Garden Update!

Wow, what a month it has been! I hope you're all doing wonderful... I feel terrible about not blogging at all in the month on June, gasp - I know, shameful! A lot has been going on… My boyfriend, my boyfriend’s mom, my mom AND my sister all had their birthdays in June, and to top the month off I got nasty sick two weeks ago and it has lingered until recently.  Grrr!

So much has happened, but I could go on for days if I get into it all in one post, so let’s start with the most exciting news… changes in the garden! In my last post, My Mother’s Garden, I said I would be posting a May garden update the very next day, AHH! Shame on me, it’s now July!! Well, this post certainly makes up for the delay with tons of pictures of all the growth and new developments in my garden throughout the past few weeks. As always, I’m amazed at how rapidly plants grow, the recent rain has got the garden growing like crazy, especially over at Cactus Corner! Speaking of Cactus Corner, I’m working on getting that post together now, talk about photo overload! Soon, soon…

In this Garden Update I’ve tried my best to label the species and common names of as many of the succulents and cacti as possible, I feel bad about not doing so in the past... Yes I’ve named a few, however it’s a slippery slope once you start getting so many different varieties of succulents and cacti because it’s quite easy to lose track of all their names. With that said, I’ve created myself an awesome little spreadsheet in Excel to keep track of all the scientific names/families/species and nicknames along with an image of all the cacti and succulents I own. Once I organize and finalize it a bit more I plan to post it here on Inspire Bohemia for reference. By the way, if any of my readers can help out with the names I’ve missed I would really appreciate it, I’m ready to soak up any knowledge and/or expertise you may have! Feel free to leave a comment or shoot me an e-mail at InspireBohemia@gmail.com.

Right now I’m working on lots of new posts for the upcoming month, including posts on several amazing Etsy stores that feature a multitude of gorgeous Suzanis, jewelry, decorative pillows and much more. It’s going to be a bussssy month so stay tuned! And now for my garden update, scroll on and enjoy the miracle of nature!

For more garden posts please check out the following links:
My Mother's Garden
My Grandmother's Garden
My Garden
Cactus Corner
My Adventures at The Amsterdam Flower Market
Garden Tours




This crazy Little Shop of Horrors looking thing is one of several enormous flower buds that my cactus, Stapelia Grandiflora, has produced for the very first time!! So far, three have opened over the course of a few weeks and they start out like this....hairy!...

...and beginning to reveal a very interesting interior...

And then one day it opened!! And it looked like this.....

Stapelia Grandiflora



Growing in the same brass planter as this Stapelia cactus is perhaps Sempervivum Tectorum or some type of Jovibarba?  They have beautiful pink tips and a fuzzy surface and are often referred to as Hen and Chicks.  FYI, from my experience, this particular succulent grows very slow!


I was so happy when all the flowers on this succulent, either Crassula or Delesperma genus, opened a second time!  See the first time here!

The fuzzy beast on the right side below is called Kalanchoe tomentosa a.k.a. Golden Girl or Kalanchoe Tomentosa cv a.k.a. Chocolate Soldier, hehe... The small dark green patch to its left is some type of Gasteria, probably Gasteria liliputana...

Those cute succulents above on the left are called Sedum pachyphyllum a.k.a. Silver Jelly Beans (there are also Pink Jelly Beans out there! lol)

Above on the left is perhaps another species of either the Crassula or Delesperma genus, to its right is either an Echeveria or Graptoveria. Below on the left is what I believe to be Dudleya greenii. On the right is a type of Graptopetalum often referred to as a Hen and Chicks succulent (thanks Candi - I can't believe I had forgotten this name!!).  This is my grandmother's favorite succulent and the first one she ever gave me, the one that started my obsession hehe! She calls it a rose and she has it growing everywhere! This particular succulent grows super fast and propagates very easily with a single leaf! It turns deep purple throughout winter and produces long flower stems with creamy white and orange flowers in early spring, as seen in this post on my mother's garden...

This is a great looking strawberry pot that I picked up at Marshalls for $13.99 and filled up with succulents and cacti for my mom for Mother's Day! She loved it!

That bushy succulent at the bottom left of the image above (seen better in this post) is called Portulacaria afra f. variegata a.k.a. Variegated Elephant Bush! There is also a non-variegated species that I have a small piece of growing in a planter and a  whole bush of it in Cactus Corner.

Above on the top right you can see some more "Silver Jelly Beans" and a funky cascading guy that I think is called Rhipsalis teres a.k.a. Mistletoe Cactus!

Since the photos above I have moved it into the sun and it's thriving even more...

Below is a member of the Echeveria, Sedeveria or Gasteria genus... can't pinpoint which one...

This is one of my newer planters, it features a variety of succulents surrounding a tall spiny cactus that my grandmother gave me last year, I believe it's called Euphorbia trigona a.k.a. "African Milk Tree." Also, I recently learned the name of the succulent below, it's called the Key Lime Pie Succulent (Adromischus cristatus)! Cute name for an equally cute plant...

I believe this succulent on the left above and in detail below might be called Dudleya greenii...

Just look at that large baby this beautiful Echeveria Succulent is putting out! I think this one is called Echeveria lilacina or Echeveria runyonii - seen here. I love to see so much new growth everywhere in the garden!


I think the succulent pictured above is called Pachyphytum clavifolium.

