Softcane dendrobium - Dendrobium cassiope

We purchased this as an unknown softcane dendrobium so I was expecting a nobile type dendrobium.

June 2016 - Here it is freshly arrived in the mail from the seller. As you can just see, there are spikes beginning on the top right.

A closer look at the spikes. Softcanes form spikes and flowers straight from the stem portion, not a branching spike.

July 2016 - Here the flowers are developing and separating out.

August 2016 - You can now see each flower, there are three forming per spike.

End of August, the first flower opened - a white flower, much more delicate than the typical purple dark-eyed Dendrobium nobile.

September 2016 - Here it is, a white orchid with a purple eye. The petals are very slightly frilled. After some searching, we think it may be Dendrobium cassiope.

You can see here the second spike developing in the background.

Late September - both spikes now open. In this photo you can see the curled petals more clearly in the older spike. These lasted for 3-4 weeks but I think don't do so well if it's too hot so the second spike did not last as long as the first.

There are no flowers on the plant now but new shoots have been growing quite quickly (visible in the photo above just starting up). Hopefully we will see more spikes next year.

Kalanchoe succulents - Winter/Spring 2016

Our kalanchoe started blooming in late winter and are still going strong.

Here are all the buds forming, and then blooming with multiple flowers on each branch.

You can get these in many different colours but we only have one at the moment - a very bright red variety. This is a very low maintenance plant and as you can see, we have to keep dividing them into separate pots as it grows quite quickly.

Oncidium Dancing Lady - Winter 2016

We have a few pots of yellow Oncidium in our backyard and these bloom in the colder months so have really brightened up the garden this winter.
 

These are also known as Dancing Lady orchids because the blooms look like ladies in wide-skirted gowns.

The spikes cascade and they tend to have multiple spikes so the effect is lovely when the plants are in full bloom and wave in the breeze.

They also last a very long time, from late autumn to early spring. We even have a few blooms now stubbornly hanging on even though it has become quite warm now. This photo also shows some other varieties of orchids in our "orchid corner" including phalaenopsis, cymbidiums and cattleyas. I will post more about these or you can check out the orchid tag.

Assorted Fruiting Trees - 2016

 Here are photos from some of our fruiting plants.

Pomegranate flower from March 2016 - unfortunately no fruit developed.

One of our Sunrise limes in May. The tree died off in winter but since spring started, it has re-sprouted and grown very quickly. Hopefully we can have more this season.

Our blueberry bush produced lots of flowers in August/September but unfortunately they all dried out and no fruit seems to have developed. Possibly a few days which were just too hot.

Calamondin (kalamansi lime) tree blooming in October. The fruit are forming now - this is a green skinned lime with orangey-yellow flesh that is great in cooking or juicing to add to water for a refreshing drink.
 

We also picked up a Valencia orange tree in September. Here are the blooms and developing fruit. The first crop of budding fruit actually all dropped off but a second crop have developed so we are still hopeful for some fruit come winter next year.

Just Joey fragrant Rose - Summer 2015/16

This is a very late post from last season. This year's blooms have already started!

The first summer after we moved in, our Just Joey rose was blooming very prolifically. Large apricot blooms with ruffled petals and a very nice scent - almost paeoniform.

As you can see, there's quite a bit of yellow to the flowers. However, this seems to change, maybe depending on the weather.

However the blooms are so large that they tend to droop under their own weight and do best (and last longer) if you stake each bloom.

This one again, is a slightly different shade - much more yellow.

Here is more of the colour that we have seen since then. More orangey-apricot with only a bit of yellow towards the centre.

The roses bloom so much better after we started staking each head. Very very large creamy orange blooms which open extremely full after 3-4 days and last at least a week.

These are all photos from last summer (2015/2016) - I will put up some photos from this season soon. We are getting more of the same - very large creamy orange perfumed blooms. Just Joey has been our most prolific and rewarding roses and we are enjoying having it in our garden very much.