Tropicals & Tender Perennials: 'Phoenix' bird or paradise, 2 by pk33635

pk33635 wrote:
Elaine...I will keep that offer in my back pocket if/when the orchid bug strikes :)

Yes, the boug is irrigated. And, that area in the summer actually gets a little more shade than it does now, so prob just at 6 hours of sun all day...a 9ish ft robellini palm is about 3 ft in front of it, and the front overhang of the house starts shading @ 4-5 pm in summer.

the lobelia are so incredibly tiny i'm afraid to touch them! there really arent clumps...more like an open moss over 2 ft of bed. if they are even 1/8 of an inch tall thats giving them credit. maybe this last day and a half of rain will give em a boost. ...speaking of that, we had a thunderstorm on Monday...not summer-severe, but still..peculiar in Feb.

thanks for the warning to prep for the tomatoes to drop...there always seems to be inexpensive starter plants at all the stores, I wouldn't waste the anxiety of seeds for toms :)

I'm going to let the coleus establish for a few weeks before I start cuttings, although you make them sound pretty tough.

cupid's dart...never saw anything come up, and its been a month. Ah well...the zinneas are practically jumping out of the ground...whats up with that??? Love it, but surprising...also, some of the cannas are already up. both went in last Sat, attached a couple pics of the canna.

Question about nasties...in the 3rd pic (love this multi-pic upload capability now, btw) you see nasties in the same little border with the orange boug. One of them has actually looped stems around one of the boug branches and seems to be climbing it...is it pretty much harmless for the boug? I realize they'll die down as it gets hotter, so I kinda want to see what its capable of, but not at the expense of this boug i've babied along.