I'll likely plant fewer tropicals and let the permanent broad-leafed evergreens get more light! Some of them got shaded and it probably slowed their growth. I really want to have an established evergreen screen first. Then fill in with tropicals. Mixed in with the tropical are hollies, evergreen viburnum, Carolina cherry laurel, red bay, live oak, etc.

That shot was taken so far away that you don't really get a sense of scale like you do in this photo.

Photo by Boca Joe

Amazing collection! It really looks like the tropics and makes a nice privacy screen. Must take a while to dig up all those plants during the winter though (if you save all of them each year). Its a really nice mix though, defiantely alot of different types of tropicals incorperated.

good luck

You must have very lucky neighbors :) I love those plumerias. Very full and alot of them are in flower which isnt that easy to do this far north. Those stuttgard cannas are one of the best ive seen, it looks like its in full sun, but no leaf burn!

Do you know the name of that yellow hibiscus in the background of the 2nd to last pic? I ask because I had one just like it, but let it die during the winter, but I have yet to find a hibiscus with flowers that showy! I did have cuttings of the plant though, but the whiteflies got too much to control (and that was 3 years ago so I didt know as much as I know now).

The neighbors on one side are not interested at all. But the neighbors on the other side enjoy the view! They actually removed a privacy fence near their kitchen so they could look out at our yard!

The Stuttgarts were in part sun. I would say they got shade during the hottest part of the day. But, I fertilzed them with Milorganite (organic). They grew taller than I've ever seen. Had very little leaf burn this year. I think when they grow strongly and quickly they seem less susceptible to burn. Not sure.

I picked up that yellow hib. at Home Depot as soon as I saw it! I had been looking for one with red eyes for a while. I put it in my garage so hopefully I'll be able to hang on to it for at least another growing season. It had no name. But it's a really cheery plant.

The orange one is called Carolina Breeze.

Dave: Thankyou for posting those fantastic photos of your garden. You have created a great colourful and interesting view for your property and for your neighbours. The Hibiscus and Plumerias are gorgeous.Happy gardening. Ross.

Beautiful pics of your hibiscus. I wish everyone enjoyed tropical plants as much as the people on these fourms do, but I garden for myself to enjoy anyway :)

I love that yellow hibiscus, but the carolina breeze is really nice too! Ill be looking around for the yellow hibsicus for sure this spring!

The yellow hibiscus is called sunny wind. Im really happy I found the name of it. It looks like a pretty easily found hibiscus too!

It certainly does look like 'Sunny Wind'. I don't know how common this color is.

The only other one that it resembles is Hibiscus "Hula Girl" but the yellow is a bit paler on hula girl and the anther on the stamen (thats the tip which is right above the pollen) is yellow on hula girl, not red like it is on sunny wind and on your hibiscus.
I must admit though I dont think ive ever come across a hibsiucus with ugly flowers (Some dont have attrative leaves, but they all have beautiful flowers!)

Good luck this winter with your plants, and im sure even if your backyard has fewer plants next year its still going to look great!!

Youguys have beautiful yards! I couldn't grow that stuff here. It's too dry here and they would require too much water to look good. I gave up on most of those leafy, tender plants and currently only keep one Musa Cardaba. I got rid of all of my cannas last year. This coming spring, I will be adding the following (Which I already have potted up):

Dudleya Pulverulenta
Aloe Arborescens (5)
Aloe Africana
Aloe Vaenbelenii (2)
Aloe Cameronii (3)
Aloe Littoralis (2)
Kniphofia Tritoma
California Fuchsia
Hakea Laurinia

And I just added Aloe Speciosa, Aloe Marlothii, Aloe Cameronii x Maculata, Aloe Peglerae and Dracaena Draco this fall.

Tropicalzone, will you be using strelitzia reginae as an annual as well? Just letting you know that they likely will not bloom for several years. I planted one-gallon plants three years ago in my yard. This is the 3rd year and two of the four clumps have blooms. One clump has one flower spike and a second clump has three. They sure like to take their time!

Hi, sorry I didnt see your post earlier...

