Too many plants? Reminds me of Amadeus movie where Mozart was accused by king of having too many notes!
You have too many plants
Persian Shield (Strobilanthes dyerianus) is easy to start from cuttings and can take full sun as long as it has plenty of water. It can wilt easily in hot sun (so do a lot of other plants) but always perks up after the sun fades or it is watered well.
I bought it years ago in Rome, GA when it was quite rare at the local nurseries. It has become mainstream since you can pick it up at several different nurseries nowadays.
Here is a picture of it sharing a pot with a bird-of-paradise (Strelitzia reginae) I grew from seed.
kattamos - did you buy all of these at your local nursery? I worked at a nursery this past summer, every time they got something really good it sold out pretty quick. Especially if the flats were displayed next to something that complemented them and shared the same growing conditions, many times it was simply a matter of showing the customer how to combine plants in a basket or container.
I am a beginner myself, and was heartsick to learn that I could have kept my coleus. I have heard they make good houseplants. I got a fantastic deal on The Flume, a one gallon pot for $6, and I had a few others that were not as unusual that I would've kept. How exactly do you overwinter yours? Do you water the plants in the basement for the winter? Here they are treated mostly as annuals. Thanks for the help.
p.s. Have also added rex begonia, caladiums, and elephant ears to must have list.
Guess you could say you're an enabler in my addiction. Hee hee.
hcmcdole... You're right on about Persian Shield. Mine is in a pot and gets cut back by 2/3 and put in a dark unheated basement every year. It comes back vigorously when warm weather returns.
indyfilmz....A few more could fit in there....but this whole biomass concept escapes the tidy mind.
PraieGirlz5....I overwinter what I can and buy the rest at the local nurseries.The key to over wintering is to not over water.A generous splash in a cold basement every 3 weeks works well here in the ATL area.Here's another super easy plant for the new gardener.
Iron Cross Oxalis:grows from a tiny tuber and combines well with almost anything.
indyfilmz...You are right about about about garden critics. If they had any real skill in the plant realm they would be creating instead of criticizing. Always a critic and never an artist...a truly sad and bitter fate.
Wow! Is that the epi? Kewl pic.
I like oxalis too, I didn't know it was a tuber. There is one called Oxalis spiralis subsp. vulcanicola (I looked it up!) that is purple with yellow flowers, I saw this planted in a shady spot this fall at a nursery nearby, it was a little gem. It was planted between some stepping stones, I spent so much time admiring it, the owner asked me if I wanted to dig some up, I should have said he**yeah, but I was too shy. Maybe next time, LOL.
This message was edited Jan 26, 2006 6:02 PM
Oh my. What a beautiful plant. I love the Iron Cross Oxalis. I just have to have some of that. What exactly is a tuber? Whatever that is, I just have to have one. It really is pretty.
JesseK
I love the Persian Shield - it is now on Spring garden wish list along with Astilbe Color Flash.
JesseK, Here is some info probably more than you wanted to know, from my Ato Z book. Tuber- swollen root or underground stem.
Bulb- modified subterranean bud, whith short thick stem and fleshy scale leaves or leaf bases.
The two are sometimes used interchangeably.
Brent & Beckys list Oxalis tetraphylla 'Iron Cross' at 10 for $3.00. You could plant that many in an 8" pot.
I have grown them several times. This year for some reason none have shown up in the pot I have out in the gh.
DonnaS
Truly amazing you really gave me inspiration to plant more and more..!Looks great and sure will be coping lots of your ideas...!.
This message was edited Feb 26, 2008 5:40 PM
Rutholive,
Thanks for that information. I love to learn new things. I will have to check into getting that. I think that my DH would really like this one. I did not know what Brent and Becky's was but I googled them and found so many wonderful things. I would love to have them allllll. LOL And they grow in my zone. Once again, thanks.
JesseK
This Purple upfront and the back one is Green Oxalis. They are both multiple; little tiny bulbs in their pots that come back and bloom year after year. They live on my windowsill during the winter months.
~* Robin
I like this one too; which is hibernating in the basement right now; Purple Heart, Purple Queen, Wandering Jew 'Purple Heart' (Tradescantia pallida) http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/1160/index.html
~* Robin
Can the Oxalis be grown as a regular houseplant? I have never seen them before but I am in love. I just have to have some of them. They are so pretty.
