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Post by Deleted on Jul 20, 2010 16:19:17 GMT
Very lovely Imec. A nice representation of the lily family there,and the clarity is very impressive,you can see the pollen on them so clearly. I'll bet there were a lot of bees about, as they love the lilies!!
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Post by imec on Jul 20, 2010 21:11:06 GMT
Well, I didn't see a lot of bees but I did chase this one around until it tried to sting me arse - and never did get a really clear picture .
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Post by Deleted on Jul 20, 2010 23:36:43 GMT
Great pics,you're very lucky you didn't get stung,bees are very temperamental! Here's some more white blooms. I adore this plant,it's an Althea, in the mallow family,and all of it is white,stamens,pistils,petals. A pure white flower. It grows into a nice tree when mature. Have always wanted one. The bees also love this plant,they were all over it on my ride this morning.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 21, 2010 0:21:06 GMT
*grinds teeth*
If I were an envious person, I'd be having dark thoughts right now against Imec for that perfect 2nd bee picture and against Casimira for having such good result with her "whites" (& I'm not talking about laundry).
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Post by spindrift on Jul 22, 2010 11:20:04 GMT
I'm fed up with my pelargoniums in tubs. I'm wondering what to put in their place next year.
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Post by bjd on Jul 22, 2010 14:53:31 GMT
There are lots of altheas around here. I don't think I have seen a pure white one though -- they are mostly light purple, pink or else white with a bit of red on the petals. There was a big purple one in the garden, but we removed it last year because it was dying. But birds have planted another small one elsewhere. Spindrift, I have pretty much given up on geraniums (never could grow pelargoniums), so my pots have perennial verbena in them. They are supposed to be perennial, but don't always come back, and you have to cut the dead flowers to keep them blooming. This is an illustration from the net:
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Post by Deleted on Jul 22, 2010 15:40:46 GMT
Yes,we have the purple/lavender ones too BJD,they refer to them as Rose of Sharon. The all,pure,pure white ones are just the most gorgeous things I know of in a white flowering woody. I'm sure it's real easy to propagate,and every year say I'm going to do so. I have just thes pot for it too,right next to the all white evening garden where it gets more sun and I can keep it from getting too,too big. Spindrift,I know you're fond of whites and pastels as well...There is a white verbena as well, I believe,has a nice growth habit and you can maybe mix with some of those lovely lobelia you showed us.(I think were pale blue?). I think my night blooming cereus is going to "do it" tonight, I must get a pic of it. Here it is in bud.
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Post by spindrift on Jul 22, 2010 16:01:22 GMT
Casimira - that plant is kind of creepy, well actually it's very creepy. A mixture of verbena, campanula? or lobelia would be nice, that's true. Why hadn't I thought of that?
Bjd - good thinking.
I do have white and scarlet verbenas in my garden this year. They are not perennials. I didn't realise you could buy them as perennials.
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Post by bjd on Jul 23, 2010 6:47:22 GMT
They sell 2 kinds of verbenas here: annual and perennial. The ones in the photo above are perennial. The annual ones often seem to have two colours on the petals, like white and red or whatever. They might do well in your garden -- mine were nice in May, but seem to suffer from too much heat/dryness. But they do need to be in a sunny spot. And if you get a very cold winter, you have to protect the perennial ones.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2010 12:50:18 GMT
Yes,the night blooming cereus bud is a bit creepy looking,but,here's the blossom (not my pic,I couldn't stay awake long enough to catch mine,of which there were two!!! They don't open until around 11pm,and by morning are POOF,deflated... They only last one night,are incredibly,intensely fragrant,and unbelievably erotic looking. One night,in the early 1990's I had 14 in bloom all in one night!! I have always thought they are on a lunar cycle,but can't really substantiate this,although,full moon tomorrow night...
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 24, 2010 16:11:01 GMT
In a southern part of Oaxaca they eat the buds of that night-blooming cactus. It's hard to imagine having them in such abundance.
