Tag: datura

Back here in Kigali. . .

Cindy at enclos*ure13 Comments

We have orchids in the acacia tree.
34 orchids

1c orchids

These two clumbs of orchids came out of the big old Norfolk pine that used to grow at the entrance to the terrace. (It was cut down a year and a half ago when it was clear it was dying.)

1 orchids

When we wired them onto the acacia, the gardener said the flowers were yellow, but I really didn’t think I’d ever see them bloom.

1a orchids

1b orchids

5 orchids

Another change: at the end of the long lawn (below), we have added two tall pots to set off a trio of pine trees.

10 pots

I will plant something tall to the right of the trees/pots grouping.

12 pots

At the other end of the lawn, I placed this single tall pot. I will enlarge the planting area at the base of the traveller’s palm and add some stones to make a level base for the pot.

13 pots

And finally, I faced the fact that my stepping stones and grass arrangement (below) on the right side of the entrance to the terrace just didn’t work. (The aforementioned Norfolk pine used to fill this area.)

Before

We (meaning the gardener mostly) took up all the grass and stones . . .

21 front

and we replanted (meaning me) with the same plants that are in the borders around the driveway:

front circle

Mexican sage, small pink shrub roses (like ‘The Fairy’), datura, lambs’ ear, and yellow day lilies.

23 front

I’m still working on the placement of the pots. Please stay tuned.

Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day: June 2013

Cindy at enclos*ure4 Comments

Here are some of the flowers that are blooming in my garden today.

Russelia equisetiformis or coral or firecracker plant
Pale yellow R. equisetiformis
The plants fountain over the retaining wall.
R. equisetiformis in front of Lantana camera
L. camera or Spanish Flag
Oenothera missouriensis or Missouri primrose
Strelitzia or bird of paradise
Orange and yellow dahlia
Looking up into Brugmansia or angel’s trumpet
Cape plumbago
Kniphofia uvaria or red-hot poker
Aster oolentangiensis or sky blue aster in the cutting garden
Garlic chives
Garlic chives seedhead
Bearded iris and marigolds
Marigolds

GBBD — the 15th of every month — is hosted by Carol at May Dreams Gardens. Click here to see other garden bloggers’ mid-June flowers.

Click on ‘Continue reading’ and then on any thumbnail to scroll through larger images.

Miriam had allowed her interest in gardening, which had gradually grown to a full-fledged hobby, to consume and define her. . . . She didn’t care for clothes anymore, just equipment; knee pads, trowels, a little bench to carry about and kneel on. To pray to her god, the garden.

— William H. Gass, from Middle C

(In the novel, the main character’s mother discovers her love for gardening after he gives her a stolen packet of annual seeds.)

 

“By any other name . . .” would be wrong

Cindy at enclos*ure3 Comments

Plant by plant, I am putting names to the flowering shrubs in our Rwanda garden. Here are two more, supplied by the readers of Fine Gardening’s Garden Photos of the Day, from my pictures on Monday and Wednesday.

Eranthemum nervosum (aka E.pulchellum) or blue sage or blue eranthemum has gentian blue flowers, as you can see.  In the family Acanthaceae, it is native to India.  It will grow 4′-6′ and likes light shade.  It will grow in the garden in (U.S.) zones 10b and 11. (I think all the shrubs in this post would be suitable for pots in colder climates.)

Brunfelsia latifolia (aka B. australis) or yesterday, today, and tomorrow plant is native to South America.  It is very fragrant at night.  Our largest specimen, which needs pruning, is about 5′ tall, 4′ wide.  It is in the same family as potatoes, tomatoes, eggplants, and petunias — Solanaceae or nightshade.

Y.T.T. likes well drained, moist soil and full sun to part shade — its habitats are light woodlands and thickets — and grows in the garden in (U.S.) zones 9-11.  The flowers open purple, then go to lavender, and then white.  The genus was named for early German herbalist Otto Brunfels (1464-1534).

I’m just showing this off.  I already knew its name.

Brugmansia is native to tropical South America and, like the Brunfelsia, is also in the family Solanaceae. It is also called angel’s trumpet or datura (the name of a closely related genus).  The semi-woody shrub can branch off like a small tree and grow to 6′-20′.  It has a fragrance in the evening. It likes moist, well-drained, fertile soil, full sun to part shade, and grows in the garden in (U.S.) zones 9-11.