my rustic bajan garden

Bloom Day January 2012

2012-01-15T11:46:00.004-04:00

Red Kalanchoe

Snow on the mountain (euphorbia leucocephala) making clouds around the garden

Star burst clerodendron (clerodendron quadriculare) making its debut this month

Hello and welcome to Garden blogger's Bloom day where gardeners around the globe show what is blooming in their gardens. It has been a cool month so far with frequent sprinkles. Our dry season starts this month and am hoping that it won't be too dry. For more of what is blooming in gardens around the world take a stroll over to Carol on may dreams gardens

Wishing all a happy, healthy and peaceful 2012!

Facial lift project

2012-01-04T11:29:00.002-04:00

A few weeks ago I was asked to make some improvements for a client whose lobby and bar area badly needed a facelift. It was challenging because we had some monsoon weather for about two weeks and had to work between the raindrops.

For the bar area soil mix was put in around the palms after removing the stones. Boston fern and Cardwell lilies were then planted to soften the area.

The pond area I used Travertine tiles for the back wall and glass mosiacs for the pond. Bamboo ginger was added to the side planters.

Seasons Greetings

2011-12-24T03:55:00.001-04:00

Wishing all a Happy and Peaceful Christmas and a Joyful and Healthy 2012

Garden Blogger's Bloom Day December 2011

2011-12-15T09:27:00.001-04:00

Callistemon or bottle brush in bloom

Christmas candle (cassia alata) doing their thing in my garden.

I discovered this lovely new nursery in the east of the island last week.

I was driving by this wall and had to do a second take with this Garlic vine in all its glory

Hello and welcome to Garden Blogger's Bloom Day where gardeners from around the globe show what is blooming in their garden and in their part of the world. We had monsoon weather the latter part of November and that hindered me in the garden. I have been busy working on another project that will soon be completed. My next post will feature this project.

To see more of what is blooming in other gardens please take a stroll over to Carol at may dreams gardens . Have a great day gardening!

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day November 2011

2011-11-15T07:04:00.002-04:00

Mangoes are back in season an unusual occurrence for me with a second crop in a year. They should be ready to eat around Christmas ....yummy.

White Begonias and white mussaenda

Mr lizard posing for me on an anthurium

Hello and welcome to GBBD where gardeners from around the globe post what is blooming in their gardens. We have been getting frequent rainfall and the garden is alive with colour and greenery. Last Saturday and Sunday we had very heavy rainfall and of course the lowest areas in the garden was flooded. The water has receded and hopefully there will be little damage to trees and plants.

To see what is blooming in other gardens around the globe please go over to Carol at may dreams gardens and check them out. Have a great week and happy gardening!

Pond project

2011-10-31T14:13:00.007-04:00

I was asked to build this elegant pond for clients who wanted a home for their Victoria water lilies

The site was breathtaking and HOT

Work was interrupted several times by heavy showers

The pond was finally completed and the Victoria water lilies were installed by the owner

I was busy a few weeks ago managing this pond project on the south coast of the island. The owners wanted a home for their two Victoria water lilies. The pond was built on a concrete base that measured 9 ft x 9ft and the pond measured 8ft x8ft x 2ft deep. This is quite an easy project for a beginner and this is a great pond for small gardens. The materials used were 2x8 for the sides and 4x4 pressure treated pine lumber for the supports. Foam was used to cushion the liner on the bottom and roofing felt on the insides. So stop moaning about wanting a pond for your garden, just make it happen!

David's Garden

2011-10-07T18:48:00.001-04:00

Anthuriums in bloom

Plumbago, cordylines bougainvillae hibiscus and acalypha inferno all add colour to this path

Leopard lilies thrive in this garden

The pool deck is surrounded by many flowering shrubs and grasses

One can spend the whole day just relaxing in this pool

and gazing and gazing and gazing

My friend David has one of the most beautiful gardens on the island with a view and a pool to die for. His partner Norman is also an avid plant lover and gardener as well. I raise my glass to you David and Norman and to the next time we meet.

Have a wonderful weekend my friends!

Weekend Bouquets

2011-09-24T15:04:00.000-04:00

A stunning arrangement that will light up any table

Some of these gingers produced several mini flowers on the original flower and I thought how neat!

These gingers reproduce in their flowers as well as by root divisions.

