Evening Primrose Video

Back in the summer when my evening primroses were blooming I made some pretty bad videos of them opening. Hiram made a better one that you can see here. The moth you see near the end of the video is a sphinx moth, the one responsible for tomato horn worms. In the last few frames you can see some very small insects moving around. I don't know if they are polinators or maybe just aphids.

Spiranthes:Twisted Ladies Tresses

 

 

These native orchids have been blooming in my yard for at least a week. I have one directly in front of my front steps. That may be a testament to the fact that the front door is seldom used. I prefer to think it arrived there so as not to be missed. It is the biggest and prettiest of the dozen that are blooming in my yard. They are growing right out there is the zoysia and the centipede, enjoying the sun and not bothered at all by the grass. These are hardy plants. I have no idea how they came there. I have often seen this orchid growing along the roadsides here in Southeast Alabama. Next spring the pointed leaves of the basal rosette will appear when I am busy with my spring and summer gardening. The leaves die back and late in the summer or early fall the flower stalk shoots up seemingly overnight.
If you drive slow enough along the less traveled roads, you may see the ladies tresses in the grass in full sun. They are small though, so you have to keep a sharp eye out and go slow.
I am not attempting to give this Spiranthus a last name because there are quite a few that are native to this section of the country. but you can enjoy them and just call them twisted ladies tresses.

September Finally Feels Right

We have sure had a humid slimy Sepetember. It seems to have turned the corner today, at long last. Warm, but the humidity is down. I went outside after dark to enjoy the fragrance of the angel trumpets. Both the pink and the yellow are blooming beautifully.

More Quotes I like

I hate television. I hate it as much as I hate peanuts. But I can't stop eating peanuts.
- Orson Welles
Seeing a murder on television... can help work off one's antagonisms. And if you haven't any antagonisms, the commercials will give you some.
- Alfred Hitchcock

A Quote I Like

"I'm all about exuberance. We only have one short life to live, and we shouldn't waste it being tasteful."

Isaac Mizrahi

Oncidium

 

I bought this plant a few months ago at a bigbox store (maybe Lowe's).The reason I bought it was I could see the remains of 2 different flowers so I knew that the pot contained more than one plant. One was yellow and the other was red, or mahogany as they are sometimes called. I am very pleased that the red has come in bloom again. After it finishes bloom, I will repot it if I can find some reasonably priced orchid media.
Oncidiums are sometimes called Dancing Ladies, but to me they look more like exotic bugs. They are easy to grow, but be careful not to overwater. They do well in bright light, little fertilizer in the water about once a month, grow on the dry side watering maybe once a week. Check before watering to make sure they are not still damp before rewatering.
I have a fellow one that fills my greenhouse with blooms each spring. They have proliferated to the point where they are popping out with blooms in all kinds of places.They seem to care for themselves. they should be repotted about every 2 years, but if not mine just keep growing on out of the pot. their roots hang over the edge and keep growing. This is also an indication that they do well with a minimum amout of care and can be grown on the dry side.

Obedient Plant

 

I have grown obedient plant for many years, but contrary to what I have read from other growers, I have never found it invasive. apparently its characteristics change when it is given sandy loam and ample water. Of course I have clay and I suppose that keeps it in check. I have 2 spots where it grows and it has been exceptionally beautiful this year. In fact, I have a large arrangement of it on the dining table now. Its genus is Phytostegia and is also sometimes called dragonhead. The name obedient plant derives from the characteristic of the plant to hold its flowers in any position you move them to.
They are reported to come in white as well as pink, but I don't think I ever met a white one. But as a general rule I prefer other colors beside white. I think white flowers do not age as gracefully as colored ones.
I got my original start of this plant from my Mother who had to thin it out every year (she has sandy loam soil).She warned me about it but I never experienced any invasiveness. It spreads by both seed and runners and is perennial, so it does have a potential to become a problem. the only problem I ever had with it is it usually falls over once the flowers develop and it gets top heavy. perhaps if it could have all day sun all the season, it would be stronger.