February Flower Photos of the Day

[farmer d]

First and foremost my condolences to you and your family John for the loss of your dad.  That no doubt is a tough one.  It sounds like you were able to spend a lot of time with him to the end and be there for him.  I'm sure your heart is full of so many wonderful memories of him to cherish forever...get better quickly!

Beautiful blooms everyone - winter cannot stop us...just slow us down temporarily!

John - lovely blooms as always, may they help you heal quickly and get back on your feet.
David your BP bloom is exactly what I hope for in all my blooms - color perfection!
Erny - is that your first Secret Heart (very nice!) I don't remember it before?
Deb your indoor jungle is hot hot hot - I wouldn't even venture outside with the temps I have been seeing for your neck of the woods lately and that is not even counting the wind chill...

Black Dream out of nowhere had 6 blooms today and they were all pure dark winter bliss.  This plant just thrives in winter - sorry for all the pics of her blooms but I can't figure out which ones to delete.

Farmer D

[farmer d]

This last two weeks I have been removing quite a few leaves off of my plants.  A chunk were from being burned a couple of weeks ago when were around freezing for 4-5 nights.  The other chunk was from over watering which was a tough one since right after our cold snap it jumped up to the 80s for a week!  It was really dry and kind of hot so I put on the sprinklers for a few days and that was a mistake.  Apparently the cold snap zapped my hibs to the point of not wanting much water if any.  So within a few days of sprinklers significant amounts of yellow leaves starting showing up everywhere.  They have all been removed now but the plants definitely look much more thin now.  I guess spraying with Supernova cannot prevent that dramatic drop off in metabolism from the cold, but they are all still growing - even my Meteor Shower has perked back up already!

Farmer D

[Ernest]

Darren, Secret Heart has been one of the best bloomers and I posted a number of them in the spring and summer. Like you, I have been removing lots of leaves but am also seeing lots of new little ones on the branches I have snipped back. My two Black Dream plants have not been blooming nearly as well as yours.

Erny

[helixturnhelix]

Very nice Darren and Erny!

Deb, where do YOU live in that apt so filled with hibiscus   You photo made me smile as I know I am not the only one.

Well its been about three weeks since my move to Oregon, and the plants are finally settling in.  I see new growth and buds developing. 

Riptide:  Seedling I showed last year, Charlie has a cutting of it so hopefully next year others can see this beauty too.  Really interesting edge and eye.  It has been blooming smaller for me lately, but the color is still good.  About 6 inches.

Thunderegg:  The color has always been great with this one, but the form is a bit wild at times.  Good bloomer and interesting leaves. 

Torch Song:  This is one for you indoor growers!  Huge blooms even indoors, good color and compact growth habit.  I wish it consistently set seeds or had pollen so i could cross with it more.

[Ernest]

Chris, good to hear that you and the plants are settled in. Riptide and Thunder Egg are looking great. I've had Torch Song on my wish list from day one (hint).

Erny

[Doll]

Thanks everyone for all your kind words.

[davidwood]

Wow!!! Chris, many people seem to like Thunder Egg its nice and I can see why, but to me your Torch Song is stunning, easily the best bloom I have seen for a while.

[farmer d]

John your AG is looking pretty darn nice for middle of winter.  Wish mine had that much color currently.

Chris I agree with David that Torch Song is just amazing!  That is what I love about this forum - we have quite a variety of blooms to view from a wide assortment of growing conditions and circumstances.  I could never grow any dark blooms like that outdoors - they would so get burned to a crisp in an hour or two in summer.

Erny thanks for the update on your leaves too.  I cannot tell you what a help it is to be able to compare what I am doing and seeing and know thanks to your efforts that things are pretty much where they should be.  The good news is no El Nino this year so at least part of our winter regime won't happen.  Let's see if the groundhog was right the other day and spring is coming early.  Can't wait!

Farmer D

[davidwood]

Nice AG myself today and a lovely Cranberry Muffin.

[Aleksandr]

Chris,
Riptide, Thunderegg, Torch Song - all of them are great! I've never seen Torch Song so beautiful!

[Ernest]

David, very nice prolific AG and your Cranberry Muffin is simply the finest I've ever seen of that cv.
Warmer temps here=more blooms; some even starting to resemble their normal spring or summer colors.

Erny

[Ernest]

John, I hope you are feeling better.
Here is a new Secret Heart with a second or third day bloom below. Also Saffron triplets and Daisy Mae showing nice green growth and six blooms today.

[Ernest]

Here Solar Soul and High Voltage are fairly normal looking but I would never guess the identity on Rosalind, Fifth Dimension, or Illuminati. AG still somewhat small and atypical in form and color pattern.

[Ernest]

Finally, a different look of City Slicker, Summer Shore, and Black Dream.

[farmer d]

David I totally agree with Erny - that Cranberry Muffin is by far the best rendition of that one I've seen too.  I've never considered it before but if it can look like that routinely...

Erny that first day bloom of Secret Heart is very nice.  Also impressed with the Daisy Mae sextuplets - your bushes seem a little ahead of mine right now.  I'm seeing lots of baby buds starting to show up all over.

Cosmic Gold has probably been my most consistent bloomer this winter and by far the best form too.  Very impressed with this cv and it has been growing steadily all winter long.

Farmer D