Sunday, February 15, 2009

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day-February

Turns out our sprinklers come on at 8:00AM.  Why do I know this?  Because I was outside trying to take pictures in my yard when they came on!  Luckily, my camera is waterproof, and it is warm here.  So, on with the show!


Well, here's what he looks like today:
Not only has he put out a whole new set of leaves, but the one that he put out last month appears to be almost mature.


Next we have the 3rd or 4th successive bloom I've had on this orchid in about a year.  As orchids go, I think this is a pretty fast-growing one.  The colors up close are really striking, but I wasn't quite able to capture them here today.  Perhaps it was the lack of coffee and the wet backside that threw my game.  Yeah, that must have been it.  ;)  Also, this bloom is beginning to fade a bit, and it's a little beat up.  It's been very windy here lately.  There should be 3 little spiky pieces on top, not 2, but I kind of like this look-it sort of looks like a bunny rabbit orchid now. (I know, I'm killing you with my scientific-ness today, huh?) 



Here's my orchid (Onc. Papilio x Kalihi) sharing the spotlight with some chives and a pink bougainvillea in the foreground.  In the background, you can see some red ginger (right above the far-left bloom on the chives), a red ti plant (above the orchid) and the base of my lime tree.

This next one is one of my favorite plants.  It's a Clerodendrum quadriloculare.  When we first moved to Hawaii and were looking for a house, we looked at a lot of model homes in some of the new developments that were going in like gangbusters at the time.  One of the plants that was commonly used in the landscaping was this type of Clerodendrum.  I never saw any in flower, but I loved the dark green leaves with the purple undersides, and it was something that I kept tucked away in the back of my mind as a "someday" plant.  Well, we didn't end up in one of those new model homes, but a couple years after we moved into the house that we did buy, I looked out my office window one morning to find my front yard full of potted plants that my neighbor had snuck into our yard that morning.  He knew I liked plants, and he had a bunch of extras sitting around his yard.  One of them was this Clerodendrum.  (Yay!)  Our neighbor passed away about 2 years ago, so this plant holds a special place in our yard and in my heart.  When we had our recent landscaping done, they decided to move this plant, and it went through some serious transplant shock.  I didn't think it was going to make it.  So, I am thrilled to be able to share these pictures with you today.




Next, thanks to the birds in our yard, I have discovered a great new way of germinating sunflower seeds:
This lily is located underneath our bird feeder, and it turns out that it holds just enough moisture at the base of its leaves to germinate the sunflower seeds that the birds keep dropping. I never would have thought of this on my own!


To see what other people have blooming in their yards right now, visit May Dreams Gardens' Garden Bloggers Bloom Day post.

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

Beautiful tropical foliage & blooms today! Just viewing your garden warmed me up. :)

Lisa at Greenbow said...

What beautiful blooms. Your plants seem so exotic to me. The story about one of your favorite plants and the gentleman that gave it to you is sweet. Happy GBBD.

Dreamybee said...

perennialgardener-I'm so glad to hear it! Please stop by anytime you need a tropical boost!

Lisa at Greenbow-Your earth star is actually pretty exotic looking itself! Glad you liked the story about my tree-the man who gave it to me was very nice; we've been blessed with great neighbors.

VP said...

That Clerodendrum's spectacular - I bet you're relieved it's pulled through after it's trauma :)

Nice to have a warm place to visit after being out in my cold garden today!

Carol Michel said...

What a nice neighbor! Thanks for showing us a bit of Hawaii on a cold February day.

Carol, May Dreams Gardens

tina said...

That is a hoot about your sunflowers germinating in the leaves of the lily. I like your user name as you do live in a state I think most only dream of-me included. Lovely blooms!

Anonymous said...

Oh, my - what a treat to see all that color. I feel warmer already. You've done a great kindness for those of us still coping with snow. Thanks so much for sharing your beautiful blooms!

Julia Erickson said...

Hawaii--it looks so warm there!

Gail said...

Hello. Thank you for stopping by my garden! I am imaging living in Hawaii...it's a good fantasy! Your about me is delightful...It is easy to forget to celebrate and appreciate the small gifts in life. The story you shared about your thoughtful neighbor...is just the kind of kindness we sometimes forget when we are caught up in life. Sharing it with us is a good way to honor his memory. Have a wonderful week!

gail
clay and limestone

Anonymous said...

Oh for goodness sakes, that sunflower in the lily leaf is a fine example of nature at its whimsical best. I have to laugh at being wet by the sprinklers coming on while shooting. Such a good thing your camera is waterproof too. HA
Frances

LindaCTG said...

Oh my gosh, you have all the wonderful plants I can only dream about. My husband got to spend time in Hawaii as a child and is always raving about it. Maybe someday I'll see the glory in person. Thank for you checking in with Central Texas Gardener. Linda

Dreamybee said...

VP-I am SO relieved. They are a strange mix of fragile and hardy though, so I remained hopeful.

Carol-Thanks for stopping by to see it!

Tina-I know, I cracked up the first time I got up close and realized what was going on with the sunflower seeds! Funny, but I came up with "Dreamybee" long before I got into any sort of garden blog participation. it does seem to fit well though, doesn't it? :)

Nan Ondra-I'm so glad you enjoy visiting!

Heirloomgardener-It is, and I love it!

Gail-You're right, it's exactly that type of thing that I want to make sure I acknowledge. I didn't even think about that aspect of it when I was typing that story. See what kind of good things happen when you share your garden with others?

Frances-Yes, I'm pretty sure nature will outwit us every time! My husband thought the sprinkler thing was pretty funny too. He was inside watching TV, and he heard/saw the sprinklers come up and then heard me make that universal squeeky/yelpy noise that everybody makes when unexpectedly hit with a spray of cold water!

lindalynn-Thank you for visiting on line. I hope one day you get to visit in person too. Now's not a bad time if you can swing it-airline rates are pretty good depending on where you are coming from, and the hotels are definitely hurting out here.

Anonymous said...

Lovely blooms! Your orchid is beautiful. Happy Bloom Day! It's so nice to be able to see what's happening in gardens around the world. I dream about visiting Kauai... one of these days. :)

Dreamybee said...

Hi Liisa! Thanks for stopping by. Me too-I really like Kauai!

Jan said...

It is amazing to see the plant that was left behind! It really took off under your care and it's great you were able to save it:) Happy GBBD, just a bit late:) It takes me a while to get through the list!

Dreamybee said...

Hi Jan,

I know what you mean-It takes me a while to get through all of the posts too. I don't know how Carol makes all the rounds! Thanks for stopping by!

Marie said...

Dreamybee,

I'm finally getting around to all the wonderful posts for February GBBD.

Your plants remind me of the great time we had in Hawaii this past January. I still dream about it.

I love "volunteers" in the garden. The sunflower is a happy surprise. I have a bunch of asparagus that must have been transported from a neighbors garden. My neighbor was a little disgruntled since he put a lot of work into his stand of asparagus and I got mine free.

Nancy said...

Hi Dreamybee, thanks for coming by my blog and commenting. I'd made it here for GBBD, but was bad and didn't comment. I try to grow some of the same plants you have, but with varying amounts of success. I think I want a tropical garden in Houston. Which would be a lot easier if I were a lot closer to the coast.

:0)

Dreamybee said...

Marie-I'm so glad you had fun in Hawaii! Yes, I love volunteers too (except for all the weeds!). Volunteer asparagus is a pretty good one. Would it make your neighbor feel better or worse if you offered him some of your yield?

Nancy-No worries, sometimes I run out of comments too! I would think you would be able to get a pretty good tropical theme going in Houston. What would be the main deterrent there, rainfall or temperature?