I've never had a verbena live through to another year. Climate? Me?
Spindrift, what about petunias? Also, whatever else you put in the tubs, why not try some alyssum in there with it. Their foamy, sprawly whiteness looks great with other plants and they self-seed.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2010 16:33:34 GMT
Yes, I recall you having mentioned folks imbibing in the blossoms,Bixa. I'm thinking about doing an edible flower thread (or, do we have one already? must go cull...)as I just tasted,of all things,elderberry fritters this week,and they were fabulous!!Goodness knows we have an abundance of them all around.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 24, 2010 16:38:44 GMT
Imec did an edible flower thread a good while back. Coincidentally, I just saw it the other day. I think it's in this board, not in the food boards.
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Post by spindrift on Jul 24, 2010 17:10:43 GMT
Bixa - I am a lover of petunias be they white, blue or pink And I hadn't considered putting alyssum in a tub; but why not? that's an excellent idea. I must tell you that my large Sieboldiana hosta has been very successful in a pot this year. Now that the white flower has died, the leaves have taken over in their pale green loveliness.
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Post by bixaorellana on Jul 24, 2010 17:19:07 GMT
And yellow -- that non-acidy yellow you can get in petunias is so useful!
I crave one of the elegant hostas. I have the plain green one, although it gives lovely flowers. Since it's been raining, it's leaves look all healthy and not dusty for a change.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 26, 2010 14:54:10 GMT
In bloom this morning,fresh from a heavy rain,late last night. Buddleia alba,aka,butterfly bush,comes in several colors,my favorite of course,the white, although,the butterflies seem to prefer the dark,dark purple,Black Knight cultivar. Jasminium sambac,'Grand Duke of Tuscany',intensely fragrant,one of the very few woody,non vining jasmines. Here's one of the Ruellias.Ruellia brittoniana,alba. Commonly seen in lavender all over NOLA and the SE for that matter,also known as Mexican Petunia,or locally,Doorstep Flower because it's so common outside anyone and everyone's back door who doesn't eradicate it. Does well in all light,shade etc. I have some in my evening garden(the white variety).
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Post by Jazz on Jul 26, 2010 21:00:00 GMT
Beautiful white blooms, Casimira. A friend of mine planted an evening garden with only whites and it is very dramatic.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 26, 2010 22:55:15 GMT
Beautiful white blooms, Casimira. A friend of mine planted an evening garden with only whites and it is very dramatic. Thanks Jazz. I've been working on it for several years,trying to get just the right combination of height,texture,blooms,foliage,(vines,woodies,annuals,perenials)and of course, fragrance. It's very tricky because one doesn't want to overwhelm,with an olfactory overload that would clash,cloy etc. Some intentionally have no scent,whereas, others emit a fragrance at certain times of the year. The staggering of can be very frustrating. I also,don't get the same light in all of the border at different times of the year,which has been particularly frustrating. I keep saying when I'm done,,I 'm going to do a thread on it,but, it never seems to get quite where I'm satisfied showing it off. It's situated just below the back upstairs balcony for optimum enjoyment. I would also at some point like to put in a small water feature with one of the night blooming water lilies of which there are a couple of whites. No artificial lighting allowed.
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Post by Kimby on Aug 2, 2010 22:53:37 GMT
I would have sworn the 2nd image in casi's #435 was a gardenia, another heavenly-scented white bloomer. Do you have any of those to show us?
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 2, 2010 23:57:50 GMT
Kimby, that's because Casimira's lovely picture is a close-up. Those flowers are generally only about the size of a quarter. If you love the scent of gardenias, you'd totally fall in love with the Grand Duke jasmine.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 3, 2010 11:05:28 GMT
Thanks Bixa. Yes,it 's a close up of a different flower. Gardenias are out of season here right now,it's too bloody hot!!
