Jardinerong Sunog (the Burnt Gardener)

Allow me to begin by categorically stating that I love cats. And there are currently three in the house living their merry ways as much and as often as they want. But let's admit it, not everything about them is rosy. Sometimes it's also the color of poop. I have a number of plants that go dormant in preparation for next season's growth, mostly Amorphophallus , but also terrestrial orchids, gingers, gesneriads,  Dracontium ,  Gloriosa , and Tacca leontopetaloides . Unfortunately for these plants and their napping tubers/rhizomes, the cats see their 'empty' pots as open invitations to take a dump to. Which is why you see these pots bristling with plastic utensils, in the hopes that barriers such as these are enough to dissuade cats from dropping their unwelcome payloads. What is the batting average, you may ask. For about ten pots, none gets a generous dosage of cat crap. But the law of averages begin to swing unfavorably when we start talking of more than ten po...

For the past years, species from the genus Eriocaulon have been finding their way in aquascaping circles as attractive foreground plants, albeit with very high light, CO2, and micronutrient requirements. In addition, constant water movement is a necessity and these plants display strong aversion to having algae growths on their leaves. For this reason, cultivation of Eriocaulon is preferably only done in high-tech aquaria. Eriocaulon , depending on species, can be grown either immersed or emersed, that is, with the leaves above the water line but with their roots submerged in water. I don't think I am ready yet to meet its very specific requirements in my tanks, so I have opted to grow these plants above one of my aquaria, on an overhead filter so that the roots get constant water movement. I believe this to be E. truncatum var. truncatum , by the way. 

I have two seedlings of these begonias, from section Baryandra , but could not positively identify them at the moment. Pictured is from one of the two pots. The silver spots contrast strongly against the dark green background. I do not think this is just another variant of the variable Begonia nigritarum , as that species, as varied as it is, is not known to possess carmine trichomes on the leaf surfaces. I only hope it will not behave like B. pseudolateralis , another species from the same section. That one has silver streaks but the adult plants are plain green. And so you will not have to wonder what the heck is B. pseudolateralis is and what it appears to be, I have included a photo of a juvenile plant here for your satisfaction: And here is an adult B. pseudolateralis : See what I mean?

Hoya multiflora , popularly known as 'Shooting Stars', is a common species both in the wild and in cultivation. A couple of months ago, for some reason, I decided to cut off a side growth on my plant even though I only intend to propagate those species that command decent prices. But here it is, blooming and seemingly attempting to wrestle my attention away from its more uncommon cousins. Despite being mostly overlooked by collectors, Shooting Stars has a lot going for them due to their floriferous nature and a tough attitude that mostly forgives errors from their cultivators. 

Some plants have blooms that just revolts at people's usual expectations of what a flower is supposed to look like. Shown here is an inflorescence of Dracontium prancei , a Brazilian species of odd aroids superficially resembling Amorphophallus but not related to them. The flowers are tiny and situated inside; what you see mostly is a spathe. Like Amorphophallus , these plants bloom mostly on leafless tubers and there are at least three tubers in this pot, along with small offsets, which are visible behind the inflorescence. My plants bloom reliably every year and thrive on benign neglect. At the onset of the rainy season the tubers throw up leafy shoots that reach up to seven feet tall on average and may flop due to their weight.

Begonia nigritarum , as presently understood, is a widespread and very variable species endemic to the Philippines. Some are rather plain green, with obscure blotches, and others have very dark leaves that seem to allow the plants to blend with the dark substrates they live in. Some plants are compact, and there are those with creeping rhizomes. All forms, or at least those I have personally seen, have a velvety feel on their leaf surfaces. Below is a variant of Begonia nigritarum with a great deal of attractive silvery patterning broken up by the very dark green veining and margins. New leaves are tinged reddish. It's one of those creeping types with stems beset with silvery white trichomes (we can call those 'hairs', but plants really do not have hairs). I found this variation strongly averse to bright lighting, unlike the darker leaved forms, and the leaf margins immediately turn brown in such conditions. I used to have just one pot of this variation, but the mom pl...