What's growing well in your garden?

Started by TamaraEnLaPlaya, April 28, 2018, 00:44:37 AM

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TamaraEnLaPlaya

Please post pics/info/sizes/preferred conditions etc to help forumers that might like to plant one themselves. Please keep to tried and tested plants/shrubs, not a pot picked up in Lidl last week that may not survive our conditions on the island! It can be in your own garden, a neighbour or friends, or a park. Don't worry if you don't know the name - I'm sure others will help to identify them.

It would also be good to know if you bought it as a mature plant, grew it from seed or cutting, and how old it is - -post as much or little as you know.

I'll start the ball rolling with one of my favourites:

Caesalpinia gilliesii, Desert/Yellow Bird of Paradise




I planted this on the southern side of a wall/fence 2 years ago as a 12 inch seedling grown by a friend, but it still gets a lot of wind. It is now about 7 feet tall and 6 feet wide. During the 'winter' I pruned it back by about half as it had grown out over a path - within 2 months it has recovered growth all over the bare area and is blooming like mad. It gets a little water about twice a week through an irrigation system and a nightly feed via the depuradora! It produces masses of seeds and has a fairly good germination rate. Locally it has self sown in cracks in the tarmac at the side of the road - it gets regularly chopped down and rebounds!

This was the shrub after 1 year:




Last year the shrub was the subject of terrorist attack by moths or butterflies. The flower buds provided sleeper cells for the eggs that hatched into these pesky caterpillars that ate their way out leaving holes in loads of the buds. I picked the caterpillars off daily, put them in a saucer on the floor and the lizards loved them!

emmi


TamaraEnLaPlaya

Thunbergia Grandiflora

A vigorous climbing plant once it gets its feet dug in. Scambles over fences and other plants. Needs a reasonable amount of water but good drainage as well. Overwatering or lack of minerals results in these paler leaves with the veins showing. When the leaves are pale they are more susceptible to sun and wind scorch. Most of these pics show one or two flowers near each other but when it is in full bloom there are long bracts of flowers. They also look a deeper mauve than how it shows in the pics.

These pics show Thunbergia in amongst other plants - the paler growth is the relevant plant here!

After less than 1 year the plant had reached the top of the 6' fence and spread 10' wide. (On the depuradora irrigation/feed system each night! and a small supplement of fresh water twice a week during the growing season. Mineral supplements regularly.)





Original stock plant from Happy Plants at Tefia. I have successfully propagated from cuttings.

TamaraEnLaPlaya

Thunbergia Erectus

A much smaller plant than Grandiflora - it doesn't climb. Stays quite tidy with numerous upright or horizontal stems. The flower is much richer in colour than Grandiflora and doesn't seem as prone to the paler leaves. After 1 year the stems were reaching 2' in length and there were about double the number of stems to when I had planted it. Hasn't needed any special attention. Nightly feed via depuradora, no additional water in this bed. It is between some Bouganvilleas, filling the bare gap near the ground.




Original stock plant from Happy Plants, Tefia. I have yet to try propagating it.