It Ain't Easy Being Green!

It's not easy being green...just ask Kermit! It was so difficult for him, he sang about it!

We're used to our foliage being green, or variegated, red, silver, or whatever color it's supposed to be.  But consider all the factors that change the color of foliage...temperature, light conditions, moisture levels, air pollution, shock, disease, etc.  No, it's not easy being green, my friends!

My young little mango tree experienced such a struggle recently.  It was the victim of something Terrible.  Something GROSS and DiStUrBiNg.  But first, let me take you back to a happier, greener time...days when the fledgling mango was cheerful and healthy.

January 2010 - healthy and uneffected by the record cold temps!

New GREEN growth and buds formed.

And produced fruit for the first time!

Notice the beautiful GREEN color of the leaves and branches?

My sweet, precious, innocent mango tree became the victim of

Do you see the nasty black layer?

This photo is blurry, but you can see the black residue on the leaves and branches.

I don't like dirty, black residue. 

However, I do know that this icky fungus is not typically problematic to my little tree.  Although, if permitted to cover the plant, it could disturb the photosynthesis process, weakening the plant and leaving it exposed to more aggressive assailants.  The more urgent issue is typically what causes the black sooty mold, which is primarily a sucking insect.  Sucking insects produce a sugary excrement called honeydew that the mold grows on.  That sucks!!!!  Sorry...HAD to say it!

Most honeydew producing suckers include

aphids, scale, mealybugs, whiteflies, and leafhoppers. 

So, by reasonable deduction,

to control the mold, one must control the pest.

I prepare myself for what needs to be done.

courtesy of www.insidesocial.com

I ready my weapons...

...a gallon bucket of soap and water

applied with a soft nail brush will do the trick.

I go in for the kill!

In hind sight, I should've worn gloves.

I start scrubbing away.  Not too hard, though.

Leaf by leaf...branch by branch.

If I haven't been named the CRAZY GARDEN LADY before,

I've certainly earned the title now.

At least I wasn't wearing my usual garden decor...LOLA

(who likes to perch on my head)

My son came out to see what I was doing and

ABRUPTLY turned around without saying a word.

I'm certain he thinks I'm NUTS!!!

courtesy www.wikipedia.com

After much elbow grease, patience, and strange looks,

my mango is now mold and scale free!

No, it ain't easy being green!!!

August Favorites

So much has happened in my little garden this month that's it's not easy picking my favorites.  But, Susan at Simply Susan says I have to choose in order to participate in her Monthly Favorites meme, so I did my best.  Most all of my blooms are among my faves...I suppose that's why they have a place in my landscape. But this time I listed them by color category.  I found there's a large number of reds and only one white...hmmmm.  White is obviously  not a favorite of mine in the garden, but perhaps I need to incorporate a little more.  At any rate, August has been hot so it's only natural that the color of the month is red!

Red Hot Hibiscus

El Capitolio - double blooom with white striping

Red bloom with yellow striping

Traditional Presidential

For the Bees and Butterflies

Tropical Milkweed is a favorite of the Monarch Butterfly,

and an important larvae host plant.

Red Porterweed (also comes in Blue)

Little fluffy Chenille plant is finally ready to leave the nursery!

Dwarf Powderpuff Bush

Bromelaids

This one is showing some beautiful color!

This one just recently turned red - only the tips were red previously.

See how green it was?

I especially love the variegation in these.

I don't know the various names. 

I'm hoping Steve from The Rainforest Gardener can give me a hand.

Tropical Reds

Caladium Cluster -

proudly stands alone while all my other Caladiums inter-mingle with other plants.

Heliconia Lady Di - first bloom!! Love it!!

Crown of Thorns

Red hot?  Let's cool off...

Purple berries of the American Beauty Berry are stunning!

Light Lavender shades of Liriope

Volunteer blooms of the Portulaca groundcover

The purple Pentas are a butterfly magnet! (as are the red ones!)

The pretty bluish purple bloom of the aquatic Pickerel Weed... another butterfly button!

Just a few Shy Pinks...

The Dwarf Pink Ruellia is pretty with it's fuschia "tongue".

Cheerful Tillandsia

Yellow is probably my favorite garden color!

Yellow Allamanda

Yellow Ixora looks like a bridal bouquet!

Happy little Zinnias grow throughout my garden!

I love this Yellow/Red Hibiscus so much, I have two bushes!

One Lonely White Bloom!

The Duck Potato looks more like a dancing angel, to me!

Another aquatic plant, the Duck Potato (surprise) is a popular

food source for DUCKS and other aquatic creatures.

I keep this plant and the Pickerel Weed in muck filled pots...they thrive!

