Epiphyllum in bloom. Bunga bakawali / Tan hua. 9.21.14

Epiphyllum oxypetallum.  9.21.14

Epiphyllum oxypetallum.  9.21.14 

 The annual blooming of the "bunga bakawali".  This year was the first time at the Battleground place.  I've been keeping it on the east side of the house, watering about every other week.

Unlike past bloom seasons, this time the flowers have opened one at a time.  Which is nice, because I missed some of them, so I had opportunity to catch this one.  The flower was fully open at 10:30pm, and starting to close by 5am.

Prior posts describe this plant, known in Southeast Asia as Bunga bakawali and in China as Tuan hua.  It's very beautiful.  The fleeting moment of beauty is a lot like life in general.

Adding to the other info I posted, is this from wikipedia:  "
In India it is called Brahma Kamalam, named after the Hindu god of creation, Lord Brahma. It is also believed that the wishes of People who pray to God while the flower is blooming will be fulfilled....

The Chinese chengyu (four character idiom) 曇花一現 (tan hua yi xian) uses this flower (tan-hua; 曇花) to describe someone who has an impressive but very brief moment of glory, like a "flash in a pan", since the flower can take a year to bloom and only blooms over a single night. Therefore someone described as "曇花一現" is generally understood to be a person who shows off or unexpectedly gains some achievement and is thought to be an exception or only lucky. The flower also has a rich history in Japan, where it is known as the 月下美人 (Gekka Bijin) or "Beauty under the Moon".

Epiphyllum oxypetallum. 9.21.14

Overwintering Pelargonium, Citrus, Brugmansia, Zantedeschia, Opuntia

Time to overwinter containerized plants, or give up on them.

Pelargoniums (zonal geraniums)  are still green and blooming, but some neighborhoods have already experienced frost.  I moved mine into the attached, frost-free but unheated garage.  For most of the winter I don't do anything to them.  I might add a little water late winter.  I think these are just 2 years old.

Braziliopuntia braziliensis, from Wikimedia commons

I have a Opuntia neoargentina also known as Brasioliopuntia braziliensis, which is frost tender.  I've managed to keep it alive for 20 years, by bringing it inside or keeping cuttings.  I think the current plant is about 6 years old.  It will be in a bright cool room at the battleground place.  Last year I kept it in the basement without watering.  It didn't thrive, but it did survive.  I want to repot it into a larger container and would like to see it bloom next year.  Photo from wikimedia commons.  Mine is not nearly that big.

I have an unnamed Zantedeschia that I've grown in containers for 25 years.  I bring it inside for the winter.  It bloomed this year, but not much.  Needs re-potting in fresh growth medium.  It's in the garage now.

The Brugmansias are kept in the garage overwinter.  I try to let them, and the other plants, sit outside in a rain-free location for a few weeks before bringing inside, to start dormancy.  That way they don't grow weak useless growth while in storage.

I also brought Epiphyllum oxypetallum to Battleground to keep in sunny cool room.  I also kept that in the basement last year without water.  It wasn't that healthy looking, but bloomed twice.

The Meyer lemon, Kumquat, and unnamed 15-year-old seed-grown citrus are in cool sunny bedroom window.

That's about all of the overwintering I can handle.  If it doesn't freeze tonight, I have an aloe to bring in. 

The mysterious "night blooming Cereus" blooms again.

Otherwise known as Epiphyllum oxypetallum.

Charlie had to see what it was all about.

If I had taken excellent care of the plant, it might have had more flowers. One or two is sufficient, however. I forgot how fragrant they are. The house was filled with the sweet scent.

Just beautiful.

I applied some pollen to a couple of Schlumbergera. Chances of that coming to fruition are small - I have no idea if they are related! But if they do, it might be fun a few years from now. Assuming they grow.

These are SO easy to grow, it's easy to wind up with extra plants. If a piece breaks off, or is too long and I trim it off, all that is needed is to stick it into some potting soil and it grows. I've never had one not-grow.

