Please do drop by and visit my other blog: My Dry Tropics Garden ... it provides a more informative look at what's going on in my garden out in the bush.

Friday, June 14, 2013

Another Early Winter Flower Flaunt Friday.

Well the conditions warmed up a little this week, and it felt more like early Summer than early Winter.  Yesterday the daytime temp reached 29 deg C  (84 F) and the same high is predicted for today.  We've had almost no rain at all this month (a miserly 1.4 mm, which is 0.1 of an inch), which is typical for our dry season.

Out in the garden there are blooms appearing on the Cordylines ...


like Cordyline 'Red Wings', which provided a feast for the grasshoppers over the summer,


Cordyline 'Purple King',


and our native Cordyline cannifolia.

I have a few rather insignificant Dracaenas around the garden, but occasionally they break into bloom and remind me that there are fantastic attributes to all plants.



This is one year that the Dracaena reflexas have started blooming.


It's also time for the Corymbia torelliana or Cadaghi Gums to begin their blooming cycle, and tiny little flower buds have started appearing on both trees.  Soon the flowers will be attracting all sorts of wonderful birds and insects.

In the middle of the courtyard garden,


 the native Sterculia quadrifida or Peanut Tree is still covered in its rather insignificant looking flower sprays,


but now the fruit has begun appearing as well.  These pods will turn from a dull green to a bright orange-red and add some terrific colour to the courtyard.  At the moment the tree is dropping most of its leaves and making an absolute mess of the courtyard.

Out in pots in my courtyard garden,




there are lovely Viola flowers,


Cleome spinosa 'Senorita Rosalita' blooms,



weird and wonderful Celosia flowers,


 Schlumbergera or Zygocactus flowers,


Plectranthus 'Mona Lavender' blooms,


 and cheerful Marigold blooms.

I'm joining Tootsie for Fertilizer Friday / Flaunt Your Flowers


Nix for Floral Friday Fotos


and Today's Flowers



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32 comments:

  1. eileeninmdJune 14, 2013 at 9:38 AM

    Lovely flowers and photos, they are all gorgeous! Have a happy weekend!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 14, 2013 at 10:27 AM

      Thanks Eileen, I'm really looking forward to a relaxing and quiet weekend. I'll be outside doing some fertilizing and watering though.

      Delete
  2. DeniseinVAJune 14, 2013 at 10:26 AM

    You certainly brightened up my evening Bernie, these are lovely photos of your flowers.

    Denise
    Today’s Flowers
    An English Girl Rambles

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 15, 2013 at 10:12 AM

      Thank you Denise. It's great to hear you've enjoyed the flower shots today.

      Delete
  3. AnonymousJune 14, 2013 at 5:20 PM

    lovely as ever !

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    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 15, 2013 at 10:12 AM

      I appreciate you dropping by, Gwennie, thank you.

      Delete
  4. AndreaJune 14, 2013 at 6:09 PM

    Hi Bernie, I am not envious of your temperatures anymore, but i do with your ability to grow violas and pansies. I also haven't seen our D reflexa blooming, in fact i haven't seen one in bloom. Maybe it really doesn't like our temperatures, so they feel like obliterating their species here. That purple Ti plant bloom is wonderful too, haven't seen it also.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 15, 2013 at 10:16 AM

      Kalantikan, I've found that it takes quite a number of years before Dracaena reflexa bloom. They have to be very mature and obviously only respond to a certain combination of conditions before they flower. I don't see the blooms very often. The plant growing under the pergola has only bloomed twice in the twelve years we've been here. The Dracaena growing out in front of the shadehouse only shown its very first blooms, and both plants were here when we moved in so I'm not sure just how old they are.

      Delete
  5. AnonymousJune 15, 2013 at 3:01 AM

    You took some great pictures. The colors in the first two photographs especially blew me away. Stunning! I had never heard of a Cordyline before. Now I want one!

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    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 15, 2013 at 10:17 AM

      Capeofdreams, Cordylines are the most spectacular looking plants. The colours available today are just amazing. Not only do they have fabulous foliage but the flower sprays look fantastic too.

