Potinara Hoku Gem aka Orchid

I really do love orchids, although I'm not a huge collector...yet!  However, I have a few different types that I enjoy.  They remain in my yard, for the most part, until they bloom, when they are paraded inside my home to be gazed upon with great admiration. 

Orchids can be costly, though, so I'm careful to find bargains.  That means they are not in bloom, and may have been neglected for quite some time.  Or perhaps they are very young and will not bloom for many years to come.  Regardless, purchasing bargains may mean I have no idea what the bloom will look like until the plant presents its spectacular show.

I am very proud to announce

the blooming of one of my bargain orchids,

the Potinara Hoku Gem 'Freckles'. 

The blooms are beautiful,

and unlike any other orchid I own.  

I did a bit of research

to find out about the Potinara. 

Wikipedia says, "Potinara, abbreviated Pot in the horticultural trade,[1] is the nothogenus comprising those intergeneric hybrids of orchids which have Brassavola, Cattleya, Laelia and Sophronitis as parent genera."  Additionally, Wikipedia also informs their readers that this variety has been renamed by officials and is now known as Brassocattleya Hoku Gem.

OK...this is why

I'm not serious about orchids...

I just like them, think they're pretty

and grow them for my own enjoyment.

In layman's terms,

the Hoku Gem is a mini cattleya orchid. 

It is named 'Freckles' for the obvious

purplish-red speckles on the petals. 

I was hoping for a lovely fragrance,

but mine is not sporting a scent.  

The blooms begin with a pretty

reddish-orange color, similar to a tropical sunset,

and mature into a orange-yellow shade.  

The leaves are thick and strappy

with a pretty, green color.  

These leaves look a bit on the dark side

in my opinion as cattleya leaves are generally

a lighter, brighter green. 

I may not be providing it with enough light. 

Cattleyas and their relatives typically like

more light and can tolerate some morning sun.    

Each flower stalk originates from a pseudobulb.   

Once the blooms have dropped,

I'll cut the stalk to the base

and wait for the next bloom period!

Oh...one more wonderful factoid.

I found this particular variety

for sale on the Internet for $25. 

I think I paid $3. 

My blooms just got prettier!!! 

I'm submitting this post to Noel's monthly

 "HOT! LOUD! and PROUD!" meme at

A Plant Fanatic in Hawaii. 

Be sure to check out other HOT! LOUD! and PROUD! posts!

Harvest Monday!!

My starter veggie garden is producing

and we were able to enjoy our

FIRST HARVEST,

although small!!

Little, juicy tomatoes, summer squash, mammoth jalapeno, and sweet basil!

We started the garden at the beginning of March...a little late.

It progressed very quickly and filled in like a bunch of weeds!

I was so hopeful for the cucumbers...

...but they shriveled and died like someone assassinated them!!

I suppose it was the very hot sun and high temps...

I'll have to screen them next time.

The squash came on strong, and has produced...

but I'm not seeing longevity...

maybe it's struggling with the powdery mold?

I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

PS - My friend, Michele, informed me

that squash blossoms are AMAZING fried!!

I'm going to have to try this out!

The jalapenos are thriving as are the yellow and red bell peppers!

Both forms are still green...can't wait for their bright colors to burst!!

And the tomato harvest looks as though there's much more to come!

The basil is wonderful,

and I always let some go to seed in order to resow.

Another reason...

Lola loves the basil tops! 

Delectable!

Be sure to check out other harvests today at

Daphne's Dandelions  ! 

Have a great week!!

The Color Purple

I'm not talking about the movie that showed the world that Oprah Winfrey could act as well as host a TV show.  I'm talking about the actual color of purple, which is very symbolic for the Christian celebration of Easter and the Passion of Christ.  Purple symbolizes royalty and is the color used to clothe a king.

Purple in the garden, from my perspective, has a unique role to play.  The color ranges from a deep, sultry, velvety shade that may border on black, to light and airy periwinkle hues.  Since purple covers such a broad band, it can be used to bridge the gap between seemingly unrelated colors. 

Taking inventory of my garden,

I have much purple...more than I was aware of. 

Of course, my orchids

show my preference for the intoxicating shades of purple.

Christieara Sharifa Alsagoff

Ground Orchid

Dendrobium

My first orchid that blooms every year for my birthday!

Phalaenopsis highlighted by bright and cheerful yellow!

Another favorite is my Queen Emma Crinum Lily.



This juvenile will grow quickly

to it's mammoth size once the rainy season comes. 

I love the deep, dark tones of the leaves.

Her blossom is a pearly white

painted with streaks of deep purple on the underside

of each petal that appear pinkish on the upper side.

Each deep purple stamen is topped

with bright yellow pollen producing anthers. 

The fragrance is intoxicating!!! 

(Dear Blogger:

I'd like to embed a scratch-n-sniff here.

Please let me know when this feature is available.)

The Purple Queen blooms are small

but lovely when appreciated closely. 

The leaf to the left of the Purple Queen bloom

is that of a Purple Velvet Plant,

or Gynura sarmentosa.

