HOUSE PLANTS

My personal garden was dealt a huge blow recently when my well-established Periwinkle started to wither. After some pruning, I found the base of some branches were rotting and decided it was time to let go of this plant.


It was a busy day for me as I uprooted the entire plant and prune the plants back to keep them tidy.


Some consolation came in the form of a Tacca leontopetaloides that I purchased recently from HortPark's Gardening Bazaar, an emerging leafy stalk of the Calanthe orchid and the mass of germinating Datura metel seedlings. For the Calanthe, I hope this means the inflorescence will appear soon.

TACCA, PHYLLAGATHIS & CLERODENDRUM

I posted about the purple Tacca integrifolia (common name: White Bat Lily) before. This is the real deal in this photo. It just flowered recently. Isn't it pretty?

Then there is this familiar shade loving plant Phyllagathis rotundifolia (Family: Melastomatacea) that we saw during the Malaysia trip. Under optimal shade conditions, the leaves are really glossy green with beautiful clear veins. The pink flowers may be small but they are outstanding and striking against the green leaves.

The last photo shows the flowers of the variegated Clerodendrum macrosiphon (common name: Musical Notes, Do-Re-Mi Plant) that I posted recently too. In this photo, the musical notes are hanging in the air.

TACCA INTEGRIFOLIA

I planted these Tacca integrifolia (Giant Bat Lily, White Bat Lily) a few months ago but just this week, I discovered they were already removed together with the Strobilanthes dyerianus.

The common name White Bat Lily is a bit unsuitable in this case. According to the third link below, the bracts can be either purple or white. Notice how the whiskers open out in a fan shape.

1. http://www.rareflora.com/taccachanwhite.htm
2. http://www.ubcbotanicalgarden.org/potd/2007/07/tacca_integrifolia_1.php
3. http://www.nurseriesonline.com.au/Articles/GIANT%20BAT%20PLANT.html