G.M.,

I haven't tried callibrochoa on the western exposure of our place, only on the east and south, where it has done fine, but it hasn't had to deal with excessive heat and sunlight.

The flowers that have done best for me along hot west walls are zinnias, celosias, sunflowers (regular ones and the dwarfs), cosmos, periwinkles, purslane, portulaca, gazania daisies, and gomphrena. One of the dwarf cannas would be lovely in a container, and the flowers are so bold and beautiful.

Hopefully someone will have an answer on the callibrochoa for you.

Dawn

West - ooh, boy - that west sun can be vicious here in Oklahoma in July and August and sometimes September. And, if you're putting them on a concrete patio, you're going to be giving them twice the heat. I'm not sure calibrochoa can take that much heat and survive or bloom well. They will take tons of water to keep them looking good, and that is question - whether they can stand up under that heat.

You might want to try some gaillardia, salvias (many are annuals and will bloom right thru the heat; in fact, they thrive on it).

You can also get some gorgeous geraniums in different shades, or plant a pot of dahlia (a big pot) tubers. Lots of ideas. When you go shopping just look for the plants that are sitting outside in the sun without whimpering (showing signs of not wanting to be there, ya know?).

Portulacas are another great one for hot sun areas.

A really pretty vining plant for the hot sun is allamanda. It has tubular yellow flowers. I think there is also a purple one, too. I got one last year at HD. It is gorgeous, and can easily be grown in a pot. Bougainvillias are gorgeous heat loving plants, too, and you can grow them in a pot or in a hanging basket. Hot pink is the common color, but they have white, peach, and lavendar as well.

I also grew allamanda cathartica last year, and it is gorgeous, too. Got it at HD as well. Here is a link to copy and paste into your browser for a look-see.
Here is another link to copy and paste into your browser for the allamanda cathartica:

http://a.gerard4.free.fr/images10/Allamanda_cathartica.jpg

Last year I also grew duranta erecta (also called Sky Flower or Golden Dewdrop because the seed pods look like little golden drops of dew) in a pot, and it was stunning. I got it at HD also, and the blooms were a purple edged in pink. Beautiful shrub-like plant to grow in a pot, and it will take the hot sun, too.

Manettia, or Firecracker plant, or Cigar Plant, are beautiful plants with red tubular blooms all over it, and it has the added bonus of attracting hummingbirds. They had this plant at Precure the other day when I was there.

Verbenas will do well in hot sun, and oh, Tecoma stans. I almost forgot that one. It gets pretty bushy and tall, but does well in a pot. It has tubular yellow flowers on it, and the foliage is glossy and very pretty. I love this plant. I saw some new cultivar with orange flowers the other day, and they are so pretty. I think I'm gonna have to have that one, too! Also attract hummingbirds.

Susan

Here is a link that might be useful: Duranta Erecta (Geisha Girl)

Susan thank you for the tips and ideas. But phooey too....lol. I would have loved to try the calibrochoa for mom. I may still get some for myself.
I know it seems that few plants can take the west heat on a patio. I have given up putting plants on my front porch which faces west, but I have a very large concrete footed bowl on my front walk that I always plant with seasonal annuals. My mom's patio is a whole 'nuther story....haha.
Last summer we tried: marigolds, geraniums, periwinkle, begonia, and ivy. The ivy thrived due to me moving it to a shady end of the patio shaded by an oak tree. The geranium? I think she over fed and killed...sis had told her to feed it with miracle grow every time she watered it. ugh. Naturally the periwinkle perished from sheer heat and sun. I was gone traveling or I would have moved it. The begonia was not my idea to put there but in a small container it died too. So when I came back home I was shocked to see all mom's plants gone except the ivy which sure loved the heat since it had shade.
I am convinced that even if a plant does okay mom may find a way to kill it. But she loves flowers...they just need to be TOUGH. lol.
I have already potted up some portulaca for her this year and it is doing great and blooming like crazy.

I may try to find the duranta erecta you mentioned...the pics of it are just gorgeous. I may want one for myself too.
I am going to copy a list to take with me to Pick of the Day and see what I can find. Need to get something potted up if I am going to add it to mom's mothers day gifts.

How are those headaches Susan? The foot? Back?