These mini gingers are great for mini bud vases and squat vases.

Shampoo ginger is the main ingredient in the Aussies brand shampoo. The flower head is filled with a beautiful scented thick liquid, just squeeze it and you will see and smell it.

Gingers are fabulous for cut flowers, they last a really long time and are so colourful. I have several varieties growing in my garden and it is a wonderful feeling cutting ones own for table arrangements. I also have an excess of limes and I had seen some arrangements on a blog that used them with flowers. So I decided to do the same. Have a great weekend my friends!

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day September 2011

2011-09-15T09:12:00.002-04:00

Monarchs are back in the garden after several years of absence.

These night blooming lilies are a true baby pink colour.

White mussaenda will remain in bloom for several months.

Dwarf powder puff shrub well is suited for containers.

Hello and welcome to Blooms day where gardeners from around the globe post what is blooming in their gardens. It has been a very hot and humid September so far. Yes and the raindrops kept falling all over my garden giving the weeds an excuse to misbehave. For those of you in the tropics, it is time to start cutting back your plants for the winter/Christmas season. Because of the dampness please pay attention to fungus on your plants, it is deadly if not caught early. To see what is blooming in gardens around the globe please visit Carol at may dreams garden . Have a wonderful week and happy gardening.

Landscaping adventures part 3

2011-09-04T21:44:00.033-04:00

left front entrance before

after

right front entrance before

after

pathway towards back before

after

pool deck before

villa's right side before

after

Golden criniums, purple feather grass, heliconias were used to create a dramatic display of colours.

I was asked to renovate this garden that had been neglected. Many of the plantings were old or not suited to the garden. Major surgery had to be done by way of removing vegetation that was not needed. Additional soil was brought in to renovate the existing beds. My client wanted a bit of drama and I gave her colourful foliage where they were best suited. Begonias were used for colour and fillers at the front entrance until the larger plants grew. Tropical gardens require lots of maintenance in the rainy season since every thing grows twice as fast. Many neighbours came over to have a peek at the garden and I was told by another landscaper months later that garden was the prettiest he had seen.

Landscaping adventures part 2

2011-09-02T01:18:00.002-04:00

My clients who were owners of a historic manor had a rather bland look to the front the entrance to the house. I thought that this was not befitting for a house of this stature, so after convincing them that I can improve the entrance they agreed.

Grass was removed and new plantings and river stones were installed keeping three of the original shrubs the owners liked.

The owners were quite pleased with the results and so was I.

My landscaping adventures part 1

2011-08-19T02:58:00.006-04:00

In March 2007 a dear friend and her husband wanted to do something to their backyard. They lived part of the year in Barbados and owned a town house with limited garden space. The yard was nondescript, consisted of a large mahogany tree that was severely cut back and some golden palms and love lies bleeding (amaranth) or locally known as cat tails. The owners Helen and Chris hated this eyesore and were not sure if it could be removed because of our laws protecting local mahogany trees.

My friend Helen wanted more space so that the patio could be extended. I was asked to get someone to come and do the job for them. Well I love an adventure so I volunteered to do the job (yes I was used to doing stuff around my garden so what the heck , this was just another garden).

I had a few mishaps with the first carpenter who wanted to cut corners, so I got the rid of him and I called in a good carpenter who had worked for me before. The grass was removed, the ground leveled and the footings were dug, I used concrete (cinder) half blocks. Ground cover fabric was laid with a couple inches of gravel on top. The joists were laid on the concrete block footings, then the flooring was put down. Notice how George cleverly worked around the tree with the deck boards. I used pressure treated pine which can be used outdoors and was treated for termites, believe it or not pressure treated timber will outlast hardwoods.

I rented an orbital sander that nearly broke my back trying to get it out of the car. A friend at the rental place gave me some sound advice n how to sand a floor. I started on the diagonal and sanded the deck with a coarse sand paper, then I sanded along the grain with a finer grit sand paper. It took almost a day sanding the deck boards.

After consulting with the clients on the deck colour I cleaned and stained the deck. I gave it several coats.

I then had George my carpenter build this trellised arch and I stained it.

I then went to work on the garden with my garden helpers.

We dug out the old plants and shrubs many of them unsuitable plantings for that garden and round paving stones leading to the deck were laid.

