Happy New Year

I have been so busy lately with a family wedding and several visitors so I could not find time to blog. This is a quick note to say Happy New Year to all my friends, near and far.
It has been a great year having your regular visits to my blog. I truly appreciate your taking time to read and give comments. Although most of the time I'm alone in my little corner of the universe, I don't feel lonely for I have your friendship just a click away.
The weather has been nice here but I know to many of you, it's snow everywhere. Here's a photo of the first blooms on my "cheery blossom" tree, which I grow from seed, to wish you the best of everything for the coming year 2010!


Again, thank you very much for being my great friends.

Under the overcast sky

This morning the sun doesn't want to get up and the wind stops blowing, it's cold!
After several days having morning and afternoon showers, the plants in Tuysonvien all look greener and more beautiful under the overcast sky.
Beyond the Peach tree bed, the hills on the other side seem to be more "romantic".




My daylilies are all tidy showing their green alongside the cosmos that I planted at the beginning of December.


The wild rose on the arbor has grown quite fast and now there are several clusters of bud and bloom. I hope when the rainy season comes, it will grow even faster and the whole arbor will be covered with blooms.


On this side of the yard the balsams that I planted three weeks ago are looking prettier thanks to the background of the "lizard" ivy-covered retaining wall.


On the back deck, the neos are enjoying the fresh air after being moved out of the shade house.


And lastly, the plants, in the new planter that I've put together two days ago to celebrate New Year, are gaining their life back.


Lovely day, lovely plants!

Feliz Navidad

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
(Click on the title for the music)

Colors of the garden

The dry season has definitely arrived. Farmers around Tuysonvien have changed from vegetable to flower planting. The fields on the other side of the hill waiting to be tilled for new crops look quite bare.


On this side, plants in my garden are not looking good although I have been watering them twice a day these days. Nevertheless, there're still some blooms around to cheer me up.








Really, I don't like the dry season!

Inside blooms

It's the orchid season at Tuy Son Vien. This week I'm having several blooming orchids in my living room.








I'm blessed with a favorable climate for orchids. I enjoy them a lot!

New hoya blooms

My Hoya mekongensis (or ssp. carnosa?) is blooming again. It's second time this year.


The plant is a vigorous grower, sending out new vines every where. Last year, I repotted it into a "free standing" pot and intended to keep in inside all the time. But it didn't like to be inside, so I had to move it back out into the shade house.
With all the vines, the plant doesn't look good in its pot any more. Maybe I will have to pot it again, providing a sturdy trellis for it to grow on.
Though the plant doesn't have nice perfume, its blooms are really eye-catching because they are quite large.

Moving house

Not for me, of course. It is for my nepenthes Ventrata.
This plant was placed on top of the table, on our backyard deck. During the rainy season, it was growing and producing pitchers like mad.
Now that there's no more rain, the air is less humid, this location is no longer ideal, the plant must be moved to some other places with higher humidity.
This is its new home - under a fruit tree which I don't know the name of. It is surrounded by other plants, so hopefully it will feel cooler and better.


And especially, I won't have to feed it with ants by hand anymore since there is a lonony of ants on the fruit tree to supply food automatically!