Periwinkle in the Fall

Vinca is a genus of flowering plants in the family Apocynaceae, native to Europe, northwest Africa and southwest Asia. The English name periwinkle is shared with the related genus Catharanthus.

September in central Florida is still bright, sunny, and hot. The high temperatures are lower than August, and the low temperatures are in the 70’s (F) instead of August’s 80’s.

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June Garden Floral Surprises

I live in Central Florida, growing zone 9B which is semi-tropical. Amaryllis is a subtropical bulb that belongs to the Amaryllidaceae family and is native to South Africa. It is grown as a potted plant in most parts of the United States but can also be grown outdoors year round in warm areas like Florida. (The red amaryllis sold in December are FORCED plants.)

Here in central Florida we’re really into hot summer weather by May and June continues it with more rain. Our dry season is winter. The rainy season runs from May 15 to October 15 for Southwest Florida and from May 25 to October 10 for the rest of West Central Florida. My area around the Tampa area is more west central Florida. We had little to no rain late winter into spring. Finally in May we started to have a significant rainfall. June has meant the last week of rain storms late afternoon and early evening as moisture came in from the Gulf of Mexico. The rain has encouraged more flowers to bloom.

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First Frangipani Blooms The First Week of April

The white frangipani (Plumeria alba) is a deciduous plumeria tree that is native to tropical areas. (Plumeria plants (Plumeria sp), which are also known as Lei flowers and Frangipani, are actually small trees that are native to tropical regions (zone 10 and 11) . It is one of the plants used for leis in Hawaii. It is popular here in Central Florida (zone 9B); we are semi-tropical with tropical weather most of the time.

Just a fast note to all on my recovery after surgery. I definitely see and feel a difference in this second week. My pain is less and I am sleeping better. I see my surgeon and my primary physician next week as post-op visits. I am saying a prayer that I feel more like me. Thanks for all the kind thoughts and prayers. It means a lot to me.

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Spring Garden White Amaryllis

I live in Central Florida, growing zone 9B which is semi-tropical. Amaryllis is a subtropical bulb that belongs to the Amaryllidaceae family and is native to South Africa. It is grown as a potted plant in most parts of the United States but can also be grown outdoors year round in warm areas like Florida. The red amaryllis you buy at Christmas are FORCED bulbs.

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Beverly’s Orchids in March

There is a huge range of orchids in this extensive family. Every plant has its needs – right plant in the right place.  For most of us, orchids are house plants though in warm climates they of course can be grown outside. For growing information, see Blooming Orchids.

Today’s photos were taken by my friend, Beverly, who lives in tropical Plantation, Florida in South Florida. She’s shared her beautiful orchids before. I love orchids, but I can’t grow them!

I’ve shared Beverly’s orchids several times before. She has plants hanging around the outside of her home in Broward County which is a tropical growing zone. (Ft. Lauderdale, FL is in Broward.) This last month has been another wonderful time for orchid blooms.

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Beverly’s January of Orchids & Sky

Today’s photos were taken by my friend, Beverly, who lives in tropical Plantation, Florida in South Florida. She’s shared her beautiful orchids before. I love orchids, but I can’t grow them!

I’ve shared Beverly’s orchids several times before. She has plants hanging around the outside of her home in Broward County which is a tropical growing zone. (Ft. Lauderdale, FL is in Broward.) This last month has been a wonderful time for orchid blooms. The light purple with a dark center started blooming at the end of December and has continued right up to this week.

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Tropical Parking Lot Landscape

The other day I drove to my favorite Publix Supermarket here in central Florida. I noticed how nice the parking lot looked with great tropical foliage. Public landscaped areas are a great way to find easy to grow plants for your area. Owners of strip malls want to provide a pleasant environment for the customers, but they don’t want to spend big money on maintaining plants. Each row of parking spaces has a nice flower bed at the end with variegated leaf bushes, colorful crotons, and a plant with small blue flowers. The two types of bushes are tropical and easy to grow in our climate. Add a tree and a large light post and it’s perfect for the public location. (Government buildings and community buildings are also good places to note landscape plants. In more northern environments there is often a few evergreen bushes that provide a frame year round.)

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