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fragrantgrower

Blooming in October!

My Zygopetalum orchid is finally starting to develop a scent.
It's an interesting herbal/violet scent?
Haven't quite figured it out.

What's blooming for you? :)

-Robert

Comments (70)

  • misha74
    9 years ago

    True blue, your beautiful osmanthus maybe going strong but I'm going weak just looking at it :) Gotta have it!

  • ordphien
    9 years ago

    Room for vines I do not have....sadly.
    My pink Angel trumpet bloomed.
    I've been battling spider mites on it for three years. Still battling.
    My grandma planted it and it's nice to see and smell it bloom.

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thanks, True Blue. I'll just keep checking their site in hopes they get some in. :)

    Your sweet olive looks amazing as usual! Mine is still looking pitiful. Laugh.

    Ordphien, I'm currently obsessed with brugs but I'm not having much luck with them this year.
    I battled broad mites which are microscopic and make spider mites look like a piece of cake.
    Thought I had gotten rid of them but they're back. :(
    Ordered some predatory mites (Amblyseius fallacis/Neoseiulus fallacis) in the hopes they will establish a population in my backyard and keep the broad mites under control. They also eat spider mites. :)

    Finally got some blooms recently but of course the freaking spotted cucumber beetles started eating the blooms! Ugh.
    It never ends.

    Good luck!

    -Robert

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Aloysia virgata has been blooming away. Smells better wafting in the breeze than up close but the pollinators sure do love it which is a huge bonus.
    My partner really likes the shape of the flower spikes. :)

    -Robert

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Here's my no ID brug that's just now blooming.
    It's pretty tall and tends to topple in the wind. Nice scent. Hoping to find room for it in the basement over the winter.

    -Robert

  • true_blue
    9 years ago

    Thanks Misha and Robert.

    Osmanthus in my experience is a feed, water and ignore type of plant. It then surprises you when it thinks you're ready for one! I was quite surprise when It put out a 7" (18 cm) of growth on two of it's branches. Nothing so dramatic for the past 4 years ;-) and the scent gets stronger and more refined.

    Lovely photos Zen, beetle.

    Robert keep them coming, hope you'll find place for all your babies this year. I've been downsizing, getting rid of a lot of plants.

    Ordphien glad your Brug flowered. I'm sorry to hear about Robert's & your "different" mite problems.

  • true_blue
    9 years ago

    Robert if you're into "bands" Burlington will have a 5" Sweet Chariot for 8 $ in 2015.

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Awesome! Thanks for the heads up though I have no idea what 'bands' means. Laugh.

    -Robert

    Looked it up. Bands are small pots and I'm totally fine with that. :)

    This post was edited by robert1971 on Thu, Oct 9, 14 at 17:04

  • true_blue
    9 years ago

    Good you looked it up. Basically in cold climates grafted roses are more preferable as they grow/ establish faster.

    Bands normally take a longer time to establish and from what I've read on the forums you should first pot it and then plant it at the end of the growing season...

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    I will definitely check them out next year. Thanks again for letting me know.

    My Cymbidium ensifolium 'Mayor's Red' is in full bloom.
    You can slightly smell it inside but the moment I took it outside the sweet scent was much more prevalent. :)

    -Robert

  • blutayle
    9 years ago

    Sadly....this must be one Miltoniopsis that is NOT fragrant...Maui Mist Golden Gate

    Newly opened Zygo. Adelaide Meadows...fragrance slowly starting to ramp up...

    Newly opened Nelly Isler Swiss Beauty....again waiting for sexual maturity so fragrance will begin...hear so much about this one...hope it does not disappoint...

    The Nelly Isler Swiss Miss...not too crazy about flower form or the fragrance...which to me is kinda like bug spray...much shorter plant form and spike than Swiss Beauty however...

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Beautiful orchids!

    My fav Passiflora x belotii is blooming again. Scent is not as strong as usual but you can definitely smell it.

    This post was edited by robert1971 on Sun, Oct 12, 14 at 23:52

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Brugmansia 'Xena' finally blooming!
    Scent is not as strong as 'Charles Grimaldi' but the plant is small and this is its first bloom and the weather has been cool.

  • ordphien
    9 years ago

    That first noid brug looks like mine lol.
    I only have three and they aren't doing super great. I think the soil is spent.

