After the rain photos

We had quite a few showers lately. And storms. After each one of them, there came an "after the rain" period, when everything looks clean, the nature more green and the air fresher than ever.

I'm happy to share with you two of my recent photos, both taken in my backyard, during that precious time - right after the rain.



Blooming Adam's needle (Yucca filamentosa) after the rain




Blooming Barbra Streisand pink rose after the rain



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How to attract birds and butterflies

To make your outdoors even more beautiful and natural, arrange your backyard so it becomes bird and butterfly-friendly. It doesn't take much more than choosing the right plants - and watching the video below. And the results just might astonish you...

Enjoy!





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Daffodil flower

Daffodils have always been one of my favorite spring flowers. My grandmother had them all over her backyard, underneath the grape vines. I'll never forget that sight and the fresh smell of spring ground, bursting with life.

  

A few years ago I bought some flowering bushes from one of the online nurseries and received a bag of tulip bulbs and a bag of daffodil bulbs as a free gift with that purchase. Obviously, the staff at that nursery didn't care much about the fact that some people live in zone 9 or higher and these bulbs might never get a chance to produce a single bloom.

And that's exactly what happened. I faithfully planted all the bulbs, hoping that somehow, one of these beautiful springs, they will make my day with the blooms that so unmistakably remind me of those care-free days of my childhood.

Nothing happened - for at least four years. The greenery came out every spring - and not a single tulip or daffodil flower.

This last winter was different. A lot more frosts and lower temperatures that usually and a few days ago I noticed a flower bud on one of the daffodil plants in planter next to our driveway. It made me so happy I felt like dancing the dance of joy... :)

This morning my first and only Florida daffodil flower was opened and beautiful. Right away I had to grab a camera and snap some photos. Can you tell I've been playing in Corel with my snapshots for a little while?

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Vivacious November Flowers

I took photos in the video this very morning around my home.





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Endangered species: Prickly apple cactus

Fragrant prickly apple cactus (Cereus eriophorus var. fragrans), also known as fragrant woolly cactus - is a slender, columnar cactus tree. It can grow up to 5 meters tall on dry-sandy soil, prefers partial shade, it sometimes grows more horizontally (than in height) and likes to recline its long stems over surrounding vegetation.

Prickly apple is native to Florida but can presently only be found in three geographically-isolated areas of southeastern coastal Florida. Since November 1 of 1985 fragrant woolly cactus is listed as endangered. It is protected from destruction on public lands. Yet - on private lands the loss of habitat and fragmentation remain serious threat.

Seeds of this endangered succulent are most likely distributed by birds, rodents and gopher tortoises.Its flowers are showy and fragrant, white or pink-colored and open only at night.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find a good photo I could use.



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Fall color

We don't get to see a lot of fall colors around here but below are some that I captured this morning.

 

Photo above: Purple coneflowers - echinacea, now ready to become food for birds and - to reseed itself. 

Photo above: All of a sudden, pine trees have lots of brown needles - a definite sign of fall being right around the corner.

 

Photo above: American Beauty Berry with bright purple berries is already standing out from the rest of the greenery, although - that color is still getting deeper and even more showy...

 

  

Photo above: Wild persimmons are starting to paint themselves in orange. It's their favorite fall shade... :)

 

  

Photo above: Virginia creeper on the dead oak tree. It's a lovely sight, year round.

 

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After the rain

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New kid on the block

The first thing I've seen this morning when opening my bedroom window - such a pretty blooms, another Florida native plant I don't know the name of.

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Dayflower

Ever since the rainy season started on June 1, we get some rain almost every single day. That's obviously what Dayflowers (Commelina erecta), also called Widow's Tears, like a lot. Because last year I was hardly able to catch a few throughout the growing season and this year they grow and bloom in abundance.

Every morning when I open the window in one of the rooms, facing north, I notice new blooms that simply glow through all the greenery and are simply impossible to miss since they excell in such an unusual tone of blue.

I have to say that because of that unusual color, dayflowers are quite tricky to photograph. In the sun, they look almost white or very pale so it's very important to catch them early in the morning, in the shade. They are simply enchanting. I hope you can feel that from some of my best photos, posted here.

Learn more about dayflower: description, propagation and landscape uses - and see more pictures.




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Purple Echinacea

I bought a tiny echinacea seedling last spring at the flea market. It didn't grow much and then it died back during the coldest part of the winter.

This spring, however, it reappeared and developed into an impressive plant (photo above) with several buds. Its foliage is perfect in every way.

And this is the first bloom (photo below), starting the show that I'm really looking forward to see and share with you! :)

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Florida Sunflower

On the photo below is one of more than twenty species of sunflowers (daisy family), native to Florida. This one was a gift from Linda and it just started blooming. It has amazingly pretty foliage and it grows like a groundcover plant. I can't wait to see how tall and wide it grows and I'm really looking forward to collect the seeds and plant more of these hardy beauties for the next season.





