Tropical garden #6

when i lived in 8a, we left them out, but sometimes they had damaged leaves, but sagos don't get that huge, so they should be easy to protect if tou ever had the need to

Here you go Lou!!!

http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/53327/

LouC, my experience with the sago palms is that they can take the cold in our zone, usually if it get down to the lower teens I would put a blanket on them. The sun can hurt them much worse than the cold. I think that they need a little shade in the afternoon sun.
Very nice gifts, they are on the pricey side.
Picture of mine that I took around 5 pm today. I usually have to trim back the dead leaves in the spring which will be replaced by new beautiful leaves.

LouC ~ yes, mine stays out in a large pot. I was dragging it under the porch roof for cover but realized our neighbors have these planted in ground and they looked healthy and happy.

I also trim the leaves but mainly because it is deprived from watering ~ my neglect while it is potted. It puts on a flourish of new soft leaves each spring so must be all right. pod

candela, what is that plant in your last picture? I took the rope off that I had tied around one of my shell ginger plants, now I have to crawl under it to get out of the greenhouse. It is not as tall as Texasbigleaves', but very wide. I might have to divide it like you did yours.

I looked everywhere today for new blooms. They desperately want to get out of the greenhouses and enjoy some of the beautiful sunshine that we had today. But they have to wait until after Easter. I am taking no risks with the weather here in Texas.
alocasia bloom

i just made the opposite decision... everything except one of my plumerias is out! its raining, so i wanted them to get welcomed to the outside world by a moderate shower or two

diehrd, I have learned after years of experience, putting them out, and having to bring them back in again gets too hard on the back.
I gave them a taste of rain water today from a barrel that I use to collect rain water.
About the plumeria, I have found that Pudica is a little more cold sensitive than the others.
castor bean

Rita, What ALO. is blooming ? Need to know NOW!!!!! Jerry

yeah i took that into cosideration, especially after lat year's devastating easter freeze, so i clustered them all in a group right outside the GH, so all i'd have to do is put the real sensitive ones in the GH and put a blanket over the rest... hope i don't regret it.... but i looked at our lows for the next week, and we're supposed to be in the high 40's to 50's. the pudica is growing now, so after it gets watered, i guess i'll put it in the GH

Thank you for your information about the Sagos. May wait until Easter. I am like Rita, it is always very unpredictable.
While I hope last weekend was the Easter spell, I am never quite sure.

Christi

Easter is so early this year too!!!

Texasbigleaves, it is the plain old alocasia odora, sorry to disappoint you.
Picture of Crinum amabile, from buried treasure. It is supposed to be the green version of the Queen Emma. It has not bloomed yet , maybe this spring .

i know! i heard that on the radio, it would be another 200 yrs until easter was this early again!

I might have to leave them in the GH for a little while after Easter then , just to be on the safe side.

Hey y'all look what I smelled at the flower show ;0)

aagh rour so lucky... is that a konjac?

Yes it is... crazy folks were putting there nose in and sniffing. My friend bought a small one I told her don't invite me over when it blooms.. yuck! :)

This message was edited Mar 11, 2008 10:27 PM

Great picture, and it sure is pretty. I just got a voodoo lily (konjac). It has put out one little shoot, maybe I will get to smell one soon.

Ha ha ha you will never forget it! Hope you grow it outdoors and not in the GH.What is your yellow flower?

What's the matter with you northerners you do'nt like the smell of rotten skunks?? Jerry

Rotfl :) I just don't know Jerry...sure is pretty though.

Come on little Amorp. Titanum,it's time to wake up!

there's a tropicals co-op if anyone's interested
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/822499/

Kimarj, I read that the smell does not last too long, sometimes we have to pay a price for beauty.
The yellow flower is a Yellow allamanda (golden trumpet). It is a good easy tropical which blooms all summer. The picture was taken in the GH.
brug. maya

Texasbigleaves, I have never seen a Titum bloom in person. Hope to see yours soon. I can see the shoot coming out of the soil. I read that it smells worse than the konjac.

So true Rita:)...allamanda is lovely I know that maya smells heavenly....yum.
Oh well off to work...everyone have a wonderful day!
Happy Gardening :)
Kim

Jeri11, diehrdsouthrnr, thank you both for the links.

persian shield blooming

a happy Vanda

and an even happier Vanilla vine. Anybody have one of these? Am wondering as to what to expect. Does it bloom, bear vanilla beans?

Fred

what happened here to my begonia? I missed watering for a few days. Is that the instant effect? Or did it get hit with some sudden sunshine?

fred

Fred,

The vanilla vine is actually an Orchid and has a greenish orchid-type of bloom (similar to a small Cattleya bloom). It might produce pods (the "vanilla bean") if you get a lot of blooms, and especially if somewhere near by another vanilla orchid is growing. Your vine has broader leaves than some. I'd love to have one myself!

Here's a link:
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/1214/

Well I'll be a monkey's uncle. A couple years ago somebody gave me a piece of this plant and told me it was a vanilla vine. That's all I knew. Never looked it up as I figured it was just a name somebody cooked up. So it is in the orchid family. Amazing! So this what they get vanilla flavoring from? An orchid.

My vine looks a little different from most of the pictures on the link you posted but one seems to be right on the money. I wonder if a leaf can be rooted? It says from herbaceous stemm cuttings. I'd hate to cut it up like that.

On the link it says the plant wants full shade. MIne is in full sun and growing slowly but nicely. Strange. The flower is suppoed to only open once, opening in the morning and cosing up in the evening never to do that again and if it doesn't get polinated in that short time, no beans. Sad.

I guess I'll just let it climb up to the top of the Sabal Palm it is attached to.

Fred

Fred,
Years ago I had a nice vanilla vine and it did actually produce flowers. I researched it at the time, because I wanted those vanilla beans! Turns out there are specific flies, or beetles, I can't remember which, that pollinate the vanilla orchid flowers, in their native homes of Madagascar, Mexico, etc. I did find some diagrams that showed how to move the pollen through the flower by piercing it at an angle with a bamboo skewer, thus achieving pollination and a subsequent vanilla bean. If you searched the web, you might be able to locate the diagrams.
To propagate it, all you do is cut off a section of the vine, and then set it somewhere moist and shady, it will send out some roots and then you can mount it or plant it where you want.
Cathy

Fred,

Here's a very interesting link for a lot of information about vanilla, the vanilla bean, and the cultivation thereof.

http://www.hawaiianvanilla.com/media.asp#2

Here's one that shows the pollination technique:

http://www.kafrin.com/bloom/pollination_vanilla_beans.htm

I might just write an article about this!!

LariAnn

wow it is nice an busy in here i love all the photos.

fredump the yellow begonias might be from the cold we got here a little while ago they usually take a few days before they yellow. (just a guess)

rita the plant in the post 4651557 is a tacca the white one someone gave it to me last year it has yet to flower. i can't wait.

this is my amorphallus (not sure which) from last year. this was in a neighbors yard that he was tearing up to throw in garbage so i salvaged it. still not woken up yet.

Candela,
That's Amorphophallus paeonifolius; I have some that are identical to yours. I also have one rare form that grows much larger, so large in fact that you could use it as a patio umbrella! It doesn't propagate very much, though, so I rarely have any available.
LariAnn

lariann, in what part of miami are you?great to see someone else from miami in here.

I'm down south of Homestead, so not really in Miami proper. To go to the Keys, I get on the road in front of my house, go south, and I'm on my way!