Jen's Gardyn 2009

Good arrangement..:o)

i agree with Terra ;o)

Beautiful planting.

It's a real delight for the eyes.

Thankyou all, it's my joy, my jungle and I love it! :o)))

Junglejen:

Wonderful grouping of Trachycarpus fortunei - Windmill palms!

They look quite happy in their big pots. : > )

You have a jungle forest garden and I bet the wildlife like it too. It's lovely Jen.

I think this is one of my favourite pics.

You're all so kind, thankyou!
Dotty, It was such a beautiful day when I took this pic, good to remember the sunny days. x :o)
We do get a lot of local wildlife Lindak, some visiting, some resident. We always have the stream running for them and food is always on the table. I think they know a soft touch when they see one! lol
The 'Trachys' are amazing plants aren't they Delonix1, they can cope with -20, unprotected, no probs, and they seem to do well in pots, as long as the pot is big enough . :o)

Junglejen:

Yes, Trachycarpus fortunei is probably the hardiest palm in the world. There's quite a few 50 foot/ 15 meters tall trees around here...however, we never get frost here...so cold is never an issue. : > )

WOW 50ft, what wouldn't I give for one of those babies!
My biggest one is about 15ft now, they're fairly slow in this climate only growing from May-October.They look stunning with the snow on their big leaves. :o)

Junglejen:

Yes, they grow typically between 30 - 50 feet. They can grow quite quickly because they grow all year here (at lower elevations of CA.)

I've only seen pics of them with snow. T. fortunei grows into the foothills of the Sierra Mountains in California which gets snow a couple of times a year.

I'd stick to just looking at the snowy pics if I were you D...it's too cold for you here! ;o)))

Junglejen:

That's funny! You're definitely correct though. lol

You probably wouldn't believe me if I told you how warm it was today throughout San Diego County. The temps were from 78 - 88 degrees F. / 25 - 31 degrees C. and it's suppose to be warm all week.

I went to the beach today and it was crowded liked the middle of summer...so many people for this holiday (President's Day) long weekend.

Oh boy! You lucky things, would love to feel the sand between my toes and the Sun on my back again, and the ocean breeze.....ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ I'm dreaming!
I prefer a quiet beach though so think I'll skip the Public Holidays, go off-peak.
We're on 6'c as I write, and that's actually very mild compared to the -10'c that we experienced in some parts of the UK a couple of weeks ago.
And here's me trying to growing a Jungle...must be nuts! lol

Junglejen:

Hopefully soon you'll have the warm clear weather back! Glad to hear you're not getting the sub-freezing temps!

It's definitely not nuts to grow your plant jungle...it's a passion. With determination any type of garden can be grown anywhere. I firmly believe that.
: > )

Couldn't have put it better myself D, it's pushing the boundaries and Mother Nature is incredibly adaptable. I feel that we usually underestimate both our own growing capabilities and the plant Kingdom's tolerance limits...it's great to see just how far we can actually push those limits, I'm constantly amazed and will continue to push...with a passion!!

Junglejen:

That's very true. : > ) The challenges and pushing the limits is what exotic gardening is all about. Many people in CA. do the same thing. I know Palm Society members who do it all the time...we like to grow ultra-tropical palms from the rain forest which can be quite a challenge in our dry (low rainfall) climate. We just add some shade, wind protection, misters and water/fertilizer and hope for the best...and never give up! : > )

Now you're talking...I'd love to try THAT!
I had orchids and bromeliads growing in the trees last year and the visitors loved it.
Many didn't realise that this is how they grow in the wild, they needed lots of misting etc, but they flourished in the shade of the tree foliage.
Just goes to show that if you pay attention to their needs and give them something fairly close to their natural habitat then they will hopefully do the rest themselves.
And if they don't? Then try again....and again...until you get it right. You must have some very unusual specimens growing in your garden D?

Junglejen:

Yes, orchids, bromeliads, love to grow in trees like in their native habitat. Do you grow Tillandsia? Which is in the Bromeliaceae (Bromeliad) family.

I hate to say this...I just threw away most of the 3 bromeliad species which I had in my front planter for 6 years. I keep a few pups though. Oh, I do have many pineapples which of course, are bromeliads. : > )

As far as orchids -- I have a few. However, this is the time of year when many are in bloom. My neighbors three doors down have their whole side and front yard full of orchids which are in full bloom now. They're spectacular! Winter seems to be the height of the blooming season for most orchids species grown here.

Almost none of my orchids have bloomed this year...not even the Cymbidiums. The red Epidendrum my neighbors gave me is the only orchid blooming .

Hi D! Yes, I do grow Tilandsia, I have the bright pink ones, tough little things they are too, they reside in the bathroom.
Pineapples you lucky thing, a great looking plant and it's my favourite fruit, alas they're not so good in this climate. :o(
Now, Orchids seem to have their own agenda...some years they just bloom their heads off and the next...nothing! I'd love to see your neighbours front yard, must be quite a sight. The Cymbidiums are doing quite well over here, albeit indoors, but a very welcome sight in the Winter when we're short on flowering plants.
Maybe the equivalent UK display right now would be our Snow Drops- 'galanthus nivalis', in full glory at the moment, have you seen them?