      Delete
  6. LonaJune 15, 2013 at 8:08 AM

    Hi Bernie. I love that Plectranthus 'Mona Lavender', the foliage is so lovely with the lavender blooms. You have a lot of wonderful flowers to tide you over your winter.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 15, 2013 at 10:18 AM

      Lona, the Mona is a particular favourite of mine. I too am besotted with the colour of the foliage and the flowers. Not only that, but it flowers for such a long time. We are very lucky here to have so many blooms around during the wintertime.

      Delete
  7. Sue CatmintJune 15, 2013 at 9:09 AM

    hi bernie, love your flauntees. Not surprisingly given the extreme climate difference, none grow in my garden.

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    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 15, 2013 at 10:19 AM

      Catmint, thank you. I rather enjoy the fact that your blooms are just so different to the ones I see around here. It's wonderful seeing just how much of a contrast there is.

      Delete
  8. Donna@Gardens Eye ViewJune 15, 2013 at 9:56 PM

    I absolutely adore that spiky Celosia...very cool!

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    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 15, 2013 at 11:45 PM

      It's an impressive looking thing isn't it? I just love it.

      Delete
  9. Jean CampbellJune 15, 2013 at 10:56 PM

    Violas and Schlumbergers, two of my favorites. I saw plectranthus for sale the other day. I should have bought it.

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    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 15, 2013 at 11:46 PM

      Yes you must get the Plectranthus, NellJean. You won't be disappointed. The foliage and the flowers are simply wonderful. Over here it's a very long bloomer and requires very little care, just the occasional trim back.

      Delete
  10. Lee@A Guide to Northeastern GardeningJune 15, 2013 at 11:26 PM

    Lovely foliage and blooms. The Cordyline 'Purple King' looks like orchids-gorgeous!

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    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 15, 2013 at 11:47 PM

      Cordylines do have the most gorgeous flowers. Looking at 'Purple King' again, I can see how you would say it's orchid-like.

      Delete
  11. BernieHJune 15, 2013 at 11:45 PM

    Thanking you kindly, Aaron.

    ReplyDelete
  12. KarenJune 16, 2013 at 2:16 AM

    Oh, all beautiful, but I love the Cordylines!

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    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 17, 2013 at 7:08 AM

      Thanks for visiting, Karen. The Cordyline blooms are quite lovely right now.

      Delete
  13. HELENEJune 16, 2013 at 11:16 AM

    That purple/pink cordyline is spectacular, even if it has been eaten by grasshoppers! We can grow cordylines here too, but I have never seen any in flower so that’s probably reserved for climates like yours. Loved your celosia and the violas, and all the flowers I don’t know, always something new I have never seen before on your blog Bernie :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 17, 2013 at 7:09 AM

      That Cordyline 'Red Wings' is a very popular choice for gardens here, Helene. It's even used by our town council for street planting. They look fantastic any time of the year.

      Delete
  14. lotusleafJune 16, 2013 at 4:37 PM

    So many unusual flowers! I like the purple cordyline flowers.

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    1. BernieHJune 17, 2013 at 7:10 AM

      Thanks so much for visiting, Lotusleaf. The 'Purple King' Cordyline is still a little one, so I'm looking forward to seeing it mature and make a more spectacular display.

      Delete
  15. Pat's AdditionJune 17, 2013 at 3:59 AM

    Ha! My "Christmas" cactus are also in bloom. Wonder what they'll do for Christmas?

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    1. BernieHJune 17, 2013 at 7:11 AM

      Pat, over Christmas the Schlumbergeras do not bloom here. I only ever see blooms on them during our winter, which is over June, July and August. Mine have never bloomed twice in one year.

      Delete
  16. ArijaJune 17, 2013 at 11:07 PM

    You really are making the most of your courtyard garden. Love the colour range of your collection of Cordylines.

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    Replies
    1. BernieHJune 18, 2013 at 7:28 AM

      Thanks Arija. I'm planning on adding a little more colour to the courtyard garden this coming weekend by potting up some more annuals. I want just a few more flowers out there.

      Delete
  17. Rosie, wildlife and nature gardenerJune 18, 2013 at 10:14 PM

    We struggle to keep cordylines frost free over winter and they never flower here so it's wonderful to see what the flowers could be like if we had the right temperatures :)

    ReplyDelete

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