Devonian Gardens Calgary

The Devonian Gardens in Calgary have been undergoing a facelift for some time.  They just reopened last week and are located downtown in The CORE shopping centre (essentially a big mall).  They are on the fourth level right beside the food court and will provide a much needed oasis during Calgary's cold winters.  I took a bunch of photos, so I hope you enjoy the virtual tour below.

Orchid Foliage Identification Pt. 2/2

This is a continuation of the previous post.

Epidendrum alatum
Long leaves which often twist end with curved point, dense growth, ridge along centre of leaves, pseudobulbs on surface and small compared to plant size

Brassia maculata
Large fleshy leaves with curved tips, ridge down centre, pseudobulbs appear as flattened oval above soil surface

Laelia
Leaves are large and wide compared to length, centre ridge is clearly visible, pseudobulbs are small and almost appear as stems, long thick stems with few leaves may be present

Paphiopedilum hybrid
Very thick fleshy leaves with greatly rounded tip, clear ridge down centre, very shiny in appearance

Epidoudrium radicons
Very distinct, crooked stems, alternating leaves with round tips, aerial roots often present and stem tends to be white towards the base

This one is unknown.

Orchid Foliage Identification Pt. 1/2

I noticed that there are a lot of helpful pictures to identify orchids by their flowers.  However there aren't nearly as many to help identify them when they're not in flower.  We've only had a few plants flower this summer so I figured I would take some pictures to help others identify unknown plants that also aren't in flower.

Cymbidium hybrid

Long but relatively thin leaves with gentle arch, small pseudobulbs
may appear hairy, dense growth

Maxillaria curtipes houtteara
long and thin leaves with bend along length at middle, oval pseudobulbs but flattened at sides may be located above soil, dense growth

Maxillaria variabilis
Similar to above but leaves are thicker with more rounded tips, pseudobulbs are also rounded but still appear slightly 'squished', here small yellow flowers are also present

Coelogyne cristata
Short and compact growth, pseudobulbs are round, leaves are thin at beginning and end but thick towards the middle, leaves from pseudobulbs are often in clear pairs

Oncidium

Tends to grow out of pot or down sides, thick fleshy leaves grow from rosette, pseudobulbs oval shape but flattened

Purple & Red Foliage Pt. 2

This post is a continuation of the last one by the same name.  I hope you enjoy these next few plants!

 Strobilanthus dyerianus (Persian Shield)

Zone 9-10, full shade, part sun, annual in lower zones

Alocasia sanderiana (I LOVE this plant!)

Warm, humid, shade, lots of water, zone 10-11 or anywhere if rhizome stored inside

Rhoeo spathaceae (Moses in the Cradle)

Semi-shade, full sun, ground cover, zone 11, resistant to poor conditions

Scilla violacea

Zone 9-10, full sun, groundcover

Cordyline terminalis

Slower growing, prefer some shade, tropical, good houseplant

Barberry

Care and zones vary but minimum zone 5

Purple & Red Foliage Pt. 1

My dream is to one day have a section of garden with no predominantly green plants.  This includes all trees, shrubs, flowers, groundcovers, absolutely everything.  My fascination with these plants has led to this post covering some of the plants in the greenhouse with interesting foliage.  Some are common but others you may have never heard of.  Anyway, here we go...

Setcreasea purpurea (Purple Heart) now named Tradescantia pallida

Zones 7-10 but can be grown anywhere as an annual

Does well as a houseplant, easy to grow, full sun is best

Ruellia makoyana (Monkey Plant)

Zone 11, full sun

Oxalis (Purple)

Zone 6 or above, does well as a houseplant

Iresine herbstii

Zone 10, full sun, does well as houseplant

Zebrina

Zone 9, full sun, easy, annual in colder zones, good houseplant

Purple/Red/Brown Leaf Honey Locust!

I was on campus today and for the first time I noticed this strange purple/red tree.  I was honestly shocked because it looked like a locust but I had never seen one this colour before.  I got up closer and realized that it was a locust.  There was even a tag on the trunk that confirmed this, as the UWO campus is also an arboretum.  I couldn't find any images when I tried searching for it on google.  There is a plant called a Purple Robe Locust but the foliage is green and the flowers are purple.  This is truly an amazing tree!

Variegated Hibiscus

Fern Foliage

I really like ferns so I decided to share some photos that I've taken to use as desktop wallpapers. Hopefully you enjoy them! Tomorrow I'll upload some Hibiscus photos that I took last week.