Hardy Tropicals UK

Went to Ness today and I was totally taken aback by the number of exotic plants still in leaf or even in flower, Ive never seen as many exotic plants in tandem in February.. That said the bananas here are trashed by the wind, and also the gingers in the exposed parts too. It reached 13C in the garden at Ness today, though I could have sworn it was near 14C near the river.. very mild, lovely day with some sunshine at times.

This fuchsia has stayed evergreen this Winter, with flowers, usually it dies out by now, and grows back quickly in March


Coronilla valentina with its normal Winter bloom (quite heavy though for Feb)


Echium webbii back at Ness, rather tender Echium looking happy here once again


Acacia dealbata flowering in season


Hedychium coccineum still in leaf in February.. might be a first (since 2006 anyway)


Aristolochia baetica flowering in February


Grevillia rosmarinafolia flowering quite heavily


Grevillea again,


Hedychium wind ravaged


Fuchsia still in full/leaf flower!


Neoregelia?


A wet bromeliad!


Cycas revoluta enjoying the rainy weather recently

Great pics, and unprecedented growth for middle of Feb

More...

Wind beaten Bananas and Persicaria


Echium pininana


More Echium pinanana


Fresh green looking Dicksonia antarctica


Melianthus major looking phresh.


and again..


The tender perennial Euryops pectinatus getting set to flower in February!


Euphorbia mellifera


Last one now.. Salvia elegans still flowering in February

Can't believe it's February, Stephen. Pretty general over much of the country as a lot of plants shown in your super collection of pics are doing just the same in my garden. The Grevillea, Fuschia macrophyllla and mimosa are all in bloom.

Even my large Echium pinniniana which was flattened in one of the storms and tied and guyed upright is now showing signs of life from the tips after all the leaves went totally limp.

You have been surprized by the growth on my Albizia, but is are also reallt great pictures Stephen.

I really need to add Melianthus major to the garden.

Fantastic show for Feb Stevie,

Love the Aristolochia baetica , yes very lucky to get it flowering in February. Not a lot of Info about it.

Aristolochia baetica, the Andalusian Dutchman's Pipe or Pipe Vine, is a poisonous perennial vine that occurs from Algeria to Spain and Portugal. Aristolochia baetica is a rarely procumbent evergreen climber with triangular, cordate, glaucous lobes a quarter the size of the leaves. Flowers vary from 2 to 5 centimetres and are from brownish-purple to reddish.

Description: Evergreen climber, (rarely procumbent) with stems to 5m; leaves to 10 × 6cm, triangular-ovate, cordate, glaucous, the basal sinus deep and usually narrow, the lobes to 1/4 as long as the leaf; flowers 2-5cm brownish-purple to reddish, tube stongly curved; ovary and pedicels glabrous, fruit imple, dry, 1-4cm, ovoid or oblong.

Map distribution

Poison: All Aristolochia species have poisonous alkaloids or aristolochic acid.

Uses: Anthelmintic, Purgative

When I lived in Andalusia, there was a euc forest a few miles from me which had lots of Aristolochias in flower in the winter. It must have been the baetica.

Stephen - do you know what kind of fuchsia you have there? There is a fuschia in one of the front gardens on my street, but it's bare, so presumably it's a deciduous one while yours is semi-deciduous.

kata wrote:Fantastic show for Feb Stevie,

Love the Aristolochia baetica , yes very lucky to get it flowering in February. Not a lot of Info about it.

Aristolochia baetica, the Andalusian Dutchman's Pipe or Pipe Vine, is a poisonous perennial vine that occurs from Algeria to Spain and Portugal. Aristolochia baetica is a rarely procumbent evergreen climber with triangular, cordate, glaucous lobes a quarter the size of the leaves. Flowers vary from 2 to 5 centimetres and are from brownish-purple to reddish.

Description: Evergreen climber, (rarely procumbent) with stems to 5m; leaves to 10 × 6cm, triangular-ovate, cordate, glaucous, the basal sinus deep and usually narrow, the lobes to 1/4 as long as the leaf; flowers 2-5cm brownish-purple to reddish, tube stongly curved; ovary and pedicels glabrous, fruit imple, dry, 1-4cm, ovoid or oblong.

Map distribution

Poison: All Aristolochia species have poisonous alkaloids or aristolochic acid.

Uses: Anthelmintic, Purgative

A very well behaved hardy evergreen climber for me that never seems to stop growing although slowly
Mine tend to flower more from November onwards through winter far more than they do in Summer though the flowers are quiet small. Like you noted Kata not very popular probably because the flowers are not as big as other species and tend to get lost behind the leaves
But certainly one I would not be without

Stephen the 'fuschia' in your first photo looks more like an Escallonia, my Mum has one exactly the same in her garden & it is evergreen

An Interesting vine Leigh, I liked the Aristolochia baetica when I saw it.

I know the Wirral has it's own microclimate but that's taking the P that is a great selection and amazing for Feb, the frosts here would have killed the Neoregelia and Hedychium foliage off for sure.