Junglejen:

Yes, Tilandsia species are very hardy...able to tolerate freezing temps or slightly lower very well. There's so many species and varieties that grow here...it amazes me. I used to grow several tied on a cable wire many years ago...and would just periodically hose them down.

I've posted several pics of pineapples in the past. They grow very well here in a semi-shaded area. I've never tried to grow one as a houseplant...I may try one sometime.

I've never been good at growing orchids...most of my family and friends that grow orchids have such great luck with them...they basically neglect them and they grow and bloom well. So many genera of orchids grow here...it would be impossible to list...especially when hybrids are included. I have about 7 varieties of orchids. There's only one I want...the variety is called 'Sugar Baby' and the flowers smell like chocolate.

Oh my... Chocolate???!! Don't mention that word lol,,,I've just googled it and it looks wonderful, such a beautiful colour, what a treat, I hope that one comes your way. You're so right about 'neglecting' them, my Daughter has a Dendrobium that she hardly even touches and it's been blooming it's head off for 6 months now lol

Yes, I've seen the Tilandsia growing wild up in the mountains of Mandeville, Jamaica on the telephone wires etc. I asked what they were and how they got up there but no-one knew. A shrug of the shoulders and "they just come and sit up there" was the answer! A case of familiarity breeds contempt I think! :o)

Do you have experience of growing Carludovica palmata, it's from Equador I believe, and is the source of fibre for the manufacture of the famous Panama hat? I've just today aquired some and I'm so excited, but any tips/info would be much appreciated as this is a new one to me! :o)

Junglejen:

Yes, a chocolate orchid...I love it! : > )

Tillandsia seeds will germinate on wires, trees, anything if condition are suitable. They are an epiphyte.

Yes, I have Carludovica palmata 'Jungle Dawn' or 'Jungle Drum' it looks quite different from the species (It is commonly called Panama hat plant) native to Central, Northern S. America. I posted a pic of my plant on GoY last year. (I'll post another tonight). Carludovica palmata can be grown outside in protected areas in San Diego, CA. Curculigo capitulata - Palm Grass looks very similar and I have this plant outside under my tent. Both genera are native to very hot, humid lowland tropical areas of world.

I have my Carludovica palmata 'Jungle Dawn' or 'Jungle Drum' growing in the house for now...it has done well. However, when my shade structure is build in my front yard it will go outside in the ground.

The only suggestions I can give is: 1) Give it as much heat and humidity as possible. 2) Give it a lot water (rain water, if possible) I would assume cool dry weather may possibly kill it...or set it back. Good luck! : > )

Thank you so much for the advice Andy, and the good luck wish as I think I'm going to need it with this one!
I have now put them on top of the aquariums to give gentle bottom heat, sitting in dishes of pebbles and a little rainwater. Might do the trick!

Junglejen:

You're welcome. I'm sure your Carludovica palmata 'Jungle Drum' plants are going to do very well for you.

Hello there Junglejen. I have just looked at your photo's, again! I particularly like this one as I have just bought some small trachycarpus's. I see that yours are in pots, and they look lovely. Do you have to re-pot them when they get bigger, or has this been unneccessary due to their slow growing nature? Mine are now planted in the ground. I can see the beauty of pots though as you can move them around whenever you need to. We were lucky to have been given a 9 footer recently (that we dug up ourselves) which was surprisingly in a smallish pot, buried a foot into the ground. Does this keep them small, even though they grow slowly?

We have many big jobs to do in our garden. We have been here for 29 years and for the last 20, the garden has been a play area for our boys. I only used to cut the grass and occasionally do the weeding. I now have more time to garden and have many big, but important, projects. I wish I had done this years ago when I was younger, when back-ache wasn't an issue!!

Hi Aitchw, yes we repotted last year, but only because there are mostly three in each pot. They've grown a lot since we got them 6/7 years ago, they were babies when we got them.
They do well in their pots and don't seem to mind their roots being somewhat restricted but you'll find that they'll grow stronger in the ground. If yours was buried in the pot, I'd guess it was done in an effort to restrict it, though it doesn't seem to have done the job if it's 9ft tall! Lucky you!!!
Good luck with your garden, it's your time now, but take it slowly if your back's bad (me too I'm afraid!), it'll be lovely to see your garden take shape, be sure to post pics as you go along. :o)

Only just stumbled across this - beauuuuutiful picture. Just dream and sigh.....

Thanks Minihoney, it's good to have a dream! :o)

Love this picture. Beautiful garden Jen.

SAW JEN LAST NIGHT ON GArdENERS WORLD , SHE IS AMAZING, WISH MY GARDEN LOOKED LIKE THAT!!!I LOVE THOSE TROPICAL PLANTS BUT WOULDNT HAVE THE FIRST CLUE HOW TO START, MY GARDEN IN WORCESTER, IS LAWN AT THE MO AND WATER RETAINING SO NOT SURE IF SUITABLE FOR THOS TYPE OF PLANTS IN THE GROUND