.

Jan

Hey Jan !

Jan, you really REALLY need to make an excursion to Tropiflora! They have a couple of greenhouses full of tillandsias, and yes, they all bloom, even the funny little ball mosses you see everywhere! (they're not as pretty as mine, though)

Have you built your shade structure yet? For that matter did you move yet or are you still renting?

Begonias smell wonderful too . . .

Elaine

Just by chance, this little ball moss was on the ground as I was touring around with my daily orchid misting. See the dried up flowers all over it? Can't tell for sure what color the flowers are when they are fresh but it must have been pretty.

Here's my Brug. Charles Grimaldi starting a fresh round of blooms. I think they are a paler color in the hotter weather. It sure smells great out there at night!

When do Brugs. (as far as height) usually start to flower?

Drew, in my experience with Brugs., they bloom when the darned well please! I have some that are YEARS old that have never bloomed, and have had some that bloomed at a year old. I'm sure it has to do with climate, amount of light, food and water available to them, container size, etal.

I'd agree with Kay. They love sun, heat, mega water and fert! Size doesn't matter.

I sent one to Alice, a cutting of 'Monster White' from last winter in a 4in. pot and the plant was about 14in. high but it had a big fat bud. On the other hand, my 7ft. tall 'Cherub' that did so very well last year has not bloomed since November. But 'Charles Grimaldi' in the pic above bloomed about monthly all winter, in a 16in. pot. Here's a pic of 3 more I've been holding for a friend - you can see the big one in the middle (6in. pot 2ft. tall) just finished 3 blooms, and the two in the 4in. pots both have buds!

Other two pics are my two starts from Debra last year. One was a stem cutting of 'Cherub' and the other was a branch cutting of 'Monster White' (cutting taken from above the first Y on the plant). Cherub went straight up and made a standard or tree form, while Monster branched right away, and bloomed much sooner. Possibly if you have a start from a stem cutting, it won't bloom until after it branches out.

Btw, my personal preference is to only take branch cuttings, because I like the shrubby shape better than the standard form.

I have always been told they will not bloom until after they have Y'd.

Like Kay I had plants for years that did not bloom so I gave them away and they bloomed their heads off for others. Last year I got some cuttings of Super Spot and they started blooming right away for me.

The flower on the Monster White Elaine sent me was as big as the plant itself. I should have taken the bud off before it bloomed but I forgot and it does not seem to have hindered its growth at all, that plant is a monster.

Debra feeds hers tomato food, anyone else do that?

Mine just get regular Miracle-Gro with a dash of Superthrive when they're in pots. In the ground they get generous doses of Osmocote.

Our soil has naturally high phosphorus so we don't need to give them the tomato fert here, at least when they're in the ground.

I must say, I've sure never had any trouble getting brugs to bloom.

high phos will not make them happy, high nitro will...
brugs bloom from the Y's.. some may be slow at Y'ing, some faster, there are so many types of brugs... go to BGI for correct information.

My isabella just finished blooming, but then I came home to her all droopy, she was covered in mites, so I topped of her head and stripped her leaves and doused her with forbid ground and all. I was offered a gardenia tree at work, but when I looked at it it was so far gone from webs and webs of spider mites, i went and got some window clkeaner and sprayed it houroughly and told the lasy no thanks, i didn't have room for any more plants at home, and that she should take her plant and power wash it in the wash bay. it was that covered it scared me and made me want to go change clothes and washed my hands up to my elbows after being near it. I looke after the other tropicals at work, all i don't need is an out break of spider mites on 200.00 plants. ugh. No isabella has to go thru the vegetive state, grow leaves and Y all over again.
don't pinch out the leaves on a brug.
this is frosty pink

I think they have figured out the only plants that really like high phos are annuals, it can even be harmful to a lot of plants like tropical hibiscus.

Our soil here has high, close to toxic, levels of phosphorus, it used to be mined here along the rivers and you can still find big chunks of it when youd dig. Because of that I have to be careful with the Dynamite or Osmocote so I generally use that in pots and stick with compost for anything in the ground. I am trying to encourage beneficial microbes, like mycorhizae (sp?) and earthworms to do the fertilizing for me. Lazzzzzy gardener here.

Size doesn't matter?

Thanks for all your info!

Probably depends on the specific variety.

With brugs, Drew. With brugs and blooming!

Bad Elaine. :-)

Begonias are coming along.
Maurice Amy
Irene Nuss
Lois Burks
Wightii
Barbara Rogers

...and Kismet

Very pretty Begonias!

Gorgeous begonias, Alice. My Sophie Cecile that you gave me as a cutting is really taking off now. Love the jagged leaves and beautiful markings on it. But strangely, it's the only one of the 10 varieties I have that hasn't bloomed. Do you know what color her flowers are?

Glad to hear she is growing; her flowers are a normal begonia pink but she is known to be a shy bloomer. Her leaves are her shining attribute, she will get tall probably 4', and the leaves will be enormous and a shiny metallic. I am starting from scratch with mine this year, they had gotten old like me.