Thanks!
Your list of new plants seems really nice, desert plants really reach there full potential in California.
And I will not be making my Strelitzia an annual, Ill probably manage to find some room somewhere in the house. The sell some really big ones at Home Depot here, about 8 feet high for a pretty nice price. Im not growing if for its blooms though, mostly for the foliage, but if it does bloom I will be very happy :) I heard they like to take there time, but once they start blooming they wont even stop!

Good luck!!!!

queen mexican fan palm
chinese fan palm
another pindo palm
giant varigated reed
cordylines and dracenea in the ground
yucca rostrata
yucca alofolia
yucca elephantipes
musa basjoo
sabal loisiana
elepnt ears
more cannas
some more hardy cactus
that's about it

Sounds good, Cant wait to see it in your landscape (Im thinking of getting a musa basjoo too, but I dont have any room for one yet but I can make some) :) The cordylines and darecena will be a challenge, but thats what its all about!
Good luck!

I am adding the following palm species:

Butia capitata (Jelly palm)
Sabal louisiana
Sabal birmingham
Sabal texana
Sabal palmetto
Chamaerops humilis 'vulcano'
Raphidophyllum hysterix (Needle palm)

Those are very nice palms! Yoru windmill palm already looks vert nice and healthy, I sure these palms will look really nice too.

Im adding some more stuff to mine...

-Still have the spanish moss so that will be there this summer
- A Solandra maxima
- Got a pink lace cactus to put in the ground
- I bought a few more plumerias
- Im looking for some bromeliads
- Got an European fan palm (not sure if im risking it in the ground or not, but it is pretty large)
- I have a few other things and will add whatever else I can find along the way!

Good luck!

I've had my Mediterranean fan for a few years. Actually, I have two. One is the blue-green leaved variety and is huge. It flowers every May now. The other is smaller in size. The smaller one, I got on eBay maybe a year and a half ago. It looks very different! When I first got it, I thought it must not be Chamaerops. I've since learned that there is a good deal of genetic variation in this species (which must have implications for degree of hardiness). Anyway, my more recent acquisition has leaves that are NOT as finely divided, very green (not blue or silver at all) and kind of reminds me of Livistona (Chinese fans). I believe it's the variety 'vucano' and discovered in Sicily. Once I planted one in the ground and it went though a very bad winter (especially with respect to ice and WET conditions rather than extreme cold). It really suffered some and I just containerized it in the spring after that winter years ago. If you do put yours into the ground, I would add a lot of coarse sand to the site, plant it in a southern exposure (near a building if possible), and possibly in a raised bed. Then, I bet it would be fine--they don't like it too wet. On the plus side, I find them very attractive and much faster growing than you have been led to believe (if conditions suit it).PS. Let me know if you find a way to propagate by suckers without becoming a bloody mess yourself!

Sand is a must for Medditeranean fan palms! My soil is pretty much all clay and drainage is very very bad, so all my palms need lots of new soil when they get planted (encept my needle which actually seems to be liking the clay soil). Medditeranean fan palms are really nice looking (but those thorns are just...wow, probably my thorniest palm). I did hear about a lot of variation within the speices. They are usually more expenisive, so you got a pretty good deal!
I do wonder how well the suckers come off. The thorns are a pretty major setback though!
Is the medditeranean palm that flowers for you, the blue form? I would really like to see that in flower!

Good luck!

Yes, it's the blue-green variety that I have that blooms--in May (been doing this on for the last few years on a yearly basis). The volcano cultivar is too immature at this point. Kind of like the traditional look of the average Med over Vulcano, but if it's hardy, it would be like having Chinese fans with much less concern of Winter damage.

I just ordered a Sabal minor. Going to give the plain species another chance.--Must have had a bad one before because it did NOTHING for years.--All the while the texana/mexicana and louisiana were growing through the roof! Also have S. palmeto and birmingham. I really like Sabals--even the trunkless and near trunkless ones! They just look so rugged and hardy to the elements.

I received some barerooted silver Chamaerops and the poor things died in days--despite have a ton of roots and being moist. Oh well. By the way, the silver Meds are probably more COLD hardy BUT less forgiving to our WET and cold winters. Take care!

