WHAT'S LOOKING EXOTIC IN 2017

@alp I use the Colgin 'liquid smoke' for bbq flavour instead of the smoke papers. There has been some research that says it has the same compounds. It seems to help germination anyway. It's a lot cheaper than the smoke papers from Kirstenbosch.

 

Not sure if these are classified as exotic....
Kalanchoe pearl bells


Clivia

 

All of my Arisaema have either failed to bloom or not come up at all this year I've had a gentle dig around the non shows and the tubers are still there, solid and mostly with roots.
In fact all the aroids are struggling this year. The Calla have only recently emerged and I have a rare Arum that has only just poked through.

 

They're exotic houseplants!
I particularly like the Kalanchoe. I saw some recently, passed them over and then a few days later I changed my mind so I went back and they were all gone

 

I've had a couple pop up leaves but no flower, but overall done fairly well. The A candissimum was a pleasant surprise, as it was put in as a flowering plant in 2014, then I didn't see a sign of it in until I spotted it in flower this week. I could easily have missed it in 2016 as I wasn't looking for it, but I did look in 2015 as it was expected.

 

I did have a close look Strongy, and could see some small brown leaves. It looks as though mine had flowered - but I just didn't notice it. Many thanks for highlighting it.


Sandersonia aurantica. Whilst this isn't my own plant, I thought I must show it. I have tried to grow it from seed and failed, and you rarely see a tuber or plant for sale. It is a close relative of Gloriosa and has the same type of leaves and stems, as well as growing from a similar tuber. It comes from South Africa and has been traditionally used by the Zulu people as an aphrodisiac. It was displayed in an Alpine House. Whilst it is small, as a tropical plant it is clearly not an alpine.

I went with a couple of friends on Saturday to the RHS Harlow Carr Flower Show and saw it there. This is only the show's second year and it was quite small, but we all agreed that the setting, and the presentation was better than any other flower show we had been to. I didn't have my camera, so my friend kindly took this photo for me.

 

I've tried twice, got one seed to germinate but that never really took off and never came back the following spring.

 

I did a bit of Googling when I was writing the above, and it did say that Sandersonia was extremely difficult from seed.

 

No.2 is easy - Streptocarpus "Harlequin Lace"

Six and seven I have no idea but you have to go back and find out for me. It's a gem!

Eight is an Abutilon hybrid whilst nine is Abutilon megapoticum.

Ten is a variety of Geranium (can you remember what the leaves smelt of?).

The last one is a photo of some really poorly leaves with the flowers of a Streptocarpella plant poking out under them.

 

The last one is a Begonia Hybrid of some sort.

Sorry @longk , it's not poorly that's it's markings