I installed colourful foliage like the oxblood heliconia, purple leaf crinums, begonias, cuphea, Brazilian fire spike, crotons, desert roses and thunbergia errecta. The Air conditioning unit was to be hidden so I used the thunbergia errecta to do just that.

I planted yellow mandevilla to run up this arch.

The garden five months later, gardens in the tropics grow very quickly and must be maintained on a regular basis.

Orchids were planted on the tree stump these were later removed when the tree stump was cut lower to make a table base.

My clients were very pleased with the results and so was I. Chris my client said that I was very brave to take on a project like this and Helen said that I should do this professionally. I laughed and told her that I would think about it. Chris and Helen sold the property last year and have moved to Aruba. I wonder what it looks like now.

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day August 2011

2011-08-15T07:30:00.004-04:00

This rose was given to me by my mother Miss Rose

Ageratum

Ground orchid

Bachelor buttons (gomphrema)

Pink pride of Barbados ( caesalpinia pulcherrima) aka bird of paradise

White mussaenda at the front entrance

Pink mussaenda in the back garden.

Carambola flower (star fruit)

Purple dendrobium

Hello and welcome to Garden Bloggers Bloom Day where gardeners around the world show what is blooming in their gardens. It has been hot hot hot and now it is raining torrents. The plants and trees are loving it. To see what is blooming in gardens around the globe please visit Carol at may dreams garden.

Avocados(zaboca) are in season along with golden apples (pommecythere) and limes. It is advisable not to harvest avocados after a heavy rainfall. Why? The avocado will rot when ripening because of the heavy water content.

Last weekend I spent a lovely Sunday afternoon with Nicole from a caribbean garden. She was in Barbados on business and invited me to lunch at the Crane Hotel where she was staying. She also instructed me to pack my swimsuit( I had to check to see if any still fitted me and that they weren't suffering from dry rot). After lunch we ventured onto the beach and into the sea. It was a bit rough and the beach was covered with sea weed. I wasn't planning on going into the water but Nicole was game for it. So I decided to just walk along the water's edge until a humongous wave doused me and I joined Nicole. We both lost our sunglasses to the sea after another huge wave covered us and had to go buy new ones. I felt invigorated after and can you believe I live on the island and haven't been to the beach for over 2 years? It took Nicole from Anguilla to get me into the sea. Well friends you must visit my lovely island and I promise you that I will accompany you to the beach. Ok?
Have a great week gardening!

West Indian Sweet potato pone

2011-07-24T22:26:00.007-04:00

A pone is a traditional bread made by American Indians from flat cakes of cornmeal baked in ashes. The pone has evolved not only is it from the traditional cornmeal, it is also made from cassava, and sweet potato. It is popular in almost all of the Caribbean islands with each island having their special way of making it. The sweet potato pone is a favorite in the islands of Grenada and Trinidad and Tobago. It can be served as a dessert or a snack. It is made from our local sweet potatoes, coconut, sugar, spices and raisins.

Our sweet potatoes come with red or a pale cream skin. The flesh is white or pale yellow or sometimes orange. These are not like the North American sweet potatoes, these are more starchy.
To make it you will need 1 grated the coconut, I did mine in the blender with about 1-2 cups of water however you will have to cut the coconut in small pieces for the blender, 1 large sweet potato grated, 1-2 cups of sugar, zest of lime, pinch of cinnamon or nutmeg, dash of angostura bitters.

Here I have cut up the peeled sweet potato to use in the food processor.

The sweet potato should look like this after grating or mincing in the food processor. It will turn a bit discoloured but that is not a problem.
You should have about 2 cups of water added to the grated coconut making a milky mixture, if the blender cannot hold it all the water, you can add it after it has been removed from the blender.

Mix the some of coconut with potato mixture in a large bowl, add about 1-2 cups of sugar or sweeten to your desire, stir until sugar is dissolved. Stir in a generous pinch of cinnamon or nutmeg, some lime zest and a couple dashes of Angostura bitters. Add about a 1/2 cup of raisins and mix thoroughly. The mixture should look like a fairly thick porridge and pourable. If the mixture is too stiff add some more of the grated coconut milk mixture little at a time. If all the coconut has been used you can add some plain water, a little at a time until the right consistency is reached.

