Part Two Of: Summer Scenery On Campus



Here we are again, embarking on a new journey into the art possible through arranging plants. Today we're going to focus on a few designs that, I think, mix the tropical and temperate very well.

 

This container is the first at which we'll be looking.

 



As the sign says, the large plant in the center is a triangle palm. These arrangements are very temporary--palms cannot survive Midwestern winters. In the summer, though, they add a touch of the exotic.

While I never did manage to get a good picture of them, these purple/green flowers add a hint of the whimsy of the sort that dominated my last post. This is especially true because the spikes curve just slightly at their tips.

And look how bright the blooms are when they're fully flowering! They almost look like they're under blacklights.

Also adorning this composition is some coleus. Coleus is massively diverse in color, leaf shape, and even scent; I think this cultivar was a good choice for this container. It contrasts with all the green foliage around it, and it gives you something flashy to look at that isn't a flower.

Pink vinca are used as a filler in this container. I prefer blue vinca, but the pink is very summery.

Here is the coleus, the vinca, and a vine-y plant with blue flowers, which I really like. It pops against the dark coleus leaves very well. On top of that, the blooms aren't too frequent. I hope the vines spill farther out of the container as the summer goes on.

Here's another pink flower that's been added. Personally, I'd prefer another plant with interesting or colorful foliage to these, since "pink flowers" is a base that's already been sufficiently covered.

The centerpiece of this container is shorter and somewhat less flashy than the triangle palm, but still exciting considering Missouri's climate. Otherwise, the arrangement is the same as in the last container.

This is the last container up for discussion today, and it's my favorite of the bunch. I'm a sucker for purple and yellow, though. Note the striped petunias at bottom right, and the orange lantana at bottom left. These are the real sources of pizzaz in this arrangement, to me. I also like the variation in leaf shapes and types throughout the design. This creates a lot of different textures, and keeps the whole from needing to be saturated with flowers.

Which container did you like best? What landscaping design choices have you evaluated lately?

Next post: a closer look at this last container, and some plants in the ground.

Strawberry Hill Farms, Part 1

Over the weekend, Scott and I went to a farm so I could get one plant (on which I will report later). I told him we'd only be there five minutes, but this farm is a huge plant vendor with several warehouses full of fruits, vegetables, and ornamentals. We were there longer than five minutes. I had to wander around and take pictures, of course.

Speaking of which, the camera I'm using now is Scott's, so many thanks are due.

Anyway, people come from all over the state to go to this farm and get plants, so we had to park a good walk away from the cluster of buildings. As we approached them, this was the first thing we saw: discounted cole crops! I think these were marked down to $2 for a four-pack.

I've never seen so many petunias, or in so many colors. There were several rows of tables like this scattered around, covered in petunias. I had to water petunias regularly as a child, and I've never been a fan. They're too sticky for me, and they need to be deadheaded all the time. That said, they are nice to look at.

Here are some tables of salvia and marigolds. I love purple and yellow together, though I don't know if I like how marigolds smell. I'm going to get some next year regardless to put around my tomatoes (assuming I grow tomatoes again next year).

Here's just a section of one of the greenhouses containing ornamental hanging baskets. There was so much to see--I could have spent days wandering around and perusing the selection.

They even have a variety of ferns!

These were the only coleus I saw, but they're nothing to shake a stick at. Sadly I did not have time to sniff all these varieties to find out which were sweet-smelling. Those are my favorites.

Here's a great spider plant. I hope mine gets this full someday.

This begonia looks like a looking-glass begonia, only with polka dots. I don't know what would go well with this plant, but it's impressive on its own.

Now, this is what I came for: a purple shamrock. The species was not denoted on the tags, but I believe these are Oxalis regnelli 'Charmed Wine'. The one I ended up purchasing is on the bottom left. Their leaves are slightly variegated, which is different from the individuals in the greenhouse.

A better shot of the leaves. They look like butterflies in person, too. Some of them were flowering, but people don't cultivate purple shamrocks for their flowers.

All these pictures don't encompass one-fiftieth of the plants at Strawberry Hill. It's truly amazing. Maybe that's why people flock from all over. It was plant overload on my brain, which is why the visit was so fun.

Next post: more views from Strawberry Hill.

Another Spring Plant Sale! (Part 1)

Today is not another Horticulture Club plant sale: it's the school's primary summer bedding sale. That means it's a large-scale operation. Much larger-scale. Also exciting is that this collection of plants has been in the greenhouse for a long time. I transplanted some of these. I've watered them all at one point or another. I drove most of these plants to the sale this morning. So today I get to show you a little slice of my work life.

Before that, though, here's a pretty flower I saw this morning.

