Category Archives: Plants

What the Buddy Walk Gave to My Garden

Posted by Lesley on October 21, 2011 None comments

Tomorrow marks the Manasota BUDS 10th Annual Buddy Walk, a charity and event I’ve supported since their inception.  Like anyone else, I have my reasons to support this particular cause; their names are Ella and Stacy.  Ella was born with Down syndrome, and Stacy is her amazing mom and one of the founders of Manasota BUDS.  They are also my niece and sister.

Family is the root of why I never miss a Buddy Walk, but an ancillary and quite selfish reason has emerged over the past two years – Mariposa, my favorite nursery, donates to the silent auction.  It’s definitely true when people say there’s no selfless deed.  I’ll be circling that silent auction table like a shark tomorrow.

Prior to last year’s Buddy Walk, I had several butterfly plants scattered throughout the garden and even had plenty of butterfly visitors.  But then I won the butterfly garden package from Mariposa.  Now, I have a real butterfly garden; I just didn’t know the difference.  You think you see a lot of butterflies until you start seeing three, four different types daily.

The package included a cassia tree, milkweed, porter weed, button sage, pentas, and passionvine.  The combination is pure magic.  Sulphur butterflies should have been listed along with the plants as an auction item.  There were caterpillars on the tree and butterflies circling within days.

We get pop-ins, like the White Peacock and Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, and more than just Sulphurs are regulars.  The Gulf Fritillary is the Norm of our garden right now, constantly sipping at either the porter weed or button sage.

Sleepy Orange on the Cassia Tree

White Peacock Butterfly

Gulf Fritillary on White Button Sage

It’s a small one, but it’s a dream fulfilled.  When I started to really get into gardening, the goal quickly became butterflies.  I got lucky with a few plants; my Mexican sunflowers attracted tons of Swallowtails, and anyone can plant a milkweed to get Monarchs, but it really just depended on the day if I’d see a butterfly or not…not anymore.  Thanks BUDS!

For more information on Manasota BUDS, visit www.manasotabuds.org.  To register for the Buddy Walk or to make a donation, click here.

Enchanted Kudzu Forest

Posted by Lesley on September 7, 2011 2 comments

Hallelujah, the weather has cooled down just enough to take a walk mid-day without risking heat stroke.  To celebrate, Luke and I spent the lunch-hour strolling Arlington Park.  Although the sun is now bearable, my favorite section of the park is still on the west side where the tall trees and kudzu almost block it out entirely.  Kudzu is an invasive species from Asia that all gardeners should fear, but in this environment, it’s hard not to admire.  Arches, forts, and statues form as the kudzu crawls and clings to everything in sight.  The vines rise into columns and cascade down like waterfalls.  In the few small patches where the sun meets the ground, it has to drill through the thick like a spotlight.

And as if the mini-forest wasn’t feeling enchanted enough, a bright yellow bird I’ve never seen before hopped across the path.  It took me a while to identify, but it’s definitely a hooded warbler.  The yellow eye mask is unmistakable.

Warblers are way too quick for me.  The rest of my photos are blurs.  It was nice of the fish to be so cooperative.

Seagrapes and a Sonic Boom

Posted by Lesley on March 9, 2011 6 comments

Sea grapes have always bugged me.  It’s weird and I don’t know why, they just always have.  There’s a hedge around the corner that seemed more and more out of place and pointless every time I walked by it…until recently.  My visit to De Soto National Park has had me rethinking my stance on the sea grape.  I gained a new appreciation for them that day - their history, appearance and usefulness. Now I can’t stop noticing sea grapes…in a good way.

An odd tidbit of history is what initially drew me in.  Apparently, long before the stringent postal regulations of today, sea grape leaves were used as postcards.  Tourists would write messages on them and mail them home.  You could affix the stamp straight to the leaf.  And before tourists, it’s believed that DeSoto and his comrades were using them as playing cards.   

As sea grape leaves die, they harden.  They’re as thick as heavy paper and easy to write on or decorate.  The one flaw is that they become brittle and can snap.  The live leaves won’t snap, so they open up a whole other realm of craft possibilities.  First I found this how-to blog post on crafting the leaves into plates and bowls.  Then I saw a Q and A in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune with local Master Gardener Jane Smith:

Q: What’s the oddest thing you’ve ever done with a plant?

A: I was invited to create a costume for a fashion show at the Art Center Sarasota.  I made a dress out of sea grape leaves, which I embellished with gold leaf and some paint.  The last I heard the “dress” made it to another fashion show at Selby Gardens.

I tried to find a picture of the dress somewhere but no luck; surely, it was gorgeous.  The live leaves are so much prettier than I ever gave them credit for.  Before they die, they turn red.  So for living in the South, sea grapes are as autumnal as they come.  

The trunks are equally as impressive in all their multiples.

