2nd Year of Gardening -- Ornamentals

We've had some great successes with ornamentals.

First place has to go to the agapanthus. Being one of my favorite flowers, I planted a long curved row in front of the house along the side of the driveway. They are in full sun, and seem to like the location. They receive high winds, which they handle with ease. I give them compost two or three times a year and keep them weeded, and that's it. They've rewarded us with huge blooms from late November till late July. WOW! -- couldn't ask for more.

After the agapanthus come the lengua de vaca (or, cow's tonque, in English; tibouchina semidecandra) which we have growing outside our front wall, and various other places on the property. We love the large heavily veined leaves (from which it gets its name in Spanish), which have a deep chartreuse color and which contrast beautifully with the purple-lavender flowers. It seems to transplant easily and needs little care.

Tied for third place are angel's trumpet and fuschia boliviana. We have three colors of angel's trumpets (brugmansia): white, watermelon pink, and yellow-orange. They seem to like our locale and, since all parts of the plant are toxic, are said to repel gophers. We obtained the fuschia at the Trogon Lodge, way up on the side of the Cerro de la Muerte, at 7,000 ft. elevation. We have three in different locations and they are all doing well. They seem to like both full sun and partial shade.

Next come Ruellia brittoniana, or Mexican petunias. We think the green leaves with reddish purple veins and the purple flowers complement each other beautifully. The plants grow to about four feet tall and bloom year round. They thrive on averge soil. The outer shoots tend to recline against the soil and take root. Thus, the plants become "creepers." I found one reference on the internet to these flowers being exotic invasives in Florida. However, it is not clear from the post that the plants in question are the exact same species or not. There are many different kinds of ruellias.

The last one I will mention here is colocasia esculenta, or black magic elephant ear, or purple taro. Their deep purple, almost black, leaves provide a nice contrast to the greenery in the garden. They are average-to-slow spreaders, so only have to be divided once or twice a year. They like rich, moist soil and full-to-part sun.

Happy gardening!