Gardens

Yellow Bells are Beautiful Flowers
I am trying this plant out in a pot just to see if it does well. If so, I will transplant it into the ground and provide a larger trellis.
This is an overview of the west quarter of the circle.
Another view from the west.
This is one of the many lizards that visit my garden, here she is right underneath the Garden Fairy.
As I was sitting on the front porch of the guest cottage, after working hard in the garden, I was rehydrating and admiring and I guess this little visitor was as well.
Succulents in Bloom. I planted this succulent and within on week it shot up a beautiful spike of flowers, pretty cool. Eh?
This is an overview of the south quarter of the wheel.
Tabebuia Caraiba or Silver Trumpet tree has leaves that are green on the top side and silver on the bottom. And in March and April has beautiful large yellow blossoms. When my beloved Belle was in her last days the Trumpet trees were blooming so in her memory I planted two just past my Medicine wheel garden.
This potted sego palm just got new growth, I will plant her in the ground next spring.
I planted this Royal Poinciana tree two years ago. I have a wonderful tree in the front yard that is about forty feet tall and forty feet across and has the most beautiful orange flowers in the summer. The one in the front was severely damaged by Hurricane Wilma in 2005, but I refused to have it taken down. I told everyone that she would come back and she has not proven me wrong. Finally this summer she has produced the most beautiful array of flowers and wondrous seed pods that all the doubters are eating their words now. So I planted a young one because I read that these trees would bloom more if there were two. This spring there was an incredibly late freeze and my poor little tree lost all of its leaves. I did not give up hope and watered and smudged and talked to her and look, she is in full leaf splendor!
Purple Showers, Mexican Petunia. I planted a very small plant to see if it would like this place. If it does the bush could grow to as large as four feet!
Purple Queen and Mexican Petunia. The purple queen in the front NEEDS to be in a pot. If I were to plant this in the ground here in Florida it would become and invasive taker-overer type plant. So I admire the beautiful purple color and that it is a “butterfly plant” but she must be kept contained for the good of the local natives.
Persian Shield. I do not know that much about this plant so I potted it just to be sure it would survive and wait until I can do some more research on its invasive qualities.
Pentas bring lots of butterflies and bees
I just love orchids!
Orchids bloom about every six months. This is one of two spikes on this orchid in bloom!
The North. In the north quarter I have planted night blooming jasmine in the ground with a wonderful trellis. There is a statue of a mother and her two children, many potted ponytail and sego palms and a few “Bonsai” Ficus plants.
The Money Tree. I had to place the Money tree in the west quarter because the root structure and eventual height of the tree dictated that it be at least forty feet away from my House and foundation. It has grown fantastically there, so all is good
Mexican Peturnia. Well I had this pot aand it looked good where it was in the circle so I planted this plant. I love the purple blossoms and the bees do as well.
Mexican Heather. I am trying new flowers in the garden to see what will grow the best.
After a very hard and freezing winter here in South Florida, I cleaned up and trimmed back plants, took out the poor ones that didn’t make it, and put in a few new ones. Now I will meditate and wait to see which ones make a come-back, then I will replace the ones that don’t.
The Cottage you see in the background is where my guests, like Anne, Barbara and Susan stay when they visit Florida.
I have worked hard the past few weeks in the garden and I am quite proud of my accomplishments.
Just another angle on the garden!
My Medicine wheel garden is about thirty feet across. I just added the Foxtail Palm in the middle of the circle. This garden sits outside my studio window so it is a constant source of inspiration for me.
Marigolds, Lavender and Rosemary. In the south quarter of the garden.
I have my “Garden Fairy” and sculpture made from pavers, cinder blocks and rocks that I found on my five acre property. I have succulents in pots to see if they like this area.
I really do not know what these little beauties are called, but here we call them “Florida Snow”. After a rain they bloom low in the grass and when you look over an open expanse of them they look like a snow field. The closest we will come to a snow field in Florida!
My cat figures keep watch over the garden, plants, and fountain.
Yes Butterflies and bees love this plant as well.
Butterfly Bush. This is the flower from the butterfly bush. When I was in the garden center all the butterflies were flitting about this plant to I brought her home.
Here is proof that the butterflies LOVE this plant!
Bromeliads do very well in my Orchid Garden, in a natural setting they do not get quite the same color as the “forced” bloom of Bromeliads in the store, but I love them for their “natural” effort.