When I returned to the sale to take pictures, these coleus were the first plants to grab my attention. The large-leafed coleus is called 'Emotions Passion,' or something similar. A floriculture professor remarked on these (paraphrasing again): "This is a case where people have created something nature never intended. Sure, these really grab the eye, but they get too tall to support themselves and end up falling over." Now we know. I like the kinds of coleus that smell sweet the best. My favorite coleus colors are deep violet and bright green.

Here's another coleus mix. This is a very diverse plant group, as evidenced by the various leaf sizes and margin shapes.

The silver-leafed plant here is a 'Looking Glass' begonia. I would have put this cultivar on my moonlight garden list, but I didn't know what it was called at the time. The leaves look gray in this picture, but they shine in person. And, like the Japanese painted fern, they provide contrast with their deep red undersides. This would also be valuable in a moonlight garden because it would break up the predominance of white and gray.

This plant is a cultivar of canna. The cultivar name might have been 'Tropical Bronze Leaf.' At any rate, I found the leaves beautiful. All the adjacent veins are slightly different shades of brown. This annual is typically purchased for its flowers, which I think is a shame. If I could get a perennial version of this plant as a houseplant, I would drool at it all the time.

This next plant might also have a place in a moonlight garden. This is Euphorbia 'Breathless White.' Its flowers are not overbearing, which would make it a perfect accompaniment to a more forceful flower.

I have no idea why I didn't put Dusty Miller on my moonlight garden list. It is a faux pas in the gardening world nowadays, but I like this silvery foliage plant regardless. I'd like the texture of the leaves, which to me feel like puppy ears, even if I didn't admire the color.

I was never a huge fan of marigolds until I found out that they repel aphids and other pests. I should have gotten a couple to plant near my tomato for this summer, but I wouldn't have anywhere to keep it in the meantime. There was an astonishing variety of these flowers at this sale, though! There were at least six different kinds, judging by flower coloration.

There are quite a few plants available in one-gallon containers. The hosta and the hellebores stood out to me (and that's coreopsis to the left). You can't tell from this picture, but these hellebores bloom white, yellow, and green, which would be refreshing to see in early spring. The hosta have a light purple color to them, which is nice. When I was growing up, we had a LOT of hosta, but they were all white-blooming.

Now we're moving on into the herbs. There was lavender on the perennials bench (as opposed to the herb bench), but since it falls under both categories, it works. I don't think the lavender bushes we have at home are of the 'Munstead' cultivar.

I didn't get the tag in this picture, but I believe these plants are rosemary.

The rest of the herbs and the vegetables are coming tomorrow! Plus bonus flowers! All these plants for sale just make me want a garden. Everything does, though.

Next post: plant sale, continued!

University Greenhouse, Part I

There were so many beautiful plants to photograph at the greenhouse that it will take several days to cover them all, since no one wants a 60-photo post. So I'll be posting these for a while (or when there's nothing else to report). Not all of the plants had tags on them, but I did what I could, and for identified plants I tried to find information about their common names and other characteristics.

We started out in a room populated largely by succulents. The first to catch my eye was  this Haworthia reinwardtii xanthorrhoeaceae. These plants are native to Africa, and they're very attractive. Their dots provide a unique texture. And the Haworthia's neighbor there is the infallible woodsorrel.

This shot provides a closer look at the white bumps.

This is a desert rose. They're funny little trees that put out gorgeous, hot-pink blooms in the summer. I have one at home, though it's smaller than this one. I will post a picture of mine in bloom this weekend. I got the plant for its interesting trunk shape, but the flowers steal the show (or the season, rather).

This plant was not tagged, but it looks like a desert rose, only it means business.

The greenhouse had a nice collection of Coleus. I prefer the purple-leaved varieties (or the variegated ones with really dark purple sections), but these were blooming, and seeing flowers when there's snow on the ground is always refreshing.

I don't know what kind of cactus is, but it looks like it's having a good time hanging out with that desert rose.

Next is a gigantic cactus with...leaves at the top? You don't see that much. The picture of it is very blue. This was unintentional.

Here's a slightly better picture of the top of this plant.

This next plant is a member of the Euphorbia family, though it doesn't look like any spurge I know.

These flowers come to you courtesy of the school's Jatropha japonica specimen. This plant's fruits are sometimes called "physic nuts," but they are poisonous when consumed in large quantities. The flowers sent me away with a healthy dose of cheer, though.

Enjoying plants is appropriate all year round, but getting out to see the greenhouse this time of year is especially nice because of how warm greenhouses are. My friend Jing and I had to remove our coats immediately upon entering. So, have you been to any greenhouses or gardens lately? Do you recognize any of the unidentified plants in this post? If so, I'd love to hear from you.

Next post: the best kind of salvage there is.