Showing posts with label crotons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label crotons. Show all posts

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Colorful foliage

Good morning everyone. It is mild, breezy and partly cloudy out this morning. I will be heading off to work later, so not much time to play in the gardens today. I will go out and put the sprinklers on, as it is one of my two days to water with them.

In a garden forum there was a thread about colorful foliage and that's the inspiration for this post today.

Colorful foliage adds much beauty to our gardens. I sometimes take them for granted, since I want to see all colors of the rainbow in my gardens. These shrubs and plants are colorful all year long down here.

First off, are the coleus. Here is what Wikipedia has to say about them.


Solenostemon is a genus of perennial plants, native to tropical Africa, Asia, Australia, the East Indies, the Malay Archipelago, and the Philippines. They are commonly known as Coleus, a name which derives from an earlier classification under the genus name Coleus, species of which are currently included in either Solenostemon or another genus, Plectranthus.



Then we have copperleaf ~ Acalypha wilkesiana macafeana.

Copperleaf, sometimes referred to as beefsteak plant, attracts attention with its unusual, colorful variegated leaves. The large leaves are mottled in red, copper and pink. The color varies from leaf to leaf and appear as if someone randomly colored the areas between the veins. It resembles some large-leafed coleus cultivars, however, the leaves are not uniformly variegated like coleus leaves. Although it is grown for its foliage, it does produce long, slender spikes of greenish-pink flowers. For more information, visit Copperleaf Plant



Next we have Snow on the Mountain, or Snow Bush. ~ Snow bush? Yes - snowbush is a tropical plant that is well adapted to our Florida Yards, but will not survive areas with freezing temperatures. It is named because if gives the appearance of its leaves being covered with that cold white stuff – the green leaves are spotted and splotched with white, and pink and purple are sometimes blended in for an additional surprise of color.

For more info click on Snow Bush.




Next we have colorful, tropical crotons, Codiaeum Variegatum.

Codiaeum Variegatum was first introduced to America by the Henry A Dreer nursery in the 1870's. They are grown for their dazzling leaves which may include crimson, scarlet, pink, yellow, brown, and orange shades, as well as green, white and cream. For more info click on Crotons.net

We have 3 or 4 different ones.
















That's if for this morning from tropical s.e. FL. Hope you all have a great weekend playing in your gardens if the weather permits.

FlowerLady

Saturday, March 21, 2009

First Day of Spring

Good morning everyone ~ Hope your first weekend of spring is filled with wonderful outdoor projects.

Yesterday was the first day of spring, it was also my birthday. My 60th. DH is taking me to Morikami Gardens for my bday. We were going to go this past week, but we have been having some much needed rain, which postponed the event. Hopefully, we can go next week. Everything will look better after all this rain. Read about Morikami Gardens here.

It has been raining again this morning. I'm working at my job again today as I did yesterday, so no gardening for me. I did pick some blue pea vine seed pods though, and yesterday took some pictures which are shown below.

I know all of you are thrilled that spring has sprung and I wish you bounteous, beautiful gardens this year.

Happy Gardening ~ FlowerLady


Below is my main garden.
The paths in and around my garden are roll roofing material.
Inexpensive and works great.






This is my blue bottle bouquet with the shrub Thunbergia.





This is a yellow firecracker plant. I also have the red. This yellow one is one of the last plants I bought last spring. It goes great in the old Mizner flowerpots. I have two of these pots. I think we paid $5 each, or $5 for the pair, many years ago, at a yard sale.
They are heavy concrete from the 40's or earlier.






This is a Duchesse de Brabant bud, growing among crotons and azaleas.





This is a bougainvillea. Very pretty with it's blush color.





This is a wild orchid which grows with little effort on my part.