Africanaussie

The cordelines are flowering and I think they look quite scruffy.  The bees and honeyeaters love the flowers though.  I thought I would take a closer look at the flowers.  They are quite untidy as the birds go crazy pulling bits off, and they go in all different diections....  Taking a closer look shows how pretty they are though.  They remind me of the flowers on the bromeliads.  At long last my passionfruit vine has flowers, and fruit.  It has taken so long - I am really not sure why.  Fruit salad alley is sure looking productive lately.  Lemons, limes, the odd strawberry and mulberry, and now passionfruit.  It is perfectly place near the front door because you can smell their sweet scent even before you see the flowers.  It is like living in paradise.  I am truly blessed.  Sometimes I experiment with seeds that I am not sure will grow in my climate.  I ordered a bag of seeds specially for teas. Lemon Balm...

When a plant is easy to grow and propagate, and never any trouble do you find that you also take it for granted?  Cordelines are like that with me,  I can  just cut the top off, stick the cut end into the ground and it will grow a new plant.  If I want a whole row of cordelines I place the stick horizonatally in the ground, cover with a bit of dirt and a new plant will pop up at every node. I add them here and there to break up the green.   Now the cordelines are in flower, and over the weekend I took a step back and looked at these plants through new eyes.  Just look at a close up of these lovely flowers..... I dont know why I have never really looked that hard at the cordeline flowers.  Maybe because they come at a time when the garden is growing so profusely and all the large tropical flowers are in bloom.   Once I started really looking I noticed quite a few "hidden" beauties. These chleredon (I thought that was what they are c...

I don't know what happened - I just took a break from blogging.  As each of my eggplant turned up their noses and succumbed to bacterial wilt I began to wonder if gardening was really all it is cracked up to be....  This was how I was feeling about trying to grow a few measly vegetables in the tropics.  What with the cost of organic fertilizers, mulches, compost bins, seaweed tonics, etc I was probably paying about 50.00 for each cucumber I got out of my veggie garden!  Then I saw a flower spike on my aloe vera :)  Gosh, I wondered, have any of my loyal readers ever seen an aloe vera in flower (I never have) It is such a pretty flower too - look at those little bell shaped flowers, and it sure is attracting lots of pollinators.  So that one little flower spike has managed to give me back my mojo!   We have been enjoying the cucumber, and even have enough to share with the neighbors. There is also lots of bok choy which I have been ...

While I was watering the garden the back light behind these burgundy and red plants caught my eye - not sure that the beauty of the scene really shows up in the photo.   The rex begonia are beautiful when they flower, but then the leaves themselves are a delight too - not sure if the back of the leaf is even prettier than the front.   I love the red stems on this pink and green variegated plant.  It was pretty much crushed when the tree was pruned but has come back better than ever.  this is such a pretty little coleus - it keeps popping up every where and I don't mind one bit! This caladiums leaves are the biggest I have ever seen, and I love the curly edges. The sunshine on the reddish pink leaves of the cordeline were just waiting to be photographed. I am in love with the red and pink foliage in our garden: I thought since I eventually got around ...

I love the splash of color that the Cordelines and hibiscus flowers give to the variegated green and white foliage in my front garden.  So I decided to insert a few more along the length.   Cordeline are so easy to propagate -  cut off a branch and stick it in the ground, and it will grow.  Out in the sun the colour becomes very vibrant.

I cant believe that a couple of weeks ago I thought things were drying out and we were going to have an early dry season.  Shows what I know!  For over a week we have had torrential rain, with water over the roads blocking access, and the back yard a total bog.  My little veggie seedlings are slightly protected , but not getting any sunshine other than the liquid variety.  Some wet scenes from around the garden.... The variegated hibiscus goes very white at this time of year, and I love how that contrasts with the flowers that dangle wetly from the ends of the branches.  This bromeliad is quite prolific at this time of year - the colours are quite delicious. Even the Cordelines show off their hot pink leaves.  The weight of too much rainwater has made this tall one collapse.  I will cut the top off and it will re-shoot.  The red ginger flowers out the back that I have been meaning to t...

I have recently developed a love for leaves with red backs....  In the shady garden I thought that a lot of plants would not flower and began to look or more interesting foliage,and that is where it all started.  I picked up one of these little plants at the orchid show last year, and have already subdivided them once.   I volunteered at the local markets on Saturday and  found a few plants I just had to have. The one was this variegated leaf Calathea. I have admired the Calathea with red undersides, and on looking it up discovered that the first plant is also a Calathea, or peacock plant.  Some plants like this cordeline start off pink and then turn a darker shade as they age. This one has even more color distinction between the old and new leaves. I think my favorite foliage plant though has to be this grey leaved rex begonia.  From one little slip I have subdivided it many t...

I love the garden from this angle, but it never looks quite as good in a photo as it does in real life.  You have to get in closer to see the colorful cordeline leaves. This one is the most common and often taken for granted, but its color is always reliable as long as it gets a bit of sunshine. You have to bend down low to see the ground orchids - they love the wet season.  and wander down one of the paths to admire the anthiriums - Look at those shiny leaves! Watch out for the prickles on the pineapple bromeliad! such a cute little thing this is, as long as you don't get too involved with the prickles.  Thanks for taking a wander through the garden to find its hidden delights.

Hot pink is the order of the day out in the front yard.   With the bouganvilla on the left side of the gate and this bed off to the right, I think it was a good choice to remove the red Kalanchoe to the back.    Definitely sunshine and the drier weather is what brings out the pink in the Cordelines.  Look how colorful the new leaves are!  Then the iresine too is definitely happier with this weather.  This is spreading all around the base of the bouganvilla. I love the frilly pink edges of this coleus.  I will be rooting some more of this lovely and spreading it around the front of the bed.  It is so easy just to cut off a little piece, dip it in rooting hormone and then plant it out. It survives here year round, but becomes more colorful at this time of year. .Funny that I have been feeling that the garden doesn't have  much impact ...

As the back garden (side garden really) has become our entertainment area and the area where most of my plants are growing, the entrance to the garden has slowly evolved.  At first we used the little wooden gate, and I tried to get visitors to wander through the little path I had created.  Most visitors would have none of that and would rather squeeze between the post and the car in the carport! Then the decision was made to permanently close off one of the big double gates, and use the other big gate as the actual entrance into the garden.  Having the path visible through the gate did the trick and suddenly I had created curb appeal!  This weekend I decided to extend the front bed, therefore leading the eye directly to the gate. Don't you think the two white pots seem to shout - hey come this way?    I think it flows nicely, and I have planted one cordeline, but also needed another plant to fill in the remaining space. Cordeline...

I have a lot of red flowers in my garden,  but this weekend, pink seemed to be the colour of choice. The sliver of orange peeks out ready to erupt into multicoloured heleconia. A different type of cordeline - this type has large very leathery feeling leaves and a close up of the wonderful colours inside the new leaf My cordeline in full sun in the front garden has turned very pink.  I think this aswers my question as to whether they have better colour in sunshine.  I am thinking of moving all my cordleines (or most of them) from the deep shade to alongside the wooden fence which looks quite bare now that the shade cloth is gone. This little pink foliage plant is easy to propogate from cutting and I have it scattered around the garden. I love the way it looks next to the cordeline leaf. The central rib is quite  a stunning hot pink shade. as you can see from the photos we are having quite  a bit of sunshine.  The plants seem to have got used to all...