There's FRUIT, too!

My MANGO tree produced its first harvest this month!

Thanks to my friend Deborah at The Consumate Gardener for helping

 me ID this yummy variety!

Non-fibrous and juicy!  YUMMY!!

The Brown Turkey Figs look like they'll be ripe soon too!

And for Good Measure...

I couldn't resist this little guy napping in the crown of a young ponytail palm!

Blooming Flowers (and the Full Moon)

After leaving my culturally rich Chicago homebase, I've occassionally felt a sense of cultural atrophy which is not good for the soul or spirit!  Although South Florida does have cultural offerings, they don't seem to be as prominent as they were in Chicago.  Or perhaps we're too busy living the outdoor Florida lifestyle to take time out for the other cultural aspects of life.  Therefore, I work hard at including culture in my daily life. 

Where am I going with this, you ask?  Well, I felt it necessary to provide some music for this GBBD post and I came up with something fantastic, culturally fulfilling and unusual for anyone interested.  Click to listen to Blooming Flowers and the Full Moon by Zhou Xuan, a popular Chinese folk song from the 1920s and '30s.  "Blooming flowers and a full moon represent beauty, peace, and love in traditional Chinese culture. In other words, it's a perfect scene, in a perfect moment, through Chinese eyes." (quoted by Coco Zhou, a current Chinese artist).

Zhou Xuan, Chinese singer and actress, 1918-1957

courtesy of wikipedia

So, now that you've injested your culture for the day, let's get on to my July blooms as I have much to show for this month's Garden Blogger's Bloom Day, hosted by Carol at May Dreams Gardens.

The pink Mandavilla vine is in full swing after the rains!

The Mandavilla and Vinca dress up my light post.

The Charmed Wine is so vibrant after the rains. It is always pleasing!

Although I didn't plan this interesting combination,

the philodendron, charmed wine and caladium mix 

create an unexpected and unique display. 

The Caladium popped up in the midst of the charmed wine this spring.

These caladium were purposly planted under the Presidential Hibiscus.

I like how the caladium peak out from under the large hibiscus,

brightening up the darker underside of the bush.

The Purple Showers enjoyed the rain too,

providing the butterflies with plenty of blooms!

Speaking of butterflies, the monarch caterpillars are happily

munching on the milkweed. 

No blooms left to show you...they were eaten!!

Nothing is munching on my pretty little dwarf Powderpuff, though.

I love this bloom, and think it's funny how the

little "berry" looking bud (left in the photo)

becomes this poofy bloom!

The Ponderosa Lemon is blooming again.  It blooms year-round.

One if it's gigantic lemons is almost ready to harvest.

The few fruit on the young mango tree will be ripe soon too!!

Around the corner, the purple cone flowers welcome visitors at the front entry.

The cones fascinate me!

Dwarf Ruellia reside near the cone flowers.

This one is interesting with both purple and pink blooms on the same plant.

This yellow Ixora is also a mystery,

displaying two colors on the same bloom cluster. 

I don't have red ixora in my garden,

and there's none in the nearby neighborhood either.  ?!?!  

The Allamanda is always so cheerful, especially after a rain!

One of my Tillandsia is in full bloom.  It resides in one of my Pygmy Date Palms.

Somehow, it ended up on the ground overnight. 

There's been a lot of mysterious happenings in my landscape lately,

and this is one of them. Tillandsia don't fall out of trees easily.

This yellow hibiscus bloom is half open...pretty, isn't it?

Both of my colorful cacti are budding.  This one is more yellow than the other.

This one is decidedly pink.

Although not blooming, my new Costus ginger is really thriving in it's northside location.

One of the crinum lilies is in bloom

It has a second bud ready to burst!

The little trumpet blooms of the lantana are covered in rain droplets.

As is a lovely Frangipani (plumeria) bloom!

This beautiful Gulf Fritillary, or Passion Butterfly, poses as she dries her wings.

I found here right next to her host plant, the passion vine!

This is what she used to look like!

The Orange Jasmine bush is FULL of beautiful white blooms

creating an intoxicating fragrance!

This is what they look like close up...dainty little bridal bouquets!

The Balloon Flowers are excellent nector plants for the butterflies.

Pretty purple stars!!

I happened upon another resident relaxing on a Ti leaf.

His markings are beautiful, aren't they?

What a sweet face!

I'm not sure if he's posing for me or telling me to skeedaddle!

The cheerful zinnia stays dry on the front porch, and welcomes everyone who stops by!

She'll be waiting for you the next time you come by. 

Until then, Happy Garden Blogger's Bloom Day! 

Be sure to stop by Carol's to see what else is going on.