Sunday 2 November 2008

Do I need more plants...no...but..

do I want more plants...YES!


Erythrina bidwilii is a remarkable, beautiful tree with attractive flowers which the lorikeets love and a rough cork like bark. This tree is twenty years old and every spring it is a sight to behold.

The shell like open flowers.


One of my new Daylilies, Ed Brown, It has shiny, gold ruffles .


This is a new one as well. I like everything about this one. The round recurved petals, the colour and the white midribs. I think it is called Jean Taylor, if I have not mixed up the labels!

And this little one with the cheerful face is is a newcomer too. Let me think, it is Hoot, the name suits it somehow.



I could not pass up this cute daisy pot.


Boxes full of plants. Native and exotic.
Melaleuca Miles
, shrub 2x2 m delicate pink brushes.
Doryanthes palmeri, Spear Lily, tall perennial plant with leaves up to 3 m, spectacular red flowers on top of stems up to 5m, attract honeyeaters.
Bulbine vagans, Golden Lily, perennial clumping Lily to 60 cm high.
Lomandra hystrix, Creek Mat Rush, clumping grass like plant 1m with arching leaves and fragrant flowers.
Doryanthes excelsa, Gymea Lily, from Greek, dory a spear and anthos a flower. Sword like leaves up to 1 m. Flower spike crowned with a cluster of bright red flowers each 1o cm across.
Leptospermum flavescens Cardwell, shrub 2.5 m, weeping foliage and small white flowers. (All Australian native plants.)

A few different Salvia suitable to a hot and humid climate.
2 Brugmansias, orange and yellow.
Fragrea berteriana, scented fragrea. Bushy shrub with highly scented flowers.
Heliconia spissa with attractive cut leaves and interesting flowers.
A Hybrid Spathiphyllum.

A new Epidendrum, Cruzifix Orchid, easy to grow, flowers for a long time.


Melastoma affine, Blue Tongue, shrub to 3 m, showy purple flowers and black edible fruits.
Oxilobium robustum, Yellow Pea Bush, shrub 3m, very showy orange yellow pea flowers.
Melaleuca fulgens, Apricot Honey Myrtle, 3x2 m showy apricot spike.
Allocasuarina torulosa, Forest Oak, tree to 25 m.
Melaleuca quiquinervia, red Paperbark, tree to 10 m, red fragrant flowers and papery bark.
Jacksonia scoparia, Dogwood, shrub to 5m yellow pea flowers on leafless stems.
Callistemon Injune pink, slightly weeping shrub to 2 m, delicate pale pink brushes.
Swainsonia galegiflia, Smooth Darling Pea, shrub to 1m bright pink pea flowers.
Alocasia brisbanensis, Cunjevoi, large leaved understorey plant to 1.5 m


A pretty Salvia in a... pretty pot.



Believe it or not:
"If you don’t have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?"
- John Wooden


Organic tip of the week:

The goodness of Beetroot

Beta vulgaris, commonly known as beet or beetroot, is a flowering plant species in the family Chenopodiaceae. Several cultivars are valued around the world as edible root vegetables, fodder (mangel) and sugar-producing sugar beet
History Of Beetroot
Although beet remains have been excavated in the Third dynasty Saqqara pyramid at Thebes, Egypt, and four charred beet fruits were found in the Neolithic site of Aartswoud in the Netherlands, it is difficult to determine whether these are domesticated or wild forms of B. vulgaris. Zohary and Hopf state the earliest written mention of the beet comes from 8th century BC Mesopotamia; the Greek Peripatetic Theophrastus later describes the beet as similar to the radish. Beet historians have long argued that the term “Bonbon de Naturel” or “Natures Candy” came into the popular vernacular during this time period.
Beetroot Nutrition Info
An average size cup of beetroot would contain approximately 31 food calories; 8.5g of carbohydrate, 1.5g of dietary fiber, phosphorous, potassium and 1.5g of protein. Cooked beetroot is a great source of folate that can protect you against high blood pressure, Alzheimer’s and dementia.
Beetroot Health Benefits
Beetroot is good for the health of the heart as it contains soluble fibre with can help to reduce high blood cholesterol levels. It also contains the phytochemicals carotenoids and flavonoids which help prevent LDL ‘ bad’
cholesterol from being oxidised and deposited in the arteries. Beetroot is virtually fat free and low in calories. It has an extremely low GL which means it’s converted into sugars very slowly which helps to keep blood sugar levels stable. Beetroot has for many years been used as a treatment for cancer in Europe. Specific anti-carcinogens are bound to the red colouring matter which supposedly helps fight against cancer and beetroot also increases the uptake of oxygen by as much as 400 percent.
Storing Beetroot
Beetroot can be stored in the refirgerator or on a cool, dark shelf. It'll normally keep for a few weeks when it's young and fresh.
Beetroot Trivia
The colour of red beetroot is due to a variety of betalain pigments, unlike most other red plants, such as red cabbage, which contain anthocyanin pigments. The composition of different betalain pigments can vary, giving breeds of beetroot which are yellow or other colors in addition to the familiar deep red. Betacyanin in beetroot may cause red urine and feces in some people who are unable to break it down. This is called beeturia.
(From fresh organic produce)



" Guesthouse"


Thank you for your visit.











34 comments:

Anonymous said...

It is so fun seeing your daylilies in our autumn. I have Ed Brown also and love it.
Donna

Webradio said...

Are they in Your garden ?

Very beautiful photos... Ouahhh !

Have a good day !

HappyMouffetard said...

The Erythrina bidwilii is wonderful!

Anonymous said...

I love the Erythrina. I'm sure you'll have a great time finding a home for all of those plants!
As it happens I've got a Melaleuca thymifolia, which isn't hardy here, but the flowers are very unusual and beautiful.

Barbara said...

Deine Frage, liebe Trudi, beantworte ich jeweils auf die gleiche Weise wie du ;-) ! ABER, irgendwann wird es keinen Platz mehr geben für neue Pflanzen....fürchte ich. Was macht dann eine plantaholic???
Einen guten Wochenstart und viele liebe Grüsse,
Barbara

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

Donna, thank you. Yes, I love the soft colours of Ed Brown! It made already two scapes.

Hallo webradio,Yes it all grows in my garden. Other wise I tell. Thank you and a good day to you too.

Happymouffetard, all Erythrinas are great trees. This one also hosts an array of bromeliads and and orchids.

easygardener, they are all planted in my "bush garden". Melaleucas are some of my favourites. M.thymifolia has such dainty flowers. I am glad that you cherish australian plants.

Liebe Barbara, Ja, du hast recht, das muss ich mir noch ueberlegen. Ich habe noch eine area im Garten die fuehrt in den "Parterre". War zuerst bepflanzt und koennte nach 20 Jahren eine Renovation brauchen. Wenn ich die Energie habe! Danke fuer deinen Besuch, ich freue mich immer.T.

Marina said...

I believe that you have the most rare and beautiful flowers I've ever seen!!!

Sunita Mohan said...

Trudi, what have you started? Now I want some new plants too. I wonder where I can get an Erythrina like yours ...
Lovely, lovely photos.

Anonymous said...

Beautiful!

Anonymous said...

What a great and exotic collection.

ChrissyM said...

Gorgeous photos! I love the colors! Stunning!!

Barbarapc said...

When I read the title of your post, I just hurried over to tell you - YES, you always need more plants. So lovely to see the sun and tropicals!

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

You have a lot of flowers in your collection.

Norm said...

all your flowers are beautiful. I like them.

Unknown said...

The Erythrina bidwilii is very beautiful. Another stunning collection! Those pots are really eye-catching...the 'guesthouse' too!

Anonymous said...

WOW! Those are amazing flowers and photos! Is it in your garden? Amazing!I love the 5th photo. The one with the cheerful face you say:) Lovely!

Mine is up too, HERE. If you get a chance;) Happy TF!~

arleena said...

Nice flowers and herbs.

Thanks for visiting in my blog.

Arija said...

Can I book a berth in your guest house?
We do have such a lot in common, I too keep buying more and more plants although I have no idea how and where or when I'll get them into the ground. I just love collecting plants. The non-existant water has forced my last idiocies to reside in the shadehouse and survive on dishwater. Love the way you too plant for the birds and bees.
I could write so much, I'd better stop.
Hugs. Arija

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

Arija thank you for your nice comment. Yes I booked you in, it is small, but very cosy!
It is very hard for a plant enthusiast when the water is short. Is this time of year fairly dry in your area? Here even when we had a good storm it quickly dries out. I have to mulch everything to keep the moisture in place.

Inkivääri said...

Your daylilies are those beautiful colours and forms!

 gmirage said...

Wow! You got wonderful plants. Am not sure if those are anturiums, but they are pretty...

The lila flower is special too!

Anonymous said...

I completely understand the needs for plants :-) - by the way, here's a little reward for you here...

Pia K said...

The top flowers are absolutely stunning! Very Georgia O'Keeffe.

Oh, beetroots are yum! I love having them raw in pastasalads and such, baked in oven, cooked, and they work so well with feta and grilled halloumi, mmm... Not to mention beetroot and chocolate cakes...:)

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

Thank you Pia, we love beetroot too. Grown in the garden they are very sweet, tender and have a fantastic flavour. They are some of the easiest plants to grow.

Gardenista said...

Your garden brings back all those bright and vibrant colors and smells of summer for me now that we're snowed in for the winter. I love seeing your exotic (to me) plants.

vincibene said...

Dein Garten ist beeindruckend und Deine Fotos wunderschön! Hier hat es nun in den höheren Lagen schon geschneit und es ist schwer, sich vorzustellen, dass woanders Frühling ist.

LG
Chris

RagsNehali said...

gorgeous shots..beautiful garden..
wish I had a green thumb too :) it needs lot of work and patience..

Kerri said...

I fully understand your 'need' to try all the plants. So many lovely ones!! It certainly keeps you busy! But we love that kind of 'busy', don't we? :)
All 3 of the daylilies are such beautiful colours, and I love the name, 'Hoot' (cute!) :)
The Erythrina bidwilii is gorgeous!

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

Hi Kerri, thank you so much for the visit. I have planted an area as a native garden so Peter doesn't have to mow anymore. It needs lots of new plants. The good thing is ones they are established they grow fast.

MedaM said...

I know that you have to put lots an effort to grow all those beauty in your garden so you can be very proud of your stunning flowers. Thanks for sharing these beautiful photos with us.

Anonymous said...

So amazing to look to another country and see what is in bloom there. Here we are ready for winter to come (not mentally though) and you are showing us unusual trees and array of lilies. Thanks, Andrea

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

Thank you Medam,
for your kind comment.
This garden is nearly 20 Years old. I grew the garden from scratch. It was a labour of love, more or less!

Thank you Andrea for hopping over,yesterday I had the first taste of real summer. Inside it was 29 C. I don't have air con. I don't like it. I use only overhead fans.

Maria said...

Thank you for these beautiful photos! The first photo is stunning! A tree with so beautiful blossoms!

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

Thanks Maria for stopping by.