Not a Hummingbird

Last night my family called for me to come and see the really small hummingbird in the courtyard.

Yeah, not a hummingbird. It was a Sphinx Moth. How did I know this? A few years back my neighbor gave me a dead moth he found on one of his potted plants. It was a Sphinx Moth. And then I found one in my garden. Again not alive. I placed them in tins and they are resting here–

Sphinx Moths in Tins


I tried to get a photo of the one in the garden. Unfortunately, the photos were all very blurry. This is the best one.

Sphinx Moth


I found this great image taken by Raymond Christensen and posted on Butterflies and Moths of North America.

Christensen Sphinx Moth Photo

Some Information on Sphinx Moths
United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service

Colorado State University Extension

North American Moth Photographers Group (Gorgeous Photographs)


Everyone Loves Brugmansia

I love Brugs. I became aware of them when we were living at the beach. We often would take walks to the beach in the evening. I kept noticing a lovely fragrance and found that it was Brugs. The plants were cut like trees and had large white bell flowers.

When we moved to SLO I decided to have a Brug garden. I bought one plant. I loved it so much, I started buying seeds of different varieties. At one point I had over 100 plants. And my gardens smelled great!

The Brug flowers are white, yellow, peach, white with a blush. Some are double flowers. They all are beautiful.

Then I realized I wasn’t the only one who loved Brugs. Everyone loves them. No matter how much I fertilize the Brugs and give them systemic, damage occurs.

Brug Damage 1

This is damage typical of cucumber beetles. The beetle looks a bit like a green ladybug.

Today I found this wormy guy on one of my variegated potted plants.

Wormy Guy

You may not think he can eat much until you see this–

Leaf Damage

I think that Spider Mites are the worst of all bugs. They are difficult to see and an infestation can occur rather quickly.

Spider Mites

Spider Mites on a Double White Brug.

This is an image of a Brug that was a cutting from a Brug that I grew from seed. It likes to grow tall, about 20 feet. We try to keep it pruned to about half that height, to allow for an easier removal of spent flowers.

White Flowers

When I prune my Brugs I always take cuttings. It is a superstition thing for me. I tend to be rather aggressive when pruning. The cuttings will be my back up plants just in case the parent dies. These are a few current cuttings that are ready to be planted–3 Brug varieties and Solandra Maxima.

Brug Cuttings

The Solandra Maxima has large flowers with a lovely fragrance. I bought a plant from a fellow at the Saturday Farmers’ Market. He told me that it is a vine. Actually it does not behave so much like a vine. I have found that it is somewhat shrub-like. I took cuttings and have it growing in four different locations in my gardens.

This is the result of a cutting from my original Solandra Maxima plant. The plant is filling in a corner niche quite nicely.

Solandra Maxima Plant from Cutting

Soon there should be flowers that look like this–

Solandra Maxima Flower


Plant Fluffies

My first experience with plant fluffies was with dandelions and milkweed. I adopted this plant with little knowledge of its growing cycle. I was delight to see its fluffies.

Daisy Fluffies

I am not keen on red flowers, so I placed the potted plant next to the greenhouse. Every time I look out to see the backyard garden, I receive a bold and cheerful greeting.


Replacement of the Sad (Probably Dead) Plant

Over the weekend we attended a succulent show. There were many interesting and beautiful plants, but I went with the objective of finding out what killed my plant. And I hoped to find a suitable replacement.

Accually I do not know for sure that my plant is in fact dead. It could be one of those add water and something sprouts from the debris. And you can’t really replace a plant. You can add a new plant with similar attributes.

Just a few images of plants that I found interesting–

Succulent 1

Succulent 2

Succulent 3

Succulent 4

Succulent 5

Succulent 6

Probably dead plant–

Sad Plant

New Plant

New Plant