Sea grapes are salt-tolerant and wind-resistant, so they’re often found along shorelines.  That explains the “sea.”  The “grape” is derived from the fruit it bears, which forms in grape-like clusters.  They’re edible too; this link will take you to a recipe for sea grape jelly.   

Sea grapes line the pathway between Bayfront Park and Selby Gardens.

But sometimes living in Florida is so much cooler than sea grapes and sunshine.  I got to experience a sonic boom today!  I heard and felt the space shuttle Discovery reentering our atmosphere for the last time ever.  Incredible!  If only I had know what it was at the time.  It wasn’t until an hour later when a friend asked me if I had felt it that I knew immediately I had.  It stopped our conversation the clap was so jarring.  Our office is on a busy street, so the initial thought was that someone got rear-ended at the stoplight.  It’s funny now to know what it actually was.  Oh, and the high was 82 degrees today…it was a good day to be in Florida.    

Gardening Keeps Me Sane

Posted by Lesley on March 7, 2011 2 comments

My thighs are screaming from all the crouching, but my mind is well rested and relaxed after an entire weekend of gardening.  Despite multiple reports warning of thunderstorms, the weather was non-stop perfect.  I weeded, seeded and savored.  Between the weather and the sweet scent of citrus blossoms, x marked the spot to be – my garden.

I planted Violet Queen giant zinnias and an annual cut flower mixture, carrots, jalepenos, Royal Burgandy garden beans, and heirloom tomatoes.  Mortgage Lifter seemed a topical choice, and of course, there’s a story to go with the seeds.  They were developed by a radiator repairman named M.C. Byles.  In the 1940′s Byles advertised the tomatoes as being large enough to feed a family of six, and people drove from up to 200 miles away to buy the seeds.  He’s said to have paid off a $6,000 mortgage with his seed money.  

And I’m not the only one planting seeds right now.  The red salvia is whipping seeds around the garden like confetti, while the milkweed is being awfully precise.

The solid white specs are petals from the grapefruit blossoms.  The things that look like little badminton birdies are the milkweed seeds.  All I had to do was push them in and water.  My other projects required a little more effort.  I mulched the lettuce with newspaper and rooted a half a dozen crotons.

The weeds were becoming too much work, and I didn’t feel like leaving the house or spending money.  Newspaper was my solution.  I pulled the weeds, added a layer of compost, and laid the newspaper down.  I cut a hole in the center of each section and pulled the lettuce through. 

It’s cheap, easy and biodegradable.  But as the pages start to dry, you’ll need to weight them down with something.  I used lava rocks.  The ink in the newspaper initially made me pause, but people add it to their compost all the time.  Unless you’re using glossy inserts, you’re in the clear because most newspaper print is now soy-based.    

Our office needs a landscaping upgrade, so my mind immediately went to crotons.  They’re colorful without having flowers.  Leaves range from basic greens to soft pinks and bright oranges.  Use plain water or a rooting hormone; either way, getting cuttings to root is a cinch.  I used the latter this time around.  Simply take your clipping and immediately submerge it into water. 

Cut the leaves off until only the top two remain, then dip the cut end into rooting hormone and stick it in the ground…be patient.  At ten dollars per plant, this project will eventually save me sixty bucks!   

X is for Xerophytes

Posted by Lesley on June 30, 2010 4 comments

I’ve written about my epiphytes in past posts, and thanks to ABC Wednesday and the 1997 edition of The Merriam-Webster Dictionary that sits on my nightstand, I’m ready to write about my Xerophytes.  Epiphytes, such as the ball moss in the grapefruit tree, are plants that survive with no soil.  Xerophytes, most commonly cacti and succulents, are plants that survive with hardly any water.  Bromeliads are another example, except I don’t have any of those.  Here’s a Xerophyte I do have:

It’s the tall spiky succulent in the back.  It’s commonly known as Milk barrel and formally known as Euphorbia horrida.  Every rose has its thorn, but in this case, the two are one in the same.  The spikes are left behind when the flower finishes blooming.  I’m looking forward to seeing it bloom; the spikes are pink.        

A Succulent Sunrise

Posted by Lesley on June 13, 2010 None comments

My sunrise plant is in bloom. 

Also known as Anacampseros telephiastrum variegata, the common name must be derrived from its hot pink hues because it doesn’t start blooming until the afternoon.   

I’m partial to the plant’s hot pink colored rosettes; I once had an apartment that color. 

S is for Sweet Potato Vine

Posted by Lesley on May 26, 2010 2 comments

There were Several S’s in the garden to choose from for today’s ABC Wednesday post - Salvia, Sage, Succulents, and Sunflowers.  But in the end, I had to Select Sweet potato vine.  Originally chosen for its hardiness, it became the Star of this post for an entirely different reason…ooh…the Suspense! 