And here, hangin' ou under my giant Euphorbia tirucalli Pencil Cactus, are some of my favorites in the garden...the beautiful crimson colored flowers blooming all over this creeping cactus vine that's surrounded by tons of Graptopetalum Hen and Chicks and Anacampseros telephiastrum variegata 'Sunrise' to the back left! I think this cactus vine is called Asclepiadaceae Huernia schneideriana a.k.a. The Red Dragon flower!!  It's another plant given to me by my grandmother from her garden, where it grows like wildfire in the ground, my mother has it in a few spots throughout her garden as well. Recently I've been helping spread it around even more since it has such gorgeous colors and blooms so often, yup, those lovely red flowers are a nonstop bloomfest! One thing I've noticed is that this vine doesn't like too much sun, it will start to pale in color and get spotty or even yellow. Keep it somewhere with very little direct sunlight, or at least in a spot that gets mostly morning and early afternoon sun or that's shaded by other plants. Additionally, it seems to do great in both planters (small and big) and in the ground... You can break a piece off and let it callous for a day or two and then plant (aka: stick it in dirt - it's as simple as that!), or you can pull a piece out with roots and replant elsewhere immediately. Either way, I can attest to the fact that this cactus vine plants with ease and grows super fast! So hey, if you spot it by the side of the road (like when I found this succulent) don't hesitate to pull on over and gather yourself a piece, trust me, it's exciting, don't pay attention to the people stopped at the light staring at you in wonder, haha!

Some more of my grandmother's favorite rose looking succulents... Graptopetalum Hen and Chicks...

Above in the center of the planter is a knobby spiny member of the Aloe genus, perhaps Aloe Marlothii.... In front of the Aloe is a type of Adromischus (just like the Key Lime Pie succulent above), my best guess is it's Adromischus cooperi f. poelnitzianus... it has cute little red and white bell shaped flowers that open and close periodically...

The vibrant purple beauty below is Echeveria 'Perle von Nurnberg', to her top right is that gorgeous succulent whose name escapes me, either from Echeveria, Sedeveria or Gasteria genus. To the bottom right of the image, out of focus, is Echeveria runyonii a.k.a. Topsy Turvy...

The funny twin head succulent above might be Pachyveria opalina, and the stunning pinkish red succulent below may be Graptosedum 'California Sunset.'  The deep fuchsia vine creeping around to its right is called Crassula alpestris...

You better believe I jumped around in circles squealing like a little girl when I saw my favorite succulent sprouting its magnificent flower stalks once again. I call it my bloomin' onion - for obvious reasons, it's in the Echeveria genus of succulents and I believe it's called either Secunda (seen here), Glauca (seen here) or Imbricata (seen here). They all look so alike that I'm really not sure which one mine is and I regret not keeping the sticker from the large pot that it came in, grrr - note to self! So for those of you who want to track it down for your own garden please check out the links above for more information or just "Google" the names. If you love this succulent as much as I do you might like to check out the many posts I've done on its beautiful transformation since I first got it at the beginning of 2010!

Baby flower stems...


.... And just take a look at'er now, just a few weeks later...!!

Yep, those flower stalks shot up quick and those amazing pink and yellow flowers are already starting to open! Have I mentioned how much I love this succulent? In just over a year and a half my bloomin' onion has produced over eight babies, the oldest of which has put out its very first flower stalks this year (seen in the foreground of the photo above). I'm thrilled! I wish I had bought two or three of these back when I bought this baby at Home Depot! Anyway, it's about ready for a beheading/decapitation, haha, I know it sounds morbid but it's a technique I've read about that is used on many succulent, particularly Aeoniums, when they get too "leggy" or tall.  See an example here and read more about how to do it here. Want to see how long these flower stalks grew last year?? Check out this post, it's wild!

A type of Aloe... maybe Aloe suprafoliata...?

I'm pretty sure this beauty matches the description of Sedeveria 'Pat's Pink' or Graptosedum Alpenglow a.k.a. 'Vera Higgins'... or a type of Graptopetalum - oh my! HAHA... it turns all sorts of colors throughout the seasons, most notably a deep pink when left in direct sun!

...perfection!

I think this succulent above and below is called Pachyphytum bracteosum, behind it is Aloe congolensis and some more of those Graptopetalum Hen and Chicks succulents :)


Above is a Hawaiian Portulaca with its sweet little yellow flower!

I'm not sure what this cactus is called, but it has a waxy surface texture and painfully sharp spines! I started it from a small piece that my grandmother gave me, apparently a friend of hers brought it from Cuba many years ago!

Haworthia limifolia... It has lovely little white striped bell flowers (above)...

Below is most likely Gasteraloe 'Little Warty'...

This planter is full of so many different cacti and succulents that I can't name'em all! However, I can tell you that the white cluster of succulents in the foreground of the image above is called Pachyphytum oviferum and it is surrounded by some Sedeveria 'Pat's Pink' on the left and some Portulacaria afra a.k.a. Elephant Bush or Money Tree on the right.

Above is some more Sedeveria 'Pat's Pink' or Graptosedum Alpenglow a.k.a. 'Vera Higgins' and the gorgeous spiky thing in the background and below is Alluaudia procera a.k.a. Madagascan Ocotillo...

This cactus is fascinating to look at, it looks like a spiky tree trunk and it keeps growing taller and taller!  ::Update::  I just read over at CactusStore.com that the Alluaudia procera a.k.a. Madagascan Ocotillo originates from Madagascar and can grow up to 60' tall!!  No wonder they keep growing!  I love this cactus!

And last but not least, a real looker in the succulents department, hehe... could be an Echeveria, Sedeveria or Graptoveria, not sure. Anyone know? I'll never fall out of love with how gorgeous this succulent is and the way it contrasts against the turquoise planter!

Once again, I've done my best to name the succulent and cacti in this post and will continue to do so from now on in all future posts for your reference. I may not get all the names right at first, I'm relying on matching images to those I find while researching the internet. If you know any of the names of the plants within this post or an other post that I have missed or misnamed, please feel free to leave me a comment or send me an e-mail at InspireBohemia@gmail.com, I'd really love to hear from you!

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