What's looking exotic in July

Epiphyllums doing well.

 

Pete, do they only last a day?
What is growing with them, Tradescantia or Commelina?

 

They only last one night Strongy, open at dusk and die by midday the following day.
On cloudy days they go two nights.
Quite scented.

To the right are leaves from Gloriosa.

 

What species is that Pete? My E. oxypetalum has just started to produce buds but only ever has 2 or 3 at a time.

 

Rodgersia pinnata Chocolate Wing (I think that's the variety ... I have that in my list of Purchases, but they don't look very Chocolatey !!)



the leaves are nicely huge - I should have put something next to them for "scale"



whilst on foliage I have Schefflera rhododendrifolia new this year:


and Fatsia Edward Needham Form which I bought late last Summer:


very deeply indented leaves

 

I also have a normal Fatsia japonica, and a variegated one nearby (sharing the same shadyarea of the garden) and a Spider's Web:



the amount of White is always a lottery (year to year, let alone plant-to-plant)

My ornamental ginger, in its second year, is trying to put out some massive new shoots - so hopefully impressive flowers to look forward to in the Autumn ... but only if they hurry up :( as its always a race between flowering and frost / cold arriving - they compete with my Winter Squash for "Not being ready in time" !!

 

Not good on the naming of these, but when I was given the cutting I was told it was E. crenatum "kimnachii".
I seem to remember having an E. oxypetalum, but it outgrew its allotted space, nice flowers though, crenatum seems more compact.
There are actually three plants grouped together, .....I cheated.

 

Kristen, the H. greenii, you sent me is doing strange things on the ends of last years shoots.

Are they flowers forming or the bulbils???

 

Too early for flowers I would think, more probably bulbils (although a bit late for that!)

The one I sent you is from a bulbil collected last Spring/Summer ... so if they are bulbils you'll have a forest shortly!!

 

Been trying to get a decent picture of the Iochroma australis plants.
Its difficult as the actual flowers are small, but I've had a go.


As to the White one, the nextdoor neighbour gets the benefit of that one.

 

Are they properly hardy?

And am I right in thinking that they need planting somewhere where you can walk "under" them to fully enjoy the flowers?

And (final question!) if grown from seed do I need to wait until flowering to determine colour before planting out into final position?

Pretty sure I have some seed lying around, and also pretty sure that I don't have any plants knocking about, so either have not survived from previous years or not had time to sow them ...

 

I'd try to plant them away from the house...I had to cut mine down due to an awful smell like an old mophead...tried many times to get cuttings struck, they started well then died each time.

 

They have been there for the best part of 20yrs, so were established in mild winters, but self sown seedlings survive with minimum protection for the first winter.

Walking under them is probably the best way of seeing the flowers.

I'm not sure on flower colour, but the white one does not self seed like the blue one does, but that maybe because its growing an a different position and I cut it back harder after flowering.
I'm assuming white plants give white offspring, but I know that could be too simple.

I've not noticed any bad smell, but I would say that the fruits can be a problem if the plants are left unpruned after flowering.

 

Right. I'm all set then Many thanks.

 

Pete, there are several large blue and white Iochroma in the perennial borders in the country park where I do my voluntary thing but I didn't know there was a red one, this is growing through one of the blues. I wasn't sure it was an Iochroma so I took a pic.