Blue Sky Vine

Blue Sky Vine

Thunbergia grandiflora

(thun-BER-jee-uh) (gran-dih-FLOR-uh)

Synonyms: Bengal Clock Vine

This beauty was waiting for me in the petting zoo at Gatorland. We usually see this vine blooming when we get to Florida and this year was no different. Gatorland has really upgraded since I was last there 15 years ago. It truly is one of the few old roadside tourist attractions in Florida. It was the only place I saw live gators during the whole trip. Another interesting about these photo is it was shot using the 18-70mm zoom lens. Technically it's called the Nikon 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G ED IFAF-S DX Nikkor Zoom Lens.

On the D700 camera (full frame) this lens auto crops down to 5 megapixels (instead of 12) since it is built for the smaller sensor cameras. In the view finder you can see where the edges of the photo will be but it still is a little tricky to remember to use those lines instead of the whole viewfinder. The lens came as a kit lens with my first DSLR a Nikon D70s. I almost didn’t buy it to save the $99 but said what the heck. Since getting that camera I have switched over to using fixed or prime lenses almost exclusively. It was fun to have some zoom and you can see that the lens is sharp with good color rendition and you can’t ask for anymore than that.

Karen put a big scratch in this lens by accident. It didn’t show up when taking most pictures but I didn’t like it being there. After using the lens as a paperweight for a time I took it down to the repair shop and asked if they could fix it. They had the part in stock and did the job for $58, which I happily paid. They also check the lens for specifications and adjust as needed. It is a very nice lens that I am happy to see it in my bag.

I am always a little irresolute in recommending vines in tropical climates. This one was beautiful and seemingly under control and gets good reviews from people growing it. Of course I am a sucker for any blue flower.

Pincushion Protea

Pincushion Protea
Leucospermum cordifolium
(loo-koh-SPER-mum) (kor-di-FOH-lee-um)

I hope this flower is identified correctly. It was in amongst a virtual forest of King Protea (Protea cynaroides) so that is what I based the ID on. Both of these photos were taken on the upper reaches of Maui last year. It was pretty amazing walking around the shrubs and seeing them erupting into the giant and radiant flowers (a little volcano humor there since this was in the shadow of Haleakalā). Here is a good reference page @ plantz Africa.com on the plant.

Since it is Sunday come join us at Today’s Flowers .

Bonus Picture!


Black-Eyed Susan Vine
Thunbergia alata
(thun-BER-jee-uh) (a-LAY-tuh)

This is always a fun flower to see especially in the tropics where it can become a huge tangled mess of flowers. It does well for us an annual but doesn’t quite have the vigor of its tropical cousins. This pure yellow version was a nice change from the usual orange type.

Orange Clockvine

Orange Clockvine
Thunbergia gregorii
(thun-BER-jee-uh) (gre-GOR-ee-eye)
Synonyms: Thunbergia gibsonii, Orange Trumpet Vine

Today’s Flowers is a group of bloggers from all over the world that post flower pictures on Sunday. You can always find some beautiful and interesting flowers by visiting the participants.

This is the fourth species of Thunbergia that has been posted on this site. Here are some links to the other Clock Vines on this blog.
Thunbergia alata/Black-eyed Susan Vine
Thunbergia grandiflora/Bengal Clock Vine
Thunbergia mysorensis/Clock Vine

This one was unusual to me since the flower was a solid yellow. All of the different vines are attractive to me but they are grown as annuals in Connecticut’s climate. I don’t have to deal with rampant or unwanted growth.

Thunbergia gregorii is a native of central Africa and is hardy to about 25 degrees F. It likes full sun and has low water needs. The dried hairy stems and pods can be a skin irritant.

This is a shot of some Palm trees that I took in Pacific Beach. I love the geometric shapes of the Palms. That is something we don’t have back home.


To visit Today’s Flowers click here. It opens at 6 pm GMT.

Black-Eyed Susan Vine

Black-Eyed Susan Vine
Thunbergia alata
(thun-BER-jee-uh) (a-LAY-tuh)

This is the second year I have been growing this vine. It is doing well again this season even after the irrigation system that waters the containers went crazy and kept it completely submerged for about 2 1/2 weeks before I noticed it. It seemed to shrug off the flood with a few yellow leaves and is back to growing like crazy. It was bought with both this orange type and a yellow flowering variety in the same pot. I am going to have figure out how to add more height to stake that is in there now or attach some sort of trellis to the pot as it is just winding around itself now. Black-Eyed Susan Vine likes to be in full sun and well-drained soil. It is a perennial in mild climates. My friend tells me it can grow indoors over the winter in a sunny window. I will have to try that.

