A Madagascar Plant

This Pachypodium bicolor is rare here but it should be more common. It seems to grow with ease at the Fairchild Garden.

New Things From Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden

A new species of hibiscus.

Just A Parkway

The last three posts of old houses were all in the same block of Country Club Prado. One on the west side of the road and two on the east side. The Prado has a great lawn separating the road (OK the picture is at an angle).

Another Old Spanish House

The houses of Aug. 10,11 and 12 are on the same block.

Sleeping Porches

On the right side of the second floor you will see a sleeping porch. These houses were built before air conditioning. The porch was usually on the second floor, and facing the south east to get to breeze from the ocean. The homes had cross ventilation - that means a room would have windows on at least two walls. With such a system you don't have to use the air condition until it is really hot. Some of the neighbors never open their windows and their air conditioner is on all of the time. Some time I can't figure if they are warming or cooling.

This House Has Meaning To Me

One of my first girl friends lived in this house. It's so long ago that I could not tell you what she looked like, other then she had long dark hair. But I can tell you about the living room, It's directly behind the water mark. It was a large room with a white carpet. The nap was so tall that the carpet cleaner left lines all through the room. When we went into the room all you would see was our foot prints. The carpet would capture any little bit the dirt that happened to be on your shoes. I don't remember any foot prints in that room except the ones that we left behind. The family moved to California when I was 13 years old.

Getting Ready For The Pandas

One of our neighbors has a interest in bamboo. In there side yard there are 4 plants and more in the back. Surely one of them would suite a panda.

Miltonia moreliana 'Lizzie' AM/AOS

This orchid makes a beautiful show every summer. The plant has 16 flowers.

Too Much Of A Good Thing

Last week this avocado tree lost a good sized branch due to the large crop of avocados.
You can see the fruit in the branch. These avocados would not ripen until October if they had stayed on the tree.
And today another branch broke. It's a total lose of three bushels of fruit.

Another New One To The Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden

Can you tell me what this one is. It is not a petunia. It is a bush about 8 feet high and across. And at each large and thick leaf there are 5 or 6 buds that bloom one at a time. With Lans help I found a name for this bush from Madagascar, it's Uncarina stellulifera. If I find a common name I will post it here.

New To The Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden

This is new to me. The leaves and trunk look like a papaya, but the flowers are something else. This plant may be from Madagascar. I have absolutely no idea what this is. Can anyone give me a name?

Ylang Ylang

Ylang Ylang (ee-lang ee-lang) Cananga odorata is a large tree with an equally large fragrance. The oil from ylang-ylang is widely used in perfumery for oriental or floral themed perfumes (like Chanel No. 5).

Bougainvillea Arborea

Bougainvillea arborea is the world's only "true" totally thornless and fragrant Bougainvillea. The bright lavender bracts really catch the eye. But unlike other Bougainvilleas this tree doesn't shed its bracts until they are brown. This tree is in the Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden and I know of one at the Kampong (also a botanic garden). I am told that it is in the market, but I have not seen one in a private garden.

Squirrel Sharing Avocados

The crop on our early avocado is fantastic, it's the best in 20 years. We don't even worry about the squirrels eating so many avocados. A small piece of fruit is near the squirrels back leg.

Theme Day : Metal (On One Block)

1 house has an open front yard(see yesterday).
4 houses have hedges by the sidewalk.
4 houses have metal and masonry. Forty years ago there were no fences on this block, just one large lawn. It's a change, but I think that I could do with out so much metal.

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