Category: Flowers

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New Looks in Garden

My photo gallery Flora & Forests      or directly to the sub-gallery My Home Gardens
Note that in these and all of my photo galleries at Charlie Doggett’s COSTA RICA I have added the new gallery header that is available at Smugmug which features one of the photos in that gallery. An improvement by Smugmug I think. 

Politics
Yesterday I told you that there were versions of the Women’s March on Washington in more than one town in Costa Rica. Well, today I learned that some of my rich Republican friends in Atenas had an Inauguration Celebration Party at one of their large houses on Friday night. Unfortunately it is not just poor Democrats migrating to Costa Rica. But I think I can safely say that most Costa Ricans are horrified at the prospects of the Trump presidency. 
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Jungle Flowers at Sarapiquí

See also my photo gallery Flora & Forests   or   go straight to My Garden
Flowers, birds and butterflies! What beautiful expressions of God’s colors I get to enjoy!
And today my gardener planted a new kind of butterfly bush that will bring many more butterflies he promises!
-o-
A Nation of Immigrants, an interesting article on how Costa Rica accepts the fact that it is made up totally of immigrants (much like the States) with fewer indigenous people (Indians) than the states. Read how Costa Rica still welcomes immigrants and thrives because of them. And we are regularly listed as one of the top happiest countries in the world! Interesting!
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Summer Flowers

My Breakfast View this Morning
It is summer here, school is out for summer break & more flowers are blooming.
Jan-Feb are also the windy months, but at least the volcano has slowed issuing ash.

-o-

What Our Costa Rica President Says about Immigration, an article in Tico Times today.

You guys in the U.S. feel free to share this article with your new president-elect. The quick summary is “If you want to get through a border, you’ll be able to sooner or later.”    🙂    And read about how CR deals with the flow of Cubans en-route to the U.S. through Costa Rica and the Nicaraguans and Colombians who come here to stay. Personal Disclosure: My maid is a Nica and my haircuts are at a Colombino peluquería and nobody seems to have a problem with that here. Everyone is welcome in Costa Rica, even arrogant Americans. Though there’s already enough in Atenas, so I’m not issuing an invitation!  🙂

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My New Toy: Macro Lens

Not the expensive one, just a simple Canon 100mm zoom, 1:28, Image Stabilizer (for hand-held) and auto focus. Here’s a few flowers with it and MY VERY FIRST HIBISCUS in my garden! I only recently got the plant which is slow-growing, but here’s the first bloom!

 

Hibiscus
My Garden, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica

 

Once de Abril  (haven’t found an English name yet)
My Garden, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica

 

Heliconia
My Garden, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica

 

Plumbago
My Garden, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica

 

Red Ginger
My Garden, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica

 

Porter Weed
My Garden, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica

I think I did okay on close-ups of flowers before with a telephoto lens from a distance, but this is suppose to be better! It has the capability of a 1:1 ratio if I get close enough. Insects will be more difficult because they scare off, so I’ll probably continue with my 300 mm for them. Though, note the little tiny ant on the Porter Weed above.  🙂 And it is so nice having flowers blooming year around!

My Flora & Forests photo gallery

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Seeing Behind the Leaves

In the forest or my garden, one must look through tiny windows to see behind the leaves:

Blue-crowned Motmot at breakfast this morning
In Yellow Bell tree that will soon be blooming, Atenas, Costa Rica
As usual, I said “Oh fuey! He’s not in the open for a good shot!”
But this is a more common view! 

Tropical Kingbird (pretty sure, can’t see breast)
From my terrace, Atenas, Costa Rica

Maraca or Shampoo Ginger
In jungle of my garden, Atenas, Costa Rica

Heliconia behind Heliconia plants
My garden, Atenas, Costa Rica

Red Ginger amongst the ginger leave
My garden, Atenas, Costa Rica

Red Ginger amongst many plants
My garden, Atenas, Costa Rica

Layers of Leaves
My garden, Atenas, Costa Rica

Heliconia
Overshadowed in my garden, Atenas, Costa Rica

Between the leaves in my garden
Atenas, Costa Rica
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Kitchen Window Jungle

What I see when standing at the kitchen sink looking out the window.
My home, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica

There are prettier spots in my garden, but this is how it is at this spot this week. It is all constantly changing and further to the right is the prettiest now with a lot of Red Gingers blooming. 

