But first things first. Lola and I got an early start with some lovely strawberry / banana bread and a cup-o-joe!
Then off to the gardens for our daily inspection. But we'll talk about that later this week when we post about what's going on in our May garden for Simply Susan's! monthly favorites (posted on the 25th of every month).
I've been looking forward to the Heliconia and Ginger sale as I'm a sucker for tropicals but I know very little about these lovely florals. After a little bit of research, I found out that heliconia is derived from the Greek word "helikonios" which makes my Greek husband very happy! My household is truly similar to the movie, "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" where the Greek Father, Gus Portokalos proudly announces, "Give me a word, any word, and I show you that the root of that word is Greek." (click to see the movie clip) Afterall, he also proclaims that "There are two kinds of people - Greeks, and everyone else who wish they was Greek." So there you go!
Anyway, back to heliconia. There are 100-200 species, and are they gorgeous!!! They're native to the tropical Americas and the Pacific Ocean island west to Indonesia. Some common names are Lobster Claw, Wild Plantains or False Bird of Paradise. This is because heliconias are related to both bananas and the Bird of Paradise. Heliconias are also a food source for the forest hummingbird while other birds use it for nesting purposes. I've not seen anything like that in Florida, but who knows...I'm open to the possibilities!!
The sale included really fantastic plants. Since I only have one type of heliconia, and I have no idea what it's called or what flower it will produce (I inherited it), I've always coveted the amazingly awesome lobster claw, Rostrata, or Pendant heliconia. This specific variety was one of the first I saw.
Another interesting one was the H. Splash. The leaves look very similar to a banana, but they produce a wonderfully tropical bloom.
There were several mini-seminars re. the varieties - so much knowledge!!! Among other topics, we learned about the difference between ornamental and edible ginger.
Apparently, edible ginger left to bloom forms a colorful cone that looks similar to the Shampoo Ginger. I've not tried it, but the cone is supposedly squeezed to excrete a soapy substance that us used as shampoo and soap. Interesting!!
There were several cold hardy, fragrant blooming gingers.
These gingers are cold hardy even in the Carolinas.
Kahili Ginger
Disney Ginger
White Butterfly Ginger
It was really difficult to choose among the many varieties. I've only highlighted the ones that I found interesting...there were many more, making the choice really hard - especially since I'm on a budget and these plants were not necessarily inexpensive. I decided to opt for the "rare" varieties...
The Costas Amazonacus has a really pretty variegated leaf while producing a huge white bloom. The BEST part about this rare ginger is that it's native to the higher elevations of Peru so it's somewhat COLD HARDY! The key is to protect the rhizome which will come back year after year, even after the plant above ground is be lost.
The H. Aemygdiana is reportedly rare, and is so striking! Who could pass it up?!
But the BEST find was this Costus Speciosus. This brilliantly variegated plant grows 5-6 feet and naturally SPRIALS all by itself with NO STAKING REQUIRED! Isn't this plant AMAZING?!?! As if the natural spiral isn't cool enough, it produces a spectacularly large white bloom! Well, I HAD to have it!!!!
I also picked up this little bare root H. stricta Dwarf Jamaican for $5! Couldn't resist!
All of these fantastic plants can be purchased from J.G's Tropical Plants. Just check out his website at http://jgstropicalplants.com/index.html . He will SHIP!!!! He also travels all over the state for plant shows/sales...his website offers a list of locations.
I ended my weekend on the boat...one of our favorite summer activities, and another reason I blog less this time of year!
10 comments:
Hi Kimberly, you got some lovely plants there, and some are favourites in my garden. The costus all spread quite a bit, so do allow room for them. Does that variegated costus have fluffy leaves? Mine are so soft I cant resist stroking them as I walk past. The delicate flowers are like crepe paper. The shampoo ginger is a different plant to the edible ginger, at least in my neck of the woods. The shampoo ginger has leafy branches that can be ten foot high, whereas the edible ginger rarely gets higher than 2ft. Have fun planting them out!
Hi Kimberly! I knew Heliconia's name had to come from Greek. My Lobster claw flowers are a favourite food of the squirrels, and the Tailor bird often builds his nest with the leaves in my garden.Interesting to know about the Shampoo ginger.
Oh, I am totally jealous! I would die for a specialty flower show in my area! Those are wonderful specimens. I've been wanting that spiraling costus for some time, but haven't been able to find it. Now I see that "RARE" mark and know why. The shampoo ginger you show is a common passalong in my area. It reminds me I should get some from my mom. I grew it in my past Florida gardens, but she's not given me any since I moved back. She's probably tired of me moving all the time. Love that Lola picture! The food looks yummy, and that's a great cup to match your blog!
Kimberly: I am jealous too! Not only you always have some fantastic plants sales around you, but also the plant variety and the price tag! I have a small garden, so I always thought ginger and heliconias might be too big for my garden. Now I see your post, I can see I grow H. stricta Dwarf Jamaican and Costus Speciosus in my garden. only if I can find them around here... That H. Aemygdiana is gorgeous too! I am sure we will see more pictures of these in your future posts!
AA, I'm intrigued that you have experience with the Costus! Thanks so much for letting me know it needs space! Mine do not have fuzzy leaves, although many at the sale did. I'm sure I'll be adding to my new collection in the future! And, yes, the 10' size of the shampoo ginger (and other varieties) is something to be considered! That cone is so cool, though!
Lotusleaf, I'm jealous that you have the lobster claw. I didn't purchase as I thought it might be easier to find than the "rare" varieties...so I'll be on the look out! I really love the bloom. And that it's a good food/nesting source is an added benefit! As my yard is a wildlife habitat, I'm always looking for such benenfits when I add new plants.
FG, check out JG's website for upcoming show dates..maybe he's coming your way! He knows so much about each plant, too...great fun to talk to! You should definitely get some more of that shampoo ginger...such an interesting plant! I'm going to give the edible ginger a try.
Ami, you're right...I've been blessed with great sales! But the prices on these, although greatly marked down, are still on the high side for me. I'm spoiled by clearance prices of $2...or better yet, FREE or plant swaps (those are the BEST!). Something for you to consider, JG said that all the heliconias and gingers make fantastic container plants. Once they reach the edge of the pot, they come back toward the center creating a beautiful canopy appearance! The containers also allow you to move the tender plants indoors or to a protected space when cold comes knocking. In addition to the dwarf Jamaican, the edible ginger only grows to 2-3', as AA mentions in her comment.
I can't wait to post about these beauties!! :)
Kimberly...You made some great choices...very, very beautiful. Thanks for the education on heliconias. I'm not that familiar with them but they are lovely.
I've seen those plants in flower arrangements but never knew their name - what a choice you had.
Glad youre up and about again
Looks like it was a great plant sale! Last spring I planted a plain green Costus speciosus that was a single cane about a foot tall. By fall it was a huge 10' diameter clump of foliage and flowers. Maybe the variegated one is slower growing!
My shampoo gingers max out at about 4' but they do have to compete with the roots of an Oak tree!
Good luck with your new plants. We'll all be waiting for photos of your first blooms!
Oh, I liked that movie Kimberly. I like Romantic comedies.
So many wonderful tropical plants. I really like the foliage on the Costas Amazonacus and the Costus Speciosus. I can see why you wanted them. Variegated foliage is always a plus.Well, to me it is anyway. Great choices.
I love the photos of the flowers that the heliconias produce. So gorgeous! I can see why you are blogging less....what fun.
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