Started last week, I have been taking my year end vacation. This vacation will be stay-home vacation. I hosted a big party with 18 families coming to our house last Saturday. Before that I spent some time to clean my garden, put on some fresh mulches, removed the old/dead plants, planted some winter annuals. The garden looks lovely, at least in my eyes :)
Let me just show you some pictures of my December garden. If you are in the winter up north, hope all these flowers can give you some warmth and colors in your cold winter days.
First, I need help to identify one new plant. I got it from a local nursery. The owner did not know the name either. The next two pictures shows both flowers and leaves. Anybody recognize it?
Update on 2/27/2012: Autumn Belle at "My Nice Garden" identified the above plant as "Strobilanthes hamiltoniana", common name: "Chinese Rain Bell". Thank you, Autumn Belle!!!
The following is Schaueria flavicoma, also know as common name "Golden plume". This is a shade or partial shade shrub, and first time blooming since I got it from Flamingo Gardens Member Day in May this year.
 |
| Schaueria flavicoma Golden plume |
 |
| Amazon Lily Eucharis grandiflora |
Two types of matchstick bromeliads are blooming.
Bought two new bromeliads recently.
Looks like this year the Christmas Cactus are on time for Christmas. They just started opening last week.
Kalanchoes have been in my garden for three winters, and they never failed to bloom in winter time.
My favorite red and white combinations for Christmas.
Even cordylines are in blooming...
 |
| Cordyline fruticosa 'Kiwi' |
 |
| Hawaiian Ti |
I got these mums from clearance rack in bad condition, after one month of care, they rewarded me with these. Feels so good to be a plants rescuer!
Love the color of this Aster, and it is almost done with blooming.
 |
| Cuphea melvilleaCigar Plant |
 |
| Begonia Odorata Var. Alba |
My Dear Friends in the real world and the gardening world, I wish you a very
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!
Wish I could help out with the first pic. It looks like a hummingbird plant and I might enter your area, the flower bloom, tubular and hit image....and see what comes up. LOVE your plants. I wish our plants looked like this during December, January and February:( My personal favorite flower this year has been the Aster. I think this has been their year all over the country.
ReplyDeleteDear Ami ~ What beauties you have blooming in your gardens at this time of year.
ReplyDeleteMay you have a lovely Christmas and a wonderful 2012.
FlowerLady
Your garden is really doing well. So nice to be able to have a party and a beautiful garden at the same time. Having a mild December is really nice isn't it? Merry Christmas!
ReplyDeleteYour flowers are blooming beautifully during this time of the year. The Christmas cactus flowers are lovely, so are all the rest. My cordyline has never bloom yet. The mystery flower looks like Strobilanthes cusia, common name: Chinese Rain Bell. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2012, Ami!
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year Ami. You have beautiful blooms this winter, I specially like your new bromeliads
ReplyDeletesounds like a fun party!! Your garden plants are gorgeous as usual - glad the weather has been great for you in sunny Florida.
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year! I was in South Florida from Christmas to New Years, and the weather was spectacular. I'm looking forward to the day when I can do my gardening in your zone. Love the bromeliads.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAmi, I just found out recently that the ID of the plant should be Strobilanthes hamiltoniana instead of S. cusia. I'm very sorry about the wrong info. earlier.
ReplyDeleteS. hamiltoniana has been incorrectly named as S. cusia in many web references. I got the ID of S. hamiltoniana from the label at The Secret Garden of 1-Utama and my post today is about this plant:
http://www.mynicegarden.com/2012/02/strobilanthes-hamiltoniana-india-blue.html.
To see pictures showing the differences between S. hamiltoniana and S. cusia, visit this link:
http://www.stgmagazine.com.au/community/2011/05/04/strobilanthes-hamiltoniana/
I really enjoyed tending my flowers,its like, its nice to wake up in the morning seeing them growing up and waiting for them to bloom :)
ReplyDeleteEnah from Alachua
Such a lovely flowers. I got my own garden but as lovely as this, my garden can't compete to it. Well, I need to enhance my skills in gardening to make it more lovelier like this one.
ReplyDeleteYour Affiliate Money Printing Machine is ready -
ReplyDeletePlus, making money with it is as easy as 1..2..3!
This is how it works...
STEP 1. Choose affiliate products the system will promote
STEP 2. Add push button traffic (it LITERALLY takes JUST 2 minutes)
STEP 3. Watch the affiliate products system grow your list and sell your affiliate products on it's own!
Are you ready to start making money???
Click here to launch the system