Our Summer Garden

Our back garden with bougainvillae and areca palm

Isn't this a wonderful time of the year. The morning air is fresh and sweet with the scent of oleander and brugmansia, and our nights are perfumed with the Dama de Noche, Cestrum Nocturnum. As you can see I am still in the process of putting new plants into patio pots and have not yet finished. I'm hoping to buy a small banana plant to put in a bare spot of the lawn, where it will be visible when we sit outside to dine.

Part of our cactus garden

The back lawn is still green

There's something to say about just leaving a group of tropical plants to grow where and how they please. I haven't put a hand to this part of my little tropical corner for a couple of years and yet the plants have thrived and grown lush with just regular watering.


And one happy aspect of leaving plants to their own tendencies, is the pleasant surprise one has to find an untended corner has bloomed into a mass of lush greenery.


Of course one has to plant them there in the first place, but in this climate one never has to worry about filling up garden spaces. Things just grow together on their own creating eye pleasing masses.


This pot was a happy find in a garden shop. I can't bear to put a plant it though as it would look silly sticking out of Buddha's head, so it's a purely decorative part of my garden. Besides the blackbirds like to sit there.


The front garden is full of a mixture of roses and tropical plants. I've also planted another Dama de Noche there near the house so the scent will waft through the window around nine o'clock in the evening.

I hope you have enjoyed this glimpse of my Tenerife garden.
Thank you for your visit. Have a good rest of the week and ¡hasta la vista!

101 ~ In a Tenerife Garden

Recently I have been taking some photos of a private garden here on the island of Tenerife. I've always been impressed by the way the owner, who has style and a great love of plants, can combine eclectic items to create so much beauty. The islands are in a subtropical climate zone and so there are many tropical plants which will grow easily from a cutting or root. She takes advantage of every chance to root a plant that she doesn't already have in her garden. We are blessed with a mild climate here, and so the phrase ...'Islands of Eternal Spring' is very fitting.

Old Canary Stone Water Distiller

The stone water distiller has been a traditional item in Canary Island homes, being used for filtering and cooling drinking water. It consists of three parts: the top stone basin into which water is poured. A central shelf where the water is collected after it has filtered by dripping down through the stone and a lower basin which collects any overflow from the level above. The system is enclosed in a wooden hutch made from the heartwood of Canary pine. These water filters are now prized as antiques but many are still in use in Canary homes.

Koi Pond

Canary Fern - Helecho de Metro (Goniophlebium Subauriculatum)

The long trailing fronds of this beautiful Canary fern are seen here displayed on top of a closed water distiller. These prized plants are often passed on from one generation to another. The folk name is 'ferns of a meter',
'helechos de metro' referring to their length, when in fact they grow much longer than one meter. I had quite a job tracking down their biological name as even plant nurseries I visited didn't know. Finally I had success in the offices of the Botanical Garden, where the question was put to their computer database. At last I found it to be Goniophlebium Subauriculatum. So if you are ever searching for such a beautiful fern, do take note of the name now because few people know it.

Here's a SLIDESHOW of photos I've taken there. I hope you will enjoy looking!

Thanks for dropping by, and hasta la vista!

60 ~ Summer is Ending

Here it is nearly autumn. The sun sits a little lower in the sky but the days are still warm and golden.

We're waiting for some much needed rain which has arrived in torrential fashion to the Spanish mainland, where there is serious flooding.

But here in Canaries, we look at the sky, ask our old gardener if he can interpret any signs from the cloud formations, as most local people who have worked the land here are able to do, but with a glance skyward and a shrug of the shoulders he shakes his head. No, hoy no va llover. Quizás mañana. Not today, perhaps tomorrow.

So we put the sprinkler again on the lawn and hose the dust from the car, then take a little walk around the garden with the camera and Bibi, our new Siamese cat.

The warm weather has caused her to moult, losing much of the dark brown hair on her back, exposing some of the lighter hair underneath, and in places looking almost like pale stripes.

The mandevilla blooms well at this time.

We even have some dried leaves, but miss the autumn chill in the air that goes with raking them into a pile for the composter. The Madagascar Palm (Pachypodium Lamerei) is still putting forth white flowers on that one stem I photographed earlier.

Is this perhaps the last red rose of summer? In a few days it will be autumn, but the rose bushes are all putting forth new growth and many flower buds. It's not yet time for them to have a rest.





Hibiscus blooms most of the year; this one has just had a watering from the hose.





The hedges are growing rapidly now we have cooler evenings. There is always something to prune or trim.

A blackbird sits outside my window, waiting for the doves to vacate the bird feeder. They seem to find it a convenient place to dine, much to the dismay of the smaller birds.

Yes I see you watching me. Now move out of the food tray and let the smaller birds have a chance please!

Well I guess I'd better go now and make our dinner. Hasta la vista!

58 ~ The Orchid Garden

(click to enlarge)
The garden at Sitio Litre in Puerto de la Cruz, built in 1730, is one of the oldest gardens on the island of Tenerife. The privately owned estate is known for its collection of tropical and subtropical plants as well as a famous orchid garden which is open to the public.



Once a monastery, the estate was purchased by an Englishman, Mr. Archibald Little, who lived in the villa with his family. It became know at that time as 'Little's Place' which in Spanish evolved into 'Sitio Litre'.

Mr. Little reformed the villa and garden, turning it into a guest house with beautiful surrounding gardens.


Alexander Von Humboldt bonsai garden

It was sold in later years and the present owner, who purchased it in 1996, opened the gardens to the public.

The Aviary

The Orchid Bower



The garden contains one of the oldest dragon trees in Puerto de la Cruz and the orchid garden with the largest collection on the island.



Frangipani (Plumeria Alba)

Among the well-known people who stayed at Sitio Litre when it was a guest house are Alexander von Humboldt, Oscar Wilde, Marianne North and Agatha Christie with her daughter Rosalind.


It was here that Agatha Christie was inspired to write 'The Mysterious Mr. Quinn'.

A luncheon for the charity group 'Friends of Tenerife' held amidst beautiful surroundings at the outdoor cafe in The Orchid Garden.

The garden has a Koi pond, a small gift shop and a charming outdoor cafe.

Open from 9:30 to 6 pm daily.
Telephone 922 38 24 17
Calle Sitio Litre s/n, Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife.