All Activity

Complete opposite this morning to yesterday mornings -0.5C. Yesterday rose to 22.4C which surprised me. Lastnight by midnight it dropped to 10C but by 2.30am it had risen to 19.6C!! It topped at 19.8C and it’s just before sun rise and hovering around 19C. A cold front will come through later. What a contrast of minimums in two days.

I would be curious to see what the fruit (and seeds) of this tree looks like. Please share when the time comes.

Approximately 12 inches of rain for me since the early morning of July 14.

I offer this Aloe, which has become surplus to my garden plans. I purchased it a few years ago but never planted it. It failed to flower last spring so I assume that it has exhausted the pot medium nutrition and should be ground planted. The pot size is 18 inches diameter by 15 inches tall, and the Aloe is 80 inches tall with a trunk diameter of 2.25 inches. So, the overall height is about 95 inches. The price is $200, pick-up at my garden. I can deliver within 50 miles of my zip code (94116) for an additional $80. Thanks for reading !

One more comment on these rupicolas, they are dioecious, that is, some plants have male reproductive systems and some have female, but they do not self fertilize. My triple has 1 female and two males male flower is crisp probably due to it being late and our hot and dry comditions the pendulous stalk of fruit in the early stages on the female. They will get larger and ripen in a few months to that "pomegranate" red. This palm shades its roots and is volunteering. I dug a few last winter and repotted them. The drought has no doubt killed some, the price of shallow roots.

Tim, this 1st photo is astonishing. Rivals any plantings I’ve seen in any tropical botanical garden. And I visited a wonderful public garden on Oahu many years ago.

I wish I had some of that!!!! 😂

By deep watering, I hope you are giving it about 10 gallons of water, at least 2 or 3 times a week for a new planting. A half hour time on a 1 gpm drip line isn't going to cut it. Appears it needs more water than it was receiving now that temps have risen. aztropic Mesa, Arizona

Common ones on the SE coast are live oak, laurel oak and willow oak. Pix of acorns may help.

What is "deep watering"? Here in Atlanta we had weeks of scorching heat but the weather's flipped. It's raining ever day.

I have never grown this particular palm so I can’t really help. It sure looks as though it is struggling. I am sorry you are having a problem , I hope it pulls through. It has been quite warm for the last week. Harry

Sold, thanks for reading !

I planted this in March. By end of June it looked great. End of June I returned from a short trip after July 4th and all of the fronds looked fried except for the frond emerging from the spear. Now I have been deep watering. I’m genuinely at a loss. It’s getting water. How could it take such a drastic turn in less than a month.

A conglomeration of Anthurium growing on a Mango tree stump. It thrives despite my lack of attention. Tim

A. cupulispathum has hit its stride in the garden. A wonder of a plant. Tim

Boy, I will second that! Quite the collection. Tim

Here is a pic of the trunks on my triple from the above post Closer look at trunk where the leafbases fell off(near ground) looks like 10-12" trunk. Rupicola fruits are almost a pomegranite red color, very bright no yellow or green observed. The final defining trait I use is the flexibility of the thorns, they easily bend at the base where they are attached to the stem. Here is a pic showing that bend before and after bending.

I am in Puna, east Hawai’i island, and I do not recognize that at least from the photos? Hmmmm…

Actually in front of those walls in the frontyard area there's actually Chamaedoreas growing right there😆😄. I don't really know the specific species though, either its elegans or seifrizii. They were growing perfectly in the shades but they don't last long, due to them planted beside the roads without barriers. Maybe someone cutted them or perhaps malnutrition or animals. I've checked it this year and only a few stems still survived. Then Now

Sure seems like Socal is a winner for Aussie palms. Funny that in Florida some are good growers(alexandre, myolensis, maxima) and some are not so good/happy including cunninghamiana and purpurea which may not like our sun/heat. A number of livistonas do very well here. Cunninghamiana have thin trunks and smaller crowns here. When I lived in SoCal I had a cunninghamiana triple right across the coastal highway from my apartment, very nice looking palms. Here its either the sandy soil or combination of sun/heat(to 95F) and sandy soil. Further south the alkaline soil is reported to be a possible issue.

The garden creates a beautiful space with more privacy, an outdoor living space. A well planted and spaced outdoor garden makes the lot feel bigger with privacy and height. We are of the same mind there. Your growth is excellent, keep doing what you are doing. I started about 15 years a go and added palms more slowly I think. Parts of Florida can give really fast growth. If my experience is like what you will see in the future 10 years, you should expect a lot of height. Palms that don't grow so fast(like the pseudophoenix) will balance out the garden canopies in 10 years as things get more height. As for selling the house, every day there has been made more special by the gardening effort. I find my garden very calming, a place to sit and relax. It is my blood pressure medication, and a much more healthy option in personal healthcare. Every couple years I will plant something small out now. Most of what I plant now will be slow growing and will not attain much height. I do have a few volunteers I may let go to maturity though.

Harry also in southern Italy🌴

They were much more common in nurseries 20 years ago. Now I rarely see them available. I got it from a big box store on clearance , they had dozens in 10” pots. Harry

Here’s about how mulch I need for my garden every year! 🤣

Oh and of course a beautiful little dypsis louvelli