Annual flowering of the Tan Hua, or Bunga Bakawali

More accurately, it is an Epiphyllum oxypetallum, jungle-dwelling cacti that live on tree branches and rocky outcrops far above the forest floor.

This cactus was started from a cutting, given to me by a friend. Her mother brought it to the US from Hong Kong when she emigrated. The only name that she knew was "Chinese cactus", although in reality, it's not Chinese. They originate in Mexico, central America, and Brazil. The exact origin is uncertain. They have naturalized in South Asia and Southeast Asia. This species blooms once annually. The flowers open once, during the night, then whither in the early morning and die. Their extravagant, sensual appearance, and ephemeral character, are symbolic of how beautiful, and brief, life can be.

They are grown in southern China, where they are known as Tuan Hua. Here is an article about a neighborhood in Taipei, gathering to watch one open. There it is known as "Tan Hua Yi Xian" (A Flower That Vanishes as Soon as It Appears)

I've brought it inside each winter, and leave in on the North side of the house each summer. Last year it had only 2 blossoms. The year before, it hnad a fungal infection and most of it died. This Spring I transferred it to a larger pot. The growth medium is Miracle Grow potting soil. It's growing nicely. Not a compact plant, it takes a lot of room. Fortunately, we have the space. It's easy to grow from cuttings. One small section broke off this summer. I kept walking past it thinking, "Maybe I should pot that up". Finally, feeling sorry for it after 2 or 3 weeks, I did. After 3 weeks, that section is now growing and has added a new leaf-pad, larger than the original cutting.

In South Asia and Malasia this flower is known as the Bunga Bakawali. The blossom is supposedly controlled by a night spirit, but this must be a fairly obscure legend, I could only find hints of it in a google search. I a reader of this blog knows more, I would love to hear the story.

For members of the diaspora from Southern China and Southeast Asia, the Bunga Bakawali can be a living reminder of their origin. "It was when she said that I understood everything. This flower reminded her of that distant childhood she once had, the innocent little child she once was, and most importantly, the people she truly misses, her mother, her sisters"


At 5pm, the "Dutchman's pipe" stage. The buds are starting to swell.

At 830pm. Even at this stage, they are quite beautiful.

Fully open at 10pm. This year the fragrance fills the night sky. It's raining, but this plant is in a sheltered location away from the rain.

Also at 10pm. This doesn't quite match the legend of opening exactly at midnight, but it will be open then as well. It may be confused by the time zone, of course.

8am. Having had their moment in the night, the blossoms close again. Three did not open last night, so will be expected to open tonight. That doesn't quite match the one-night-per-year legend either, but close enough.

My recent lack of posts. Garden log

Dueing the past few months, there have been fewer posts on growing greener. Despite that, there have been many readers checking in on the garden.

I've been making multiple trips to the midwest, with 2 very ill parents. The work schedule has been extended as well. This is not complaining - in this economy, just having a job and career is something to be grateful for. But it has meant significant neglect of the backyard garden and the blog.

So here are a few updates. Pictures to follow.

The chickens -

The Americauna pullet turned out to be a rooster. Not allowed in my town. Can't be kept secretly, either - he was announcing his presence early and loudly. SO he was given to a coworker. His fate... "Don't ask / Don't tell".

The Leghorn has grown up and is laying one nice, large, egg daily.

The Australorp pullets are nearly to laying size. They have a definite "hen-like" appearance (although so did the Americauna).

The tomatoes -

2 days ago I picked 3 medium sized Lemon Boy and a big handful of Supersweet 100.
The plants have remained small. Last week I added some organic high-N food to give them a boost.

The figs -
One ripe "Vancouver" breba yesterday. One getting close. Two ripe Petite negri, probably tomorrow. Two Lattarula probably ripe next week - that will be the first from these trees. Not much, but they are loaded with figs for fall crop, so I'm happy to get a preview.

The Peppers -
All are loaded with fruit. Not large yet, but peppers don't need to be ripe to be eaten.

