Start of the year, start plants

Gardening in the tropics is much unlike that of the temperate or subtropical climates. We have annuals, biennials and perennials. The annuals germinate at the start of the rainy season and finish life during the dry season. Biennials, are of course on the ground for two years after which they finish fruiting and then die. Our perennials are real perennials. They are always on the ground unless we uproot them, or prune them severely, or destroyed by typhoons!  


I have been blessed with some blogger friends who are generous to send some seeds. Lily is mostly growing lilies, her namesake, although she also grows some annuals. She also tried breeding and exchange her seeds with some other breeder-hobbyists across the globe. Lily, The Suburban Gardener from Illinois, sent me seeds and bulbs through the post office at the middle of 2011. She painstakingly gathered seeds from her own plants, put them in personally made small packets, and placed them in a bubble sheet envelope. We were discouraged at first because we thought the package got lost in the mail. It came much later than our expected date. This might have caused most of the seeds to loose germinability. There are more than 10 different seeds, but did not germinate successfully. Only 2 seeds and  two bulbs were successful and now growing steadily.


Being excited of growing temperate plants not common here in the tropics, I might be rewarded of some success. 

A few coneflower seeds germinated although with a very low percentage germination

Gaillardia showed higher percentage germination

All the Lycoris radiata bulblets sprouted and they seem so happy with our sunshine

The four Rhodophiala bulblets also grow well, with very long leaves of more than 2 ft each. I don't know if that leaf length is normal, because they are so thin and long.

Allium purple is not successful, different unwanted seeds are growing in its pot.

Clematis blue did not germinate as well, and its pot is conquered by Impatiens balsamina volunteers

I bought a pack of petunia to indulge my mother's patience in watering my plants when I'm away. She must see some flowers if my experiment will not be successful. She is 81 and getting plants to flower is happiness!

At least the petunia is already giving its first bloom. My mother will not see the experimental plants until a few years from now.

 To go with the temperate seeds, i also planted Eucharis grandiflora from a neighbor. It already produced some leaves. At the front are my transplanted Gaillardia from its germination pot.

I am trying to grow this Clerodendrum in a pot. It is commonly growing in our unfarmed areas. It is now beginning to show the start of flowering. I just don't like the smell of its leaves.

I salvaged this  Crysothemis pulchelia from totally drying last dry season. Then I saw a lot of germination in a pot which turned out to be this plant. I didn't know it seeded and now regaining its ground.

A lovely Coleus looted by my mother from a neighbor. Its first leaves are big and real beautiful.

And to complete my newly planted or newly acquired plants, this Epiphyllum oxypetalum is now producing its first shoots happily. In two years i will witness my first Queen of the Night bloom, if ever i can wait until midnight.