Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Turning a corner

This red maple seems to be getting an extremely early head start on fall. I guess when you have several thousand plants, some are just bound to act weird.

I was going to wait until next spring to stock the pond with koi, but some very kind friends brought some over and dumped them right in. I am actually very surprised they have survived three weeks already considering the pond was in no condition for fish when they brought them over. They are still very skittish, but starting to become more lively as time goes by. They always travel in a line like this.

My second attempt at growing a cycad (Cycas revoluta) is turning out much better than the first (which ended up biting the dust after not producing any new leaves for two years). I was very pleased to see nearly a dozen new fronds shoot out of the middle starting in late July.

The plant below, which I just nabbed from Molbak's, is called Mukdenia rossii 'Crimson Fans'. I noticed it for the first time while browsing the store before going to hear Dan Hinkley speak, where he mentioned the very plant in his lecture. I resisted the urge to stay within my plant budget and bought one. It is in the saxifrage family, a group of plants I am becoming increasingly impressed with.

It's hard to believe this picture was taken in Washington, isn't it? (The dead give-away is the electric heater under the far umbrella)

Finally...I think my giant pumpkin has reached it's final size. It's about 65 pounds. I'll make growing a 100-pounder my goal for next year.

1 comment:

  1. BTW, the pumpkin weighed EXACTLY 65.0 pounds. I'm a good estimator.

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