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Although this could very well be a picture of me finding a new treasure at a favorite nursery, it's actually an illustration by David Catrow for a children's book called Plantzilla.

Friday, May 12, 2017

Friday Fireworks - Meet Loree

A few days ago, I was standing on the back porch and noticed a glint of orange in the golden sunset light.  Could it be?  

To those of you who are familiar with my garden, it will come as no surprise that it's a bit of an overgrown jungle. where things can get a little lost.  Can you see the little bit of orange in the center of the picture?

Getting a little closer.
 
  Let me back up a bit (not photographically but in the story.)  About five years ago, Loree Danger Garden Bohl and I made arrangements to have lunch at the Northwest Flower and Garden Show in February.  At that first lunch, I had with me a bag containing a four-inch pot of a plant that I'd killed twice before in my garden.  With this particular small tree, it's best to start with seedlings. This one got planted in a larger pot and grew quickly enough to go into the ground that year.  Each year, the plant put on growth even though plants around it started to crowd around to reach for the sun. It's now a spindly twelve feet tall.  This last winter was particularly bad and the, usually evergreen, tree lost a lot of foliage and I thought it might perish.  These little orange tubular buds came as a thrilling surprise.  Maybe a special gift from my little lost Chocolate girl?  Maybe it was the magic of having lunch with Danger that made the plant thrive.


Have you guessed what it is?

Perhaps a few pictures from last night with the buds starting to open will help. I had to dig up my seldom-used telephoto lens to get this close. 


Have you guessed yet?

 How about now?

The non-gardener wasn't impressed - just another flowering thing. If you guessed that it's an Embothrium coccineum or Chilean Fire Tree you'd be correct.

Here's Kelly's (Far Reaches Farm) description: One of the most dramatic plants for our area.  This requires our cool and moderate climate where it can become a 20' + narrow deciduous tree that is usually multi-trunked.  In late May and June, this is a tower of blazing red-orange tubular flowers and you will get little else done other than answering questions from the neighbors about just what is that tree and eventually there will be strangers knocking on your door inquiring and if you plant a grove then there is the inevitable issue of tour buses with which to contend.   Best protected from freezing winds, ours is fully exposed to such but we wrapped the trunk the first few years when we dropped into the teens but now we just give it tough love and do nothing.  These are very nice plants and will grow rapidly.  Being in the Proteaceae, they don't enjoy phosphorous so be careful what you fertilize them with - it is the P in the NPK ratio to which they are allergic.  Rather than think too hard on it, we just ladle some dairy manure around our plants in early spring.

 I seldom name plants in my garden, but  because I associate this plant with that first NWFGS with Loree, this tree now bears her name.  (By the way, I know the Latin names of every plant in my garden - until someone asks.  When that happens, I babble something like, you know it's in the family with that plant with the flowers...The group  from that big land mass over by New Zealand or South of Mexico with some members in Africa.)  

I don't think there will be knocking at the door or tour buses but I'm happy to have Loree blooming in my garden and hope she continues to be happy here for years to come. 

22 comments:

  1. Great story, great looking plant and so nice to know I am not the only one forgetting Latin names. Some days I can't even remember common names!

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  2. Congratulations, how very exciting. As a gardener, I know how good it feels. I love your Loree Tree and the fun story you tell about it. (Do you really ladle steer manure around it every spring?) Happy Friday.

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  3. Even though you'd already told me about this the title of your post still caused me to wonder "what the heck!?"...I am honored. And so happy for you!

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  4. Hah! You kept asking, and I kept saying to my computer screen -- "Embothrium!" Even before I saw it up close. Gorgeous. Mine is nowhere near as big yet, but I'm hoping for similar blooms in the future. I hope yours continues to thrive for a long time too. Most of the time, I turn into an incoherent moron when asked for plant names too.

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  5. So apt as well, with it being orange too (one of her fave colours) :)

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  6. Loree set the stage but I'm sure your Chocolate girl brought the flowers.

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  7. Beautiful! I just planted on this year, I have high hopes mine will bloom like that in the future.

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  8. I did know what it is from the first photos, but I certainly don't know its botanical name. My brain will no longer hold on to those.
    I hope Loree enjoys blooming where she's planted for many years to come. I hope you are inviting the hummingbirds.

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  9. This was the IT tree a couple of years ago. The fad may have faded but hose brilliant flowers keep it on my wish list.

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  10. Lucky! How great to have those flowers for the first time! I seem to remember Loree (the person) fretting that her tree might be dying too the year before it bloomed, because it was losing leaves when it hadn't lost them in previous years. These trees are normally evergreen as juveniles, and once they reach maturity (old enough to bloom) they can become deciduous. Some forms remain evergreen into adulthood, but the deciduous forms are hardier, so that's what reputable nurseries sell in the PNW. No blooms on my three yet, but I'm just happy the two I relocated didn't die in the move!

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  11. What a wonderful plant - one of the things I am really jealous, gardening as I do with too cold winters and too hot and dry summers.

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  12. Congrats on the flowers! Sometimes neglect is just the ticket.

    There are a few here, here and there--at the Huntington, the LA Arboretum, and at the San Diego Botanic Garden.

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  13. How lovely, I do love unusual plants

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  14. Very beautiful and interesting, but I must say I was very much distracted by your gorgeous windows. :) Are there more photos of them in your blog?
    Have a lovely weekend!

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  15. I bought one of these at Joy Creek and I am cautiously optimistic about it.

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  16. What a good idea to name plants yourself. If we do that we'll be less likely to forget. I'm like Linda, I even forget common names half the time.

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  17. Heh heh, I usually know the latin name, but when I actually say it out loud it sounds nothing like it does in my head. I need more plant friends so I can practice in person!
    ...and I had no idea what Loree was. Such is the life of a too-cold climate gardener ;)

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  18. I love the color of the Fire Tree. Looks like it would be popular with hummingbirds.

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  19. Blowing away honeysuckles, I see. See, there are advantages to cool and damp places beyond great coffee, microbrews, and fresh salmon...

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  20. Lovely plant! it reminds me of the Mexican Firebush (Hamelia patens) I bought last year, which is growing in a pot. It is not entirely hardy here, so I bring it in for winter. I have the same problem regarding latin names. However, I recently saw a latin plant label which would be appropriate for a number of plants and which is easily remembered: Plantum whydidibuyum.

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  21. This plant reminds me somewhat, perhaps Lonicera.. not sure, I think the name of loree or Fire tree is good, Peter. Love your second photo!

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  22. Very cool plant and story! I love the bright orange flowers!

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Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! I love to hear your thoughts.