Bright and Very Cool

I was so busy over the weekend and got really tired. Anyway, I am thankful that I managed to have a good rest on Monday and finally have the time to upload a post today :-)

I will begin with my old Copper Leaf Plant (Chrysothemis pulchella). The plant has the brightest yellow flowers and orange sepals! And the coolest leaves among the plants that are in my garden. I don't think there is another plant that has the same color except for a begonia that bears dark leaves with a shade that is close to this copper tone. 

The begonia, Begonia 'Hot Tamale', an angel wing begonia, seldom flowers nowadays though. I am not sure why... may be lack of fertiliser. And it also grows rather slowly. I can't recall now when was the last time I cut back the shrub. I just know I did. And only this week I notice that it has grown back denser and bigger in size. 

I was so happy to find a stalk of Amaranthus Perfect Red flowers flourishing nicely in my garden. This is the first time I see those tiny yellow blooms. How delicate!

I made a big blunder a few weeks ago! I accidentally watered the succulent again one day after I'd already watered it. Many of the leaves at the bottom have turned yellow :-( When my itchy fingers touched the fleshy foliage, they just fell out from the stem, piece by piece, sigh...

Meanwhile, I dug out a huge Amaryllis (Hippeastrum sp.) bulb that has produces four bulblets... 

Cleaned the roots and separated them and I re-planted two small ones into a pot of soil. The two medium-sized ones and the mother bulb I will be replanting them after a 'forcing process'. By the end of the process, I hope to see them blooming :-)

This week I will be leaving them to dry upside down like this... After that they will be wrapped with newspaper and placed in a brown bag to 'rest' inside the refrigerator.

Click here for more details of the 'forcing process'.

In an article published in NST last Saturday, I shared about the history, design rules and principles and the meanings of the elements used in a Japanese garden.

This beautiful pond with colourful koi fishes in the pic below is located at the Keyaki Japanese Restaurant, Pan Pacific Singapore. Stunning!

Have a great week!