I love how the velvety layer of purple

highlights the deep green leaf.

The AMAZINGLY COOL bloom of

Tillandsia Ionantha is nothing less than spectacular!

The entire ball is in full crazy bloom right now,

appearing like a burst of fireworks!

Angelonia has a wonderful little bloom

resembling an angel with mouth wide open,

singing praises to her Heavenly Father!

The strength of Mexican Heather

is definitely in it's numbers. 

The blooms are small and

would otherwise go unnoticed. 

But the ground cover boasts a multitude

of little purple blossoms that stand out

against the backdrop of soft green foliage.

Ruellia is a lovely true purple. 

It's appropriately known as Purple Showers

 since the blooms wither and drop each day,

only to make way for new ones the following day.

Succulents are even more striking in purple!!

This variegated Bromelaid is extraordinarily striking!

 

This Passion Vine opens to a brilliant red, but...

the bud begins with distinct purple tones.



Even the cabbage in the veggie garden

shows lovely purple tones!

(wish I had a beautiful eggplant to boast!)

The lighter shades look more blue...

like this airy Plumbago and...

and this Blue Eyed Grass that grows wild in my yard.

(I'm always a bit confused

how the garden experts

categorize "blue" and "purple". 

They lump them together,

which is what I've done here. 

But seriously...

"Blue Eyed Grass" is blue, right? 

Oh well, I'll agree with the "experts"

and call it a shade of purple for this post!  HA!!!)

Happy Easter!!!

Resilience and GBBD!

Resilience...

this word has great meaning for me lately. 

I've come through a rough time,

riding on an emotional roller coaster. 

Making my way through the weeds of life,

I've made it through, or at least to a clearing. 

As I walk my property,

taking notice of the daily changes

in my cherished garden,

one thing rang out loud and clear....

Resilience! 

Of course, survival has many forms...some not so nice.

I choose the kinder ways of resilience 

as I do not want to become a thorny,

nasty individual.  

Resilience, in fact, means to bounce back...

to be elastic and to rebound...

even rubbery. 

Kate Bush said it best in her song titled,

"Rubberband Girl"...

courtesy of You Tube

"See those trees bend in the wind.

I feel they've got

a lot more sense than me. 

You see, I try to resist....

I want to be a rubberband girl."

Trees and plants,

by their sheer nature, are resilient. 

They roll with the punches. 

A perfect example...

When I moved 4 months ago,

I brought 3 stalks of bananas

from my original Garden in Paradise. 

They would have made it through

the division and relocation just fine

if it weren't for the cold. 

You can see the original stalk

did not take well to frost. 

However, the root survived

and sent up a brand new stalk

to produce sweet clumps of bananas

for the new Garden in Paradise! 

How about this example?

My poor Costus was not only divided,

relocated and subjected to freezing temperatures...

it has endured the constant trampling of my dogs. 

The Force is strong in this one though,

and it is sending out new shoots and leaves

from the only remaining stalk. 

New shoots are rising from the ground as well! 

After all, wise Yoda said,

"Do or do not.  There is no try." 

Sorry Sci Fi haters...can't help it!

Here's another beauty that has taken a beating

from the dogs as they chase the squirrels

about the yard and up the trees...

these Caladiums seem to spring back

like nothing hit them. 

Surprising as they seem more delicate than this.

Here's another photo with backlighting,

courtesy of the late afternoon sun. 

Yet another surviver...

My cherished dendrobium orchid

was left out in the cold several nights in a row. 

I really didn't think she was going to make it. 

Only two of her original stalks remain,

and they are mostly leafless. 

But this gal is no quitter! 

She's sending out new pups

so she'll be able to produce her

gorgeous blooming spectacular

in October for my birthday,

as she does every year!

Now, if you want to see a real trooper,

check out my incredible aloe.

This lady is tough as nails...

nothing seems to phase her. 

She was divided and relocated,

then left to endure the cold nights

just like the others. 

But she took her punches standing up. 

She's in full bloom, as if nothing ever happened!

While so many of the others are recuperating,

she is full of vim and vigor!

I have one more to ogle over...

my Tillandsia Ionantha.

Just two weeks ago,

it did not show any sign of blooming. 

It looked healthy

but there was no evidence

that this fun little ball would come to life

this year,

having endured a change of environment. 

But...

BAM! 

The fireworks erupted quite unexpectedly! 

Talk about a come-back!

One final resilient gal is this amazing sea turtle

 we met at the Loggerhead Marine Life Center. 

She's recovering quite well from her injuries

 and will be released sometime in the near future.

Isn't she amazing?!

So, I feel akin to the flora and fauna...

resilient and pliable...

able to take a beating and bounce back

with strength and confidence! 

Once again,

my garden has worked therapeutic miracles!!! 

I'm adding this post to Carol's monthly

Garden Blogger's Bloom Day meme.

(15th of each month) 

Be sure to head over to

May Dreams Gardens to see other GBBD posts!

Monarchs and Milkweed

Just a few shots for Wordless Wednesday..