Monday, November 29, 2010

MACRO MONDAY ~ LAST OF THE FLOWERS....I HEAR JACK FROST COMING!

Unless I make it to December 15th and GBBD, this will be the last of the flowers for this season.
Pick your favorite and leave a comment. Comments always are appreciated. And visit Lisa at http://lisaschaos.com/ to see the rest of the collection. So many macros...so little time.
David :0)
Mexican Butterflyweed ~  Asclepias curassavica

Mist flower

Aloe saponaria with some cool geometric patterns.

Purple Setcreasea with green leaves

Cyperus alternifolius (Umbrella papyrus) and some serious leaf geometry

Saturday, November 27, 2010

GARDEN BLOGGERS MONTHLY BOUQUET ~ TROPICAL LAST HURRAH

With the threat of freezing weather this time of year, it's no problem picking what's blooming since it will be dead and crunchy anytime now.  I made an early Christmas Bouquet with green and red and some white 'snow' mixed together.  I also made anTropical Bouquet from the Bromeliads that bloom this time of year.
Visit Noelle at http://www.azplantlady.com/ to see our small, but tenacious group. My wife always loves this bouquet idea since it's always a surprise. :-) David

 Mexican fire spike with variegated Alstroemeria (comes up wild in my yard)
 Aechmea and some other unusual bromeliads.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

LEAF CARTOON FOR FALL ~ HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM TROPICAL TEXANA

  I have an idea to save some time!
                                 That's better!
                                             Even better!
                                             Finished!
                                               Oh no, I missed a leaf.
                                               I'll put it on the very top.  Perfect!
Happy Holidays!  David :0)

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

WILDFLOWER WEDNESDAY & SOME NATURE CLOSEUPS

Gail at Clay and Limestone features Wildflower Wednesday so that Garden Bloggers can post their monthly wildflowers. I'm down to one or two in bloom with these roadside asters winning the prize for longest lasting Fall flower. It's fun to explore a wild garden like the one we have because there are always surprises. After the asters, you can take a peek. Thanks for visiting Tropical Texana where it is a humid 83 degrees when it should be only in the 60s. Whew! Where's the cool weather?
                                               These little roadside asters come up every year as volunteers.
                                                     Aster seeds ready to catch the wind.
                                           Virginia Creeper... a native with nice colors.
                                           Virginia Creeper will hold on for dear life.  Aren't these neato?
                                   Of course, don't let this vine climb up the side of your house!
                                  Some cool fungi that I found while raking leaves.
                                   The last of the Monarchs are making their way to Mexico. 
                                 This one is on Porterweed...not a native, but still blooming!
                                 There was some Aesclepius near by, but it would not pose on the native.
                                    Happy Wildflower Wednesday. :0) David

Sunday, November 21, 2010

HAPPY MACRO MONDAY & HAPPY THANKSGIVING

A CORNUCOPIA OF CLOSEUPS FROM TROPICAL TEXANA. PICK YOUR FAVORITE & LEAVE A COMMENT. HAPPY THANKSGIVING. NO FROST YET...GARDEN IS STILL GREEN.
To see other Macro Monday shots, visit our host Lisa at http://lisaschaos.com/  
Thanks for visiting. David :0)
                                                     My wife's Thanksgiving figurines go hiking.
                                                 Tiny Horse Herb in bloom right now
                                                               Palm patterns
                                                       Autumn leaves in pond with Duckweed
                                        Tallow leaf 'moon' stuck on bromeliad spike
                                                            Water patterns around acorns and twigs
                                                      Single Tallowtree leaf on walkway

Thursday, November 18, 2010

A VIEW FROM 5 YEARS AGO ~ SO ARE ANY STILL ALIVE?

I live in zone 9...a place where tropical plants can grow very nicely until....WINTER.  For some reason, I always feel a sense of dread when entering the winter months since I'm not certain I'll see some of these tropical plants again.  I take a lot of photos in November. Here's one from 5 years ago. Sad to say a number of the plants in this photo died from the terrible freeze last year. Happily, a lot are still around.

Monday, November 15, 2010

HAPPY MACRO MONDAY ~ LACEWINGS LAST FLIGHT

I had to wait on the backporch last week for a chicken to finish cooking. So instead of being bored, I started exploring the window and outdoor light to see if there were any interesting photos waiting in the wings. The green lacewings are attracted to the porchlight and are quite beautiful, but this one crash landed or got tangled up in the ever present spider webs surrounding the window. By the way, lacewings are very beneficial to the garden. Their larva are called aphidlions and they are great hunters.

