Audubon House & Tropical Gardens- A Living Croton Bank

[Jeff Searle]

All I can say is, I am really looking forward to my next visit to Key West early next year. I plan on meeting up with you to see all the progress.

And hopefully to be able to speak with the director to give very high praise for the terrific job that Tim has done.

 

[annafl]

Tim, I love seeing your updates. You've managed to get quite the collection of incredible crotons and palms. Now you make me want to visit the Keys soon (plus I'd also love to see the Glock's and the Shillings's garden.

I'm giving you to next summer to get me closer-up photos of all these croton beauties, ok, no later! Thanks for showing us your good work.

 

[palmisland]

Nice Tim. It'll fill in nicely by the time I see it in the spring. I love a mix of crotons & palms

 

[kwtimo]

Tim, I love seeing your updates. You've managed to get quite the collection of incredible crotons and palms. Now you make me want to visit the Keys soon (plus I'd also love to see the Glock's and the Shillings's garden.

I'm giving you to next summer to get me closer-up photos of all these croton beauties, ok, no later! Thanks for showing us your good work.

Anna, the Glock's and Shilling's gardens are what it is all about down here. They are prime examples of utilizing every available square inch of space with beautiful, rare and specimen stuff. Their properties were certainly major influences for my design at Audubon House. Go see them first, and then visit the Audubon. I can only hope that someday the Audubon garden will look something like those masterpieces. Bring your camera so that you can take pictures first hand. I am a pretty lousy photographer, and only post pics to give you a general idea of what is happening there. I forgot to mention that there is quite the orchid collection at Audubon too. We have a separate gardener who tends to those and the Koi pond. Look forward to having you and the rest of the croton heads down here.

 

[kwtimo]

I've been telling everyone about the important role that my operations manager at Audubon House has played. She has been my real advocate in getting the ball rolling and continuning forward on this project, and has also shown the greatest amount of enthusiasm and appreciation for the work completed so far. I think, in a way, I'm turning her into a bit of croton head and palm enthusiast. She has asked me for detailed information and history about these plants not only for her own sake, but in order to put new signs about in the gardens. I lent her my Dr. Brown books, which was a good start, but she really wanted to emphasize who the hybridizers were or are responsible for the creations that many people will look at now, to give people an understanding of the history behind the plants we cherish.
On her on initiative, she gave me a list of cultivars and asked me if I could supply her with as much information on some of the crotons that are now planted so that she could get to making the signs. We knew that the Channel 7 crew coming in Friday the 13th to do a shoot for an upcoming Out & About in South Florida episode. What I didn't tell you is that she asked me this at the end of the day on Monday the 9th. I knew that I didn't have the information she needed, nor the time to investigate on such short notice. So, I asked Moose to come to the rescue, and he came through with flying colors. I sent him a PM late Monday evening, and he had a Word doc by Tuesday morning. Thank You Ron!!!
I hope you like what you see here, these are just a few of the signs that are up now, and there are many more to come. As usual, if there is any signs that have the wrong information on them, or you feel that you can add something to a mystery, please let me know - except Ray. LOL!

 

[kwtimo]

 

[kwtimo]

Just thought I would put in a pic of the recently planted Milky Way and Princess Eugenia.

 

[annafl]

Nice informational signs, Tim. Ron, that was so nice of you to provide the list. Tim, you're fortunate you've gotten such great support. Comes from being such a nice guy!

 

[Jeff Searle]

Tim,

Pretty impressive! I certainly look forward to my visit coming soon. Love the signs!

 

[Moose]

 

[kwtimo]

Newly planted stuff. Confetti, Stained Glass, Dr. Alix, Pelagodoxa henryana (donation from Jeff Searle), Pop's Yard, Ishi?, Dypsis crinita, Weismanii behind the Dypsis, Oak Leaf Superba, Bentinckia nicobarcia, Prince of Orange, Green Eggs & Ham(seedling from Marie) Kula gardenia & Justica nodosa

 

[kwtimo]

More of the same bed, I'm saving room for a Pinanga speciosa on the end of the bed in front of the Confetti

 

[kwtimo]

Other side of stairs. General Marshall, Kulu Gardenia, Oenocarpus distichus, Steve Goepel (seedling from Cookie Graff) tons of potential, Large leaf Sybil Griffin, Fishbone, Zamia neurophyllidia and Justica nodosa. You can't see them, but there is a Hydriastele pinangoides and Kerriodoxa elegans on either side of the Robellini.

 

[kwtimo]

Quite a bit has been done since my last post. This pic set is of a newly worked on area, just outside of the entrance to the garden. I really wanted to make a statement with some great plants for a first impression. There is a dwarf Areca catechu, to the left is Dypsis mananjarensis (AKA Mealy Bug) that I just scored from Jeff's Key West sale, Pinanga coronata (kuhlii) behind it, a nicely variegated Rhapis, Jester in front of it, William Craig, Phoenicophophorium borsigianum behind, Chambeyronia macrocarpa, Show Girl, Calyptrocalyx sp. Awa, and a nice pink Alpinia purpurata. There will be a walking path into that area to see the plants from different perspectives.

 

[kwtimo]

On the opposite side of the last pics I posted, I added some more crotons and a nicley sized Stemmadenia littoralis for a bit of canopy. New crotons are Three Toes, Nancy Reagan, Catch of the Day, and Tristan, which is a George Zammas seedling (Thank you George!) Already planted were Princess Eugenia and Milky Way.

