We do need a 'love' button! I love the bauhinia, the white ruella, just everything. Beautiful kitty posing in the last shot.

Lovely!

Thanks, PK and Abarbie. We took lots and lots of pics but I forgot to include his green lawn..... really beautiful landscaping! What we found so fascinating is that he mentioned that when he first moved there, nothing would grow! The kitty touched my heart strings because we, too, adopted a stray kitty just like his kitty in the picture. I believe folks who do that have a special kind of 'karma.' We definitely need a 'love' button. ;-)

Absolutely...................see more !!! Just lovely !!!

Ragna, we would have picked you up but you would have had to sit between two bags of leaves, lol. Omar would have to say what variety of citrus it is. I know he mentioned it but I was taking pictures and was a bit distracted. Of course, my bad memory has nothing to do with it!

Thank you, Irene. We enjoyed your visit. The plant I couldn't remember its name is the pink tradescantia (3rd picture)

Ragna, you gave me that Changsha tangerine tree about 7 or 8 years ago. After 2 years of very frugal crops, this year the tree is loaded with fruit. Some of the fruits are a lot sweeter than others. I don't know why. They have tons of seeds. though. I like that plant a lot because is evergreen, drought tolerant, has pretty and aromatic flowers, and decorative fruits.

PK, the white flower looks like a bauhinia but it is a white ginger. Its perfume is awesome.

Thank you everybody for your kind comments. I'll do my best to post more pictures.

Omar

Omar, do you know the name of the white ginger and is it in shade??

Nice tour.

Carrie, it's Hedychium coronarium, Butterfly lily. I bought it at the Honolulu Airport when we went in 2007. I was mesmerized with all the tropical plants for sale at the airport. I knew I was taking my chances but I couldn't help buying 3 plants.Two of them didn't survive our winters, only the butterfly lily survived. It likes light shade and plenty of water.

Omar

That is what I thought it was, Omar. I have these that I haven't moved since I lost the willow tree, and they did not bloom this year...........they are in full morning sun, and wilt badly. Will move them to a shadier location next Spring. Too much to do to get that little chore done this Fall. Yours is quite beautiful.

Beautiful garden! What's the name of the plant in the second photo? I appear to have some of those growing wild in the greenbelt behind my house.

Thank you, Briaustex. It is a fall wild sunflower that is blooming everywhere right now. Its name is Viguiera dentata (Goldeneye sunflower) I went after it for a couple of years until I found the right spot at the right moment to get some seeds. Even though it usually blooms in the fall, this year it got tricked by the wet spring and mild summer and it bloomed sporadically all year long.

Omar

Ok. I finally had some time to take some pictures.

I like this combo: lespedeza and callicarpa. The callicarpa berries match the color of the lespedeza flowers, which look like the flowers of the Himalayan indigo.

Garden on Oct 2016 · More Info

This a variegated jasmine vine and I have a bunch of plants growing in the blue pot. Right now only the Mexican canna and the ruellia can be seen, but I plant pansies or snapdragons during the winter. Dutch iris and daffodils will emerge in spring. At the lower left corner you can see a little bit of the bunny tail grass Ragna gave me.

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Agave bracteosa on a metal table. A. bracteosa is an awesome plant that looks great all year long. I also keep scallions and herbs close to the door and use them to cook.

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Seating areas provide character and a sense of "establishment" to the garden. We rarely use it, but we like how it looks.

Garden on Oct 2016 · More Info

On the other side of the garden, this bench "pairs up" the other. The bougies are displaying their last show of the year and the Mexican sycamore is dropping its leaves. The palm on the left is a Canary Island palm.

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I have two lemon fizz roses framing the patio door. Their best show is in spring and they smell awesome.

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This swing flanked by bougies is in the middle of the backside of the garden. It's about 20 y/o.

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Garden on Oct 2016 · More Info

Another seating area that I really like but I seldom use it. The white butterfly ginger on the left has a wonderful smell. The small tree at the back is a coral bean. It looks better in the spring but I still like it a lot in summer and fall because ii's a good background and it adds "cozyness" to the corner

Garden on Oct 2016 · More Info

Very pretty. What's the last one?

It's Hibiscus acetosella. I took several cuttings to the swap. I don't remember if I gave you a cutting or not. It roots easily in water.

Omar

So pretty, Omar..................I especially like the last 'sitting area' ..........looks so restful.

Have you had hibiscus acetosella survive the winter? I've grown it multiple years and it's never survived a winter once, though they were advertised as a zone 8 plant. I've grown them in huge pots as well, and they can get remarkably large in a single season. As a bonus, it's edible though a bit sour.

Here's a photo from 2010 when I grew it in a large container (and this was cut back):

It looks great. Last year I provided winter protection but this year I plan to get some cuttings to root them indoors and leave the mother plant outside.

Omar

Thanks, Omar. I like how red your variety is. Too bad they flower very late fall/early winter. They've only bloomed on cuttings I've brought inside for the winter.