I have about half of the stomach virus my son woke up with on saturday...so I'm just not up to much today. And this humid weather and mold spores sure messes with the sinuses doesn't it?
Sounds like you have been planting a lot more plants.
Ooops guess I will go....phone call.....
Thanks so much!
G.M.

Callibrochoa culture is similar to Petunias. Usually by July the blooms are in decline and the plants leggy. They need to be sheared back and re-fertilized to stimulate new growth. Also they seem to be attractive to catapillars, so just about the time the new blooms are appearing they are munched into oblivion again. I've never had them return to their initial full flowered glory even if I managed to get them to struggle through to the cooler fall weather. They are another "spring fling" plant for me.

Thanks for the heads up on Callibrochoa, Maryl. I decided not to do any for my mom. I made her a mixed container of sure-fire heat and sun tolerant plants. lol

I did pick up a small Callibrochoa for myself to try it out...and I put it in a hanging pot so I shall see how it goes. I was intrigued due to it being similar to petunia but not needing all the care....at least that is what all the advertising said....sounds like it was not so true for you...ugh.
Oh well I didn't spend much to try it.
Thanks everyone!
G.M.

Well, calibrochoa is in the solanaceae family, so it does attract hornworms, too, as does the tomatoe, datura, brugs, nicotiana, and petunias. Also probably attracts a host of "generalist" moth caterpillars as well. But, that's why I grow it, my tomatoes and other members of the same family.

Duranta erecta is relatively pest-free. I did not notice anything on mine last year, except butterflies and honeybees. They do love it.

My lantanas and pentas are very, very heat tolerant to - they thrive in the heat. Lantana is a beautiful plant and there are so many pretty cultivars of it. I have perennial lantana 'Miss Huff' I just planted this year, plus 'Irene' and one I got at the trade we had. But, the flowers look like little clusters of pink, yellow, dark pink, red, and are beautiful. The foliage stays nice, too. They bloom in what I call "flushes". Heavily, then slow down for a couple of weeks, and then another "flush" of bloom. But, the butterflies just go nuts over them. The only one they didn't like was 'New Gold', a yellow bloom. Some of the newer cultivars are "sterile", too, and you don't have to worry about them producing seed, and deadheading them.

My calibrochoa is in a part shade area, which I think it does great in so far. It sure looks pretty with the silver foliage plants. I like the combination of purple and silver.

HD just had some really great looking plants this spring IMO. But a couple of years ago, they decided they were going to start "training" their horticultural staff. Since then, it has been slow, but I think they are doing a little better.

Susan

I've grown lots of different Calibrochoa over the years in hanging baskets. They are hard to resist in bloom in the spring. This year instead I "bit" on an overpriced hanging basket of "mini petunias" that are larger then Calibrochoas, but smaller then regular petunias. The "salesman" said they were even better then the "Wave" petunias (which isn't saying much as in my experience they are leggy and spent by mid July or so). As P.T. Barnum once said, "There's a sucker born every minute". At least these "mini petunias" are fragrant as all get out (as long as they last).

I love the look of Petunias, but they just don't last long enough here to make me spend the money on them.

The only petunias I have ever had do well in the summertime are the Laura Bush petunias, which originally came out in the early to mid-1990s in Texas as V.I.P. petunias. They are very hard to find in nurseries though.

Mary, I hope you'll keep us posted on how your mini-petunia does once the heat cranks up. I think they are beautiful when I see them in the stores, but have wondered about how heat hardy they really are.

Dawn

I love petunias.I have had a few years that I had really great luck with them. I remember one year in particular I had the most gorgeous petunias all summer and into fall. I have pics of my decks and pool decks with big pots of multi colored petunias. I never have had that good a luck with them since...lol. So I have been resisting them for a while after trying different types and still not having great luck. I have tried the "wave" petunias and they didn't do well at all for me. Ugly leggy things....ugh.

I got really tempted by a varigated purple highly ruffled petunia the last two times I have been to the garden center but still resisted. I get tired of all the pinching and fussing over them.

So I have my callibrochoa to try out in a hanging basket on my east facing patio. It was a smaller one for only $3.50...haha. We shall see. Sometimes it is all in the micro-climate you put them in I have found out. Actually it is that way with almost all plants in my experience.

Please do fill us in on the petunia Maryl. They sure are pretty flowers.

