Heat!

We've only got spit...I'd rather have nothing than that again. This is how it's been, getting harder to have faith in that good, long rain I did that rain dance for. Wonder what they're going to name this desert? In my neighborhood, it's getting so easy to tell who has turf grass and mows (many don't plant any lawn and still fewer avoid mowing...like me). They're the ones with the nice even brown all over their yards. On TV they showed some kind of artificial grass that a few people are using. At the end they said something about how all they need to go with it are artificial plants...gee, people have been using artificial plants for along time! But both are such an unattractive option for most people! Guess people in this new desert need to get their lists of extremely xeriscape plants!

No, got up early to do some garden clean up and re-arranging. Needed to re-locate the AE banana, back to where I had it last summer. Moved all kinds of plants off the deck, put some in the few patches of ground left.
Princess, that Root Beer plant is worrying me. Is it a tree? It is as tall as the green house now.

Hoja Santa? Mine now comprises a small grove and they are all about 5 feet. Since it dies to the ground here and must start over every spring, I really don't know how large it can get. Is yours not scrambling everywhere? It spreads by the roots and I must battle it to keep it from taking over the entire bed. Now talk about getting huge!! The morning glory tree died to the ground and I was worried it wouldn't come back. It is now well over 6 feet tall and close to 8 feet wide. Blooms solid and continuosly.
Because I was afraid it wouldn't come back from the roots I cut several stems and kept them in the greenhouse for the winter. Every single one rooted and I have shared them with others. The China Doll is also over the top. Waaay taller than the roof and branched everywhere. It has been a God-send in this heat. Shade the entire back room. When does it bloom? Have castor bean trees all over the place and they, too, have helped shade. The bloom/seed pods are wonderful.

LOL, Brian keeps whacking my MG tree....grrrrr
He cuts the tops off tall plants...I just told him this week that the Brazilian red plumes, and the clerodendrum turks cap are coming into bloom time and not to chop them.
In fact, one plume in the back already started blooming..kind of early

I might have to plan revenge if someone cut my plants and I didn't talk to me first!
Yeah, I want to know when to expect a bloom on the China Doll too? Christi, how large are your castor bean now? Mine are only a foot tall and sure growing slow.

All sizes. Probably 10 or so are tree size. Others may 12". Have no idea what the difference could be. They all have the same soil, water, fertilizer, light, etc. etc.

Honestly I didn't know they bloomed...

http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/54477/

Pictures from our own plant files. Last fall mine lost all the leaves but was one of the first to leaf out in the spring. Someone remarked that theirs was 15 years old and had just bloomed. Oh well, makes a great shade tree.

Well I'll be!
The large one I have doesn't like sun much, what about yours?

Well now I am confused. Smockette gave me the China Doll I have and I swear she told me it would bloom yellow. Guess I got it wrong, or didn't look it up.

I think there are several types. I think I have a couple of those from her as well. The suckers don't die!

AuntAnne - did you get beat up last night? In Wixon Valley we only got wind gusts and some rain. However, on Sunday we go about one inch.

We only got the wind. I live in a mobile home so when Ch. 3 kept saying that it was all moving toward Wellborn I started getting a little worried. I called my dbf who said to get out and go somewhere. I told him there was nowhere to go: 2 funnel clouds sited between here and Millican (south) and flooding at Rock Prairie (north), the storm was moving in from the west and there was street flooding in town. But I lived. lol

I'm glad you were safe AuntAnne. I thought about you during the storm. It came up so fast - and with very little warning. Dangerous stuff.

we've had rain and this am we woke to no power
I called it in and then went to the dentist and when I got home it still was not on so I called again and was told return time was 10 am the 21..well duh it was after 12 and no power so I called customer service and finally got through and they finally sent someone out and they replaced the fuse on the transformer
well it rained again tonight after dark and the power went off came on went of came on went off and stayed off enough I lit the oil lamps again then looked out the window and the top of the transformer pole was glowing ...it was on fire but it went out and the power came back on
had tried calling in again but the wait time was 30 min or more so let it go for now.

RJ and Christ I am jealous my MG tree didn't come back and the seeds didn't sprout...but my Pride of Barbados stayed alive over the winter and had been blooming Yellow flowers to beat the band for well over a month now and has seed pods on it now too

Christi the Castor bean seeds you gave me when I was over there on a field trip ...Doug planted and one group of them is over 6 ft and blooming wonderfully

You can thank RJ for the castor bean. He brought those April, 2008. Oh goodness, it is beautiful this morning. We are enjoying the "new" deck area. As Becky says, "feels like we have moved". My China Doll and the MG tree are in full sun. I really need to take some pictures and do a thread instead of hijacking everyone else's.

Christi

ok Thanks RJ for the seeds LOL
DH woke me up again this morning round 7:30 power was out again and no idea when it went out
so up I got and called it in Again so they could come out and replace the "fuse" at the top of the transformer.

now to just get motivated to do something LOL

lol...your welcome.
This is my China Doll, it was a small plant someone bought when I was in the Hospital a few years ago. I think it's a bit different than Smockettes trees. It's less sun tolerant.

Christi, the Root Beer plant

ok, going after my camera now.

Hers was large last year!

rj---I was just given a Root Beer plant this year....it's about a foot high.....how long to get as high as yours?

I planted it there this spring...so about 6 months.

We're finally getting doused. I can't see the ground from my 13th story office window.

Hope you're getting that at home.

It did, I only live 4 miles from work. The temp dropped from 97F to 81F....lovely!

cool, literally

yes...now 79F

Well, in one part of India, they're having their unmarried daughters plow the fields in the nude to embarrass the rain gods and make it rain. I'm not that desperate, but this is getting really old! I can relate to the ancient rituals. The rain goes everywhere but here, it seems like.

It hates me too Linda.
WHY?????????

My ex mows his lawn in a speedo. Talk about a beached whale on wheels. lol

LOL! you guys are funny ... it was 81 here today.

I would kill for 81°! I would kill for rain also! People used to make sacrifices. Well, I'm not sure what to sacrifice. Wasps? An armadillo if I could catch it!

Simmer down now Linda! HA!
By the way, the news said that El Nino has intensified very quickly and is looking better than expected. Just hang on another 30-40 days Linda. Dont wish for rain and get worked up. Just set your sites on Sept 1st. If I can only make it until September.

Yeah! I want a t-shirt that says something like "I survived the drought of 2006-2009 in Texas".

jujube - the lagustrum (sp) I have isn't invasive - in fact some of them are only slightly larger than they where 10 years ago. Must be different plant.

We have had rain the last two days. And with the rain came the giant mosquitos. I edged a bed last evening and they almost ate me alive - looked like I was doing some kinds of native dance in my yard.

Like I don't have enough to do, I went and bought an American Beauty Berry bush. But digging should be easier so I guess I wasn't too bad.

The size isnt as important as the seeds. The birds eat the berries and then disperse them with a high germination rate. So you might not see too many on your property but hundreds might be popping up in the woods all around you. That is how they took over the wilderness here. You dont see them in peoples yards too much but as soon as you go a few hundred feet into the woods, there they are.

rain here today!

We had rain in every direction from 1/2 a mile to 10 miles. None here.
Darn!

We had 2 1/2" here.