This is from the wedding I attended over the weekend. The photographer was kind enough not to mind other photographers when she was setting up the shots. I hope she puts up a website soon for her photography as she has a lot of talent. I got to see some of the wedding pictures she took before I left Maine and they were pretty amazing especially with the equipment and conditions considerations she had to deal with. All of the Black and White pictures on this site (not that many) are taken with my Nikon Coolpix 8400 set to Monochrome.

Bengal Clock Vine

Bengal Clock Vine
Thunbergia grandiflora
(thun-BER-jee-uh) (gran-dih-FLOR-uh)
Synonyms: Blue Sky Vine, Sky Flower

Today’s pictures are again courtesy of Wave Hill. This vine was growing in a small pot, which is unusual since it quite vigorous. In climates where the ground doesn’t freeze it can quickly cover its trellis and may have to tamed to fit into the area allotted to it. This vine can easy be cut back if unwanted growth occurs, Outdoors it prefers some light or shifting shade (especially in hot climates) and rich organic soil. The lush heart shaped leaves adds to this native of India attraction in the garden.


This is the most commonly seen blue type of flowers but violet colored and white flowered forms are also available. The flowers are beautifully shaded and shaped. In this second picture it is mixing in with some Coleus flowers. I never really get to see the flowers of Coleus since I am always pinching them off. They are quite a pretty blue.

Clock Vine (Thunbergia mysorensis)

Clock Vine
Thunbergia mysorensis
(thun-BER-jee-uh) (my-sor-EN-sis)
Acanthaceae (ah-kanth-AY-see-ay)

Synonyms: Hexacentris mysorensis

I have been admiring this vine at the New York Botanical Garden for several years and during my recent trip it was flowering more than I had ever seen it. Getting a picture has been tough and this is the best I came up with. This native of India grows both in subtropical and tropical regions. This one is of course growing indoors. The flowers are very detailed and are attractive to Hummingbirds. The Clock Vine is in the Acanthaceae family. I have linked to a full-length Encyclopedia Britannica Article, which should be available to non-subscribers too.

There is a new Hardiness Map in town and that is sure to stir up some trouble. Since this is a press release I don’t think that they will mind my posting it in full.

<start copy>
New Arborday.org Hardiness Zone Map Reflects Warmer Climate

Latest hardiness zones, based on most current temperature data available, suggest up-to-date choices for best trees to plant

Nebraska City, Neb. – Much of the United States has been warmer in recent years, and that affects which trees are right for planting.

Based on the latest comprehensive weather station data, The National Arbor Day Foundation has just released a new 2006 arborday.org Hardiness Zone Map which separates the country into ten different temperature zones to help people select the right trees to plant where they live.

The new map reflects that many areas have become warmer since 1990 when the last USDA hardiness zone map was published. Significant portions of many states have shifted at least one full hardiness zone. Much of Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio, for example, have shifted from Zone 5 to a warmer Zone 6. Some areas around the country have even warmed two full zones.

In response to requests for up-to-date information, the Arbor Day Foundation developed the new zones based on the most recent 15 years' data available from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's 5,000 National Climatic Data Center cooperative stations across the United States. Hardiness zones are based on average annual low temperatures using 10 degree increments. For example, the average low temperature in zone 3 is -40 to -30 degrees Fahrenheit, while the average low temperature in zone 10 is +30 to +40 degrees Fahrenheit.

The new 2006 arborday.org Hardiness Zone Map is consistent with the consensus of climate scientists that global warming is underway. Tree planting is among the positive actions that people can take to reverse the trend. Tree planters across the nation can go to arborday.org, click on the Hardiness Zone link, and enter their zip code to determine their hardiness zone.

"The Arbor Day Foundation supports tree planting throughout America," says Foundation President John Rosenow. "Providing the hardiness zone for individual zip codes at arborday.org is an important part of that goal, by giving tree planters the most up-to-date and useable data available."

"Of course existing trees should continue to be cared for," said Woody Nelson from the Arbor Day Foundation. "Certain species may be more vulnerable to stress with the current warmer climate, but they will continue to provide environmental and economic benefits as they grow. It's just a good idea to consider more tree species diversity for the future."<end copy>

You can download hi-resolution copies of the new map here. If you click around the site you can check your zone via zip code, also.

New Hardiness Maps
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There seems to be a little controversy regarding the new hardiness map. A lot of people are saying that basing the map on 15 years of data is a mistake. I can only speak to my little area and I happen to agree that some areas of the Connecticut shoreline are Zone 7. We have quite a few microclimates here in Connecticut and I think gardeners in general are still going to have to think about that. This isn’t going to make me rush out and buy a bunch of Zone 7 plants and think they are going to magically survive do to the map changes. It seems, from my personal observations, that every eight to ten years here that we get a winter that burns the higher zone plants to the ground.