I agree, sabals are amazing palms. That one genus of plants range from strictly tropical plants that grow huge, to shrub like sabals that can survive our winters. They are all very nice looking though in there own way. My sabal minor is also growing extremely slow (maybe 2 leaves this past summer), but Im hoping that it picks up the pace this summer. Its already pretty big though.

Wow so your medditeranean fan palm is almost like a cold hardy chinese fan palm! Thats very impressive. I wonder how it will look when it starts to clump.

When your blue one blooms again dont forget to post a pic! You dont see blue meds in flower that often.

Good luck!

It really does surprise me that you don't see many Meds in bloom! I do nothing special for it. Truth be told, so far, I haven't had too many palms bloom. Let me see, Chamaedorea species, Phoenix roebellini (last summer for the first time--a boy apparently) and the Chamaerops. I had a Sabal minor seedling at an earlier point and I finally just threw the thing out. I am rather patient but the thing literally did nothing. S. palmeto too is slower than I expected it to be but maybe it will pick up in speed as some do have this tendecy. The problem is not heat, they're on an expanse of black top driveway, southern exposure and temps frequently pop 95F.+ for the long summer out there. Even in Florida, when I was shopping for Sabal palmetto, I was told "we don't stock them for sale--they grow to slowly". Pleased with growth on the louisiana and especially the texana. I bought the texana on eBay from a guy in Texas (appropriately enough). When I got it, it looked huge--now it's outgrowing my containers so I REALLY want to plant it adjacent to my greenhouse (converted loft garage where it currently overwinters). I bet it would make it. Sabals, by the way, are among the earliest/most primitive of palms and also, one of the few species of palms native to North America (another reason to love them). Cheers.

I guess people dont put pics of many meds in bloom because of how common they are. Ive seen green ones in bloom because they really are common, but ive never seen a blue one in bloom because they are rarer. (Im sure the blooms between the 2 look pretty identical though).I think sabal palmettos are too slow for me. I dont mind the slow growth rate of minors because they are suppose to be dwarfs, but sabal palmettos can take as long as 15 years just to get some trunk starting to come up. It seems like everyone who has texana says its pretty fast (considering), so thats really promising.

Good luck!

Dave_in_Nova: Awesome job!

There is one species that I hardly ever see mentioned, that so far for me is easily overwintered much like Brugs or Plumies, in the garage. I have spoken to expert growers who store them dormant in a 15 gal pot, and in the spring they quickly grow new leaves. I have a small plant that I'm experimenting with, but so far so good:

Crinum procerum, Giant Red Crinum Lily
{{gwi:1303735}}

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:1303735}}

I definitely want a Crinu\m but it is hard to find one thats large on the internet. I like the giant ones, which are very common in Florida, which is why im surprised they are so hard to find. The Giant Red Cr\inum is very tropical looking but the giants can take up to 7 years to flower from a small bulb, so Ill wait to find an older one.

I agree that they arent mentioned as much as they should be. They are bulbs just like elephant ears so even people in the north can plan\t them in the ground and dig them up. Im very surprised they arent seen too much Im sure they will look great next to elephant ears and cannas, expecially the red ones!

Good luck!

x,

What is the winter culture for Crinum procerum? Do you cut the foliage off? or let it freeze? How wet do you keep the soil? I'm always looking for a big impact in the summer beds with little care over winter!

Crinums can handle a freeze, but I would cut off the leaves before a freeze comes and dig it up. I probably wouldnt store the bulb, but just repot it in a small pot indoors so its kind of semi-dormant, or I would sink a plastic nursery pot in the ground and just take it out with the pot when cooler weather comes.

Good luck!

I have the hardy Crinum 'Ellen Bosanquet' in my yard, and fortunately they come back each year with little fuss.

But I lost the more tropical Crinum asiaticum (sp?)-- maybe due to too much water? It was growing in a pot and I wintered it over in my cool garage. What minimum temp can that one take?

Crinums, it seems, are not all equal.

They are rated a zone 8b, but I think that a hard freeze cold kill them off. They are probably root hardy to a zone 8b or 9a. Crinums are definitely all very different between the size difference, the flower difference, and the cold hardiness. The small ones can handle a zone 7 winter, but the large ones, I would say, are pretty much tropical. Too much winter moisture will probably kill them because they love the water, but only when its warm.

Good luck!