Pour into a 2 1/2 to 3 inch deep greased pie dish and bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours until it is golden brown or when there is no more liquid on the top and brown at the sides. For variations, you can add some grated cassava, pumpkin or tania eddoes. Remember the drier the mixture the crustier it will become. I prefer it both with a crust and without. If you use foil tins remember these will cook faster than glass or stoneware. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature. Cut into slices or cubes and serve warm or chilled with some rum sauce and whipped cream. Refrigerate after cooling. I prefer eating it the next day after it has been thoroughly chilled. Delicioso!

Please accept my apologies for the quality of this post it seems that Blogger is having some problems formatting blog posts. I do hope that it will be soon rectified.

Tutti frutti and veggie planters

2011-07-20T14:28:00.001-04:00

Fresh fruit from my garden, pommerac aka Malay apple (syzygium malaccense), carambola and mangoes.

Mango season is coming to an end and what a relief! I ate mangoes for breakfast lunch and dinner. I have even been slapped in the face by them when mowing the grass.

Orchids in bloom with some new arrivals.

Latest addition to my plant collection aglaonemas.

The aglaeonemas were expensive plants but I made a deal with the nursery owner. They are originally from China and they come in many colours. They make excellent house plants since they like full to partial shade.

These bird's nest anthuriums were given to me by my mother a few days ago.

These containers were from the junk yard and I decided to use them for my vegetables. They were discards from a miniature golf establishment. I drilled several holes for drainage and filled them with soil from my compost heap and covered with black plastic for several weeks to kill off the weeds.

I tried sowing onions but they didn't make it so I decided to grow lettuce and squash in them.

The lettuce and squash are doing fine and I have already harvested some lettuce. I have placed some black plastic on the ground to kill off the weeds and grass.
Fresh salad anyone?

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day July 2010

2011-07-14T19:06:00.004-04:00

Pentas and Martinique cuphea vying for attention.

Gingers enjoying the abundant rainy season.

White gingers just flourishing in this area under the shade of the bearded fig tree

Bilbergias giving stiff competition to the nearby gingers.

Flamboyant or Royal Poinciana lighting up the skies with a burst of flames.

Heliconia rostrata, Boston ferns and gloriosa lily make fine companions.

Night blooming cereus or epiphyllum oxypetalum filling the night air with its sensous perfume. The blooms only last a night and to keep the bloom a longer time, just cut it while it is open (around midnight) and place it in the refrigerator in a plastic bag.

Hello and welcome to Garden Bloggers Bloom Day where gardeners all around the globe show what is blooming in their gardens. My garden is awash with blooms and greenery. The rainy season has begun with frequent showers occurring during the day and night. It is hot and humid and my plants are loving it more than I am.

My Jamaican rain tree fell AGAIN and we discovered after digging around the roots that it was dying, so it was removed. Probably a victim of the great flood I had in April. I have several smaller ones in pots so all is not lost. To see what is blooming in other gardens around the globe please visit Carol on Friday at May dreams gardens. Happy gardening my friends!

The Good, The Bad and The Buggly

2011-06-18T10:06:00.002-04:00

Good news, the blue/purple lagerstromia speciosa tree I planted last weekend has new leaves.

Day three after planting with new leaves appearing.

One week after planting the leaves are larger and plentiful.

Well now for the bad news, I can state that these are the fatalities of the great flood I had in April.

Three of my clerodendron quadriculare have succumbed to flooding of their planting bed. I will replace them in a few weeks time.

This photo shows what it was like when times were good.

Now all that is there is a lone shrub missing its three companions.

And now for the buggly: these Franginpani (Plumeria)moth caterpillars have taken over several of my Frangipani trees. I am sooo tired of knocking them off that I have actually given up on this tree.

They do give me the creeps and even though they are colourful and considered pretty (YUKKK) they do defoliate the trees in no time. Good thing they do not kill the trees. Wishing all my gardening friends around the globe, a great weekend in the garden!

Garden Blogger's Bloom day June 2011

2011-06-15T06:11:00.017-04:00

I am still enjoying my lagerstromia speciosa or Pride of India . It is now in full bloom.

And guess what? I went out and bought myself a blue Lagerstromia . It has lost all its leaves due to the disturbance but there are some small shoots coming out on the branches. Whoopee!

