Viewing comments posted by mjsponies

Grows best in either chopped sphagnum moss or sphagnum moss mixed w/ perlite and fine orchid bark. Needs very free draining and to not dry out completely. Bright filtered light only. Strong light will burn the thin leaves.

This plant really doesn't like cold. Early December 2017 temperatures in Central Florida dipped to 35º early morning for a couple mornings. No real frost and this plant is protected near a fence a tree canopy. Was the only plant so show any ill effects from the cold. Time to dig up and overwinter in the greenhouse I guess.

There are 2 forms of this Dischidia.
1 from Laos, which has very fine hairs on surface of the leaf,and 1 from the Philippines, which is smooth. Both produce tiny white Urn shaped blooms.

This is more of a shrub-type Hoya than a vining one, but I have found it to be trainable on a large hoop or fan trellis. It definitely likes to be on the warmer side and doesn't want to dry out as much as some others. I try to keep it evenly moist, warm, and humid. A little more work, but worth the effort.

Love, love this Begonia. Was a star in the greenhouse over winter and it's proven to be quite heat tolerant in summer. No wilting from heat, no spots on the leaves, no complaints. We've had a blistering summer and this Begonia has not missed a beat. So far I've had it in bright shade in a container. Taking cuttings and will try some in the ground.

This is one of the prettiest Hoya blooms out there. Lovely, very soft fragrance. Supposedly a cross between Hoya australis x Hoya subcalva. I've found it be very heat tolerant, but it needs a well-draining mix. Let it get almost dry, then water thoroughly again.

Love this yellow-flowered African species. It's compact enough for larger terrariums, in a low-light, humid spot. I grow mine in the greenhouse pretty much year round, even here in Florida. When other Begonias are complaining about the heat, it's thriving. It does need more humidity than your average Begonia, though.

Grow this beauty in shade, with plenty of water. Although it has a reputation for being a slow grower, mine's been anything but. It propagates by throwing out runners, where new plants form and root where they touch the soil. Mine started throwing runners within a month after I received it. Other than needing warmth and very high humidity, which might be hard to provide in the average home environment, it is easy to grow.

Easy Hoya to grow, but can be a bit slow to bring to bloom if not given enough light. Wonderful large leaves can take on a red tinge. The blooms have a fresh lemony scent, almost like the furniture polish, Pledge, but lighter and fresher.

This is one of my favorite Cannas. It seems to be resistant to most of the things that I hate about Cannas. Doesn't seem to get bothered by leaf rollers like many of the others, doesn't get rust blooms if we've been getting rain, or not, and it's in a area of the yard that isn't easy to water when we don't get rain.
I've got it in a part-shade, part-sun spot, I never fertilize it, although the soil there is generally pretty good anyway, and it's a happy camper. And if it gets a little too happy, we just mow it down. Every couple of years I dig up rhizomes to thin the bed out.

The bloom spikes pop up in the spring anywhere from late April through late May. The bloom spikes appear before the leaves do, so they seem to come up out of nowhere. We've got them growing in several spots on our property, and we have put markers out so that they don't get mowed by accident.
The spikes are anywhere from 12 inches tall on younger plants to 24 inches tall on mature ones.

Absolutely stunning plant. Prefers bright light, dappled sun/shade. Fairly forgiving of watering mishaps and summer's monsoons.
I overwintered it in the greenhouse and it slowed way down, not putting out any new leaves. Now showing signs of a new leaf coming. Can't wait to see how it does this year.

Probably one of the easiest Alocasias to grow. Tolerates a variety of light conditions from mostly sun to mostly shade. Never missed a beat during the summer's monsoonal rains, nor during the dry season if I missed a watering....or 2. Over winter I left it out, just thinking I'd let it go dormant. After a couple of 28-degree nights, it just had a few "nipped" ears, but never did die back to the ground. Would recommend to someone who would like to grow some "Ears" but doesn't want to deal with the fussier ones.

This Hoya really should read Hoya aff parasitica Lao 2, not verticillata.

This Hoya is not a cultivar.

There's still a lot of confusion and debate about the naming and whether parasitica, acuta, and verticillata are/should be grouped together.

the "aff" means " similar to" and the Lao 2 means the region where it was collected.

Some additional abbreviations are "cf" = compares favorably to, "sp" = species, after which you sometimes see a name which begins with a capital letter. This generally means it is a different clone. "cv." = Cultivar, in which case it is a man-made cross.

Hopefully at some point we'll be able to get the database to accept the different formats, or at least a comment in the name field regarding it.

This is probably my favorite Anthurium. The veining in the foliage literally sparkles. Can be grown indoors or outside in a protected area so as to protect the leaves from wind damage. If grown inside, it should be misted at least once daily to provide the humidity it likes. I've been feeding it every month half-strength with Jack's 20/20/20 and have the first bloom coming now. Potted it in a mix of Orchid Bark, extra chunky perlite with a little potting soil mixed in. It needs excellent drainage, so take care to make sure your mix allows water to drain through.

I love this plant! I have the variegated one. I grow it outside here in Central Florida till temps begin to fall consistently below 50º in late fall then move it to the greenhouse. It's continued to put out new leaves, just a bit more slowly, and hasn't shown any sign of going dormant, as some of my other Alocasias have. Morning sun, mid-day shade, and later afternoon sun seems to be best for it here. Handled our torrential downpours this summer fine, but it's planted in a very well-draining mix. So far no issues with pests of any kind.

Easy to grow, although they typically go "semi-dormant" to fully dormant in winter here for me even if grown in pots. Just reduce watering to prevent the tuber from rotting, and in spring they will pop right back up.

I've had this for at least 6 years now. Grows in the lower part of the yard that generally stays fairly moist. No irrigation is available where it's planted, so if we don't get rain it's on its own. Gets full sun, 8+ hrs. a day. It's come back reliably from hard freezes ( zone 8b/9a). Blooms OK if we've been dry; fantastic if we've been getting usual rain. I don't ever fertilize them either. One of the few Hibiscuses I grow as I absolutely can't stand the white flies that Hibiscuses are noted for. These, for some reason, don't seem to be prone to them. There is some sort of moth caterpillar that likes to occasionally chew on the leaves, which I just pick off.
I love the big platter-shaped blooms. Fairly easy to root. Gets well over 6-7 ft. tall, but can be pruned down if you don't have that much room for them.

This can be a little bit of a temperamental Hoya to grow. It really requires good humidity and a well draining mix. Using an Orchid mix with some Hydroton and giving it high humidity with bright light gets the best results. It is worth it, though, if you can give it the conditions it likes. The fragrance is very noticeable in the evenings and very much like a mild night-blooming Jasmine.

Unusual and lovely small ginger. I've got these planted in front of Xanthosoma Lime Zinger and in mixed containers with Caladiums. Perfect in the front of a bed and seem at home both in the ground and potted. I've found them to be exceptionally easy. The major requirement is moist rich soil. I haven't even done any supplemental fertilizing.
When they are done flowering, bulbils form along the inflorescence, providing more interest after flowering.

I give them a big Thumbs UP !