G.M.

Hmmmm. I don't think I could be enticed to buy anything with a name so closely related to George!

Here's a photo of my planter box with the calibrochoa.

Susan

Susan your callibrochoa does look really pretty....those shades of purple go beautifully with your silver dusty miller and the...what is the other plant? Artemesia perhaps?
Those are going to be great looking as they fill in more...already look great.
Mine are deep pink ones....or are they red? hahaha. I have looked at too many plants lately I don't even know. haha. I am so tired and my back is hurting so bad I must go relax but just had to see what all you were up to this evening....haha.
Thanks for sharing the photo,
G.M.

I didn't think I'd get drawn into this conversation this much, but let me tell you about my real love in the Petunia World: The variety "Red Madness". Yes, they are the old fashioned Petunia (good for hanging baskets though), but their fragrance (more pronounced at night of course) is so awesome that they deserve room just for that reason alone. But to further entice you, the Hummingbirds (of which, in our little suburbia, are few) are drawn to this one variety of Petunia more then any other. Seeds are hard (impossible?) to find anymore, but I see them at cheapo deapo places as grown plants. If you happen upon that particular crimson red variety, give your nose and the hummers a treat. You may want to toss them out in July, but they are cheap enough that the thrill will linger long after the compost ben is full of them.

G.M. - the center plant is a helichrysum commonly called Icicles Licorice or curry plant. Pretty, huh? It is supposed to be a host plant for the American Lady butterfly.

Maryl, I bet those hummingbirds love that red color, too! I'll have to keep an eye out for that one.

Susan

Well, Mary, even though I try to resist petunias because they fizzle in our heat, your post has me wanting to get the Red Madness ones just for the hummers.

I am going to look for some when I am out at the nurseries.

Dawn

Maryl
Now that you mentioned the "red madness" I believe that sounds quite familiar and I more than likely may have had that one before. And I can't recall now for sure if my petunias which did so well that one year were deep pink or red.
I love red flowers for summer and also yellow. Those colors stand out against all the green foliage and grass so nicely. I will try to remember to watch for "red madness" in future. And please don't hesitate to be drawn into any tread...you have a lot to share us.

Everyone--If I don't "see" you all in any other tread then I wish you all a very Happy Mother's Day...including those of you who are not mothers....I still wish you a great weekend.
G.M.

G.M.

Good Morning! It looks lovely outside right now--clear skies and sunshine with just a tiny bit of fog.

I hope to spend most of today outside, although I do come in from time to time to run a load of laundry, etc. and to take a break from the humidity and mosquitoes.

We are starting to dry out a little here, except we had a brief rain shower late yesterday afternoon. We drove across the Red River Bridge yesterday and the river is as high as it has ever been since we moved here in 1999.

I hope that your Mother's Day is a happy one as well, and I hope everyone has a lovely weekend.

Dawn

Dawn be safe out there working outdoors today....watch out for the snakes and critters which have run from the rains!

I can imagine the Red River is high...when we went down to Gainesville a couple of weeks ago it was as high as I remember seeing it before and we have had more rain since then.

It is WONDERFUL to see sunshine for two days in a row! YIPPEE!

I won't be able to spend too much time outside today...well not all day like I need to anyway...as I have cooking to do for Mother's Day tomorrow. We are all going out to my sisters house since she has the biggest house and the biggest family...but I am doing a large brisket and other things. We have decided on a picnic type menu to make things easy for us all. I don't think the entire family will be able to come and my son is never off work on Mothers Day....sigh....not in 10 years have I spent Mothers day with him.

Do you have plans for tomorrow?

We still do the entended family get togethers just for mom. She LOVES getting all her bunch together...lol. It is hard though to do the large gatherings at every holiday.

Have a wonderful day and weekend!
G.M.

G.M.,

Early this morning I was weedeating about 600' of fenceline that runs between our place and the place south of us and I woke up a little brown snake (non-venoumous). I believe he survived the close encounter with the weedeater and I survived the close encounter with the snake. lol I only weedeat the fenceline that runs between their pasture and ours. My DH will have to do the remaining 900' of fenceline that runs through the woods, 'cause I do NOT step into the woods in snake season.

