Billbergia Pyramidalis, AKA 'Bubble Gum Cotton Candy Plant'

Some call them 'hurricane bromeliad', and others 'foolproof plant'. If I could come up with a common name myself it would be 'bubble-gum-cotton-candy-plant' for the velvety delicious looking inflorescences that froth up from a swirl of glossy green leaves late every summer. Maybe it's a good thing that I don't make the decisions when it comes to naming plants. Oh to hell with it. I'd do a great job naming plants!

Tropical Color in the Summer Garden

I might be biased, but what better plants for a summer garden than tropicals? Tropical plants happen to thrive on the very same heat and humidity that makes even the most red blooded southerner miserable, so I never have to worry about my garden flopping during a heat wave. Here are some ideas from my trip to Winter Park for incorporating some temporary tropical displays in your own garden, be it in soggy Seattle or sultry Savannah.

Mega Macro Monday, Leu Gardens Edition

After a trip to Winter Park and its fabulous gardens, I've decided to make up for lost time and share a really big Macro Monday post using some shots from my little excursion. I spent all day around Leu Gardens, Polasek Sculpture Gardens, downtown and at a couple of nurseries drinking lots of water and continuously losing it as I became drenched in sweat. I know that visiting gardens during a heat advisory sounds pretty dreadful, but look at what I found!

Sketch A Plant Sunday - Magnolia Seedling

This is the first real sketch of my Sketch A Plant Sunday project; a quick pencil sketch completed while half-awake and yearning for caffeine. I've just returned from a day trip to Winter Park last night (Don't worry, I have over 200 photos) and somehow the full nine hours of sleep weren't enough for me this time around. It's always rewarding to force yourself to draw something, even when you don't feel like it.

Wordless Wednesday

Why haven't I been doing any Wordless Wednesday posts lately? Beats me. In any case, here are some shots of neglect tolerant plants from my most recent trip to the garden. The Neoregelia bromeliad gets rainfall, but the echeveria and geranium survive in containers on nothing but dew and a watering once every two to three weeks. Who knew that Pelagorniums could be so downright durable?

The Life Cycle of the Gulf Fritillary Butterfly

We have all learned where butterflies come from. It was in elementary school when the science teacher ordered a kit that promised flocks of magical butterflies fluttering about the classroom but in reality, the tent became littered with stinky dead pupae and misshapen creatures that never quite came out right. Did anyone else have this experience? Well, today while gardening I witnessed both a caterpillar forming its cocoon and a butterfly emerging from one! It sure beats poking at stinky dead mutant bugs in the classroom.

Sketch A Plant Sunday - Dracaena Part 2

I've finally made some headway with my Dracaena "Limelight" drawing! Recently Kat White has been sharing her own digital art, and I was inspired to play around with digital painting myself. First I worked out the lines with Prismacolor markers and filled in the leaves with a solid apple green. Then I downloaded an app called Sketchbook Pro to my new iPad and started drawing the plant in my living room from life.

All About Lemongrass

It's been a long time since I've posted a decent plant profile, and I could think of no plant more interesting to feature than lemongrass. It has a fragrant citrus aroma, has been used in the kitchen for centuries, and it also happens to be a superb addition to the garden! It's so incredibly rewarding to harvest my own lemongrass for tea and pad Thai, and the harvest is all the more exciting because my lemongrass plant thrived under virtually no care at all.

A Buggy Field Trip to the Gardens and Beach

When we entered Washington Oaks Gardens state park, a sign warned us that "Mosquitoes are plentiful in the park today." Sea glass jeweler Shannon Maureen Russell, my wife and I were planning on having a picnic in the park and even taking a garden stroll, but the sign merely made us giggle. "Plentiful" sounds like the way you'd describe flowers or frolicking butterflies, not the way you would explain what turned out to be swarms. If only we heeded that inadequate warning...

Sketch a Plant Sunday: Art of Nancy Asbell

Is it Sunday already? I still have some work to do before posting my dracaena drawing, but in the meantime I'll share some of the wonderful landscape paintings by my mother, Nancy Asbell. In case you were wondering, she's recovering nicely thanks to your prayers and kind thoughts. Oh, and there's a McLinky tool at the bottom of the post so you can share your own garden sketches, doodles and art! For the love of God, please don't be shy this time.

