Checking in at 97 degrees on this 1st day of fall
My watermelon peperomias are liking this warm weather!
Comments (11)
Tika Land
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Fall Update on 1st year No Spray Garden
Comments (30)JBCarr, I could not agree with you more about monoculture and especially with roses. I'm learning more about gardening than about roses although they will always be my first love. They shine much more when planted amoung other plants rather than with other roses. As I change my gardening habits, I'm keeping this in mind and replacing these monocultures with different shrubs. Just my opinion on gardening, no judgment call. I'm reminded of the story of Mrs. Wilmont's Ghost. Seems Mrs. Ellen (?) Wilmont, a gardener of some repute, was asked by many to come evaluate their gardens. Her assessment was almost always, not enough contrast, not enough diversity. A few weeks after her visit, the gardener noticed a number of sea hollies (a course looking, prickly perennial) sprouting in the bare spots in their garden. Mrs. Wilmont often carried seeds of this plant in her pocket to "help with the contrast and diversity." Len511, I wish my Felicia was doing well. She is bare caned; not pretty at all. Good luck! I hope yours continues to do well. And my Felicia is prone to sending up those long canes, but is too broad to be a climber. Jeri, I suspect weather is the greatest most uncontrollable factor in any garden. We've had years with drought but this year we've had above average rainfall, except for a dry August. Now, with all the hurricanes, our weather has turned wet again. Still, there is very little mildew compared to the last two years. I think most of the roses are going through "withdrawal" from chemical dependency. Some I know will never recover. I can only wait and see. Barbara...See MoreOkay...what did I do wrong? 1st attempt fail!
Comments (9)Hi bosewichte, Well, of course, it's hard to tell what may have caused your problems by just reading your post. Basically, it sounds like you did everything about right. There are a few things that I do wonder about however; they may or may not be the cause of the problems. First of all, I think you should get a thermostat for your heat mat. Without it, you really don't know what the temperature of the growing media is. Usually, you don't want the temperature to go over about 75 or 76 degrees. Then, you mentioned filling and using plastic dixie cups. Actually, they're pretty deep for seed germination. To prevent the growing media from staying too wet, shallower containers probably would have been better. In any case, you want the media to be moist and not wet. When the seeds germinate, their roots will need oxygen, which can be driven out by too much water. Also, watering seeds from the top can easily cause the seeds to be buried too deep. Most folks agree that gentle bottom watering is the best. If the growing media is moist (not wet) before you put it into the germination containers, and you use the plastic domes, you probably would not need to add any more water until after the seeds have germinated. My guess is that your seeds ended up too deep and/or the growing media was too wet. You should see slight condensation on the underside of the dome, but if water runs down the sides it's too wet. Hope this is helpful and good luck in the future with your seed germinating. Art...See MoreNeed help monitoring 1st native mw up and 1st Monarch seen in Okl
Comments (7)Thanks Dawn for posting your mw being up. I would be almost positive that it is indeed viridis. You are correct that the mw tends to come up faster by the edge of the road more than likely due to the warmth of the pavement, and tendency to hold water. Congrats upon seeing your 1st Monarch!!! Even if it looked pretty fresh, it was still your 1st sighting, and they are always the most special. Probably a Houston migrant looking to leave some eggs. I will post your sightings. I always look forward to your reports. They are appreciated. :) How wonderful to hear that you got some much needed rain. I know that you were really dry, and it will make a big difference. Okiegardener, good to hear from you. Like Randy said, it is probably too late to think about planting some native mw seeds in April. Alot of them them require cold stratification. But, tropical mw does very well in Ok. Occassionally, it will reseed for me in warmer winters, but I have never had it come back from the roots in Okla. I have been able to overwinter some in pots in the garage. The Monarchs do tend to prefer it in laying their eggs. What part of Okla. do you live? You may have some luck finding the A. tuberosa in some nurseries. It is perennial, and comes back every year. The blooms are gorgeous, and really attracts the butterflies, but does not do well in the heat. The A. incarnata (Swamp mw) does well in a lower wetter area with morning sun in central Ok. Sometimes you can find it in nurseries. I would highly second Randy's recommendation in trying to make one of Marilyn's plant shows from Wildthings Nursery. She is a dear friend, very knowledgeable about natives and butterflies, and has quite the green thumb. She carries alot of hard to find butterfly host plants that she grows from seed or propagation. E-mail her, and perhaps you can work something out. Good luck with your butterfly garden! Randy,hope things are going well for you and your daughter. Are you about to get caught up on your ice storm mess? I'm sure that your daughter is continuing to win gymnast awards. Thanks for checking on your mw. :) Hope that the Monarchs stay put. Forecast of high of 49 on Friday, with temps down to 30's on Saturday with possible SNOW???? Oh,no. Keep in touch!...See More1st full day of fall Irony
Comments (4)Mid 80s here today and tomorrow and very humid. We are much cooler than areas just inland and to the south (DC is at 98F as of 3:30pm!), but Ill take any mild weather. After this warm spell it looks like rain, clouds, and 70s. Its fall like weather, except the temperatures are a little bit warmer than usual on a few days. I hope that fall doesnt come quick at all! I really dont like the look of the trees changing color anyway! Maybe its nice once you head toward the mountains, but in the city and suburbs, it just makes a mess (But also good compost!)...See More
Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
last yearFantastic! It's about the same temp here. Adenium likes it.
Tika Land thanked Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, ALTiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
last yearAl, stay warm! Brrr! It hasn't been as low as 60 here since probably May.
Tika, I hope it's not 97 in your house!
On /near front porch this morning.Ficus elastica
cane Begonia
'Benigo' Begonia. I think it's a mallet-type. It has red stems and rough-feeling leaves.
tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
last yearlast modified: last yearBeautiful and sunny today. Light breeze and 62*, though it was a chilly 64* in the house when we got up and started moving around. First day we turned on the central heating system.
A while ago someone asked about an ID for one of the plants in a mixed planting I shared an image of. It's the sort of chartreuse plant with the little balls (seed pods) to the left of the frog.
Strangely, the last time I used that bedding plant, Talinum paniculatum, commonly - jewels of Opar, in a mixed planting was in '08, yet, a couple of days after the inquiry I spied a volunteer in the front garden. It had to have been from 2008 because it was under a post I put in the garden to elevate mixed plantings.
The tall, multi-stemmed plant in the middle and growing straight up is an upright form of oregano - I forget the species and cultivar.
I like the plant and thought it would be cool as part of a Kusamono planting I'd put together spring '23, so I dug it up and potted it. This was just a few weeks ago, and I was hoping there would be time enough for it to set seed.
It did set seed, and I've been clipping the pods off as they mature:
If you look closely at the peduncle (flower stalk) you can see what looks like a swelling but is really another cluster of flower buds with stalks emerging. Inside the cup formed by the leaves, there are a number of additional stems forming, The plant is a perennial, though not hardy where I live (hardy to USDA z9a and above), but I should have no trouble over-wintering under lights. It is a perennial/ succulent, in case anyone is interested in growing it. They come easy from seed and take 1-2 wks to germinate.Other images taken this AM:
Epimedium sulphureum ^^^ akaBarrenwort
Athyrium filix-femina 'Rotstiel Grandiceps' ^^^ aka crested lady fernThe pots the 2 plants immediately above are planted in soup bowls from Walmart with holes drilled in the bottom.
Juniperus chinensis 'Shimpaku', pruned, wired and seriously thinned yesterday.Al
Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
last yearTiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
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popmama (Colorado, USDA z5)
last yearTiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
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popmama (Colorado, USDA z5)