Senecio confusus - found and more

 I had been longing for this beautiful vine, ever since the one I pruned - probably too much - 5 years ago did not survive.  This is Senecio confusus, also known as Mexican Flame Vine and Orange Glow Vine.

Picture from 2007 when it was in its full glory.

Single flower from the cluster.

This is a favourite of the butterflies.  Here is a Blue Tiger enjoying its nectar. 

Seeds, but not known to be viable.  Yet, my Mexico-living friend Bev has success in germinating seeds.  I wonder is that why it is a 'Mexican Flame Vine'?  She has sent me seeds from her vine for me to try half way round the earth. The first batch I sowed failed.  I wanted to give it another try and waited for summer to end.  Just as it ended and I was getting the garden bed ready, I got that mail from Bev about her web search for Jaquemontia she wants to grow.  I have four of this blue vine of which I had sent photos to her.

So that Bev mail triggered my search for the Senecio on the web since it was not available in local nurseries.  This vine was sold some years ago and I saw this in many people's gardens too, but not now.  I wondered how people can overlook such a fine vine that does not ask for too much attention either.  

I landed at one supplier in Bangalore who was ready to supply. I waited before confirming my order.  I was off work and made use of this time to visit a nursery that I had not gone before, but had seen its presence in passing.   So went there, skipping my post-lunch-holiday nap.  It was Sampath Nursery on Bogadi Road.

After going round the vast collection of plants, I picked up a few plants and then asked the owner "Do you have Senecio...."  Before I completed, he completed the plant name "confusus, Senecio confusus, yes I have."  I was delighted, both in finding my plant and also the knowledge of the man with plant names.  He went a few steps and picked up one.  I bought two.  The man here is putting my plants in the cover I had carried. I bought Verbena [trailing], an Angelonia and one other which he named as Heliotrope, but it was not.  But he admitted that he was not sure.  I am still to find its name.  The lone flower had fallen off during my scooter-transit of 7 kms.

He is writing my bill.

The Bill.

 I had a place earmarked to grow Senecio near the wall.  I had all hopes of finding it 3 months ago.

I needed a small trellis for it to climb up the wall.  The 'ladder' was ready - a part of a crude arch I had got made in 2006.  I fastened a nylon net [an old piece from my cricket club net] to the 'ladder'.  The next morning, I planted the new vine in the ground as soon as the support was ready. 

The other Senecio went for the arch near the pond.  One side has Jaquemontia and the other has Morning Glory 'Grandpa Otts'.  Since this MG is short lived, I will now grow the Senecio here and grow  the MG anew in a pot. 

I sowed Zinnia and Cosmos seeds the next day once the Senecio was in place.  They sprouted nicely on the 3rd day.  Hopefully, the new season will have pleasing colours.  Bev has already dispatched a packet of Zinnia singles which she grew from the ones I had sent her.  So one portion of the bed is reserved for them -towards the far end of this bed.

Updates will follow in the coming posts.

Getting ready for 2014 season

Rains in April end and May brought out the lovely blue of Jaquemontia.  Taken early in the morning. 

Our milkman Subramanya calls this as 'blue lights' and is his favourite too.

Hemerocallis fulva bloomed nicely for 15-20 days.  A gift from a gardening friend in Jamshedpur, Jasmine who shares the same birth date.

Next to my pond I prepared this bed.  I had bought some plastic mesh to try for the purpose of growing small vines. I used two 'vine support poles' one of my earliest garden projects [10-12 years ago] to erect this mesh.  I planted volunteer seedlings of Cypress vine and Orange Morning Glory to grow on it. In the bed, I sowed seeds of Dwarf Cosmos along the kerb and in the centre, sowed a line of Marigold from seeds collected last year. 

Look beneath the green gate.  I replaced those 'hollow bricks' [left picture] with rocks [right picture] that I removed and needed a place to keep. 

The pot of Epidendrum had overgrown roots. See there, it has been kept ready for some attention.  It had not been repotted in many years and I think it is with me since almost 20 years now!  

I removed the excess growth of roots and spent plants.  The one half seen on the left and the one next to it were repotted last year.  They usually bloom between September and April - long duration.

I also cleaned the excess growth in the pond.  The old water lily plant had grown too big inside and it was removed.  The younger plants will take over.  Towards the bottom right, see how clear the water is.  It can get clearer. I removed the thin silt on the 'level' there so that we can get a good view of the small fishes. 

This small-pot stand was not being used properly.  I painted it and kept it beside the brick container [near the pond] and displayed the cacti and succulents - just a small number of them.  

That brick container that once held Evolvulus had been idle since a year.  Now I filled with seedlings of Fortnight lily and other plants.  Kept Hydrangea and Day Lily plants around it. This allows me to water all of them standing in one place!  Now this is an option for keeping some pots around.

Tomato cage is ready, pit is ready. I will use the small area near the edge to grow coriander. Have to find tomato seedlings.

