Snapshots of mid-Autumn ... which is April ... in my garden.

Rather than create a long post at the end of each season ... as I did last year ... I've decided to keep a record of what's blooming in my garden from month to month.  I'm hoping it will help me get a much clearer picture of just what is going on ... length of flowering, weather conditions, the plants that keep on keeping on, pests encountered, and lessons learned.  I will be omitting lots of my foliage plants and plants such as palms, crotons, acalyphas and ferns ... as the focus will be on the bloomers.

Conditions during April?

The Mid-Autumn month of April this year was particularly difficult because of the almost daily showers of rain we received and the number of overcast days we experienced.  Even though the amount of rainfall wasn't heavy, the constant showers after the torrential downpours of late summer certainly had an ill effect on many plants.  Usually we have clear days, so the lack of sunshine was another important factor that had an effect on so many plants this year.  Temps stayed around 29 to 30 degrees C, which is normal for this time of year.

Starting with the trees on our property ... what was flowering?

The enormous Fiddlewood tree - Citharexylum spinosum - burst into bloom in mid-April.  I just love the
creamy white sprays of perfumed flowers that appear at the branch tips.

The Queen's Crepe Myrtle or Giant Crepe Myrtle - Lagerstroemia speciosa - had been in bloom since mid-summer and was now showing it's last beautiful flowers and the occasional fruit.

Tabebuia heterophylla - the Pink Tabebuia - continues to produce flowers on and off. 

The Acacias in and around our property were also in bloom.

Next ... out in the Courtyard Garden, what was flowering?
Usually I have lots of potted annuals showing their first blooms by mid-Autumn, but that was not the case this year.  As mentioned at the beginning of this post, the conditions were not ideal at all for planting up annual seedlings.  Still there were lots of plants in bloom.

Wrightia antidysenterica 'Arctic Snow', Dalechampia Aristolochiaefolia (Silk Crepe Flower), Pentas lanceolata, New Guinea Impatiens and Poet's Jasmine.

Vanilla marigold, Zinnias, Bracteantha bracteata or Helichrysum bracteatum and Argyranthemum frutescens (Marguerite Daisy).   

Salvias splendens, Salvia guaranitica, Coleus and Crossandra.

More Salvia splendens, Gomphrena globosa, New Guinea Impatiens and Pelargonium.

Now ... which shrubs around the property were flowering?

Calliandra surinamensis, Ardisia Elliptica with its berries, and at the bottom ... the blooms and berries of Duranta repens.

Mussaenda phillipica 'Aurora' and 'Bangkok Rose', Ixora 'Raywards Pink' and Azalea indica

Glaphimia glauca, Plumeria obtusa, Combretum constrictum, Dianthera nodosa and Allamanda cathartica.

Last of all ... what was blooming out in the greenhouse/shadehouse garden?

Curcuma, Neomarica longifolia, Bromeliad, Impatiens, Tricyrtis x Empress and Begonia 'Dragon Wings'.