Weekend Bouquets

 A stunning arrangement that will light up any table

 Some of these gingers produced several mini flowers on the original flower and I thought how neat!

 These gingers reproduce in their flowers as well as by root divisions.

 These mini gingers are great for mini bud vases and squat vases.

 Shampoo ginger is the main ingredient in  the Aussies brand shampoo. The flower head is filled with a beautiful scented thick liquid, just squeeze it and you will see and smell it.

Gingers are fabulous for cut flowers, they last a really long time and are so colourful. I have several varieties growing in my garden and it is a wonderful feeling cutting ones own for table arrangements.  I also have an excess of limes and I had seen some arrangements on a blog that used them with flowers. So I decided to do the same.  Have a great weekend my friends!

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day September 2011

Monarchs are back in the garden after several years of  absence.

 These night blooming lilies  are a true baby pink colour.

 White  mussaenda will remain  in bloom for several months.

 Dwarf powder puff  shrub well is suited for containers. 

Hello and welcome to Blooms day  where gardeners from around the globe post what is blooming in their gardens.  It has been a very hot and humid September so far. Yes and the raindrops kept falling all over my garden giving the weeds an excuse to misbehave.  For those of you in the tropics, it is time to start cutting back your plants for the winter/Christmas season. Because of the dampness please pay attention to fungus on your plants, it is deadly if not caught early.  To see what is blooming in gardens around the globe please visit Carol at may dreams garden . Have a wonderful week and happy gardening. 

Landscaping adventures part 3

 left front entrance before

after

right front entrance before

after

pathway towards back before

after

pool deck before

 villa's right side  before

 after

Golden criniums, purple feather grass, heliconias  were used to create a dramatic display of colours.

I was asked to renovate this garden that had been neglected. Many of the plantings were old or not suited to the garden. Major surgery had to be done by way of removing vegetation that was not needed. Additional soil was brought in to renovate the existing beds. My client wanted a bit of drama and I gave her colourful foliage where they were best suited. Begonias were used for colour and fillers at the front entrance until the larger plants grew. Tropical gardens require lots of  maintenance in the rainy season since every thing grows twice as fast.  Many neighbours came over to have a peek at the garden and I was told by another landscaper months later that garden was the prettiest he had seen.

Landscaping adventures part 2

My clients who were owners of a historic manor had a rather bland look to the front the entrance to the house. I thought that this was not befitting for a house of this stature, so after convincing them that I can improve the entrance they agreed.

 Grass was removed and new plantings and river stones were installed keeping three of the original  shrubs the owners liked.

 The owners were quite pleased with the results and so was I.