Still Turning out Tomatoes

We've eaten tomatoes since January 1. A few at first and as spring opened up, we are able to eat daily tomato sandwiches of which we never tire.

He-Who-Mows took over tomato watering and fertilizing. He was already in charge of picking. 

Next month I will either buy a couple of new plants or root suckers off the old ones the way I did for the past couple of years. It started as an experiment. Now it's a way of life.

Persian Shield grew bigger last winter than I ever imagined that it could.

I put it all into one big pot with Purple Heart and some wandering jew.

This fern put on new growth when Spring came. Now that hot weather is

upon us, most everything is moving outside for summer. The Staghorn

seems happy enough under the mist system.

A December Peek at Tomatoes and Hyacinths and Things

We've moved into typical Gulf Coast December weather, where there's fog at night and mist in the daytime. He-Who wonders about these things could not decide why we had no tomatoes in the fall.

Sure enough, as soon as night-time temperatures fell, we commenced to see small tomatoes.  Pollen fails in heat. There are tomatoes that set fruit in hot weather but few are indeterminate types, which are necessary for continued growth and fruit set over months, even years.

Tomatoes are sharing space with Thanksgiving Cacti in bloom.

Holiday Cacti are sharing space with Hyacinths. My hyacinth trials using last years' bulbs that were allowed to grow on in their little pots were a success considering that many of them did set buds and bloom again after chill; a failure as far as size.

 They have as great a fragrance as ever despite the small size and sparse blossoms. The bulbs will go into the garden after blooms fade.

Arrowhead vine and Foxtail fern keep company with Chlorophytum and a bromeliad decorated with a begonia flower.

Areca palm culm that I pulled out of the big pot by accident has made another plant. Rooted Persian  Shield with Purple Heart and Purple Jew are crowded in with Begonias and Dark Alternanthera that grows in pots and in the floor at will.

Still outside awaiting a freeze to encourage dormancy are potted Agapanthus.

Inside, I'm waiting for the sun to shine. Maybe I'll make a fruitcake today.

Outside for Summer, Line Up for Haircuts

Burro Tails and Mistletoe Cactus. I saw these displayed together on Martha Stewart's blog. Of course her burros have 4 foot tails and the Rhipsalis matches that length and there was a Selloum Philodendron.

My mistletoes would be happier in bigger pots and I will oblidge.

 Last year this was a single Tillandsia cyanea, now three. The stem from the bloom of the original plant is just visible in the center. I gave it a tug; it is firmly attached. I like these Viet Nam pots. I put the Cycad seedling in one that matches this one. It is already outside with the Christmas Cactuses.

I brought over one of the pots of Chlorophytum comosum, Asparagus densiflora 'Myersii' and a white Begonia from the Front Garden. I've had this pot for more than 30 years. The patina is real.

 Purple Heart and Persian Shield have almost outgrown their planter. A haircut will do the Setcreasea good, getting those bare stems off. There are more of these in the greenhouse. Sometimes I get carried away with cuttings.

Another candidate for a haircut: Firecracker Fern. This Rusellia also has split ends. Its graptopetalum companion has some leggy stems, too. If there wasn't a water source very near, I would never have brought all these out so far from the house to seek shade. 

I've far too many plants in pots and lots of them are asking for division or haircuts and rooting the trimmings. I am afraid to pick up any pots of Christmas Cactus -- I know they have roots sticking out of their drainage holes. I bumped up a half dozen that were in really tiny pots.

My immediate goal is to get everything out of the greenhouse before the temperatures get really unbearable.   

Follage Follow Up in the Greenhouse

Let's start outside the door with a broken pot container full of Graptopetalum and Sedum acre. The sedum is blooming vigorously, the Ghost Plant bloomed earlier.

Inside, despite some warm temperatures on sunny days, some foliage plants remain.

From top left, an Agapanthus seedling, far from ready to bloom. Agapanthus outdoors is putting on buds. At the rear are some rose cuttings and a red pot with green dotted garden gloves somebody asked about the other day. Center front are two Mistletoe Cactuses grown for their foliage. They had tiny white blossoms about a month ago. At bottom, Persian Shield and a Bird's Nest Fern.

Burro's Tail sedum

Purple foliage behind is alternanthera growing in the 

greenhouse floor and vining up and over everything.

Staghorn Fern that I suspect would like to go outside

for the summer.

Join Foliage Followup at Pam Peniick's Digging blog