John&Jacq~s Garden

Articles on tropical plants, arranged by posting dates. For plant search, it’s easier to refer to the A-Z categories located at the top left sidebar.

Posted by Jacqueline on January 16th, 2012

Euphorbia bracteata (Little Bird Flower, Slipper Plant, Candelilla) An attractively beautiful shrub, Euphorbia bracteata is home to numerous quaint-looking birds when it blooms. Figuratively speaking, of course! They’re not our feathered friends, the chirpy and lively birds in the real sense but flowers that appear so similar to birds that make them as desirable to [...]

Posted by Jacqueline on December 23rd, 2011

Chrysanthemum hybrids (Mums, Chrysanths) In the blink of an eye, it’ll be Christmastime and will be followed closely by the Chinese Lunar Year in January 2012! Hence, Florist’s Chrysanthemum and the brilliant red Poinsetta (Euphorbia pulcherrima), besides other popular holiday plants, are being displayed on a grand scale at garden centers and stores. Festive seasons [...]

Posted by Jacqueline on November 8th, 2011

Clitoria ternatea (Butterfly Pea, Blue Pea Vine, Asian Pigeonwings) Clitoria ternatea is another of the many captivating twining climbers that are popularly used for covering the fence or train on a trellis, arbor or archway. A perennial vine that is free flowering all year round, with an abundance of attractive deep blue blossoms dotting its [...]

Posted by Jacqueline on October 30th, 2011

Costus woodsonii (Red Button Ginger, Scarlet Spiral Flag, Red Cane, Panamanian Candle Ginger, Dwarf French Kiss) This stunning and colourful plant that displays exotic and vibrant red torpedo-shaped inflorescences, rising above a sea of lush green foliage as if ready to be launched into space, is definitely an attention grabber and demands notice. No wonder [...]

Posted by Jacqueline on October 25th, 2011

Calathea lutea (Cigar Calathea, Cuban/Havana Cigar, Pampano) Weren’t you surprised that these majestically tall plants, up to 3 meters in height, with green and unpatterned foliage bears the name, Calathea lutea? We definitely were as most calatheas not only have beautifully patterned and variegated leaves but are rather dwarfish (about 60 cm) in stature, unlike [...]

Posted by Jacqueline on October 14th, 2011

Cheilocostus speciosus; syn: Costus speciosus (Spiral Ginger, Crepe Ginger, White costus, Cane Reed) Free-flowering Cheilocostus speciosus (its current accepted name) is one of the most attractive and well-known cultivated species of the genus Cheilocostus. A lovely clustering plant with tall reed-like stems that are topped with large snowy-white and crepe-textured flowers on terminal cones. These [...]

Posted by Jacqueline on September 22nd, 2011

Pritchardia pacifica (Fiji Fan Palm, Pacific Fan Palm) Big, bold and beautiful, Pritchardia pacifica will surely make an imposing and striking specimen in any garden or landscape. A handsome solitary palm tree that features enormous fronds in almost perfect fan formation in shades of bright green to lime green. It is well sought after by [...]

Posted by Jacqueline on September 18th, 2011

Brugmansia suaveolens (Angel’s Trumpet, Angel-star, Angel’s Tears) The exotic Brugmansia suaveolens is a small tree or large evergreen shrub that is cultivated exclusively for its dramatic floral display. A prolific bloomer that may grandly display as many as 100-200 stunningly beautiful flowers at one time under good growing conditions. Simply spectacular… as if presenting rows [...]