Colors of Easter in the Greenhouse

On my hunt for Easter Egg colors in the garden, I found a variety of flowers.
This first one from the greenhouse is technically already outside. There are more still inside, this large one is the only one with open blooms.

Rhipsalidopsis

Commonly called Easter Cactus.

I expect it will still be blooming at Mother's Day.

Still blooming: Amaryllis are usually thought of as Christmas flowers. Mine kind of bloom when they're ready.

 

 

This last one bloomed before Thanksgiving. Now it has a notion to bloom again. There is one more pot with a good sized bulb that I think might be Spartacus.

None of the Broms are blooming.

This one has the best color of any.

 

Begonias bloom year around. This one is a tiny cutting in a yogurt cup.
On the right is a rooted Pentas cutting, kept in water all winter and now getting ready to go out to the garden soon.

 

More rooted cuttings; these spent the winter in soil. A single early purple bloom on the Porterweed, I expect red blooms soon. Persian Shield got too dry but revived well. There are Purple Heart Cuttings and some other odds and ends to plant when I can. I think warm weather is here to stay.

Greenhouse plants kept in the house: 2 orchids in bloom and one has buds.

Spring Peek into the Greenhouse

First Day of Spring. I moved 28 pots of Schlumbergeras out yesterday to my improvised urban stone patio. They aren't very attractive out of bloom but worth keeping around for next Winter's Thanksgiving and Christmas blossoms.

Pots of Rhapsalidopsis are still indoors. Only two have buds. Other succulents yet to move are Epiphyllums and Kalanchoes. 

Note the little open hole near the bottom? That's Mr. Kitty's space. He will complain later because I set a pot of rooted Echinacea right where he jumps up on the potting bench. It may be on the floor when I go back.

Bromeliads haven't moved yet. In the foreground is Agapanthus and Lemon grass. I plan to leave the Agapanthus in a pot, just to see. Frosts knock them back here; those in the parking lots at Sams in Tallahassee were nice and green when we were last there. That Graptopetalum at right has buds.

Ghost Plant with buds

Amaryllis seedlings.

Amaryllis seedlings in bud.

This may be Spartacus, or another Apple Blossom.

White Shrimp Plant

Pentas need planting out.

Butterflies are showing up now that Azaleas are starting to bloom.

Alternanthera, some rooted in water, some in soil.

Bloom Day, Inside and Out

Orchids from last year have come back into bloom, well, one is blooming.

The other has a bloom stalk with tiny buds if you look closely.

These, another orchid in a glass cyclinder, a Spathiphyllum and a Pothos are

my only house plants. The Peace Lily signals to water Orchids when it wilts.

Outside the greenhouse, I am trying to make a White Garden.

Candytuft is as white as it gets. I've had Iberis for 40 years, 

started as cuttings from a late friend's Garden.

I planted out white Hyacinths forced in pots of soil this year.

Miss Winnie gave me white Iris last year. We don't know where the

Purple came from, probably a seedling among the white.

Inside the greenhouse, this box of Purple Heart and Persian Shield are

cuttings that I intended to plant out. I think I'll keep them in a container.

Strobilanthese blooms in the greenhouse. Once in a while I get blooms

during the summer. They are a novelty.

Mistletoe Cactus Rhipsalis put on buds.

Rhipsalis bloom and buds.

Easter Cactus in bud. At left is a bloom of Firecracker Fern.

Rhipsalidopsis buds. Maybe they'll bloom by Easter.

Appleblossom Amaryllis are not only lovely, they have a sweet

fragrance, rare in hippeastrums. Benfica has another bud about to open.

The tall Appleblossom is in its third year of bloom. Three of the others

are new this year and I forget whether the one in bud is Appleblossom

or maybe another color, from a previous year.

Angel Wing Begonias. Several cuttings in a pot make a big show.

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Easter Cactus for Mother's Day

The botanical name is Rhipsalidopsis gaertneri. Easter Cactus hardly hit it this year, more like Mother's Day.

Miss Winnie gave me this cactus.

 

Cuttings of Rhipsalidopsis gaertneri

Compare them with the cactus in the blue container,

Easter Cactus has a smooth leaf.

A Look Back at April in the Greenhouse

 

 

 

A look back and a look forward.

 

Easter Cactus bloomed late. Maybe we'll call it a Mother's Day Cactus.

 

Perhaps we chould use the botanical names of all these epiphytes; my cactuses that are designated as Thanksgiving Cactus by some growers because of the segment shape bloom precisely at Christmas. I call them Christmas Cactuses even though they're not the old Christmas Cactus my Mother grew.I can remember Schlumbergera but Rhipsalidopsis gaertneri does not roll easily off my tongue.