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 15, 2010 17:04:48 GMT
... Along similar lines,sort of,yesterday while I was walking about the neighborhood,I came across this seemingly freak of nature. I can never remember what these are,some type of ornanmental fruit tree (bears no fruit),but,you see them all over town this time of year. This one however,had blooms sprouting out all over the surface of the trunk. The clusters of blooms all over the lower half of the trunk gave the appearance of having been artificially applied as you can see in the photos. They did not have any branches or stems. The top half of the tree was all leaves,and no blooms. The tree is quite old. I remember it being there as far back as when I first moved here.(which does indeed make it old ) Has anyone ever seen this before? It was a first for me. The post above is currently on page nine of this thread, #243, with more pics in the original post, plus some later on the page. Reply #247 by Lola correctly identifies the tree. I played holy hell finding the quoted post, but was motivated by an urge to see the pictures again. I just saw a lovely close up of new burgundy-colored leaves on a garden forum. The person who posted it identified it as a "Judas tree". I'd heard that name, but didn't know which tree it was. Google led me to a Wikipedia entry that not only told me the tree was my old friend the redbud, but also made a point of mentioning: "The Judas tree (Cercis siliquastrum) often bears flowers directly on its trunk.", with an accompanying photo. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CercisLive and learn!
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Post by mickthecactus on Aug 16, 2010 16:13:16 GMT
You guys have put some stunning picures on here. Here's a Pelargonium that isn't seen very often - Pel tricolor -
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Post by mickthecactus on Aug 16, 2010 16:26:40 GMT
Zantedeschia Green Goddess -
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Post by Deleted on Aug 16, 2010 22:20:57 GMT
Nice to see you back Mick!! Yes,quite a few blooms in this thread. I run the risk of repeating posting pics I've already posted last year,although,thank goodness my photo skills have improved some since then. (Jeez,I just looked at some of my earliest ones,so embarassing,barely in focus... ). Several folks have made some very,very,lovely contributions in here,although,not as many as I would selfishly like to see more of. Bixa, I can't believe you found that !!! Wow,had forgotten about it actually,but,jeez, do I remember stopping dead in my tracks when I saw that. So odd. Thanks!!! your Green Goddess,Calla, 'tis a lovely,lovely specimen. I don't know that Pelargonium,interesting foliage for that family.The foliage somewhat resembles a Gaura,no?
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Post by Jazz on Aug 17, 2010 4:02:12 GMT
There is so much beauty in this thread. Mick, the Green Goddess is superb! My mandevilla is growing like a weed, I never suspected it would be so hardy!
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 17, 2010 4:12:38 GMT
Hope you had a great vacation, Mick. I have never seen even a picture of that pelargonium before. It's so striking with those viola-shaped flowers, the great two-tone effect, and the completely unexpected leaves. Are they fuzzy? So many flowers! How big are they -- an inch or so?
I've never seen the green goddess in the flesh, nor such a good photo of it. She is extremely elegant.
That's a great picture, Jazz, with the sun sparkling on the water drops and that rich red. I mostly know the pink Mandevilla. I used to live in Mandeville, La., and I swear every other mailbox had a pink Mandevilla on it. Wonder if they knew the botanical name.
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Post by mickthecactus on Aug 17, 2010 12:26:31 GMT
Casimira, I've no idea what a Gaura is!
Jazz - I've got Mandevilla against my back wall and it's been stunning plant all summer - much like yours.
Bixa, the leaves are barely fuzzy. Yes, flowers are about an inch or so across. It's not the easiest to grow and very difficult to get cuttings to take. I got this from Kew a few years back. I can only find one nursary in the UK that has it and they want £10 per plant. If I could crack the method of rooting cuttings I could be a rich man......... ;D
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Post by mickthecactus on Aug 17, 2010 12:28:40 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Aug 17, 2010 15:40:54 GMT
Love these dahlias Mick!! They don't do well here,because of our heat and humidity,often turn brown,and forget behaving as a perennial,the tubers rot after one season,it's hardly worth the effort... In NY where I originate,on the other hand,can grow fabulous dahlias. I miss them,particularly as they make such a fabulous cut flower. gaura lindheimeri
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