The joy of growing bromeliads in South Florida is that there is always a species in bloom year round. The vast array of color, size and texture of the bloom adds distinction to any landscape design in South Florida.
A large group of bromeliads utilized as a ground cover produces stunning blooms. Alas, this gorgeous display is short lived. Some bromeliads last months while others last just a week or two.
Sometimes a large bromeliad has great impact if utilized as an accent plant among greenery. The gray color of the leaves below also add a contrast to the surrounding plants.
Broward county has a bromeliad society that meets monthly. Click on the hyperlink above for more information. Years ago I was a regular member. I really want to go back to a meeting now and then. They used to have great raffles and you can win wonderful plants. Members would donate plants each month for the raffle.
For northerners bromeliads make wonderful houseplants as well. Check your local nurseries for the best selection. I recommend Aechmeas, Guzmanias, and Cryptanthus to start your collection. Happy gardening and see you again soon!
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Aloe vera is an amazing plant to grow, and its so easy as well. Inside give it a sunny window and water when the soil is dry to the touch, its that easy. Within no time the plant will start to produce baby plants and you will need to step up or repot the plant in a larger container.
Outdoors in Florida we are able to grow it year round in the garden. Aloe can be successfully grown as a ground cover. This year I planted a clump at the edge of my property line. Every time a baby grew to be a third of the size of the mother, I carefully dug it up and replanted it in a bare spot in the garden bed.
Last week the mature plants started blooming profusely. I had seen them bloom like this often through the years. I had never had planted an entire bed of them and am amazed at the beauty of the blooms en mass. Gorgeous.
I utilize aloe medicinally many ways. When I cut my skin I cut off part of a leaf and take it inside. I peel away part of the leaf to expose the gooey center, and apply that to the cut. I try to do it morning and night. Sometimes I apply it to my face before bedtime as a healthy skin treatment. Other times I take a teaspoon of the gel, add it in the blender with some juice and drink it as a tonic.
Aloe should be a plant in everyone's house or garden. In my horticultural therapy classes we grow it at every facility I work at.
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There is always something to eat from the garden. Right now the second crop of mangoes are ripening. This is a rare occurrence, usually we only get a short crop, and are inundated with ripe mangoes in a few short weeks. This second batch is plentiful, but the fruits are half size.
The critters are already feasting on the unripe mangoes, so I have to pick them early and have them ripen inside the house, in the sink. I use a large pole picker, as seen in this video. You are all welcome to subscribe to my youtube channel, greatly appreciated!
The sugar apples are still green, but are starting to turn yellow. They usually are ready after the mangoes, but this year we are having an overlap. It is wonderful to pick and eat directly from the tree. Urban farm fresh! Just a bike ride from downtown Fort Lauderdale. This video shows how to slice a star fruit. Did you know once they are sliced, you can float them in a drink? Fun!
If I had to redo my garden, I would have planted more edibles. I am all planted out and the only way to add more is to take trees and shrubs out. I may do just that...
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Recently a dear friend of mine passed away from cancer. She loved her garden and found inspiration in many places, including my garden. We shared cuttings and helped each other in the garden from time to time. She lived a few blocks away from me so it was easy to see each other. She loved my jungle look and replicated it in her garden. The tropical plants, small rock path slightly curving
is very similar to my design. She made hers more formal with stepping stones and black plastic edging. Hers path opened up to a grassy area enclosed by a fence. A friend of hers recently confided to me she took him to my garden to see it a few years ago while I was away from the house at work. She told him she wanted her garden to look like mine.
This beautiful Queen Crape Myrtle I planted years ago sure overcame a challenging time. She had a cutting growing in the corner of her yard in a pot and could not decide where to plant it. Years had gone by and the roots extended way down through the drainage holes into the soil. We could not even lift up the pot, we had to dig it out and cut the tree away from the container. Since we could not get all of the roots, I trimmed the branches. Luckily it did not die during transplanting. It has since thrived and as you can see above it looks great.
She loved her cat so much. This plant is called cats whiskers and grows prominently near the house entrance. It is nice to make a garden match your personality. This garden is bold, colorful and full of life, just like its owner was.