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Beautiful Monday Morning

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Blooming American Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana)

American Beautyberry is another one of Florida natives that's very easy to care for and does well no matter how extreme the weather gets. As all the native plants, it is naturally adapted to the weather conditions and doesn't get damaged easily and no pests will bother it. It grows 4-6 feet tall and wide.

Plant American Beautyberry in full sun to partial shade, in acidic to neutral soil. Its foliage is deciduous. Parts of plants are poisonous in case of ingestion.

Propagation is easy - from seeds or cuttings. It might self-seed.

Both photos: Blooming American Beautyberry after the rain

American Beautyberry looks best when planted amongst other plants/greenery to hide it when it goes dormant during winter time. In late winter (just before the leaves start to flush out) it should be pruned to about 6". This way the bush will grow much fuller and not so tall or leggy.

Unpruned, American Beautyberry bush can get very tall and leggy . Pruning also increases the flowering and fruiting since flowers occur only on the new growth.

In mid spring it starts blooming. Blooms can be in any color from white to pink, from lavender to violet. This bush is very attractive to bees, butterflies and birds, especially mockingbirds.

In fall, American Beautyberry is indescribably attractive with its clusters of purple berries. Mockingbirds sit on the plant and eat berries one at the time. Sometimes even squirrels eat them.

They are edible for human consumption "as is" although they aren't very flavorful, except the ones growing on the river banks with plenty of sunshine. However, they are delicious when made into jelly which especially early Floridians enjoyed a lot.



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Turkey Oak (Quercus laevis)

Photo above: Turkey oak seedling

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St. John's Wort - Hypericum fasciculatum, Native to Florida

According to the author of the photo below, this picture of a shruby St. John's Wort was taken in Sumatra, Florida. Hypericum fasciculatum or Peelbark St. John's-Wort can be found throughout Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and North and South Carolina.

It prefers wet flatwoods, bogs, swamp and pond margins. Hypericum fasciculatum is charcterized as 'Aquatic, Wetland and Invasive Plant' (University of Florida, Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants). Despite that, it sure looks pretty!

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Red Hibiscus

Hibiscus is very popular with gardeners and plant collectors in all the different climates around the world; it's grown indoors in colder areas (like northern Canada) and outdoors in warm to steamy hot ones (like the Brazil backyards) but in Florida, this is one of the easiest plants to grow. Some of the hibiscus varieties are such a prolific bloomers that they produce vibrantly colored flowers year-round.

There are hundreds of single-petaled and double-petaled varieties attainable. The common ones are sold in most garden centers while the rare, exotic hybrids can be purchased at specialty nurseries and plant shows.

Hibiscus plants come in all the different colors, from most common reds to pinks, yellows, lavenders and blues to whites, browns and golds.

The tallest kinds can grow as tall as 10 to 15 feet and others are only a few feet tall. Since these plants are so easy to shape by pruning in early spring, in Florida hibiscus is frequently used as a hedge, especially around the business buildings.



For all the frugal gardeners out there and especially the ones who enjoy growing everything from seeds, here's some good news: growing hibiscus from seed is very easy!

Lots of amazing photos of hibiscus' blooms and useful information can be found at http://www.internationalhibiscussociety.org/

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Pink Is In!

All along the U.S. Highway 19 in Hernando county, these pretty flowers from the photos below are blooming in tones from white to light pink and hot-hot pink to any rosy-red color in between. The best thing is that these beauties (probably called "weeds" by most Floridians) start blooming around Easter/early March and continue for at least a month if not longer. Looking at them makes one forget about all the red traffic lights...

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Thriving Palmetto & Yucca

Above: Young palmetto in front, Yucca in the back

Above: Heaven for birds and other small wildlife

Blooms and Buds of Pink Veined Milkweed - Closeup

These are just soooooooooo pretty... I can't help myself but take photos of them over and over again.

Easter Sunday in My Backyard

We had some steady rain last night and during the night. As a result, this Easter morning is gorgeous: it smells, sounds, looks and feels like spring. The nature is fresh and bursting with life, new leafs and new buds and blooms. All kinds of birds are singing and chirping all over the place and at least one woodpecker is looking for his breakfast on one of the tree trunks in the vicinity. I love spring!!! :o)

The first thing I did this morning (still in my PJ's) was, I grabbed my camera, walked all around the house and took these photos of newborn life - right after receiving news that a baby girl, named Ana after her grandmother, was also born early this morning. Welcome little Ana, congratulations young mommy and daddy! :o)

Orange bloom - didn't mind the rain at all

New leaves on oak trees

All washed up and sparkly after the rain : blue sky, white clouds, bright green oak leaves and elegant pine needles

Lonely Starry Rosinweed

Pink Veined Milkweed

A colony of Starry Rosinweeds

Marigold

Cosmos

Dianthus

Cosmos

Cosmos

Buds of Amaryllis

More Starry Rosinweed flowers

Phlox

Rosemary and winter lettuce in bloom

Soon-to-bloom prickly pear

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