John&Jacq~s Garden

White Mussaenda – our garden star for April 2012

Jacqueline — Fri, 04 May 2012 11:17:49 +0000

We just couldn’t manage to tend to our garden plants due to my illness. Despite being almost neglected, our babies thrived well with nature taking care of them. Our tropical climate with heavy showers and abundant sunshine did the job for us, thank goodness! The White Mussaenda tree… that is botanically named Mussaenda philippica ‘Aurorae’, [...]

Announcement: Hospital vacation for yours truly!

Jacqueline — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 15:11:13 +0000

APRIL 18 2012 – AN UPDATE: JOHN AND I WOULD LIKE TO EXTEND OUR HEARTFELT GRATITUDE, APPRECIATION AND THANKS TO ALL YOU DEAR PEOPLE FOR YOUR PRAYERS, WELL WISHES AND KIND THOUGHTS. My operation performed on March 20 was a great success where an extended right hemi-colectomy was done for my transverse colon cancer (stage [...]

Our tropical garden charmers in February 2012

Jacqueline — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 14:07:08 +0000

Flowering and foliage plants just love the sunshine and rain that were showered abundantly in February. We can see their joy and sense that all’s well by the way they sparkle with luscious growth and dance with colourful blooms in our tropical garden. How wonderful! And somehow, some plants will stand out to outshine the [...]

An exciting adventure with Olene mendosa (Brown Tussock Moth)

Jacqueline — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:19:46 +0000

Olene mendosa (Brown Tussock Moth) Usually I have a creepy feeling looking at caterpillars but somehow this particular one had me transfixed. Spread-out lengthwise on the leaf surface, it looked so sweet and cute with those black eye-like structures, somewhat resembling the face of a mischievous child caught stealing fruits at someone’s backyard. I was [...]

Ochna kirkii, the fascinating Mickey Mouse Plant

Jacqueline — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:40:16 +0000

Ochna kirkii (Mickey Mouse Plant, Bird’s Eye Bush) Can you spot Disney’s Mickey on the branch of Mickey Mouse Plant in the left image? Cool, right! Now you know why one of Ochna kirkii’s common names is Mickey Mouse Plant. Its roundish and glossy black fruits, protruding from the swollen base of the bright red [...]

January 2012 in our tropical garden

Jacqueline — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 15:40:01 +0000

Haha! Showing off some of our garden plants at our front yard, especially the inner garden plot that had some make-up done recently. Plants are growing splendidly to cheer our grieving hearts. Gardening is so rewarding! Really uplift our spirits and put smiles on our faces when we see our plants looking luscious and happy! [...]

2012 Chinese New Year Greetings and Decor at Pavilion KL

Jacqueline — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 14:13:28 +0000

Wishing All Friends, Relatives & Visitors A VERY HAPPY AND PROSPEROUS CHINESE NEW YEAR 2012 2012 LUNAR NEW YEAR OR THE YEAR OF THE WATER DRAGON will start from 23 January 2012 and end on 9 February 2013. To kick-start the Chinese New Year, the Chinese communities around the world will have a grand celebration [...]

Euphorbia bracteata with quaint bird-like flowers

Jacqueline — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 14:02:08 +0000

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 [...]

December 2011 – our tropical garden update

Jacqueline — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 15:46:09 +0000

Some new plants were added to our little garden paradise in December. Not perfectly timed though as we purchased them three days too early, just before our dearly beloved mother’s (John’s mom, my mother-in-law) unexpected sudden demise on December 12th. She’s much loved and missed by us all but God loves her more. Inadvertently, the [...]

Christmas 2011 & New Year 2012 Greetings

Jacqueline — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 03:50:35 +0000

WISHING ALL DEAR FRIENDS AND READERS : HAPPY HOLIDAYS, MERRY CHRISTMAS, AND A VERY BLESSED NEW YEAR 2012 May your hearts be filled with God’s pure joy and perfect peace, Your gathering with laughter…. May your home be warmed with His enduring love at Christmas and long after. Have a wonderful celebration of God’s gift [...]

Chrysanthemum (Dendranthema) hybrids in diverse forms and colours

Jacqueline — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 07:58:10 +0000

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 [...]

November 2011 in our tropical garden

Jacqueline — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 15:50:39 +0000

Somehow there are always some surprises in our tropical garden every month and November 2011 is no different! That’s the beauty of gardening and enjoying its rewards. Abelmoschus esculentus (Okra, Lady’s Fingers) It took about 4.5 months for this beautiful soft yellow Okra flower to emerge for the first time since seeds were sown in [...]

Propagating Aglaonema Plants

Jacqueline — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 15:54:22 +0000

Aglaonema or popularly known as Chinese Evergreen, being first cultivated in China, is one of the most decorative indoor plant with attractive variegated foliage for homes and offices. With much hybridizing over the many decades, especially in Thailand and Indonesia in Southeast Asia, the newer cultivars are now available in explosive colours with many variations [...]

Clitoria ternatea (Butterfly Pea), a striking and versatile vine!

Jacqueline — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 14:14:07 +0000

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 [...]

October 2011 in our tropical garden

Jacqueline — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 11:44:59 +0000

Orchids and Celosia Shopping for orchid plants had never been that quick and easy for us before this! We got some last month, not from the garden nurseries where one would usually procure them but from the church that we usually attend, after the Eucharistic Mass Celebration. Strange, huh? Well, the Church of St Francis [...]