Good bye my dear, and happy planting up above.
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Cerasee is a popular herbal tea of the Caribbean Islands. It is utilized for many ailments, as it is a blood cleanser. Women use it to sooth monthly cramps, as well as to treat urinary tract infections. The tea is used to remove parasitic worms from the body. It cleanses the liver and kidneys. If you google cerasee tea, there is a great deal of information about all the benefits.
I never knew about cerasee tea until I brought it inadvertently during a flower arranging class from my garden and a certified nursing assistant told me all about it. The cerisee vine grows like a weed in my garden so I started bringing it to work for the nurses to use. I decided to make a video about it on my YouTube garden channel.
People started asking me for the tea and seeds so I started a business. I sell the tea in bulk gallon bags for just six dollars, including shipping. Seed packets of a dozen seeds are three dollars including shipping.
To brew the tea, boil water and then pour it over about a four inch piece of vine and leaves. Leave the tea to steep in the water for a few minutes, then strain into a cup. You can also put the leaves in a tea infuser and steep in boiling water. It is a bitter tea.
To order tea, just leave your contact information on my website, www.robbornstein.com
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One of my favorite aspects of gardening is observing blooms opening day by day. I like to take a few minutes before work to tour the garden. This week the ginger is starting to bloom.
It is beautiful to see sunlight shining through the tropical foliage and highlighting the bloom as it begins to open.
As the sheath separates, the smooth white flowers with pink tips reveal themselves like pearls.
As the cluster matures, each flower opens up and within the heart of the white flower, revealing a yellow/orange center. It is reminiscent of a snap dragon. Each day more yellow flowers emerge from the top of the cluster downward. The joys of gardening are plentiful.
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Every year the Florida Nursery, Landscape and Growers Association has a gigantic plant show, the Tropical Plant Industry Exhibition show at the Broward County Convention Center. Since I started writing for Examiner.com I cover the event for them. However, I have been attending the event for many years.
I know many of the nurserymen from when I was a state of Florida state agriculture inspector for the Division of Plant Industry. It was my first job out of college. I had to inspect nurseries who wanted to become certified to ship plants out of state to California, Texas and Arizona. Those states had strict laws restricting plants grown in soil from Florida due to our destructive nematode problems in our soils.
Back to the plant show. There are so many vendors the show takes up the entire hall. It is fun seeing the latest plant introductions. It is nice to see the growers I used to visit. I like to learn about the new products all the other vendors offer. Growers from Canada, China, and Europe are also there. There is so much to see I often go back more than once to see everything.
Here is a link to the Examiner article and slide show I wrote. Enjoy and thank you for stopping by my blog. Click on the link below.
I want to share this amazing butterfly on a cool morning last week. Enjoy the photos. This monarch was resting outside my door. I brought over some flowers for nourishment and little by little she became active. I lifted her up with a piece of paper and placed her on a collard green leaf and brought her into the sun. She then had enough energy to fly away.
There is a new phenomenon in the south Florida gardening world. What is old is new again. Heirloom roses are becoming available at local garden centers and nurseries. There are wonderful benefits to growing the old fashioned roses. Old fashioned roses are easier to grow than the new hybrid roses. They require little to no spraying of insecticides or fungicides. Heirloom roses flower more profusely than the newer hybrids. They often have a wonderful aroma. They grow on fuller bushes so they look less straggly than traditional hybrid roses. They require less pruning than modern roses.
The drawback of heirloom roses is that they do not have long stems, so they are not used in large vases. The stems are also very thin and are best suited for a bud vase. The flowers usually have fewer petals and fall off the stem in a shorter time than new hybrids. The color selection is limited. There are a bountiful amount of old roses, such as the Gallica, Damask, Centifolia, Portland, Bourbon, Ramblers and more. Some of these early hybrids originated from the old china roses. European in origin, they came here with early settlers to the United States. Southern plantation owners covered their entry fences with many of these roses. They became own as Dixie roses.
Welcome to my blog! All gardeners, landscapers, plant designers, nature photographers, herbalsits, horticulture therapists, landscape architects, nutritionists, health professionals, artists are encouraged to discuss topics in this blog. All will benefit!
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