Flower Friday – Pink Speckled Phalaenopsis

May 27, 2016May 27, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 12 Comments

Pink Speckled Phal - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Pink Speckled Phal – Photograph by Laura Lecce

Actually the proper name for this orchid is Doritaenopsis Ackers Sweetie ‘Dragon Tree Maple.’ It is one of my favorite hybrids to grow at home, mostly because the flowers were so big (the size of my palm) and so interesting to look at. Every time I look into the pink speckles of this flower it looks like a huge colony of bats flying away from the cave in the center and getting further and further into the distance as they fly away. Maybe I just have a vivid imagination, but either way the pattern on this flower really does come alive! Have a fantastic weekend everyone!

If you’d like to see more Flower Friday posts, please click here.

Flower Friday – Dragon Fruit

May 20, 2016May 20, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 11 Comments

Dragon Fruit - Photograph by Salvatore Venuto — Dragon Fruit – Photograph by Salvatore Venuto

Todays post includes some photos taken by my dad of one of the plants he is currently growing in his garden at home. Pitahaya (more commonly known as dragon fruit) are the edible fruits which grow on several species of cactus. The particular fruit in this photo are from the species Hylocereus undatus which are red fruits with edible white flesh on the inside. The flowers of this cactus (which are in the photo below) are a brilliant white, very large and fragrant. They open mostly in the evening due to their main pollinators such as bats and moths being nocturnal, although my dad said these opened during the day and only lasted a day or so, possibly a difference in climate from their country of origin. If you’d like to see more photos from my dads garden or the gardens he looks after (as he is an amazing and truly talented gardener) you can visit his Instagram page @salvenut.

Happy weekend everyone!

Dragon Fruit Flower - Photograph by Salvatore Venuto — Dragon Fruit Flower – Photograph by Salvatore Venuto

Flower Friday – Bromeliad

May 13, 2016May 13, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 18 Comments

Bromeliad - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Bromeliad – Photograph by Laura Lecce

I just love this photo of a bromeliad flower. The fiery red stem, pretty purples and pinks of the flower bases against the lime green leaves, what a gorgeous display of intense colors. Bromeliads are quite a well known plant with a huge variety of colors and sizes. The smallest one being Spanish moss, and the largest one, Queen of the Andes reaches 3 meters (almost 10 feet) tall, with a flower spike of 9-10 meters (32 feet) tall! Most of you would have at some point eaten a bromeliad…the pineapple (which will no doubt appear in a future post). Have a bright and colorful weekend everyone!

Flower Friday – Euphorbia Didieriodes

April 29, 2016March 9, 2017 ~ laura lecce ~ 19 Comments

Euphorbia Didieriodes - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Euphorbia Didieriodes – Photograph by Laura Lecce

Last month at the New York botanic gardens I went to see the orchid display, when in fact these non-orchid photos turned out to be my favorites. In the dessert section was this beautiful plant native to Madagascar called Euphorbia didieriodes. The plant itself isn’t widely known, and I found little information on it, although other Euphorbias are common house/garden plants. I love these photos mainly because it surprised me that such delicate, cute little red flowers were poking out of a formidably thorny plant!

Happy weekend everyone!

Euphorbia Didieriodes Flower - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Euphorbia Didieriodes Flower – Photograph by Laura Lecce

Flower Friday – Hibiscus

April 8, 2016April 28, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 15 Comments

Hibiscus - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Hibiscus – Photograph by Laura Lecce

Whenever I see a hibiscus flower I immediately associate it with tropical vacations. Beautiful and large flowers, they come in a variety of stunning colors. In Australia we have a hibiscus harlequin bug (Tectocoris diopthalamus) which is also brightly colored, but a dreaded pest to the hibiscus plant. It will pierce through the stem of tender shoots and flower buds to feed on the sap, causing the buds to drop off. These bugs also feed on cotton, a few Australian natives and some fruit trees. Once a female lays her eggs she will stand guard and protect them. In Australia we call them stink bugs because when they get disturbed, they release a very bad smell which triggers mass smell production from nearby friends. Happy weekend everyone!

Hibiscus Harlequin Bug - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Hibiscus Harlequin Bug – Photograph by Laura Lecce

Flower Friday – Paphiopedilum Orchid

April 1, 2016April 1, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 16 Comments

Paphiopedilum - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Paphiopedilum – Photograph by Laura Lecce

I’m not sure if any of my followers are orchid fanatics, nevertheless I will tread lightly. This photograph is of a paphiopedilum orchid, and I “think” it is Paph. Lowii but I cant be sure as it was unlabeled. This very cute family of orchids has a pouch-like labellum, and are quite easy to grow, making them one of the most widely cultivated and hybridized of orchids. They come in such a huge variety of colors, and some even have very beautifully mottled leaves (although P. Lowii does not). Paphs will usually only flower from a shoot once. After using a lot of its energy to flower, the remaining energy is put towards making new shoots to replace the parent once it dies. It becomes a cycle of making a new plant, flowering and then dying, and thus it is often possible to see multiple generations of plants in the same pot at once. Happy Friday and have a wonderful weekend!

Flower Friday – Serenity

March 25, 2016April 1, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 15 Comments

Peaceful - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Peaceful – Photograph by Laura Lecce

This week has been a hectic one at work, which will unfortunately continue all weekend. So for todays flower I felt the need to counteract the craziness with a peaceful and serene photograph. I have no idea what this plant is named, but it had only a few glorious white flowers on a giant vine. It caught my eye because of the way the light was shining on it. I hope it brings calm and peace to you all for the ending of this week. Have a lovely weekend!

Fairy Playground

March 9, 2016April 28, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 31 Comments

Sometimes I think my husband believes I’m crazy by how excited I get when I see a decaying tree trunk full of perfectly formed sprouting mushrooms. I think they’re absolutely adorable, and I mustn’t be the only one. I can see why people have often drawn fairies sitting atop mushrooms and toadstools. They seem like the perfect playground for teeny fairies to bounce across, and shelter under when it rains.

Field of Mushrooms - Photograph by Laura Lecce — Field of Mushrooms – Photograph by Laura Lecce

Mushrooms are also a perfect example of how death gives rise to new life. In the rainforest, every time a tree dies it gives life to millions of other organisms and its legacy lives on. I hope some of you share my delight in photographing mushrooms, and if so, please share a link to your photos, as I would love to see them!

The Lonely Mushroom - Photograph by Laura Lecce — The Lonely Mushroom – Photograph by Laura Lecce

Making The Climb

January 5, 2016April 28, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ 11 Comments

What must life be like for this caterpillar? Its world is so small right now, that this plant seems like the tallest tree to climb. Maybe it doesn’t even think that at all, it just climbs upwards not worrying about how far it is to the top. Slowly, methodically and determined. Does it know or understand that it will have wings and fly one day? Or will its metamorphosis be a surprise and with wings it exits, wondering what happened to the caterpillar body it once had? Its previously small world is all of a sudden much bigger, and it will just fly.

Geometric Succulent

November 30, 2015April 28, 2016 ~ laura lecce ~ Leave a comment

This beautiful succulent was growing in a pot on my balcony. An easy to keep plant, even for the most neglectful of gardeners. Many succulents can make for incredibly beautiful photographic subjects. Not only for the huge variety of colors that succulents can come in, but mostly because the geometry found in nature is particularly strong in these plants.