h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Probably they aren't gardenias, but a guy can dream.

Looks like the plant is a Begonia

Great hiding place for Jax, but Opie is good at seeking!

Like the Romans say:

Exite Jactum Opium

Begone(ia) Enlightened Milk of the poppy.

Yes, they do look like begonias.

The Romans gave England Boxwood, mulberries, and some other things, but begonias were first discovered in Brazil in 1590 by a Franciscan monk.

Shortly thereafter, the line 'Does the name Ruby Begonia ring a bell?' became popular.

Are you channeling Amos or Andy, Dmitri? Or Kingfish? I know the Amos and Andy Show was not respected (to say the least), but as a little kid I enjoyed it. African American actors starred in it, and I learned to respect them as people with many of the same problems as the white people I lived among.

Stereotypes? Well, if you know next to nothing about something, how would you know if a depiction of it was a stereotype? And, superpowers are stereotypical if anything ever was, and movies about them do very well these days.

Actually, I remembered that line from Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In. I think it was Flip Wilson. He probably got it from Amos'n'Andy. (As a kid, I liked Amos'n'Andy for the same reason as you - they were real people. Also, the actors were terrific.)

Thank you, Dmitri. You and I are the only people I know of who liked that show. It was a shame that the radio version featured white actors.

There's a very good documentary called 'Anatomy of a Controversy'. You can see it on Youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQkXBe8jufM

Thanks Sasha, he's probably hiding due to the European arrest warrant...

They'll never catch him.

So it's a confirm that this flower is a begonia?

I had a friend who liked begonias. I don't hate begonias, but they don't seem to have a strong or distinctive smell.

We have begonias. These ain't bergonian!

Back to the flower manual, then.

http://www.brooksidenursery.co.uk/begonia-illumination-white-trailing-5-large-plug-plants.html

I still say begonia - I can see the male flowers with the yellow centre and the large female flowers

I stand corrected, we have double bergonian flowers! Thanks!

There are so many different flowers. I like a lot of them, but there are some I just can't include in my repertoire, sad to say.

The ones I love the best (Echinacea) gets eaten by local rabbits and woodchucks. but the wild roses are growing well for me, and they are loaded with rose hips this year . Irises are a treat, but with a short blooming season.

Rhododendrons are a good compromise -- gorgeous, sweet-smelling blooms, and distinctive leaves that are interesting by themselves.

My mother had a pot of begonias in her kitchen. I still dream about her. A nice lady, very detail-oriented and caring and humble, but with a tragic eating disorder. By the time she was eighty, she was so thin, she needed a lot of care.

Yes, double begonias are different from the usual bedding plant type. I admire the skill of exhibitors who nurture their plants to produce prizewinning blooms http://national-begonia-society.co.uk/Blooms/Blooms%20Images/N_BL_PowderPuff_Lg.jpg

I honestly don't know how the plant breeders come up with some of the stuff they do. My brother has a yellow Peony tree that just takes my breath away.

Every year, the Echinacea breeders come up with new blooms.