Other Crops -
Roma beans yielded a bowl of beans last night. The summer crop of raspberries is done. With the recent heat, some of the leaves are scorched, but it looks like there will be a big fall crop. I'll post some peach photos - getting closer! Pears weighing down the tree. Lots of cucumbers. Zucchinis once again giving more than we can eat.

Flowers -
These have sufferred neglect, the most. Lillies are blooming, and fragrant. Some are scorched. I'm definitely moving more toward Xeriscaping with more succulents next year - the sedums and sempervivums are surviving like shamps. The night blooming cactus has the most buds, ever. Probably bloom in late august.

I have some photos to upload tonight.

With my Dad on hospice, and my Mom having Alzheimer's, there is a good chance that there will be more deferred maintenance in the yard. Even so, doing the gardening and writing about it give me peace of mind and something to look forward to, so I'll work on posting at least once weekly again. I ordered a large # of bulbs for fall planting, just to have something to look forward to. I have plans to re-engineer a couple of garden beds for better access and improved spacing. This will involve further encroachment into former lawn. No problem. I let the lawn go brown, so at least no mowing now.

epiphylum oxypetallum

It gave me a second chance...

brought inside 2 weeks ago.

5 pm

1230 am

515 am

6 am

Kitchen Garden Log

The workload continues unabated. I can't do much in the garden. In some ways it's on autopilot, except for watering.

Jonagold - this is the first year for some apples.

Mesclun, seeds planted late summer.

Scepter'ed Isle, 8 feet tall.

Hey, wait a minute! Another chance at the epiphyllum.

This cayenne pepper continues to produce. Nice and hot!

Beans, seeds planted late summer.

Canadace grape. The color doesn't come true wtih the flash, it's more red in natural light.

A throwaway chrysanthemum. I left it in the veggie bed for the summer.

Hibiscus. First flower.

Missed it.

Even the spent blossom is beautiful. Yesterday I worked a 16 hour day, and was amost too tired to sleep. I didn't even think to check the deck. This morning, here it is, telling me "I bloomed.".

The plant as a whole is lush and has many new branches. It's someting to work on for next year.

It's largely the ephemeral nature of these flowers that drives me to grow them It it was easy, It would not be as interesting.

'Oversummering"

Here's a thought. Some plants are grown for their summer appearance, and ave overwintered in order to maintain them for the next year. Or at least, to have new and larger specimens the next year, and save money.

Others are grown for their winter appearance, indoors. They can be oversummered. In this case, oversummering is a chance to grow them larger and more lush. This is in contraast to overwintering, which is basically keeping them dormant or at least not growing rapidly.

Most are left in a shady place or northern exposure, since they aren't really designed for full sun. Some may have started their species as under-story plants in the forest. The epiphytic cacti were suited for growing high in the trees, wlthough there may have been higher branches shading them (speculation on my part). Even plants designed for full sun, were not designed by nature to grow in containers, where they are more likely to dry out and become sunburned. Leaving them in protected locations, they don't need quite as much attention.

These are sort of accidental houseplants. Looking around the yard, I found a tulbagia ("Society garlic") that survived last winter in the ground. The oxalis is somewhat tender but somehow escaped into the bean garden. Today I potted up both, to see how they will do in containers again. This photo is basically a 'before' picture.

Some cactus cuttings. These fell off of the Brasilopuntia when I repotted it. This is all it takes to start them.

One year old epiphullum hybrid. It's increased in size, no flower buds yet.

Another epiphyllum hybrid. Same story as the other one.

Here's an aloe that I bought last week at an estate sale. It wasn't labeled for sale. Some poor old soul had left it in a corner of the house and it hadn't been thrown away yet. For 50 cents, something different for the window.

This is like the Carly Simon song, "Anticipation". Epiphyllum oxypetallum, see prior entries. I think it will bloom in a few days. I hope that I dont miss it!

Sanseveria, about to bloom.