 

[kwtimo]

On a completely different part of the property, I wanted some perimeter appeal, and planted crotons along the fence line. Nothing too collectible on the border, so I won't freak out if some passerby snaps off a branch. There is an industrial size water backflow contraption that will eventually be covered up by Charmer, Nobilis, General Padget, Glenn Roof. Further down the line are King of Siam, Fred Sanders, Dreadlocks, Bogoriensis, Applause, Dreer #7, and Duke of Windsor. By the state historical sign, I put Bimbo and Royal Flush. I had the good fortune of planting my Dypsis pillulifera (AKA Orange Crush), Coccothrinax camagueyensis and a Hydriastele longispatha. Fragrant shrubs include a Vietnamese gardenia and Michelia figo. I've left some spaces open for stuff I have yet to acquire.

 

[kwtimo]

In yet a different area, behind a Mosaic and Robert Halgrim, I initially had an Arenga hookeriana planted. I since moved it, and put in a beefy Cyrtostachys hybrid from Jeff that is starting to show some nice color. On the other side of the Sapadilla tree is a Pinanga copelandii.

 

[kwtimo]

In another area that was formerly "No Man's Land", I spent a good day and a half removing the old, dilapidated material, and used a back drop of Rhapis excelsa that I rescued from another jobsite, crotons on the fence are Helen Edge, Robert Lavaloie, and Marie's Excellent/Inca. I also put in an Angiopteris (I forget the species, but Marie ID'd it for me before), Geonoma interupta, Chamaedorea adscendens, and a Zamia picta. More to follow in this area. There is also a pic of a nicely colored Areca vestiaria that I planted recently where I was originally going to put in a Pinanga speciosa. The Vesti is looking real good there.

 

[annafl]

Oh, Tim, it's coming along beautifully! Wish I could see it in person. Someday I definitely will. You're doing a great job!!!

 

[Bullwinkle]

Looking great Tim,it has been 15 years since I made it down to Key West.I need to head back down this year

 

[Jeff Searle]

Tim,

What a pleasure it was to finally visit the Audubon House last week. You have done an exceptional job with the layout and placement of plants. The selection of crotons and palms include many of the rarest known in their respective groups. I highly recommend that you visit this garden whenever you visit the Keys.

 

[kwtimo]

So folks, I am regretfully letting you know that all planting at the Audubon House & Tropical Gardens has ceased for this yearWTF. I went a bit beyond the budget parameters, and will have to wait a while till I can begin creating again. It kills me to see the stash of plant material waiting to be installed just sitting there looking pretty, but I will now have time to grow some of the smaller material off site. I can also now focus on just taking excellent care of all of the new plants, bringing them to their full potential. A massive thank you to all who have supported this project on the forum, and from donations. I am still looking forward to having many of you come to visit the garden, and see what it has to offer to plant enthusiasts such as ourselves, not only now, but for many years to come. With that being said, I'll show you some of the last work that was done several weeks ago. This area starts with Drymophloeus oliviformis, Licuala fordiana (not planted yet), Hydriatsele kaesia, Pink Eberneum, Father's Day/Columbiana Gold, Calyptrogyne ghiesbreghtiana (say that one fast), Areca catechu, Cameo and Shady Lane

 

[kwtimo]

Here we have a no ID, Aglaia odorata, Kentiopsis oliviforme, Mr. White, some red firespike I saved, Cocoloba rugosa, Queen of Siam (George Zammas), and Piecrust. To the right is a Hydriastele dransfeldii, and in the background is a Gen. MacArthur, with another view of it from the porch.

 

[kwtimo]

The pics are bad, but here is Madame Butterfyl, Sailor's Delight, Babbette, Big C&B, and Joe Friday that is near impossible to see from the photo. I put some close ups of Sailor's Delight (Marie) in there. It too, reminds me of Stained Glass. There is also a tiny seedling that is already showing a good bit of color. We'll see...

 

[kwtimo]

Here we have an Ortegas Hybrid, Cyphophoenix elegans, and Scarlet Fever- a beautiful cultivar donated by George Zammas

 

[annafl]

Great work, Tim!

 

[kwmarko]

Hey Tim, .... I'm here.... lol Would like to give you some of my Dryneria quercefolia a great epiphytic,(and epipetric - rock dwelling) fern , surely there's a tree site, or even rock site it may work into....
(Duh.. geiger tree) it's right here if you should need it. Not meaning to diverge from the crotons.... but I am a gidish postal virgin... (first day I am able to post) ...whats a trophy for? Lol

 

[Bullwinkle]

Looking great,I see lots of croton and lots of mulch.Someone has been very busy

 

[kwtimo]

This is the last croton installed at Audubon House. I might put in a Claude Lorraine if the situation warrants, but that will be it for a while. George, I know you are lurking out there. Thank you so much for all of your donations that make my garden more beautiful. Leanna Rose (hope I spelled it correctly)

should accentuate my P. vinifera very well, and it is the only croton that will be in this area. Looking forward to your visit this summer.

 

[Jeff Searle]

Sweet!!! A must see garden if your ever traveling down to KW. It's a great feeling knowing more of these rare beauties will be in a safe, growing situation and preserved for many years to come. Tim......youd the man!

 

[Moose]

On the opposite side of the last pics I posted, View attachment 24162View attachment 24161View attachment 24163I added some more crotons and a nicley sized Stemmadenia littoralis for a bit of canopy. New crotons are Three Toes, Nancy Reagan, Catch of the Day, and Tristan, which is a George Zammas seedling (Thank you George!) Already planted were Princess Eugenia and Milky Way.

Just saw my first Tristan in person yesterday, its my understanding that George named it after his son. Fortunately this may not be that slow of a cultivar from what I've seen. A great looking croton that should eventually make its way into many a garden.