JesseK
JesseK,
You should be able to grow oxalis (shamrocks) outdoors in your area. They are hardy in the Atlanta area so you should have no problems in Durham. They usually sell bunches of these at local nurseries and the big 3 during Valentines and St. Patrick's Day. Both the green leaf and purple leaf varieties are very easy to grow and can become almost weedy. If you break off a small part of the tuber and drop it on some bare ground, then you will usually have a new plant there. Same goes for 'Purple Heart' (setcreasea pallida).
Here are some green and purple shamrocks, formosa lilies, alstroemeria, clematis, and money plant in early April 3 years ago. By May the leaves should be twice the size. If it gets hot and dry the leaves may fall off, but have no fear - they will be back with a vengeance when they are watered well (the tubers/rhizomes keep them going).
Butch
kat---
Did you say what kind of fertilizer you use?!!
Great looking walled garden! Wonderful containers.
thanks for posting. t.
WOW! What spectacular & colorful foliage plants you have in your garden! It looks like you live in a botanical nursery!!
Do your shamrocks bloom outside? Never thought of trying that.
Yesh; they very well do!
See my picture above.... on the patio table; taken in early summer, formally in zone 4b!
~* Robin
Kat - Your plants are beautiful! What kind of begonias are these?
Kat~
I would seriously like to see what all these plants look like in the cold unheated basement being kept alive by a splash of H2O every month!
xxxxxx, Carrie
kattamos - stunning - gorgeous - beautiful - breath taking. It's truly magical. I came here for some inpiration but now feel helpless to even try to accomplish what you've done so well!
my shamrocks (oxalis) grows in the ground, comes up in Jan. and dies back during hot weather. I have seen these sold in garden shop of grocery stores beginning first of March and then after St. Pat's. Day, they sell them for clearance.
I tried to post a picture but couldn't get it to go thru. New at this, any help is appreciated.
thanks,
chris
Chris - Are they the purple ones? I will keep an eye out for them here. It may be too early to plant them in the ground for a couple of months, that's why I missed them before?
mine are the green ones with lavender flowers. They have flowers on them now. Haven't tried the purple ones, but think I will get some and mix in with the green ones.
What the rabbits see in July. ;o)
Al
Very nice Al, I wish it WAS July!
purplepetunia, let us know what your problems are with posting photos and we'll definitely help!
shamrock
It finally went thru. I tried several times and could not get the pic to go thru, don't know why.
oh, you mean the shamrocks are green and the blooms are purple? I was thinking the oxalis were purple and the blooms were yellow!
Terrific Thread Kattamos! I just love your "too many plants". And I'm curious to see that basement
picture, even if it is scarey. My grandmother used to keep her rex begonias in the basement over
the winter - I remember seeing them hanging there, with dry soil looking kinda sad. I now have several
grown from cuttings from her plants. But the largest of mine is in the house, constantly plotting to take
over the entire first floor!
Tam
Hey you guys with digital cameras,
You're not posting all these gorgeous pictures (especially Tapla and purplepetunia of late, but starting with kattamos, of course) just to make me feel inadequate, are you?
I didn't think so.
xxxxxxxxxx, Carrie
This is a great thread Kat, I've enjoyed it from the beginning! You have some drop dead gorgeous plants!!!
I just love Oxalis! So far, I've only grown the purple kind and just love it for it's ability to make such a huge statement! I order bulbs from Brent&BeckysBulbs each year. It is a cheap way of having a lot of color. I'm very impressed with your Iron Cross Oxalis.....I'm going to add that to my order this year. Keep the pics coming you all! I'm counting down til spring here.....and it seems like it's taking a miserably long time! LOL
Here is a pic of my oxalis.......I put about 75 bulbs in this garden bed every year around Mother's Day. It sure makes me happy!
Up close...
Brinda - Great pics of combinations using foliage as the main ingredients. Love your pool tile too, very nice!
Carrie, you don't know how long it took me to get my digital pictures to go thru. I am not very smart with these things.
Brinda, your purple oxalis is very pretty. I will get some of that soon.
Chris
Carrie, don't despair; sometimes you just have to keep snapping away at them when they move around with the wind; just like the kids always did!
~* Robin