Red whiskered Bulbul perches on the wedge I provided near the birdbath.  It is thinking of splashing into the water again. It just had one splash - the day was quite warm towards the end of May. 

The tailorbird picks up cotton I provide just for that.  Easy pickings for them as they need not waste time to search!  It has a nest in a leaf of the almond tree. 

Beds are ready for plants.Things are in place. 

Expecting monsoon to arrive any day. 

April sees some good work

This post will be full of pictures. Click on them to enlarge.

There was nothing much to do in the main Yarden area, which is now covered by shade net to protect from the beating summer sun.  But some useful things were done.  The area is seen on the right. The passage next to it was cleared of weeds which grew from the few light rains last month and early this month. A morning glory flower blooms from a volunteer plant. 

Same from opposite side.  See shade net on top, the filtered sun - see how much it filters. I had also done some exercise to put proper downspout to the rain pipes.  Now water will not splat from the bay balcony on to the passage here. It will smoothly fall on concrete.

I tied jute thread to support the Jaquemontia vine as it grows. I had not done it earlier.

Notice a small plant between papaya on the left and plumeria on the right.  It is an ordinary red hibiscus. It was in a pot for 5 years.  In fact, it was the host plant for some variety of hibiscus I had bought, but the grafted plant died and this survived. I made way for it by clearing up the extra rhizomes of Ginger [kasturi arishina].

I used a vintage stone cooking pot to keep a pot with Daylily in it.   It is about to bloom. It is Hemerocallis fulva.

Some light rains brought up the Pink Rain Lilies. This was a biggie!

The water lily which had grown too long and big in roots have been removed. The old plant may not survive. It is in a tub.  I cleared some silt and removed the extra water lettuce and hyacinths. I want to keep a water lily back.  I have one or two smaller ones floating around.

There was a need to use this area properly.  First I moved the compost pits a couple of feet away.  It was here earlier.  See carefully to the left of the plant in the white sac.

See where the pits have moved.  I cover one half with a zinc plate.  With this, I created a bed that has edges on both sides. I moved ginger [edible variety] next to the papaya, I brought a sugarcane plant from the small cover with soil and planted it behind the pits.  And the 'Big red Canna' next to ginger.  This area now looks organized.  Nothing much grows here because of the presence of many small roots from the three trees within 12 feet from here. 

Same area, another angle.

Junk cum firewood cum empty pot area in that corner also is somewhat organized now as I have cleared up "true junk"!!  *Smile*.   See some morning sunlight on the wall - red!

See the pot stand in the foreground here. It was kept away in that junk area. Brought it out for use.  I painted it too.

I closed my previous post mentioning about the new tomato ladders.  I am extremely thankful and grateful to Ramaswamy [Ramu] who did the welding work.  I had cut the pieces to size and given him.  They are left overs from our new house project - construction steel - some are 6mm and some are 8 mm. 

I had decided to paint all the ladders, many of which were done by Ramu the same way.  This way, I cleared up the 'junked iron rods'.  They will be put to use or stored neatly.  "Cilantro Green" paint was available with me. April 20th I took this up and it took me 4 hours to do this job. 

See pictures:

All items kept ready for painting. See paint tin on the high stool.

The new tomato ladder is about 7 1/2 feet high.  Six of them. All painted. See also the 'trellis gate' and pot stand. The arrows of the trellis gate is from our old gate from the old house where I grew up. So it has some history. I salvaged the arrows from that wooden gate and got this trellis made using some of them.

Another view. 

I brought out the smaller ladders also, from the tool shed.  I used rag to paint them. 

Rag swab as brush. Notice the indelible ink mark on my thumb - 2014 General Elections - for having cast my vote [on 17th April]. 

Some March Updates

Unusually, it rained heavily on 2 days in the first week of March.

Rain lilies sprang up, but in many agricultural lands, there were huge crop losses.  

The moisture supplied by the rain was just what I needed [because scooping soil is easier and no dust flies] to embed a few left over odd pieces of stones on the pavement and at the entry point to the Yarden/Eden.   I was waiting for this modification till the rain barrel was in a better place.  I had moved the barrel which I mentioned in my last post.  

This is the passageway path, after the paving.  To the right is the entry to the Eden, slightly raised, but not evident in this picture. 

Now I'm inside the Eden.  Look at the stones laid beneath the rain barrel - entrance.

It was like this last month.  Observe the area beneath the barrel. 

Another view of the entrance from my sitting bench.  

Sitting bench faces the entrance. I have to climb 3 inches on that stone.  

My wild lawn - nothing but Cynodon dactylon - became greener after receiving rains.  One of my 3 tyre planters are seen in this picture [foreground].  I have kept Billbergia pyramidalis in this one. 

I am preparing materials for my Tomato ladder and other support frames while junk is converted that way.  The progress will be updated.