    That zygo is beautiful. If only I was better with big orchids.

  • garyfla_gw
    9 years ago

    hi
    this is my favorite not only for aroma but spectacular size
    and numbers ,Flowers 10 months out of the year . Only catch is i have to feed it regularly else the numbers and quality drop. gary

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Those are stunning, Gary!
    Thanks for sharing your beautiful pic with us.

    Do you know the name of your water lilies?
    Are those the Blue Waterlily (Nymphaea caerulea), also known as the Egyptian Blue Lily or Sacred Blue Lily or maybe a hybrid?

    -Robert

  • flowers_galore
    9 years ago

    Gary, that is a beautiful plant and even beautiful flowers..

  • garyfla_gw
    9 years ago

    hi
    Not sure of the lineage ,is a very old hybrid tropical named "Blue Goddess" If fed properly it will produce flowers 14 inches standing two feet out of the water. If not will multiflower and offset. A group like the pic will overpower gardenia in the early morning lol
    Only tropical varieties occcur in true blue colors.though many range with purple tints love the sky blue shade!!lol
    I think the origin of the light blues was from Australia??
    Only thing I'm sure of is that it's a Nymphaea lol
    Consistantly produces that shade though occasionally will lean toward lavender or a touch of purple

    radavall There is a variety called "King of Siam" that is a very deep cobalt blue but has pads veined in a maroon color while undersides are deep maroon . B.G. type has solid medium green pads Much more spectacular looking plant BUT flowers are not mearly as attractive at least to me ?? lol gary

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thanks for the water lily info!

    FINALLY blooming in October is Brunfelsia gigantea.
    I adore its scent but hate how huge it gets and that I only get blooms very late in the season. Still the scent is outstanding. It's loaded with blooms and buds. :)

    -Robert

  • ordphien
    9 years ago

    Beautiful Lily.
    And lovely brunsfelsia. I tend to dislike mines scent more than I like it.

    This lovely little mini orchid bloomed.
    Haraella retrocalla. Makes my mini lantern smell wonderful. Of sweet lemons.

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Mmm...I love lemon scents!

    Do you know which kind of brunfelsia you have?
    I've sniffed a few including the hybrid 'Isola' which to my nose sort of reminded me of cold cream.
    They're definitely not all alike!
    B. gigantea has an awesome perfume like scent even in the day but at night a bit of clove is mixed in.
    B. jamaicensis is also supposed to have a wonderful scent but I'll probably never know since my darn plant still hasn't bloomed after 2 years! :(

    -Robert

  • ordphien
    9 years ago

    This one is the best. It's a very sweet lemon smell. Like lemon icing. Plus the whole plant is a little bigger than a quarter. Very easy to grow.
    I highly recommend it. I'm growing two of them in a lantern about as big as both my hands.

    Not sure which kind. It goes from purple to white over a few days. I was swayed it's beautiful scent when i bought it. Now it mainly smells like... flowery poop.

  • ordphien
    9 years ago

    This opened.
    Big flowers, huge leaves. Lovely gardenia fragrance, but devoid of the usual coconut and butter tones. Light and refreshing.

    Not sure of the cultivar.

  • ordphien
    9 years ago

    And this opened. Very confused. It doesn't look much how I bought it.
    We got a record heatwave halfway through the spike developing. Maybe that's it. The heat certainly affected the bud count.

    Light powdery fragrance.

    This post was edited by Ordphien on Sat, Oct 18, 14 at 5:59

  • ordphien
    9 years ago

    Another dendrobium.
    This one has what I can only describe as vague orchid fragrance.

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Love all your pics!

    As for your Brunfelsia it sounds like you have B. aust ralis.
    I too was initially taken by its scent but after a while I didn't like it.
    Try B. gigantea if you ever get the chance.
    We've got 28 blooms open right now! :)

    -Robert

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Blooming because I bought it blooming! Laugh.

    So yesterday on my lunch break I went to a local nursery and came across a 3 ft blooming Omanthus fragrans. No tag besides Sweet Olive. It was $25 and it was a done deal. Now me keeping it alive over the winter is the real question. ;)

    Smells amazing!

