HOUSE PLANTS

This is an update of my small little home garden. There are drastic changes if one compares these photos to my earlier ones.

For one, my Brugmansia in the right planter is no longer visible here. I uprooted and discarded the old one because it was rotting, dying and no longer growing actively. Thankfully, I took numerous cuttings that are now growing well. Hopefully with time, I can see the beautiful blooms again.

Then I transplanted the Quisqualis indica from the right to the left planter where the Lonicera was removed. Initially, it shed all its leaves but new leaves can be seen growing on the almost bare branches. To my own surprise, I found that I did not post anything about these two plants partly because they never looked too good here although the Lonicera did flower rather regularly and gave out a nice fragrance. The Mirabilis jalapa, the seeds which I collected from the neighbourhood garden, is growing kind of big but has not produced any flowers yet.

Strangely, the variegated Aptenia cordifolia is growing so well that it is scrambling down the wall but I do not see the red flowers. I wonder why I have never posted about this plant before. When it does flower, I will give it some attention and post it here. The Dissotis rotundifolia that I grew for months now is finally sprawling over the edge and I can see lots of flower buds on the plant, so I can expect to see the open flowers soon. On the left, the Lantana montevidensis that I bought about 2 months back has rewarded me with nice purplish inflorescences and I am pretty sure it is just a matter of time before it drapes over the parapet too. The pink Impatiens walleriana that I bought from Nex is also showing off its pinkish flowers.

In the right planter, the Antigonon leptopus was pruned back to the base and now the new green heart-shaped leaves are growing down once again. On the far right, my Petraeovitex wolfei vine looked so yellow and miserable, unlike the photos posted earlier. I realised it is suffering from a serious case of nutrient deficiency and lack of water and I am now trying to revive it. The over-zealous Lantana camara growing all over it does not help, but I decided to leave the beautiful blooms intact as they are just so pretty. The Hamelia patens is growing much bigger now.

There would be more updates as my little garden changes.

HOUSE PLANTS

These photos were taken just 6 and 10 days ago but things have changed since then because I wasn't pleased with the look.

So, I reaped out the Pseudogynoxys chenopodioides (common name: Mexican Flame Vine), pruned off the Antigonon leptopus (common name: Honolulu Creeper) and removed the Episcia cupreata 'Pink Panther' (common name: Flame Violet) because of a mealy bugs infestation etc. But I still wasn't too happy with the changes although I am pleased with the Petraeovitex wolfei (common name: Wolfei's Vine), Vinca rosea (common name: Periwinkle), Lantana camara and the Hamelia patens that I bought from the GardenShop previously. I spotted th Olive-backed Sunbird on several occasions already but I never managed to capture its photo.

I will definitely be posting photos of the changes at a later date.

PETRAEOVITEX WOLFEI

It took me a while to train the Wolfei's Vine to creep along the wall and droop down from it. But I managed to do so in the end.

Now I can get to see the white flowers within the yellow bracts clearly.

PLAIN TIGER & PETRAEOVITEX WOLFEI

I remember that it was going to rain when I took these photos. The quality was also not good because the camera lens was fogged up from my long stay in the air-conditioned office.

I saw the Plain Tiger landing on this Petraeovitex wolfei (common name: Wolfei's Vine) at the Carpark Garden before the sky poured its contents. So was it seeking shelter or was it seeking out nectar from this climber. I guess I would never know.

Right after I took the photos, it did rain.

BRUGMANSIA

Ah, Brugmansia cultivar, otherwise more commonly known as Angel's Trumpet. It has been very rewarding for me to grow this plant.

I kept telling my colleagues that my Brugmansia is flowering non-stop these days. I am not sure if they believe me but this is proof of it. There was once when it had 20 flowers and opening buds in total. This photo was taken on 11 Dec 09.

The location must really be good for it although it can be really windy at times. I allowed the flowers to overhang over the parapet wall and it can be seen from downstairs. Do you know I have to water it everyday and mostly twice a day because of its heavy watering requirements? I suppose they need all the water to support the multiple blooms.

At night, I can smell the beautiful scent of the flowers just outside my door. Yes, I know it's supposed to have some hallucinogenic properties (confirmed by a colleague recently) and that is why it was never planted in Singapore. That is about to change as I planted at least 15-20 of them at HortPark.

By the way, the climber on the right is Petraeovitex wolfei (Wolfe's Vine) and the one on the left is Antigonon leptopus (Honolulu Creeper, Coral Vine, Chain of Love).