Our Lavender and Chartreuse Anniversary Arrangement

I came home the other night to find a romantic anniversary dinner complete with a bouquet of chartreuse Fuji mums! If you couldn't already tell by looking at our wedding arrangements, my wife and I are big fans of the color chartreuse. As it turned out, I brought some flowers of my own for our dinner, three cut flowers from a siam tulip (Curcuma) that I bought from the nursery with the express intent of using for an arrangement. I'd like to think that her flowers and my flowers worked quite well together.

A Three Hour Tour... of the Garden!

I know it's been a while since I've shared the garden at my mom's but then again, I haven't been there much lately! I'm making up for lost time with a megapost filled with pictures of the flowers, foliage and fruit from the garden in July, but I haven't found the courage to sing a ditty like last time. Maybe after I sample some of the ripe figs that I've just harvested and wash it down with a passionfruit cocktail.

Sketch A Plant Sunday - Dracaena

Part blog carnival and part attempt to get back into the habit of drawing more often, Sketch A Plant Sunday is when I draw a plant, post it, and hopefully see some of your drawings in return! Show me yours and I'll show you mine... or something like that. I've commenced by exploring the outlines of a Dracaena "Limelight" in my living room, and next week I'll continue by going over the lines with ink.

Plant Chandelier and Other Ideas

My friend Cora always has the best ideas. This gorgeous many-armed plant stand was once just a cruddy looking chandelier on the side of the road, but Cora knew better. She sandblasted it with the help of her son and daughter and law, painted it white, and filled the chandelier's arms with an assortment of potted plants that she found at a yard sale. You think this is cool? Wait til you have a look at her wind harp crafted from a GOURD!

Join Me for the First 'Sketch A Plant Sunday'

Garden bloggers are a creative bunch, but now is the time to kick that creativity into the next level. In an effort to better understand my garden and myself, I've resolved to draw a plant every week and you're all invited to pick a plant, any plant, and sit down with me for a nice Sunday drawing session starting this very Sunday. Even if stick figures are your specialty, rest assured that there are plenty of branches out there begging to be rendered by a masterful stick figure artist such as yourself.

How to Make Affordable Wedding Flower Arrangements

It's true. I, the groom and a gentleman of rugged and suave manliness, arranged the flowers for my own wedding. If that wasn't surprising enough, the whole undertaking was also really affordable. I used a combination of flowers and foliage from the florist, Target and my own garden, saving hundreds of dollars by taking matters into my own hands. If only I decided to make the bouquets too! Anyways, here's how I went about making these awesome and affordable DIY flower arrangements.

DIY Rainforest Drops, the Easy Way!

I think that I've finally perfected the recipe and I couldn't wait to share. The old way works just fine, but I think that you'll find these instructions a bit easier to swallow. To sum it up: I root the cuttings first, stuff the grapevine ball with long grain sphagnum moss, and tuck in the cuttings! This version is loads easier.

How To Plant a Lush Drought Tolerant Garden

The terms 'drought tolerant' and 'xeriscaping' might conjure up images of dangerous looking spiky plants and scrubby wildflower plantings to some, but experienced gardeners know better. Your garden doesn't need to look like a desert to be drought tolerant, and you don't even need cacti and succulents! Here's how I've made the most of the driest patch of dirt in my own garden without making it look drought tolerant.

The Rainforest Garden Show - Episode One

Hey guys, wanna watch me sing improv or at least see a wobbly video of the garden? I decided to film a short clip of the garden for my mom in the hospital, and had to make it extra special. You see, singing with me was one of those things that my mom really loved throughout my childhood, especially since I'm now too shy to sing for anyone anymore... unless I'm just fooling around and not taking myself seriously! Of course I've also filmed a bit of the garden, so feel free to skip past the first video.

I Want to Plant a Garden at the Mayo Clinic

I've spent many fretful hours in the gardens of the Mayo Clinic here in Jacksonville. Okay, so you couldn't really say that the Mayo Clinic has gardens in the classical sense, but the landscaping really is something else. Walking out to Louchery Island has always been the high point of my visits to the hospital, and nothing eases your mind like marveling at the spidery or bell shaped blooms of crinums or the statuesque trunks of split leaf philodendrons, especially when the doctors deliver bad news as they often did. It may be those very visits that inspired me to garden.