“Yes, They’re Real!” Orchids in the Herpetarium
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Posted July 26, 2008 | Jill Maybry, Horticulturist
I’ve heard visitors comment that the orchids currently residing inside the Herpetarium are too beautiful to be real. They ARE beautiful, and they are real, as well! The zoo greenhouses are home to a couple dozen orchid plants that were donated to the zoo many years ago. As they begin to bloom, they are moved to the “rainforest” above the large pools in the Herpetarium for zoo visitors to see and enjoy. When they finish blooming, they’ll be moved back to the greenhouses. Different orchids flower at different times throughout the year, so you may catch their lovely flowers on display in the Herpetarium during any season.
The orchid family (Orchidaceae) is the largest family of flowering plants. There are 25,000 – 30,000 species of orchids on earth, compared to only 5,400 species of mammals. Orchid species grow in a wide variety of conditions and climates, and wild orchids may be found on every continent except Antarctica. New orchid species are discovered every year. Many orchids are threatened or endangered due to habitat destruction and poaching. If you shop for orchids, make sure they’ve been raised by reputable orchid growers, rather than taken from the wild.
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Orchids bloom above the pools
inside the Herpetarium.
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Okra, an Old Southern Favorite
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Posted July 25, 2008 | Jill Maybry, Horticulturist
While you’re in the vegetable garden at Once Upon a Farm admiring the ‘Hansel’ eggplants (see yesterday’s post), take a look at the okra, which is coming along nicely. Okra pods are harvested from their plants throughout the summer when the pods are between 2 and 4” long (larger pods become tough and woody). Besides being the succulent source of the South’s beloved fried okra, and the key ingredient in gumbo, okra plants are lovely even before their fruits are harvested. They are in the same family as hibiscus (Malvaceae), and sport very pretty, hibiscus-like yellow flowers. Okra is native to West Africa, where it grows wild along the Nile River. It is now cultivated throughout tropical and warm temperate regions of the world, and was most likely introduced to North America in the early 1700’s. You can see it growing elsewhere in the zoo in the “African Village Garden” in front of the bonteboks in the African Veldt.
By the way, I tried out some of the mini eggplants last night in an “Eggplant Tomato Bake”, and they cooked up wonderfully! The eggplants were sliced, then topped with spinach, mozzarella cheese, sliced tomatoes, more cheese, fresh basil, and seasonings, then baked for about 40 minutes. Delicious! A wonderful, garden-fresh meal!
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Okra plants are blooming and
producing pods now at
Once Upon a Farm.
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Hansel the Mini Eggplant
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Posted July 24, 2008 | Jill Maybry, Horticulturist
The plants in the vegetable garden at Once Upon a Farm are growing,
growing, growing! You can see tomatoes, peppers, squash, eggplant,
okra, and all kinds of herbs in various stages of growth. One of the
prettiest veggies ripening in the garden right now is a miniature
eggplant named Hansel. Hansel is a 2008 All-America Selections winner,
and so far has been a great performer here in our garden. The plants
reach only 3’ tall, making it perfect for small gardens, or for growing
in containers. It’s early yielding, so it produces fruits about 10 days
earlier than other eggplants. The glossy, dark purple fruits can be
harvested as “babies” when only a few inches long, or when they mature
at only 10” long. This sweet, bitter-free variety is perefct for all
kinds of eggplant dishes! (Eggplant Parmesan, anyone?) Eggplants are in
the same family as tomatoes (Solanaceae), and like growing in full sun.
You’ll find the vegetable garden at the farm between the prairie dogs
and the sheep, right next to the white ramp that leads up to the rides
area. Bright yellow black-eyed susans (Rudbeckia fulgida) have just
started blooming at the front of the garden, and are sure to catch your
eye!
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Hansel is a new miniature eggplant variety. |
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A Fantastic Photo Op: Sacred Lotus
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Posted July 17, 2008 | Jill Maybry, Horticulturist
At a tranquil pool just west of the Cat House Café playground, cameras flash, whir, and click all day long during the summer. No, wonder, because this little pond at the base of a gentle waterfall is full of blooming sacred lotus (Nelumbo nucifera). The lotus are wildly popular with zoo visitors, and make wonderful subjects for photos!
Often mistaken for a waterlily, the lotus is a distinctly different creature. The handsome, almost circular leaves of a lotus are held well above the surface of the water, instead of floating on top of the water, as waterlily leaves do. The awe-inspiring lotus flowers, which may be pink or white, and are up to 12” wide, are held aloft on stems up to 6’ long, well clear of the water below. Waterlily blooms rest directly on the water’s surface. They are also in different plant families: lotus is in the Nelumbonaceae family, while water lilies are members of the Nymphaeaceae (try spelling that one three times quickly!). (You can see water lilies in bloom right now in the duck pond in CHINA.) Lotus prefer full sun, and are hardy in Zones 4-11. In Memphis (Zone 8), lotus are perfectly happy to stay in their pond year-round. Their foliage dies back over the winter, and sprouts right back when our weather warms in the spring.
Native to Asia, the lotus has great religious significance in Buddhism and Hinduism, and is an important symbol within Chinese culture. The lotus is widely seen as a symbol of purity – though the roots of the plant are submerged in mud and muck, the beautiful bloom is held aloft, clear of the murky waters below it, symbolizing purity and freedom from materialism. Many cultures and religions throughout the world use the lotus flower as a symbol of restoration and renewal.
When the blooms fade, they leave behind ornamental seedpods, which are often dried and used in floral arrangements.
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Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) blooms in
the pool close to the Cat House
Café playground all summer at the zoo.
Lotus is the national flower of India
and Vietnam. |
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Our Third Passionflower: Passiflora caerulea ‘Clear Sky’
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Posted July, 12, 2008 | Jill Maybry, Horticulturist
If you visited the butterfly exhibit today, you may have noticed that all three of our different passionflowers are in bloom. ‘Betty Myles Young’ and ‘Inspiration’ have been flowering for several days now, but today was the first day to see ‘Clear Sky’ in bloom! Its flowers are whiter and brighter than our other two passionflowers. These plants are all new to the zoo for 2008, so seeing them bloom is a first for our horticulturists, as well as our visitors! All three of our passionflower varieties are hardy to Zone 7. Memphis is in Zone 8, so we’re expecting all of them to sprout right back up in the spring.
Passionflowers are excellent butterfly host plants, and a great choice for a sunny spot in a butterfly garden. They are climbing vines, so give them a trellis or lengths of string that they can wrap their tendrils around. The butterflies usually lay their eggs on fresh growth: either the ends of the vines, or on fresh new tendrils. Check these spots for bright yellow butterfly eggs. The spiky, black and white caterpillars you’ll see munching on the vines in the exhibit are Zebra Longwing caterpillars, and the orange and black ones are Gulf Fritillary caterpillars. Gulf Fritillary butterflies are much more common in the Memphis area than Zebra Longwings, so those are the caterpillars that you will most likely find on your own vines if you grow passionflowers at home. |
The ‘Clear Sky’ Passionflower, Passiflora caerulea ‘Clear Sky’. |
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