Nice plants Dave in nova!
Just planted 3 Musa bajoo banana plants this year hope they get that tall.

Ive always wanted to try musa basjoos. I hear during there first year they can get to a good size but they dont start forming a really nice clump until years 2 and 3. After 3 years you should have a really dense clump and if winters are mild enough to keep some of the stalk from completely dieing back, it might even flower.

Good luck!
-Alex

I live in VA as well. With no special treatment my crinums had pretty good luck this winter. I planted 16 outdoors and all but 4 came back. If anyone cares for the varieties they are as follows. 3 Hannibals dwarves did not come back along with 1 Powelli Album. 2 NOID Goweniis made it with early Fall planting last year. 3 Ellen Bosanquets, 3 Elizabeth Traubs, 2 JC Harveys, 1 Bradley, and 1 Powelli Album. I will still be drolling over varieties such as the truly tropical Procerum as well as Shrek.

I overwintered bulbspernum and macowanii seedlings in my garage this year. I also over wintered 2 Mrs James Hendry's in the garage as well but will be planting them in the ground very soon after seeing how much success I had last year though. My Hannibals Dwarves that I overwintered in the garage multipled like crazy so I may have some more of them to try outside this season.

I have failed for my 3rd year in a row to successfully overwinter musa basjoo. I need to choose a new site against the foundation of my house. T Fortunei seedlings successfully overwintered in the middle of my yard but the basjoo did not make it.

I added a BOP, Australian Tree Fern, several Brugs, double metel daturas(seedlings), Red castor bean(would like green for next year if anyone wants to trade seeds in the future), some butterfly ginger, some EEs, Oleander, coleous, Cordlynne, more crinums, and rain lilies.

I also planted some houseplants outside since I no longer care for them indoors. I planted my schefflera and dracena outside to help add to the tropical feel. They were purchased for less than some annuals that I own so they will be fun to experiment with.

-David in Central VA(LOL)

Lots of great photos, ideas and info! I was lucky enough to get a whole new bed to plant up with a tropicalesque feel.
All in about 7 weeks. Theresa
Here's some progression pix:

~4-21-10~~~~
{{gwi:406815}}

~4-25-10~~~~
{{gwi:406817}}{{gwi:406818}}{{gwi:406819}}{{gwi:406820}}{{gwi:406821}}{{gwi:474855}}
~5-4-10~~~~

_5-22-10~~~~~
{{gwi:493029}}{{gwi:493030}}{{gwi:1303382}}{{gwi:493032}}
~5-28-10~~~~~
{{gwi:486736}}

~6-10-10~~~~~

peanut01, Sounds like you have a nice collection. Glad to hear some of those criniums came back for you. Im still looking for some really large ones but if I ever find them for a good price I will definitely buy some!

threas, Nice bed of plants. With some summer heat, its going to fill in really well and give a great tropical feel!

Thanks for posting and feel free to share what you have in your tropicalseque collections or any info or questions you have!
Good luck everyone! Summer's definitely here and the plants are loving it!

This is what i actually added

my original list
queen palm
mexican fan palm
chinese fan palm
another pindo palm
giant varigated reed
cordylines and dracenea in the ground
yucca rostrata
yucca alofolia
yucca elephantipes
musa basjoo
sabal loisiana
elepnt ears
more cannas
some more hardy cactus

what i actually added

queen palm- died because i over fertilized it

another pindo palm i planted a seedling

giant varigated reed

cordylines in the ground- im trying to overwinter several green ones
yucca alofolia - small one
yucca elephantipes - seedling
musa basjoo - 5 feet over the summer
sabal loisiana - i added two sabal minors and planted two sabal louisiana seedlings

elepnt ears - 1 alocasia being overwintered inside

more cannas - yes lots of them
some more hardy cactus- cow tounge opuntia and thornless opuntia

here are some picture
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/palms/msg1116291621269.html?7

i added it as a link

for next year i plan on adding

ensete bannanas
papaya
purple castor beans
elephant ears

Here is a link that might be useful: http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/palms/msg1116291621269.html?7