The name refers to the vine’s bulbous-looking root System called root tubers.  It’s hardy in the Sun or Shade and even thrives in the Summer heat.  This is a purple Blackie variety, but leaves can also Show green.  Save your money when Shopping for Sweet potato vine because one Sole plant can Spawn a Slew.  Simply Snip the bottom leaves off and Stuff the Stems in Soil.  Sustain watering for Several days in Succession for 100% Success. 

As the vine Spreads and Sprawls, it Stays low and Serves as a Splendid ground cover.  It fills in bare Spots quickly and thickly - maybe a little too thickly.  I was knealing near a patch and Somehow failed to Spot this 3-foot Snake!  

I’m Suddenly Soured on Sweet potato vine!

K is for Kalanchoe and Katzenjammer

Posted by Lesley on April 2, 2010 1 comments
  • ka·lan·choe  Pronunciation: \ˌka-lən-ˈkō-ē also kə-ˈlaŋ-kə-(ˌ)wē or ˈka-lən-ˌchō\ Function: noun
  • Any of a genus (Kalanchoe) of chiefly African tropical succulent herbs or shrubs of the orpine family often cultivated as ornamentals -called also bryophyllum
  • kat·zen·jam·mer  Pronunciation: \ˈkat-sən-ˌja-mər\ Function: noun  
  • A state of depression or bewilderment. 

 

I haven’t been depressed, but I could definitely qualify as bewildered this week.  That must be why I forgot about ABC Wednesday.  But better late than never, and there are too many K’s in the garden in need of celebration.  They all begin with Kalanchoe…

Kalanchoe blossfeldiana

Kalanchoe tubiflora

Kalanchoe daigremontiana

Mother Load of Succulents

Posted by Lesley on February 28, 2010 3 comments

My succulent garden pretty much consists of two plants, and it started with one.  A couple years ago John’s father brought me a little succulent from his garden.  It was about four inches high, if that.  That one little plant has bred hundreds since, some of which had grown into three-foot giants before the cold hit. 

I never knew what these two plants were called, but our trip to Caspersen beach made me curious.  We took the trail through the coastal hammock and spotted a couple familiar blooms. 

If only I could tell you definitively what its name is!  Common plant names are both obvious and confusing.  Obvious because their names often reflect their appearance making them easy to identify.  This is the same Chandelier plant blooming in my garden.

Just like the blooms by the beach, this one will open fully and drop to look just like a chandelier.  The name is perfect.  The problem is that it’s also know as Mother-of-millions and so is the little succulent that John’s father brought us.  It’s all very confusing, and I didn’t have much more luck with the scientific names.  The chandelier plant is called Kalanchoe tubiflora and Bryophyllum tubiflorum.  Either way these names are ridiculous for the home gardener like myself.  I require the simplicity of the common name.  I can remember Chandelier plant.  Bryophyllum tubiflorum – not likely.  More often than not, the Chandelier plant is called Mother-of-millions, and the other one is called Mother-of-thousands.  Of course, the names fit.  These plants reproduce like crazy.  The mother-of-thousands grow and reproduce so easily that I’ve planted them in cups, bowls, and shells.

They are fascinating plants and particularly self-preserving.  Normally the buds that form drop from the leaves and root with no preference or mercy.  You really have to stay on top of them.  They’ve rooted between our brick pavers, the grass, potted plants, you name it.  This shell has been a different story.  It’s been growing on our kitchen window sill.  There was literally no where for the buds to drop and take root, so they started rooting in the air.

Amazing!  I love and fear both of these plants.  I can’t even count how many Mother-of-thousands are around the house and garden at this point…thousands?  And the story is the same for the Mother-of-millions.  I started with one and now have fourteen!  There are only 14 because I learned my lesson the first time around and kept my one little plant much more contained. 

F is for Ficus

Posted by Lesley on February 24, 2010 6 comments

My First Ficus

Ficus elastica 

I’ve had this ficus since it was a baby in a gallon pot.  It was originally planted outside but grew too fast and unruly to stay there.  Plants either die or flourish in the Florida heat.  Ficus plants fall into the latter category; they’ll grow into huge trees if given the chance.  I like them better this way - contained and low-maintenance.  I put it outside when we’re expecting a heavy rain.  The roots get a soak, the leaves get a shower, and done.   

So why is F for Ficus in the first place?  Because I’m participating in a blog project called ABC Wednesdays.  Each Wednesday I’ll be featuring an item in my garden from letters A to Z…actually F to Z.  This week is Round 6 – F - so I’m late…very late if you consider that the project is in its third year.  But better late than never – here is A to E: Ants, Butterflies, Crotons, Dahlias, and Echinacea-I’d normally refer to these as Purple coneflowers but E is a tough letter.  I better plant some Zinnias before I get to Z.