The Red River has really picked up a lot of runoff the last 48 hours. It was out of its banks on the Texas side west of the bridge, was running like mad and had whitecaps! Some of the locals tell me that they remember it being higher on one occasion about 25 to 35 years back. They say they remember the water being right up to the bridge...no water over the bridge, but the bridge was 'rocking and rolling' from the water hitting it. I believe I would just stay home and refuse to cross that bridge if the water was that high!

I am expecting a quiet Mother's Day at home with DH and DS and DS's wonderful girlfriend, who would make a great daugher-in-law one of these days....not that I am hinting!
She gave me a lovely (and yummy!) gift the other day....flower-shaped sugar cookies in a flowerpot. It was so pretty, and tasted delicious too!

My Mom just got her broken foot out of a cast yesterday and doesn't feel up to a big celebration. I sent her flowers and some of our family members in Fort Worth will take her out to lunch after church. We will all be together in three weeks for my niece's baby shower. Since Daddy died in 2004, Mom just doesn't want to do the big family thing any more. Getting her to do anything is like pulling teeth. She is excited about my niece's baby, which is due in July. This will be her first great-grandchild.

My DS is working a 24-hour shift at the fire station today, and will be home around 8:30 or 9:00 a.m. tomorrow. Sometimes we go out to eat on Mother's Day, and sometimes we just grill steaks and stay home to avoid the crowds. My DH is off tomorrow, so he will probably do the cooking and I will do the eating! Mother's Day is one of the few days that no one expects me to prepare the meal.

It sounds like your family is going to have fun. When we were all younger and our kids were in the infant to small child phase we would all go out to the restaurant of Mom's choice. It was quite comical some years, with six small children in highchairs and booster seats. Now that some of those nieces and nephews are married, and beginning to have kids themselves, it is almost impossible to get everybody together in one place, except at Christmas and Thanksgiving.

Dawn

Dawn your day sounds quite lovely to me. Ah just a day to relax and enjoy.

My mom is 90 and since she loves getting all her girls and their families together as often as possible we just keep on keeping on with the big get-togethers as often as we can make them happen.

Since my son is ALWAYS working on Mother's Day....(He works at Ryan's Family Steakhouse here in town and Mother's day is THE biggest day of the entire year)..since I can't spend time with him on Mother's Day if I wanted to just be selfish I would just go to the lake and spend the day...hahaha. But I want my mom and older sisters to have a special day. My sisters are 14 and 16 years older than me....I used to tell everyone I grew up with 3 mom's....lol.

It will be a good day with my family. I HOPE! haha.

Dawn my dad passed away in 2004 also! It does sometimes cause the surviving spouse to really change after the loss. I have a friend whose mom changed totally after her dad died.
My sister has not wanted to do anything much since her daughter passed away last fall. Today will more than likely be tough for her. I am glad she reluctantly decided to come and be with us all.

So you have a prospective daughter in law in the wings? How wonderful! My son has had 3 serious interests in the past 2 years...all the gals wanted to get married badly but all 3 put pressure on him and he bolted and ran. So I am not at all sure he is ever going to decide to just do it...lol. I have tried to get him to call one them recently and he just won't do it. She was my favorite and I miss her. She was so good to me....foot massages and all....hahaha. I would be embarrassed too death at her insistence on treating me that way...but she sure was a sweetie. Perhaps I should just call her myself? haha.

I sure hope my brisket tastes as wonderful as it smells! I am cooking it the Texas Slow baked way....many hours in a low temp oven. They always turn out awesome that way. Better than when DH smokes them in the smoker...lol. I was raised on bar-b-que so I try it make it most Mother's Days or if not then I do it around 4th of July.
It woke me at around 1 a.m. those smells....ah...I had to get up and check on them and I removed some of the drippings from my more shallow pan. Now it is time for me to take them out and let them sit a while so we can slice them...then add bar-b-que sauce and back into the oven for another hour.

Whatever you do just be sure to ENJOY! Okay?

G.M.

Hi G.M.,

Well, she is a prospective daughter-in-law because she is the one I would choose, if it was MY choice, and not his! I don't know if he feels like she is possibly 'the one' or not.