I have a bunch of new little begonias and I had planned on leaving them in pots and, like you suggested, sinking the pots into the soil but it is supposed to be another unusually hot and dry summer. I think I may need to plant them so they will have a better chance of staying hydrated. It is hard to keep little pots moist.

Alice, I use big pots, the biggest old black plastic nursery pots I can scrounge up. As long as they're in the shade, they don't seem to dry out any worse than the surrounding bed. In fact my beds are so sandy in some places that the soil in the pots sometimes retains moisture better.

I also mulch over the edges of the pots so you can't see them. This helps keep moisture in, too. You could try an experiment if you have two of the same variety - sink one in a pot, plant the other next to it, water the same and see which does better. Like my test with the P. Gloriosum.

What can I say, I just like experimenting anyway.

Hay everone, been out of it for a while, first looking for a new house to rent..... then the move....omgoodness, I will sell/throw away before I (me personally) move stuff again..... DH not allowed to lift anything over 10 pounds due to his mechanical aorta valve. So I did all the boxes and little stuff then had the movers take care of the heavy furniture .....

So we get here and the guy isn't too wanting to let me plant much. So maybe overtime.

Elaine, I've got an E that would love it in your yard, I need to swing by and bring it to ya.

Jan

:-), same here Elaine. One of the problems I run into when I sink pots is the adventitious roots from the Live Oaks and the Wax Myrtle, they seek the good soil and moisture and will invade the pots. It is almost impossible to get pots out pf the ground around here. I have even wrapped the pots in weed barrier but the roots go right through that. There are a few I have sunk this year and I keep lifting them and turning them so the roots can't get established but that is getting to be a pain.

This message was edited May 11, 2012 5:33 PM

may try triple potting the pots u sink? I sink mine in the ground, but they are in two or three liners, and I use plastic netting in the hole so I can life them out in fall.( edges are visiable, but usually get buried thru the course of summer. Happy MOthers Day to all who have influenced a child in their life.

3 pots???? You do know I garden with a reciprocating saw to cut through the roots here. Digging any hole much less something big enough for 3 pots would is a huge project. That is why I usually start with small young plants.

Please pray the real estate market starts rising then I will consider getting off this beautiful island and finding a place with good soil. I never, ever imagined I wouldn't be gardening on sand here. Next time I look for a house, even assisted living which isn't so far off, I'll bring a trowel with me. :-)

My harlequin Ti and coleus. The ti is a seedling and the coleus is a cutting from a multi colored plant. I don't think either one will stay that way.

Well, what I meant was three pots in one, together, inside each other.. LOL Some of my plants i use a large pot, a slightly smaller one and then the actual plant I am planting in it's original pot, with the bottom cut out and the sides slit. packed with good soil and ammendments, it works during the dry times.
Can't imagine gardening in sand, I have hard red clay to contend with.
I have a few splashes of color now outside..

Good morning, everyone!

Deb, what are the first and second plants' names? I would like a start of them!!!!

Deb, your visit is 3 weeks away - CAN'T WAIT!!!!

Dearest KayJones, one is lobelia blue fountain, ( a trailer) and the second is dames rocket, a prennial. I have mapped out our route so that we can see as much beach as possible from New Orleans to you. My Grandson Graduated last night. we had two rows of seats occupied. It was great and we are so glad it is over ( that part of it anyway)

OK, I can get those here. Congrats to your Grandson!!!

it has been raining for 3 days straight! i love it because it is making everything flower.
most the vandas. the last one shows all 4

just took a few pictures. mr. stinky is waking up. the voodoo lily. i took a picture of the gumbo limbo tree because all the gumbo limbos are dying here because of white fly. 3. is a plumeria pudica on my neighbors and yes those are the power lines, i am just waiting for them to trim it so i can go raid his garbage. 4. is a hoya cummingiana? and passion fruit above.5. queens wreath

OK, Cassie - I am coming to see you - all of your plants are gorgeous!

Starting to grow a little.

I am coming with KayJones, Cassie. Awsome!
Looking good, there Drew.

Starting to grow a 'little' they are huge already drew

Thanks Ladies! Debra I will post a picture of one of the Brugs you gave me today. I had no idea...

They all look gorgeous, Drew. They're that big and it's only May . . . ? Good thing you have a huge garden!

It's raining here in the desert (Salt Lake) this morning . . I have so much to do out in my daughter's garden but can't walk around out there without getting icky sticky clay soil all over me. So, here I am gardening on the computer again. So thankful for the nice company all of you provide. I do have two dogs and three cats for company, though.

Clematis 'Niobe' and Iris 'Warrior King' Not tropicals, but fun to share at least. Can you tell my daughter is a fan of deep red?

She needs a rangoon creeper vine to go in her yard - mine is blooming for the first time in 6 years - beautiful blood-red blooms. It was supposed to be a double but is only a single, but I'm still happy with it!

I told myself "No more tropicals! Only orchids." but I absolutely couldn't resist this beauty!