                                                   click on image to get the Macro.
You can see the location on the window, and a rare glimpse of the photographer. I'm shy.
To see the rest of the MM bunch, visit Lisa at http://lisaschaos.com/. There are some serious photographers over there.

Sunday, November 14, 2010

THINGS ARE SWINGING AT TROPICAL TEXANA

My dad brought us our early Christmas gift. This is a handmade swing made by him. It took over 100 hours to construct. We've already enjoyed swinging on it and as the weather gets nicer, we'll be out there every day. Thanks, Dad!  Now you can take it easy for awhile.
                                                  He used a router to make each groove. Excellent work, Dad!
                        Dad made his own template and designs and checked each measurement before cutting.
                                                                 Dad lines up the boards.
                                                      Giving it a final inspection.
                                      Helena, Melanie (my wife), and Leona try out the swing!

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

THREE FOR THURSDAY: 3 PHOTOS OF MY AVOCADO TREE



                                Have you ever grown an avocado from a pit in a glass of water? It's always amazing when something impossible turns out to actually grow in your zone.  This is my avocado tree from a seedling. It's probably a Hass avocado since 95% of the market is the Hass variety. This is an 8 year old tree. I've grown all three strains of avocado here in zone 9 Houston and all are tricky. The West Indian strain can take the humidity, but can't take even the slightest frost. The Mexican variety can take hard freezes down to 22, but can't take the relentless summer humidity and mood swings from dry to wet. The Guatemalan strain can take light freezes, but get stressed with temps over 95!  So none can take the Houston combination of  hot summers, freezing winters, and endless high humidity.  So this avocado tree is quite special to me!  I've tried about 20 different seedlings and this is the only one to make it. About 3 years ago, I started looking around town for other Avocado trees and know of 3 or 4 that somehow can grow here. The lesson: don't give up on a plant just because the books say it can't be done. Thanks for visiting 3 for Thursday. Visit Cindy at My Corner of Katy for her latest 3 for Thursday. We'd love for you to join in.

Sunday, November 7, 2010

GETTING TO THE POINT: AGAVES AND MACROS...HAPPY MACRO MONDAY

I could not decide which Agave shot I liked the best, so I'm posting the collection. Agaves leave what's called bud imprints; a ghost of where the last layer of spikes were pressing into the leaf buds below. I find them hauntingly beautiful. It's especially nice when the leaf color is blue...my favorite color of Agave. I have about 30 species and cultivars and I love them all. Speaking of collections, visit Lisa at http://lisaschaos.com/ to see the rest of the photo phanatics and their phantasia of phun photos.
                                     Agave parrasana   'Confederate Rose'  (you absolutely MUST click on this one to see the cool scales and bud print!)
Agave lophantha, bud prints, and oak leaf
                                               Agave ferox (just plain bizarre!)
                                                  Agave americana with pine needle and shadows
Agave americana (side view with an attempt at symmetry)

Thursday, November 4, 2010

THREE FOR THURSDAY: 3 " WHAT IS IT?" PICS FROM LAST WEEKEND

Do you like mystery and intrigue in the garden? I love it!
My wife's new camera brings out a whole new perspective on the flora and fauna. Here are 3 puzzling pictures that take a little deciphering to figure out. Happy Three for Thursday. Visit Cindy at My Corner of Katy for some more wonderful garden shots. She's the inventor of the style. And don't stop there! Try your own Three for Thursday. It's a fun way to show your garden to the world. :-)

                                  How this leaf managed to land in between the spikes is beyond me!
                              A butterfly puffball?  Notice the antennae peeking out above the leaf.
The textures are really weird at this stage, then fall off as the stems unfurl.


Answers:  1)Oak leaf wedged sideways in a Sago Palm, 2) Skipper butterfly behind leaf, 3) Terminal buds of a tropical plant (Erythrina)

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

CHEERS! Happy WORDLESS WEDNESDAY ~ The RAIN GAUGE TELLS ALL!

After 41 days without rain, this picture tells all. 3.8" of rain in a matter of hours...that's about a month's worth.
The ranchers with pastureland and the forest rangers are happy (no red flag fire warnings) as are the gardeners. I slept throught the entire storm, so I was shocked when I looked I saw the numbers! I was expecting .80" !

Monday, November 1, 2010

GARDEN BLOGGERS MUSE DAY ~MY ORiGiNaL HAIKU & PHOTO

         
    ***AUTUMN HAIKU***  5-7-5

           
Acorns unguarded
     Pine needles at journey's end
               Stones, smooth and timeless























Visit Carolyn, the host of Garden Blogger's Muse Day, at her fabulous garden blog.
       http://sweethomeandgardenchicago.blogspot.com/
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