Last year I planned on adding
Agaves
Oleander
More Cannas
More Begonias

And I actually added
A large Agave
2 nice sized Oleanders
Canna robert kemp, Canna Omega, Canna Stuttgart, Canna Intrigue, Canna Pink Dawn
Ensete "Tandara Red', Musa "Blue Java", Musa "Thai Black", Super Dwarf Cavendish, 2 Musa Basjoos.
Philiodendron Imperial Red
Aloe
More pindo palms
Sabal Domingensis
Medd fan palm
Jamacian pointsetta
Variegated plumeria, Plumeria obtusa, Plumeria Pudica, Plumeria NO ID
Nun orchid
Staghorn fern
Anturium
Tillandsia cyanea
3 Variegated scheffleras
Dioon spinulosum
Dioon Edule
TONS of ginger
6 or 7 different brugs!
8 Foot fig tree
Mexican petunia
White Desert Rose
Yellow and Peach thanksgiving cactus
Australian tree fern
4 different bromeliads
HUGE majesty palm
Several orchids
New cat palm
Papaya seedlings (from seed)
Alocasia Borneo Giant
Alocasia Portei??

And probably a million other things! Next year Im not really sure what I plan on adding yet, but I have a few ideas!

-Alex

First off let me say my husband and I are drolling over your garden "tropicalzone7".. in the first picture posted you have a banana tree in the corner then a purple bush looking plant then upright elephant ears.. Just wondering what ones those are??

We love cannas and elephant ears and have a pretty nice collection but nothing compared to yours. The cannas we have are Banana canna, wyoming, king humbert, tropicanna, flaccida, Erebus, Red Stripe, yellow indica, Amazon Butterfly, Ambassadour, Florence Vaughan, majella's, pearly shells, Polly Gay, Tropical Rose, and Tropical White.. for ears we have Alocasia odora, Alocasia macrorrhizos Variegata, Stingray, Big Dipper, Black Magic, Black Runner, and Ruffles..

I have so much i want to add this year but only can do so much in one year.. I added it all up it was well over $900 and well spending that all in one year seems silly.. So i'll have to pick and choose and spread it out a bit...

jen

Thanks jen, but I the first pic on this thread isnt of my yard its dave_in_nova's. I wish I could help with the ID of that purple bush plant, but I cant say for sure since it isn't close enough. It isnt a japanese maple, but maybe that would give a similar effect? Great collection of Cannas and Elephant ears! I wish I could expand on mine, but Im using the room for other types of plants (since i dont have a huge amount of room in the ground). I used to have a black runner elephant ear and I really loved those! Canna Flaccida is another one of my favorites.

Good luck!
-Alex

I purchased a lot (75' x 155') next to my yard. I have just cleared it off and starting in the spring I am planting a citrus grove of about twenty citrus trees. I will also be planting figs, blueberrys, pomegranite, persimmons, plums and Bananas. I have actually planted two Orinoco bananas last month. Since the trees take a while to grow I will have plenty of room for flowering tropicals to fill in.

i thought id add the purple bush is a red plum tree

Darkman, that sounds really nice! A tropical garden, and fruit from it too, all next to your house! I hope to see some pics of that!
Dennis, Thanks for the ID on that. I cant find any good pics of it online, but it sounds like its definitely a possible ID!

Im going to make a list of my potential want list so I can look back at it later. I really doubt I will have all the plants on my want list, but its a starting point!
Musa ae ae
Cardinal Vine
More Passifloria
Blechnum brasiliense
Heliconia
Canna Australia
Crown of Thorns
Zamia
Jasmine
and some others....

Good luck everyone! I cant wait until spring!
-Alex

I just bought an umbrella palm (cyperus), Tricolor hibiscus, and some pink hedychium. I cant wait till spring!!
-Alex

Anyone passing through Jacksonville, Florida on I-95 over Christmas? I am giving away some of my Crinum Lily Ellen Bosanquet for free. See link below.

Carol

Here is a link that might be useful: Florida Gardening Forum-FREE Crinum Lilies (Ellen Bosanquet)

Wish I was passing through Jacksonville because those are very nice Crinums!

And I looked back at my want list in the post above I made last year and It turns out that I did get those Cardinal vines and Jasmine, but that was about it that I managed to add to the collection last year. But there is always next spring!

Happy New Year!
-Alex