 

I spent time setting up a stepped bench for the cactuses in the greenhouse today. I think they might be happier spending the summer out on the north side of the greenhouse rather than trying to keep them cool inside. All those little rooted pieces are turning into a bigger collection that I expected. A good plan might be to set out a row of Gardenia cuttings on the north side and make my temporary benches behind the Gardenias so they are less vulnerable to pet traffic.

 

The little Kalanchoe cuttings are suddenly 8 inches tall and it is a long time until Christmas.

 

 

 

Bomeliads are needing a summer home, or should  they stay inside under mist?

 

Tillandsia babies will be ready to pot before summer is over.

All the tomato seeds sprouted, Cassias are sprouting, another legume for butterflies.

Only one Pride of Barbados seed sprouted. There's still time for the others. Outside, I have 7 Caesalpinias that returned from roots. Two are established plants. The other five are second year seedlings that I hope will bloom this year.

There's a fat bud on one of the Agapanthus outside! It took forever last year to get a few blooms. These are starting early after a mild winter in which the tops were not killed back.

I think I saw two tiny Tithonia seedlings today and I am sure of Madagascar periwinkles coming up thick and fast. These two do not have to be started in the greenhouse here, reseeding in place.

 

I noticed today that there are tiny tomatoes on a volunteer I let grow in the new flower bed on the south side of the greenhouse. We'll have 'Tommy Toes' for salad and then I'll pull it when the Lantana beside it gets going. I have only one white Lantana plant. I'm waiting for white blooms in the front garden so I can take cuttings.

 

Many of my chores were outside. I gave the self-seeded petunias a haircut to keep them blooming and get rid of the seed heads of the rye grass in that bed. I pulled a few weeds, too.

 

I moved an Echinacea, moved some 'Sweetness' daffodils, transplanted some striped Cannas. It doesn't seem like much when I'm doing little chores but they add up. We got sprinkles of welcome rain, hardly enough to run me inside. Tonight it's raining again. 

 

Random in the Greenhouse

I'm trying to keep the greenhouse at a reasonable temperature until everything inside is ready for planting or a summer outside in part shade.

 Big plants like Epiphyllums are already summering outdoors. I try not to look at them except to water in hopes of discovering buds soon. I made pics but they're just a mass of huge leaves and stems. I repotted the two in small pots. Even cuttings get big and need a heavy pot to stay upright.

Miss Winnie's Easter Cactus finally commenced bloom.

My smaller, rooted Rhipsalidopsis have no buds yet.

Ike's Lemon Grass. He kept the tops chewed off during the winter.

It kept him from shredding things like Bromeliads. 

I planted out the culms I brought in to grow better roots, now these can go out.

 

Begonia bloom.

Between the Jungle Cacti and Begonias, there

would be plenty of color in the greenhouse

in winter if I planted nothing else.

 

I could let this Christmas Cactus fruit mature and plant the dustlike seeds....

I watched a video. The tiny seedlings were so precious and then he said 'years' to bloom.

 

White Begonia cuttings and a Bromeliad.

 

Daturas from seed, both white and Purple. They need to grow on a just a bit.

I am very fond of nightblooming plants. The shiny black stems on Purple

Daturas give them a really exotic appearance.

 

Another Amaryllis that I had given up seeing bloom again has put on a bud.

I didn't take a picture; we've looked at Amaryllis buds all winter.

Another Amaryllis planted in the ground outside is about to bloom, a red.

 

 

Plans for Greenhouse Summer

The temperature reached 99.5 in the greenhouse today, with ventilating fan and mist. I was able to get it down by a few degrees by opening the vents on top; must watch the plants remaining inside for stress.

Pentas everywhere. Need to get them planted, butterflies are out.

Potted up one Brugmansia yesterday. Pentas await planting once I

decide just how the bed with Red Pentas is going to go. I may make

it smaller this year and omit Gomphrena.

 

White Pentas cuttings. The Yellow Rose bed Pentas from last year have

great new foliage, too.

 

 

Inside, the Easter Cactus is a little late, but putting on buds.

I found an Amaryllis bud on one of last year's plants. Nymph, which bloomed with no foliage, is now putting on new leaves as the last stem turns brown. Begonias are faring okay on the floor where it is

a little cooler.

 

The pest control crew is at work. Ike the Cat has moved to cooler quaters, creating himself a 'cave'

on the carport under a bench with his winter covers for a tent. Anoles are glad he left the building.

 

The other day I walked into the greenhouse and a fat toad was sitting in a pot of tiny segments from my Burro's Tail Sedum put to root. He was disgruntled at being made to move. I was not happy about my tiny rootlings being sat upon, either. At least two already had tiny plants forming.

I moved them to a high shelf. The toad hopped off under the potting bench. His name is Delmar.