On My Walk This Morning 4r

 

Each day, more "Queen Crepe Myrtles" burst into bloom.  Because they are pruned

so high, only the people on the 6th floor get the full effect and all the color.  But

they are beautiful even from my view.

The "Queen Crepe Myrtle" has large clusters of large flowers, as opposed to the

small clusters found on regular crepe myrtles.

"Yellow Alder" is a very bright, cheerful flower with very precise leaves.

I first saw one in Cypress Bend three years ago, but they did not come back again.

This new bush is in Palm Aire.  I hope they keep it.

"Fountain Grass" is one of the popular decorative grasses.  This one is in the

Succulent Garden.  It gets pretty big.  All of the plants in the Garden have grown

a good deal.  The "Spanish Shawl" with purple flowers, really needs to be trimmed back.

"Elephant Bush / Portulacaria" is one of the ground covers in the Succulent Garden.

It has taken a while to get going, but is now very nice.

The "Coral Mussaenda" Bush draws my attention everyday.  I have watched the

flowers gradually open and cover the bush and swell out in clusters.  Now I see that

the flowers are beginning to turn peach in color as they age.

"Coral Mussaenda" Bush.  The flowers are big, thick clusters that start out pink and

then turn coral and get even thicker, and finally begin to turn peach in color.

This is a very nice "Pink Ixora."  Horticulturalists have been able to make this plant

do many things because it likes the Florida climate so much.  Mini-flower clusters

have been developed, which are only an inch in diameter.  And others, like this

"Salmon Pink" Ixora," have been developed to about 7 inches across.

"Jungle Flame / Ixora Coccinea."  This plant came originally from India, but it is

one of the most popular and common plants in Florida.  These bushes sit back from

the sidewalk, so they do not get trimmed too much, and thus they can bloom a lot.

I enjoy this color very much.

"Yellow Flame Croton" is one of the dozens of varieties of crotons and colors

in the flower beds.  It makes a nice hedge.

This is the time of the year for "Crepe Myrtles" to bloom.  Because of our very

plentiful rainfall and hot days this year, the crepe myrtles are blooming more

prolifically than ever and also larger. This is my favorite color, "Raspberry Crepe Myrtle." 

 These two bunches are particularly full and large.  The tree is covered with them.

This is another "Raspberry Crepe Myrtle," by the Children's Playground.

The dark color of the flowers sometimes makes them difficult to see against

the foliage.

"Yellow Crown of Thorns."  Several nice bushes have been planted as part

of a hedge.  You can see the thorns on their stems.

"Red-Orange Royal Poinciana Trees" are blooming all over town.  These have been overly

pruned so you don't get the full effect of the orange canopy.  On trees which have

been allowed to keep their lower branches, they are covered in flowers all the way to the ground.

Close-up view of "Royal Poinciana" flowers in the tree canopy.                              

                                                       

The last of the orchids to bloom are these "Golden Ducat" Oncidium Orchids.

There are several of them blooming along my path this week.

"Queen Crepe Myrtle" Tree in the parking lot.  More clusters of flowers appear

each day as I walk by.

 "Queen Crepe Myrtle" flowers.

This "Royal Poinciana" is squeezed between other trees in the meadow behind the pickleball 

courts.  But the color in the sunlight caught my eye this morning.

One of my favorite flower beds, which I visit frequently, is this circle of

"Imperial Purple Ground Orchids."  I have met the man who lives in the apartment

 right behind them and takes care of them.  He is very proud of them.  It seems to me

he has been lucky or smart and gotten two kinds of these orchids.  The variety in back 

is slightly taller and darker in color, and shows off like a fan.

But it is a wonderful view of what you can do with flowers in South Florida.

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