Sinningia iarae

Photo by Gayla Trail  All Rights Reserved

I showed a photo of this plant when the leaves are fully emerged in the post about Erika’s unusual house plants.

This is what it looks like when the tuber is just beginning to come out of dormancy. At this stage the plant brings to mind a flattened potato crossed with an African violet that has exceptionally soft and velvety leaves.

Here’s a photo of a flower that had just fallen from the larger plant:

Photo by Gayla Trail  All Rights Reserved

If you’d like to learn more, I’ve found this page to be very helpful. It includes photos of other Sinningias in their native habitat in Brazil, which goes a long way to explaining the kind of growing conditions it prefers.

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Cyclamen Coum

Photo by Gayla Trail  All Rights Reserved

I really like the stem.

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Pretty Little Daffodils

Photo by Gayla Trail  All Rights Reserved

My friend Barry is growing these sweet and simple daffodils (Narcissus cantabricus) in his greenhouse and they’re currently in bloom.

I enjoy daffodils in a general way, much like I enjoy most flowers. However, I tend to be underwhelmed by their arrival as they come late when spring has already been around for a spell.

So over it.

It’s typically the early bloomers like snowdrops and crocus that perhaps get more hype from me than they’re worth since they are some of the first flowers to make an appearance. By the end of winter I am so gleefully giddy to see that spot of colour peering out from underneath the melting snow, I could throw myself onto the ground and cry with thankfulness.

We’re going to make it out ALIVE!

That grateful enthusiasm is a bit how I feel about these minute greenhouse daffodils. And they’re cuter than the big fluted type to boot.

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Cup and Saucer Flower

Photo by Gayla Trail  All Rights Reserved

Cup and saucer (Holmskioldia sanguinea), a tropical flowering shrub I saw growing in Dominica.

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Zinnias (in the Caribbean)

Photo by Gayla Trail  All Rights Reserved

I really didn’t expect to see zinnias in the Caribbean. Anyone who has tried to grow them in a humid environment knows that zinnias + humidity = powdery mildew festival. And yet there they were, time and time again, completely powdery mildew free.

Maybe it’s the hot sun, the soil, or maybe the plants I saw just happened to have decent air circulation around the leaves. I don’t know. It’s a mystery.

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