A Quick Stop at Flower World

After attending the Fabulous Fronderosa Frolic and having brunch at the Matlby Cafe in August, Alison and I decided to drive up the road a piece to visit Flower World.  This is a huge nursery with three of the fifteen acres under greenhouse cover (that's just the retail greenhouse space, the extensive propagation area is off limits to visitors. For previous, more extensive posts about this incredible place, look here.

Flower world grows their own stock and if they have a plant, they have hundreds of them.  What seemed like a field of potted dahlias were incredible and being enjoyed by bees and shoppers alike.

For some reason, Alison and I looked a bit at the plants outside but were drawn inside to see the fabulous tropicals.  Jacobinia carnea (also called Justicia cornea) are blooming their heads off!

Look at the size of that Asplenium nidus (Birds nest fern) Gorgeous!   Yea, the sparrow hath found an house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young. (Ps. 84) This bird laid her young in an hospital in Massachusetts years ago  but it's always fun to shop, right?

Such a warm day seemed perfect for hibiscus.  It's also a treat to visit flower world on cold winter days, visit the warm tropical houses, and pretend it's summer.

 Gynura aurantiaca or purple velvet plant is kind of like that friendship bread that sometimes appears in break rooms along with a bag of starter and a recipe.  Once you have it, you'll be giving it to everyone you know.  Fond childhood memories of this growing on windowsills and it's purple soft fur always tempt me to buy it.

Beautiful variegated foliage!

 Here's my cart - More begonias a second try with this cool pink splashed berberis, and a great find was the last tow variegated  aspidistra elatiors they had.  

I've no idea where the berberis will go but isn't the foliage pretty?

These are happy in low light situations and I read on the tag that if the soil is too rich, they'll loose their variegation Perfect for beneath the timber bamboo where every nutrient has been drained by those greedy roots!

Here's Alison's haul.  We both got that same large begonia, probably because we remembered Deanne's post about a similar beauty.

A quick look back as a worker disappears into the foliage.  

As I write this, there is a chill in the evening air and looking back at these pictures is as good as putting on a long sleeve shirt.   I hope you have lots of wonderful, warm summer garden memories to carry with you through the seasons to come.  If not, stop by Flower World where, at least in the tropical houses, it's always summer!