The Mighty Plumbago

I first became familiar with Plumbago (Plumbago auriculata) several years ago when we were planning our Galveston garden. This is a pretty popular garden plant in that area. It grows into a pretty big bush with time and will be covered in pale periwinkle blue flowers during much of the year (in warm climates).

Plumbago auriculata

We planted one in Galveston and it grew quite large - prior to the brutal winter, which killed it. We have since replaced that bush with a tiny starter, which I expect will take a year or two before it is dominating it's area of the flowerbed.

Plumbago auriculata

This has become my wife's favorite plant. A couple of years ago we ran across a Plumbago in a nice black square pot at a nursery in Oklahoma and decided to get one for our house, even though it's not hardy. We keep the plant in my greenhouse overwinter and it usually looks pretty rough in the spring when we pull it back outside, but it grows pretty quickly and flowers vigorously in the summer. It is putting on quite the show right now. Soon I will have to prune it back and squeeze it into my greenhouse for the cold winter months.

Plant Find: Begonia sizemoreae

The title of this post is a bit misleading. I didn't find this plant; it was given to me by my friend Steve. I use the "Plant Find" heading for new plants coming into my collection, regardless of how I obtained them. Steve tells me that it roots very easily from leaf cuttings and he has had to start tossing his cuttings now because he has so much of this plant.

Begonia sizemoreae

Begonia sizemoreae is native to Vietnam and likes humidity. It has been enjoying our wet summer. The leaves and petioles are covered in long bristly hairs.

Begonia sizemoreae

This beautifully patterned Begonia is named after an avid collector named Mary Sizemore. She is well known among Begonia aficionados.

Update: Sacred Bodhi Tree

Seven years ago I was gifted some seedling Sacred Bodhi trees (Ficus religiosa) from a friend. Read more about the tree here. I gave one of those seedlings to my mother-in-law for insurance. I'm glad I did because my tree died a couple of years ago when it got too dry in my greenhouse. My mother-in-law's tree goes through a series of phases: rapid growth, scale infestation, dropping all the leaves - repeat. We're not sure why the scale keeps coming back, as it seems completely free of them when it is in it's rapid growth phase. Anyway, it seems to be an established pattern now.

Sacred Bodhi Tree sapling (Ficus religiosa)

I recently took two cuttings of her tree when it was in a rapid growth phase and one of those cuttings has rooted. I started the cutting in pure vermiculite. After I was sure that roots were established I transferred it to potting soil. It's now producing new leaves and seems to be pretty happy. In a humid tropical climate this tree would easily be meters tall by now, but in our temperate Oklahoma climate (and my mother-in-law's plant being grown indoors) it is staying fairly small, almost a bonsai. I'm so thankful to have this little tree back in my collection and will monitor it closely.

A couple Huernia blooms

Without a doubt, Huernia is my favorite succulent genus. This genus is in the Stapeliaceae family, closely related to the common carrion flower/starfish plant, Stapelia gigantea. I have amassed a pretty good collection of these plants and always seek them out at the Central Oklahoma Cacti and Succulent Show. This year I purchased a new one that was labeled Huernia sp. The petals of the flower reflex after a day or two, resulting in a different appearance (shown in second photo).

It bloomed not long after the show and I was able to get some help identifying it as either Huernia procumbens or a hybrid of that species.

Another Huernia that I picked up recently is Huernia zebrina, which has very distinct yellow and red flowers. This plant is sometimes called the Lifesaver Plant, due to the red ring that forms in the center of the flower, similar to the plant above, but more pronounced and much more colorful. I was delighted when the first flower opened on my plant and have been pleasantly surprised to see this plant flower constantly all summer for me. There have been as many as 5 flowers open on the plant at one time.

Year of Encyclia

2018 has been a banner year for my Encyclia collection. I have never had so many species bloom before. I just wanted to post a bunch of photos of their beautiful flowers here together to share the variety.

In all, I had at least 16 Encyclia plants bloom this year, as well as about 8 other orchids.

• Encyclia alata (syn. belizensis)
• Encyclia angustiloba
• Encyclia atrorubens
• Encyclia 'Belize 82'
• Encyclia hanburyi
• Encyclia phoenicea
• Encyclia plicata
• Encyclia ramonense
• Encyclia seidelii
• Encyclia tampensis
• Encyclia tampensis v. alba
• Encyclia unaensis
• Encyclia Faerie Glen
• Encyclia Gay Rabbit
• Encyclia Grand Bahama
• Encyclia Orchid Jungle