Sub-tropical plants and gardens

12 Sep '07 7:48 am

Hi, Jack! It's good to hear from you again! What a beautiful tree this is, and what wonderful pictures they are! I can hardly wait to hear from the folks in New Zealand and California to see if these trees are being grown in those areas. If not, they should be! They remind me of giant buttercups!

When you first mentioned the lockable pantry, I immediately thought of human thieves. Now THAT shows that I've never been where there are monkeys!! Very Happy

Enjoy the Kruger; I'm looking forward to seeing the pictures of it! I've just finished reading the book, "The World Without Us", and in it it states that Africa is the only continent in which large mammals were not mostly extinguished by our very early ancestors. The reason given is that the large land mammals in Africa evolved alongside humans, so they knew how dangerous we were and learned coping behaviours, while the large mammals in other places, not having humans around from the beginning, did not! It also said that there is some sort of a movement among certain scientists to reintroduce elephants, etc. to North America once again! I wonder how that would work, since we're having such a hard time allowing for the large mammals that we already have!

Anyway, enjoy the Kruger!

Cheers!

gordonf

12 Sep '07 8:38 am

I didn't realize how large the flowers were until I went to that other site you provided. Each one looks as large as a big magnolia bloom .. or perhaps I'm confusing a cluster for a single bloom. Regardless, what a magnificent display. I'll have to look it up at home to see about its requirements and suitability. The only place I have left for trees is out along the creek. I have a young stick of a tree with yellow flowers which I believe was a Tecoma something or other, but I think it is too small to be this one.

What a remarkable sight! Looking forward to more pics from Kruger. The monkey-proof chuckwagon is a great idea. In California it is bears we have to watch out for. They have been becoming more and more clever about removing windows and doors to get after food left in cars. Once we tent camped in a mixed campground and were awoken after midnight by a lot of horn honking. I remember thinking how rowdy & inconsiderate some people were before rolling over and going back to sleep. When we got up the next day we found our drivers side door open, muddy bearprints all over the dashboard and steering wheel and all the food containers in the back area opened and scattered around the ground. Apparently, our rowdy neighbor was a hungry bear who had opened the door's handle and climbed back over the seats to the back area to take our food. We hadn't bothered to lock the door thinking they couldn't work the handle. Wrong. I'll bet monkies are even better at opening things than bears are.

Mark

12 Sep '07 8:44 pm

Thank you SO, dear-dear Jack, for the especially dedicated macro!! What a beauty, indeed!! The blooms remind me a lot! the Rhododendrons'blooms! A huge, golden, Rhodo-like tree! My!

14 Sep '07 7:38 pm

Mark, yesterday I saw a young tree near home - obviously in a warmer garden than mine, but still on top of the mountain - so I would suspect that with irrigation you should be able to grow it.

15 Sep '07 2:21 am

My Western Sunset book says it wants regular water as you note and full sun. It is probably the full sun requirement that causes them not to recommend it for my local climate. Being right on the bay like San Francisco we're fogged in more often than inland areas. So while it recommended for areas near me which get a little colder it is only recommended in areas that really bake in summer, and that isn't us. Guess I can't grow them all. Great looking tree though.

15 Sep '07 9:51 am

I guess we get our fair share of baking on the mountain, but in theory we are a very misty climate. As they seem to propogate easily and flower from very young - copiously if somewhat shapelessly - I think it well worth a try, and it shouldn't cost you a fortune...

19 Oct '07 1:39 am

No flowering tree is as close to my heart as the Jacaranda. Especially when seen against a dark and stormy sky, no tree in the world is as ravishingly or elegantly colourful. In Johannesburgt I looked down on them from my apartment - I have posted a pic in the past - and before that two huge trees shaded the street and most of our garden at our house in Johannesburg. My parents lived in a street famous for its canopy of jacarandas that stretched for over a km.

This one I photographed halfway down the mountain pass, the close-ups, and the Barberton Daisies amongst the fallen flowers I photographed at a derelict house on the tea estate. The flowers must once have been planted, but this is very close to their habitat. Over the years they have naturalised. They are the species version of Gerbera jamesonnii, the main breeding stock for the modern florists' gerbera. Among them there was one golden-orange. I think I must go rescue it... (them)...

19 Oct '07 5:44 am

I absolutely fell in love with Jacarandas the first time I ever saw them which was in Berry,south of Sydney,Australia.They looked particularly spectacular planted in avenues.
When I enquired at the local plant shop he said it was too cold for them here-they do grow in Auckland though,which does not have our frosts.
Dixie.

19 Oct '07 2:11 pm

Hi, Jack!

Thanks for posting those lovely pictures of the jacarandas! They truly are wonderful! I've never seen one "for real" in bloom. I guess I was in the tropics at the wrong time of year. The flamboyant trees were blooming when I was there around Christmas.

It was also great to see naturalized gerberas, since I can't get them to grow outside here even the summer! Matter of fact, I can't get them to live inside, either! So I just look at them in the stores!

Cheers!

gordonf

19 Oct '07 6:06 pm

I googled them and unfortunately not for my climate, Sad

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