    -Robert

  • true_blue
    9 years ago

    Wow! That's gigantic. Congrats, great deal :-)

  • garyfla_gw
    9 years ago

    Hi
    Here's one with an unusual odor . To me smells of peaches WAY past prime lol. gary

  • misha74
    9 years ago

    brunfelsia americana

  • misha74
    9 years ago

    smells fantasic in the evening

  • misha74
    9 years ago

    b. americana

  • misha74
    9 years ago

    brufelsia isola is preparing for the first blooming

  • misha74
    9 years ago

    b. isola

  • misha74
    9 years ago

    b. isola

  • misha74
    9 years ago

    b. isola

  • blutayle
    9 years ago

    Robert,

    Any update on the Cym. Chen's Ruby? You showed the spikes just starting some weeks back...has she bloomed yet? Just receiving mine I don't think I will get a spike this fall...Joe

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Gary, never knew they had a scent!

    Misha, beautiful Brunfelsia pics! Let me know your thoughts on Isola.

    Joe, no blooms yet! This one sure is a late bloomer!

    -Robert

  • blutayle
    9 years ago

    Robert,

    Holy cow...wow...green with envy ova heea....let me know if scent differs from last year....Joe

  • Dar Sunset Zone 18
    9 years ago

    Robert love your Cyms. Have you tried any goeringiis yet?

    Also, Chuck Hayes going for a second round.

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Joe, Will do! Still waiting on the darn thing. Laugh.

    Musaboru, Lovely gardenia. I bet it smells awesome!

    Yes. I bought a Cymbidium goeringii 'Tian Cao' last October off ebay but I don't see any flower buds yet.
    I read you're supposed to stress them out in August by not watering them very much and I probably gave mine too much water or maybe the plant is too young to bloom or maybe I'm not meeting some other cultural requirement to induce blooms, etc.
    I hope to one day sniff this one though! :)

    -Robert

  • James _J
    9 years ago

    Robert,

    Is that a Lechuza pot?

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Hi Lumpy,

    No. It's a 4 x 10 band pot that I lined the bottom with screening material to keep the potting mix in. I bought them off Amazon.
    Looks like there are better options available like pots with drainage holes around the sides where the water drains out without having to tilt the pot to the side like I do with the band pots. :)

    -Robert

    Here is a link that might be useful: Some cymbidium orchid pots on Amazon

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Aglaia odorata is sending its delicate sweet scent around the arbor.

    -Robert

  • James _J
    9 years ago

    Thank for the reply, I started using these semi hydo pots for Cymbidiums. It looked like you did the same thing.

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Interesting. Let us know how your cyms do in the hydro pots!

    Got a Sombreuil rose today. Probably will be the last for the season still it's nice to enjoy its tea scent before the frosts come!

    -Robert

  • meyermike_1micha
    9 years ago

    All your flowers are so beautiful everyone..

    My mom has been ill making me forget how nice it is here and how nice you all are. Maybe I can post a few of mine in bloom real soon. Just looking for something I don't have yet, lol. You know how that is..What am I missing? ha

    Hope you are all well.

    I'll bet none of you even wondered where I was.,.lol

    MIke

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Sorry to hear your mom has been ill, Mike.
    Of course we miss you! We especially miss your pictures. Laugh.

    Welcome back.

    Cymbidium 'Chen's Ruby' is finally starting to open and develop its spicy scent.
    I'll keep everyone posted about its scent progress.
    Had to secure the spike to a support since the blooms are so heavy. I personally hate doing such things and like plants that don't need staking but it's only one flower spike to deal with. :)

    -Robert

  • ordphien
    9 years ago

    I hope your mother feels better.

    Beautiful cymbidium! I don't have anything but standards.... yet.

    A couple of my standards are nicely scented though.
    I don't think I'll get flowers this year. I did not water enough this summer.

  • Robert (zone 7a, Oklahoma)
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    I'm hoping you'll get some blooms!

    Found a bloom on my Passiflora x belotii today and enjoyed its scent on my lunch break.

    I'm sad since tomorrow night it's supposed to be 27.
    The fun is over and I'll be hauling as much as I can down into the basement tomorrow.

    Should have a bloom on one of my brugs, Rosamond, tonight or tomorrow so I'm looking forward to finally sniffing this one. :)

    -Robert