What's looking exotic in 2016

Not hardy, at least I dont think so, never tried it.
But I overwinter in the cool greenhouse after cutting back quite hard.
Its called "Anastasia".

If you want I could take some cuttings for you.

 

Now renamed Justicia brandegeeana - the Shrimp Plant. Yes I know its a bog standard house plant, but I still like it. I saw huge bushes of this in Madeira earlier this year.


Ignea cuphea - Cigar Plant, from seed this year. Another common house plant.


Hoya linearis - this time not quite so common. It does the same job as Tillandsia usneoides (Spanish Moss), but I am thinking that I like it more - maybe because its not so common.


And its just started to flower. There are at least a dozen flowers/buds on it.

 

Like the Hoya @PeterS , never seen that one before.

 

@PeterS

I planted my dark flowered one (cutting from a hotel in Nairobi) in the garden but it has refused to even set buds, i'll dig it up later and over winter it and hopefully it will flower next year!

 

That's interesting Strongy. Most of our tropical plants will survive outside over the summer, but I often wonder how many will actually thrive and flower well.

I have been pleased with my Dahlia imperialis, which has grown and flowered outside every summer in Yorkshire. I know that Pete and others can often have problems. Though I suspect that there are a number of slightly different plants all bearing the name D. imperialis. Mine seems to be quite a good one, but the flower is double unlike the pictures of it on the internet.

Perhaps some Shrimp Plants are more tender than others. Though I have never tried mine outside.

 

My D imperalis refuses to flower. I've had it for some years and the first year I got it started and then planted it out and left in the ground until October, nothing. Since then I've had it in the green house in a big pot regular food and water. It is often later into growth than other dahlias under the same conditions. It grows strongly, three broom stick diameter shoots, easily reaches the apex of the greenhouse. This year I pinched out the tops at 7ft and it bushed out a bit. However not a sign of flowers. Next year it may well go back outside.
Having seen it growing well in Nepal; my thoughts are that with me it doesn't get a long enough growing season, it needs an early start to get going. A second issue is, certainly here, is lack of sunlight.

 

The dahlia i. business sounds very similar to my experiences with various Hedychium. Nothing, but nothing induced them to flower in the UK, whether in the conservatory or outside. Over here, with a longer growing season and planted in the ground, they flower reliably every year. Presumably day length doesn't enter into it?

 

The great thing about Hoya is that they rebloom from the same point year after year.

Isn't that a part of the fascination/challenge of growing tender plants from warmer climates? It is up to us to work out what is most important to them and to try and simulate those conditions the best that we can within the limitations that we have to work in. I always used to grow Cupphea ignea as an annual and overwintered cuttings indoors for the next year (maybe it was more of a biennial?) and it did well.
One of the best plants from warmer climes for planting out is Impatiens niamniamensis. Coming from the genuinely tropical areas of Africa the assumption might be to give it full sun in the UK. But then when I found out that it grew in the shady moist spots of it's natural habitat I planted it in the same and it did ok. But after trying it in a moist spot that is shaded from the worst of the afternoon sun (when we see it) it thrived.
Of course there will always be those that will not perform in certain areas of the UK...................

I've had the same issue with Hedychium here in the Cotswolds now that I've planted it out. So a month ago I lifted it and will now keep it in the shed and push it back into growth in the greenhouse following @pete mantra of not putting borderline stuff (which as far as blooming goes Hedychium appears to be this far inland) out too early and potentially forcing it into a sulk.

 

My D. imperialis was grown from seed quite a few years ago, so guessing its probably the basic species, if yours has double flowers I'm guessing its some kind of cultivar.
I've often thought flowering of some Dahlias to be linked to day length, days too long and they won't bud up.
It could be growing season but mines over 8ft at the moment and not a bud in sight.

As to Hedychiums, I really only grow gardnerianum and "tara", and some densiflorum, every year, "tara" is first to flower, followed by densiflorum then gardnerianum in sept.

I've tried others but most are too late for my liking.
I always cut them down in stages through the winter, if pot grown, so only have new, flowering shoots, the following year, I did one year allow gardnerianum to keep its old shoots from the previous year and flowering was pretty poor.

 

Two final flowerers, they have both left it a bit late this year, so wont be as good as they could have been.
Erythrina christa-galli.


Caesalpinia gilliesii, usually flowers from late July onwards,

 

Hi Peter,

How can you call the Shrimp plant a bog standard house plant ? I've been after one for years :(

 

Hi Pete,

Gorgeous plants ( as usual Lol ), but that Erythrina is absolutely stunning

 

Thanks @Anthony Rogers , yes I do like Erythrinas, but it's far too late, and unlikely to open its flowers properly which is why I have taken pics so early before the whole spike opens .

 

Had a frost last night, so time to bring the tropicals inside. Thermometer only said 1.5C, but my neighbour had to scrape the frost of his car.


Tibouchina


An Amorphallus napaulensis got left out in the frost - but still looks very healthy. Obviously too small to flower, but when it does I understand it's foul smelling.

I also have the first Hedychium buds - they really are late aren't they.

 

@PeterS More massive flowers on my Tillandsia Usneoides.