That Was Plenty

The past couple of weeks, I've been describing the damage from tropical storm Hermine as she doused us with a dozen inches or so. I'm a consistently lucky person, and I got off easy. The tipsy Sunrise papayas and the hit to Geffie the Gefner atemoya were the only noteworthy fruit tree damage.

The southeast corner of our land is low ground, too shady and flood-prone for any significant fruit production. It's warmer than the open west side, though, so it's suitable for cold-sensitive but otherwise vigorous species, like Pink Waxie, the wax jambu that produces pink fruit, and Hogsy the hog plum. And it's a good microclimate for certain ornamentals. I've put some there, testing for flood tolerance. I don't lose any sleep over the ones that can't take it. The eyes and the soul need sustenance, as well as the belly, but for me an ornamental that can't thrive on minimal care needs to be replaced by one that can.

This Abutilon pictum, commonly called a Flowering Maple, sports nifty blooms that look like colorful Chinese lanterns, but obviously it couldn't handle the wet like its next-door neighbor, a variegated Mrs. Iceton croton. After this photo was taken, Abbie dropped all the rest of her leaves. I pruned her almost to the ground so that if she does come back, it won't be a few leaves trying to feed a bunch of bare wood. But as of now, it looks like no more Chinese lanterns in these parts.

This Clerodendrum wallichii is one of several species all named Bridal Veil, for its cascades of attractive white flowers. Unfortunately, it doesn't share the flood tolerance of its cousins Clerodendrum quadriloculare, the Shooting Stars, that are commonly used as landscape plants. It came back from a wilting in the wet summer of 2013, but Hermine was too much for it.

The shady side favors the perennial vegetables that make up half of my big daily salads. Perennial veggies are easy peasy, just throw on some fertilizer once a year, chop and drop when growth becomes too rampant, and go out and forage whenever it strikes your fancy. This Okinawa spinach shows what a difference a bit of elevation can make. The clumps up on the eight-inch high “ridge” up by the oak trees are happy as can be, while those in the “valley” were slammed.

Luckily, my favorite perennial vegetable--- katuk--- got a little tipsy but showed no damage. Equally unfazed were the cranberry hibiscus that add spicy color to a bowl of greens.

I have yet to experience a really major Florida storm--- the “h” word--- but I'm in no hurry. This year's “h”, Hermine, was plenty for this camper.