A Sign of Fall
Posted: October 15, 2020 Filed under: Gardening | Tags: Automatic Gardening, Gardening, Gulf Coast gardening, leaves, Southern Gardening, subtropical climate, Subtropical Gardening, trees, Year-round gardening 18 Comments
The change of seasons can be very subtle here on the Gulf Coast. Days are still hot and the leaves don’t change color until much later. But, one sign of fall I notice is the disappearing leaf litter in my wooded area. The leaves have done their job keeping the soil moist and breaking down into compost to feed the trees. Just as the old ones disintegrate, the trees will drop this year’s leaves to start the process all over again.
All Dressed Up
Posted: October 2, 2020 Filed under: Gardening | Tags: Automatic Gardening, Backyard Critters, Crepe Myrtles, Gardening, Gulf Coast gardening, Southern Gardening, subtropical climate, Subtropical Gardening, Year-round gardening 6 Comments
Could these two be heading out on a date? It was just too cute when I saw some that Crepe Myrtle flowers had fallen in just the right place to make her look all dressed up.
Philippine Lily
Posted: September 23, 2020 Filed under: Gardening | Tags: Automatic Gardening, Gardening, Gulf Coast gardening, Philippine Lily, Southern Gardening, subtropical climate, Subtropical Gardening, Year-round gardening 16 Comments
Philippine Lilies (Lilium formosanum) are one bulb that is possible to grow in our Gulf Coast climate.
The white flower looks similar to an Easter Lily, but grows 3 to 5 feet tall and blooms in July and later.
In the evening the lily gives off a scent that attracts hummingbird moths.
The plant makes an attractive seedhead that is quite decorative. Most importantly, it is filled with seeds. I have been trying to get a colony growing, but usually, only one plant matures and flowers. It is definitely a goal to work on.
From One Small Stem
Posted: September 13, 2020 Filed under: Gardening | Tags: Automatic Gardening, Bat Face Cuphea, Cuphea llavea, Gardening, rosy wolf snail, Southern Gardening, subtropical climate, Subtropical Gardening, Year-round gardening 6 Comments
One small stem cutting turned into a behemoth plant stuck in a planter.
I wanted to make sure I had a back-up Bat Face Cuphea (Cuphea llavea),which attracts all kinds of pollinators, and decided to start a cutting in my self-watering planter. It is an excellent planter to start cuttings and seeds in as it will stay damp.
Unfortunately, I paid very little attention to the size the cuphea had become until it had taken up my entire planter. It had to be removed and it was no easy job. It took a lot of time and tools to free it.
The Cuphea is looking as droopy as I felt after hard work on a hot day.
Note: The plant is much more colorful than the cutting in the first photo.
And I was being watched the entire time. I found this Rosy Wolf Snail that had crawled to the top of the garbage bag.
Bisected
Posted: September 6, 2020 Filed under: Gardening | Tags: Automatic Gardening, Backyard Critters, Gulf Fritillary Butterfly, nature photography, Passion Flower, Southern Gardening, subtropical climate, Subtropical Gardening, Year-round gardening 20 Comments
The Gulf Fritillary Caterpillar perfectly bisected a Passion Flower.
If You Plant It, They Will Come
Posted: August 30, 2020 Filed under: Gardening | Tags: Aristolochia fimbriata, Automatic Gardening, butterflies, Caterpillar, Dutchman's Pipe, Gardening, Gulf Coast gardening, Gulf Fritillary Butterfly, nature photography, Passiflora lutea, Passion Flower, Pipe-vine caterpillars, Pipe-vine Swallowtail, Southern Gardening, Subtropical Gardening, Year-round gardening, Yellow Passion-Flower 21 Comments
I mentioned on a previous post, that I was trying to grow the correct Passion Flower to attract the Gulf Fritillary Butterfly. I finally got it right. Several have arrived.
The Butterflies got to work and laid eggs which have already hatched into a new generation.
Even more exciting, I found five Pipe-vine Swallow Tail caterpillars on my Aristolochia fimbriata.
The nurseryman was correct with his advice that the butterflies would come. The plant is nearly gone, but that was the plan. I collected some of the seeds for next year’s plants and butterflies.
Chocolate Plant
Posted: August 18, 2020 Filed under: Gardening | Tags: Automatic Gardening, Chocolate Plant, Gardening, Gulf Coast gardening, Pseuderanthemum alatum, Southern Gardening, subtropical climate, Subtropical Gardening, Year-round gardening 16 Comments
Chocolate Plants ( Pseuderanthemum alata) are heirloom passalong plants in the South. Mine was passed to me by my mother-in-law. It gets its name from its chocolatey color.
I always keep some in a pot, but I have been trying to start colonies in various beds. I am having a good outcome in the back bed near my wooded area.
The Chocolate Plant will make a flower stalk of purple flowers. The seeds are tiny and I usually let them fall where they may and transplant the seedlings when I find them.
This one planted itself in cobble rocks and became to hard to dig up without damaging it. The plants grow bigger each year and hopefully I’ll have a beautiful display in a couple of years.
Strawberry Pot
Posted: August 12, 2020 Filed under: Gardening | Tags: Automatic Gardening, Bluewing, Clown Flower, Gardening, Gulf Coast gardening, Southern Gardening, subtropical climate, Subtropical Gardening, summer pansy, Torenia fournieri, Wishbone Flower, Year-round gardening 10 Comments
Strawberry pots can sometimes be hard to fill, but the Automatic Garden had a solution. Wishbone Flowers (Torenia fournieri) had germinated all over from last year’s plants. I transplanted all the free plants into the strawberry pot and was rewarded with a beautiful display. Best of all, my patio cracks will be full of plants for next year.
Passion Flowers in the Wild and in the Garden
Posted: July 26, 2020 Filed under: Gardening | Tags: Automatic Gardening, Gardening, Gulf Fritillary Butterfly, Maypop, Passiflora incarnata, Passiflora lutea, Passion Flower, Southern Gardening, subtropical climate, Subtropical Gardening, Wild Flowers, Year-round gardening 22 Comments
I live in an area where the wild Maypops grow.
Not far down the path I found the Maypop’s smaller cousin. A beautiful little gem called Yellow Passion-flower, Passiflora lutea.
The green to yellowish flowers are about an inch across. I may have passed by this elusive jewel many times and I’m glad to have finally spotted it.
I bought this Passion Flower at a nursery a couple of years ago, mainly to provide a plant to host Gulf Fritillary Butterflies. As it turned out, the butterflies did not like this cultivar. The flowers are beautiful and I like it.
This year I purchased another Passion Flower that the nurseryman guaranteed that the Gulf Fritillary would lay eggs on and the caterpillars would eat. We will see.
Just Gingers
Posted: July 19, 2020 Filed under: Gardening | Tags: Automatic Gardening, cucuma hybrid, curcuma parviflora, Gardening, gingers, Gulf Coast gardening, Hedychium coccineum, Hedychium coronarium, Hedychium hybrid "Pink V", Hedychium thysiforme, Kaempferia Alva, Kaempferia loatica Brush Strokes, Southern Gardening, subtropical climate, Subtropical Gardening, Year-round gardening 17 Comments_________________________________
Gingers have worked out really well in the Automatic Garden. They are happy in the gumbo soil (heavy clay) and are troopers in the heat and cold. Best of all, the plants reproduce on their own. When other flowers are taking their summer rest, Gingers really shine.
White Angel (Curcuma parviflora) is my most reliable bloomer and has never let me down in the many years it has graced the garden. The original plant grows larger every year and has reproduced.
*Run your cursor over the photos for names or click to enlarge photos for the slide show.