Last night I had just come in from the garden and was hot and dirty. I started up the vacuum cleaner, thinking I would vacuum before dinner. Just as I started it, one of my son's ex-girlfriends appeared at the door with her current boyfriend. I was thrilled to see her as she is a real sweetheart and I miss having her around. She brought me a Mother's Day card that started out "To Someone Who Has Been Like A Mother To Me..." and enclosed a lovely note inside on beautiful stationery describing how I had always welcomed her into our home, and loved her, and had been there for her through her many problems with her own family. It was time for tears! I love her as if she were my own daughter and she and our son have maintained a good friendship. Her current boyfriend is dear to us also. So, it was a great surprise visit from them. About that time, son's current girlfriend showed up. Luckily the two young women have grown up together and are friends!

We all sat and visited for a while and then the young couple left to go to her granny's house for a family celebration of Mother's Day one day early. The current girlfriend stayed and visited with us for a few hours. DS, of course, was at work, so he missed it all although I gather he knew the ex-girlfriend was stopping by.

I have always tried to be the kind of mom who is welcoming to my son's friends, so I am always delighted when one of his high school or college friends stops by to visit.

My DH was not supposed to work today, but another lieutenant in the patrol division took the day off unexpectedly, so he is working today. DS is cooking lunch for me....his specialty meal, Fettucine Alfredo, which he makes from scratch and which is so delicious and so fattening! He, his girlfriend and I are having lunch together at noon. I hope to get in some garden time this afternoon. My DS spoils me...a lovely card and a gift and lunch too! I treasure the time I spend with him. He is looking for a house to buy as an investment, so I know his time here will not last forever. I am glad he is going to buy a house instead of renting an apartment or house. He is smart to do that.

My mom did not handle my dad's death at all. He had Alzheimer's disease for many, many years and she didn't handle that well either, so we knew she would be difficult to deal with after he passed away. She has always been very much a homebody, and it is just impossible to get her out of the house any more. She is getting a little better, though, and I think the birth of her first great-grandchild will bring her great joy.

I hope you have a lovely family day today. I hope being with the rest of you is a comfort to your sister. I cannot even imagine how hard today will be for her. I hope she is comforted by the memories of her precious daughter.

By the way, Ryan's is one of my favorite places to eat!

Dawn

Hello Dawn!
How was your day? Did you have a good one? It sounds like you were to get some special treatment from your DS and his girlfriend. I think that is wonderful. Makes me think of meals which my DS's former girl used to make for us when she would come to stay with us for a few days. She lives in Arlington. I am sorry that your DH had to end up working after all.

I missed mine being with us all today. He did call me when he got a break today. He is head carver so I am sure if you eat there you have seen him before. He just came home from work just before 9:30 and had been there since 10:30 this morning. He is one tired guy. Mother's day is a rough day for him.

I love that your DS's X came to bring you a card and a personal note. That is just precious! You really did make a good impression on her from the way it sounds and I think it is great that she came to see you and let you know how much she appreciates you. It almost makes me tear up too. How special that is!

You have done a great job raising your DS I can tell. He is very wise to invest in owning a home as opposed to renting. My DS lives with us currently and I am glad he does. I would rather he would stay here and save up money for a home than to waste it on renting a place.

I am so sorry that your dad had Alzheimer's...that is such a sad disease and so hard on everyone. I am sure it was very hard for your mom....especially if she is rather quiet and a homebody anyway. Bless her heart. I am glad to hear that the new great grand baby is giving her a lift in her spirits. I suppose she lives near enough to them to get to really enjoy the new little one?

Our day went really well. My sister's home is large and everyone just sort of spreads out all over the place...lol. Today some were eating outside around the pool and some in the den and the rest of us were in her sunroom. It all went great and everyone enjoyed themselves. My niece gave my sister (the one who lost her only daughter last October) a gift today and one of the nephew's had taken her a dozen roses yesterday. Those things really did a lot for her. I felt bad as I never even thought of doing anything like that for her...ugh...but I was so glad some of the other's did.

Did you work outside today? This weather is wonderrful! I LOVE IT!
I had to water some of my container plants this evening when we got home but that is about all I did. Tomorrow is another day.
I need to get the rest of the veggie beds mulched now that it is finally dryng up a bit. I didn't want to mulch them when they seemed to need all the drying up they could get during all the rain.

I am tired and about to head to bed soon and read myself to sleep....lol.

Hope your day went great.
G.M.