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Rainy Season Garden

Rain Makes the Garden Grow! Thicker & More Lush!
Note that I replaced my Lantanas flowering border with red caladiums which will get fuller soon.
The other taller plants shaded the Lantanas and they require sun to thrive and bloom. New color in the shade!
The Maraca or Shampoo Ginger plant
has multiplied and grown very tall with
several blooms.
Heliconia
Across from the door I added a row of 20 of the small Heliconias with
little bright red & orange flowers that will bloom constantly
year-around when they mature. They help the “tropical look.”
One of the little Helconia up close,
like adding little jewels to my garden!

I’m always trying to improve my garden and during the rainy season is the time for new plants as the rain helps them to take root and thrive. Life in the tropics just keeps getting better!  🙂

¡PURA VIDA!

More flower photos in my FLORA & FORESTS GALLERY which is still under construction. 

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Old Man’s Joy: Having Gardeners!

A team of 6 young men come every two weeks to cut grass, edge beds,
weed, and trim shrubs, flowers or trees as needed. That’s Cristian above.
6 guys swooping over my yard in an hour. Neat! And at just $50!

 

They save my back and other potential aches and pains as well as time,
and they do it fast and very well. I am fortunate! And they are my friends!
This is Alfredo above.

 

My back garden is still the centerpiece, but the whole yard is a garden!
I love living here among the tropical plants with doors/windows always open!

I’m just starting my garden photo gallery but it has quite a few photos already!

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New Flowerpots

I replaced the ugly yellow & orange pots with these more attractive ones.
And the little round one on left is new with assorted greenery & a peace lily.
The second pot is ornamental grass I cut back for the transplanting,
It grows back quick here! Behind post is a bougainvillea that was in plastic! 

The greenery by the rocking chairs
looks much better in new pot!

And the living room plant looks
better in the new pot also! I think.

My newest indoor plant is this palm in
my bedroom with philodendron ivy at base.

I may have told you that my artist friend Anthony has returned from 9 months of traveling in Spain and Morocco and has moved into the house next door that was occupied by Don & Lynda who moved back to Oregon. Before traveling, Anthony lived on the other side of me in someone else’s casita (a small house most big house owners have for guests or rental.). He is the one who made my garden art bird sculpture. He really decorates well with a lot of plants and that motivated me to spruce mine up a little.

We just had a really good, slow, steady rain this afternoon for an hour or so. Garden loves it!

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Zooming In On Blossoms

Plumbago

I think most of my photos have been of the total garden or yard and not each blossom. So here are some close-ups of a sort, zoomed in on with my Canon Rebel and 75-300 zoom lens. Enjoy!

Flame Vine  or Triquitraque
My large Heliconia
There are so many varieties that
I hesitate to identify the species

This large Heliconia has seeds in it that birds eat or they grow to new plants

There are 6 varieties of this small
yellow Heliconia growing in wild
and cultivated. I have two . . .
This is my other small yellow Heliconia
Then this small red Heliconia that is finally blooming again. None open yet.

The almost constantly blooming Red Ginger
here with a fully open bloom and . . .

A Red Ginger bud just opening and growing sideways
I cut all of mine back and so they are just now starting to fill with blooms again.
One of the many colors of Lantanas I have as a border.
They are coming back strong after I cut them to the ground 2 months ago.

Porter Weed for Hummingbirds
I have pink and purple.

A special Costa Rican variety of Petunia that blooms heavy each morning
and then all blooms drop off in the afternoon to none, nada! Every day!
It is kind of like the Morning Glories my landlord has growing on his fence.
They too bloom every morning only. 

The flower that smells the sweetest is shy and lowly.    ~William Wordsworth