Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Anthurium andraeanum - Life Imitatimg Fake

This is one of the most misunderstood flower. It has often been mistaken for a fake and a popular fake it is. The petal (spathe) is thick and waxy making it a popular cut flower. It is also very often maligned as those with imaginative or 'wayward' minds refer to its vague semblance of a part of the human anatomy.
This vermillion variety is large, loud and a real attention grabber.
 
A less fiery shade of red but just as lovely is presented here.


The dwarf variety is mass planted for visual impact.

Being low and compact they make ideal bedding plants.

Nodding heads of the dwarf variety make a good landscape design statment.

This is an anthurium with a slightly different form and hue. The variations extend to the spadix where in this instance is mostly white with a slight pink flush on its tip. The tiny flowers are carried on the spadix.


This is another dwarf variety with purplish red spathe and deep purple spadix, Anthurium previa.

 
This is a large variety with pure white spathe and spadix, the tip of which is dipped in sunshine; Anthurium carnival.

This anthurium of white spathe with pink spadix provides another permutation of variety.

A teeny weeny damsel fly seen clutching the edge of this anthurium.

This one started off as a white spathe but gradually acquired a greenish tinge as it matured. It provided a broad platform for this gastropod to glide happily on until it ...

reached the tip and then - oops! The equilibrium was lost and it was left swinging and suspended for a while. It was probably having great fun.

“If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there.”  - Lewis Carroll


A single stalk of anthurium provide contrast to a single frond of Norfolk Island Pine. These two cuttings last like eternity in my columnar vase of water.

Posted from Cork, Ireland (This is my last week of my one-month sojourn in Ireland).

27 comments:

  1. That plant has a great colour! I've seen that plant as a houseplant growing inside in Finland. It's too cold here to grow it outside.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sadun,
      Too bad you can only grow it as a houseplant. We can put it in the ground and it blooms year round.

      Delete
  2. Są to piękne kwiaty, ale u nas są tylko w kwiaciarniach i w domu w donicach. Pozdrawiam.
    These are beautiful flowers, but here are just florists and at home in pots. Yours.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Giga,
      We do keep it potted too and when placed indoors the flowers are long lasting. They are also popular with the florists here. As they do not wilt easily under our tropical heat, they are used extensively in floral arrangements.

      Delete
  3. I had no idea this plant has so many wonderful colour variations. Every reputable florist has these in stock and they are very popular in Canada. Your photos and arrangement are beautiful and although both are tropical plants, I have to laugh because we are heading into winter soon and they remind me of a fir tree branch and holly berries, perfect for Christmas!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rosemary,
      Btw the Norfolk Island Pine is not a tropical plant, but one from a temperate clime. Now that you've mentioned, it does hava a Christmas feel about it.

      Delete
  4. I mostly have the common pink variety, but they have been so successful in my garden I would like to acquire a few more colors. I have a red one that has not yet flowered and the tiny purple one. I really love the white one, that might have to be next.. I am not so sure the snail would have been enjoying his adventure :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Africanaussie,
      There are many other lovely varieties which I hope to acquire later. The large ones are really spectacular. It was quite hilarious to see the snail in that predicament, but it got out of it soon enough. These pesky gastropods actualy quite resourceful.

      Delete
  5. You truly have a good collection here.
    Mine blooms ones awhile and right now -I'm not even sure what survived and what stayed in my garden.

    And I totally agree with you - these flowers really last long in their blooms.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. James,
      Most of them are the dwarf variety for use as bedding plants. I plan to get the larger variety for indoors as they can be relied upon to stay fresh and colourful.

      Delete
  6. The way that last pic is set up in the vase is really elegant. Very holiday'ish and a great idea. This is one of my favorite plants and it does well in pots here with a little water. Love your shots.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rohrerbot,
      The arrangement is an accidental one. The frond was trimmed off from my potted Norfolk Island Pine as it was too close to the soil being the first leaf of the plant. The Anthurium was accidentally cut off while deadheading. So, I throw bothe of them in a vase and viola ...

      Delete
  7. I have a red one with touches of green, but it is in the conservatory where it lends a bit of colour at this time of year. your images are wonderful.

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    Replies
    1. Rosemary of Five Valleys,
      Thanks for your appreciation.

      Delete
  8. What this world is inny.Anthurium plants everywhere with me only with greenhouse or a potted plant. My favorite is Previa anthurium. Envy you some of these tropical plants, greet

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anthurium previa is pretty with its purple spathe and deeper purple spadix though of the dwarf variety. I envy the colourful and massively blooming annuals in temperate countries. Regards to you.

      Delete
  9. A splendid colourful sculptural flower, & the leaves are beautiful too. And yes, it does look proud.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You are looking at it with an artist's eye. I agree with you that it is both sculptural and well, haughty.

      Delete


  10. Te dejo este manojo de letras en el umbral de la esperanza,
    para que te saluden con la voz del trovador
    acompañando los anhelos, que vuelan hacia las estrellas
    en busca de quimeras…

    ¡¡Un feliz fin de semana
    Alimentando satisfacciones!!

    Atte.
    María Del Carmen




    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. La Gata,
      Thanks for your lyrics and greetings. Happy weekend to you too.

      Delete
  11. A very beautiful patch there gathering many admirers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Malay-Kadazan girl,
      Thanks and glad you dropped by.

      Delete
  12. Thanks for the invitation but have to check it out first.

    ReplyDelete
  13. What a beauty you are showing. I love your blog.
    greatings from Holland

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anthuriums are favourites with most people. Thanks for appreciating my blog and greetings from Malaysia.

      Delete
  14. Hello Stiletto, wow you have so many gorgeous anthuriums. I use to like the red ones only but later I find the pale colours are very charming as well. In my garden, I have to be very patience with this guys. They do not flower so prolifically like yours. You have really look after them very well. Good job!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Actually I find Anthuriums easy to take care of. You can see that snails do not bother to munch on them, so it is one problem less for me. They are also not infested with aphids, mealy bugs and scale insects. They only ask for well drained soil.

      Delete

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