Florida's Foliage, and a Flower

I was in Florida over the weekend for a family wedding. It was sunny and warm and windy: perfect weather for getting away from the cold and wet Northeast. I wandered around the grounds of the hotel, and down to the beach, with my camera; there was plenty to catch my eye in the shapes and colors of foliage. In one large planter, different foliage of strong character and clear shape, made a dramatic statement.

The bright, light green heavy leaves connected, pattern-like, to a strong curving stem.

These leaves had a gentle, orange-tinted fuzz; their light color stood out from the darker foliage.

Down towards the beach were the rounded large leaves of the Sea Grape, with its fruits newly formed.

A beach plant has leaves splashed with red.

Not all the leaves at the Florida shore were bold and dramatic; here is a delicate-leaved plant with subtly red stems wandering across the sand.

Another combination of red stem and green leaf, with leaves sticking out like spikes from their sheaths.

I saw a few small flowers, but this pink one was the most interesting. It reminded me of pea flowers and might be in the same family, but just a lot more sexy. The wedding was held at the Flagler Museum, which had beautiful grounds; a lovely courtyard with gorgeous plantings; and the most remarkable tree I have ever seen, a kapok tree with a huge spreading trunk that seemed to me like something out of a fairy tale (you can see images of the tree here). It was a treat for me to feast my eyes on new forms, so different from those of Vermont.