My ever faithful cattleya orchid with four blooms on it. I plan to divide it into three plants when it has finished blooming

Hello friends and welcome to Garden Blogger's Bloom Day where folks around the world show what is blooming in their garden at this time. To see more gardens please take a stroll over to Carol at May dreams garden.

My Jamaican rain tree fell during the storm (Tomas)last year, I got the car to help pull it up earlier this year. It was staked and during the rains we had a few months ago it fell AGAIN. So last weekend I got the car and pulled it back up and it was staked AGAIN. Yesterday morning I glanced across the field to see how the tree was doing. I looked and looked, rubbed my eyes a few times and SHRIEKED "where the hell is my tree?" My garden helper looked at me, I asked him if he knew what had happened to the tree we staked up last weekend and he answered no. So I quickly jogged (I did) over to the spot and found the tree lying on the ground AGAIN. The stakes weren't properly placed and the wind had blown it down. I went and brought the car down and to my surprise my garden helper had already pulled it back up by himself and re staked it AGAIN. This time we added an additional stake for safety. I checked this morning and the tree was still standing. I don't really know how much more of this I can take!

Blooming trees and fruits in season

2011-06-02T09:51:00.001-04:00

Nestling among the greenery one can see a flash of pink . It is the Pride of India Lagerstromia Speciosa now coming into bloom. This is the second time it has bloomed since I planted it several years ago.

A closer look at it. This is a Crape myrtle tree and it is also called Queen's flowers.

My pink cassia has been in bloom since last month .

The Royal Poinciana, delonix regia or Flamboyant, is now peeping out here and there.

Mangoes are still young and will be ready in another 4-6 weeks.

Avocados, known as Zaboca and pear in some of the islands will be ready hopefully around August. I just love this fruit! Do you know it makes a great ice cream?

Garden Blogger's Bloom day May 2011

2011-05-15T12:50:00.001-04:00

Hello and welcome to Garden Blogger's Bloom Day where bloggers from all around the globe post what is blooming in their garden. Today I have done a video for my bloom day post and I hope you find it enjoyable. To see more of what is blooming in gardens around the globe please visit Carol at May dreams garden

p.s.....For those of you who may be having problems viewing this video please click on the lower right hand corner to view it on you tube.

My garden Video part 3

2011-05-13T17:11:00.001-04:00

My garden Video part 2

2011-05-13T16:59:00.000-04:00

My garden Video part 1

2011-05-13T16:56:00.000-04:00

Happy Mother's Day

2011-05-08T07:21:00.001-04:00

garlic vine

frangipani (plumeria)

Today we celebrate Mother's day. I have to thank my mother Miss Rose for her gift of gardening. To my Mom I thank you for your gifts you have given me, the love for plants and gardens, the love of nurturing, the love of cooking (for company only), the love of conversation and the love for life (joi de vivre). Yes there were tumultuous years where we hardly spoke to each other and luckily we have reconnected and are able to enjoy each others company. The more we grow the more we realize how alike we are. We are at our happiest when amongst trees and plants. To this day a new plant or flower will still excite us.

Mothering is a lot like gardening, it makes us proud of the results after putting in all that hardwork.

Wishing all mothers around the globe a Happy Mother's day!

Drying out and Happy moments

2011-05-06T17:10:00.000-04:00

We had another week of rain and my garden is drying out again. I have become rain weary and today is the first day without any rain.

Some areas are very muddy and when I walk on the grass I get that squelchy sound underfoot.

The beautiful colours of my maidenhair fern in my shade house this was given to me by my mother.

I have been busy trying to keep these seedling alive with the heavy rains we've been having. This is day ten and they are doing well. Many are from seed that I had stored in my refrigerator for the past five years. Some are cooler climate annuals like california poppy, linaria, godetia, nigella and delphihinium but I am giving them a try to see how they adapt to our climate. In the mix are some warm weather plants like cosmos, asters, salvias, morning glory, zinnias marigold and phlox. I am also trying some tall snap dragons and lobellia. I am pleasantly surprised that so many seeds actually sprouted after such a long shelf life in the fridge.

dendrobium

Heliconia rostrata growing in pots

Miniature anthuriums growing in a tree stump

I thoroughly enjoyed the Royal Wedding last Friday, it was nice being a Royal watcher for the day. They seem so in love with each other and it was heart warming to see the wedding. I wish this couple a happy life.