Never give up! If I can do it, so can you!

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My Marie Bracy Camellia has a bloom! MY MARIE BRACY CAMELLIA HAS A BLOOM!!!!! To say I am excited would be an understatement, as several years ago I managed to kill all 6 of the camellias I planted in the ground.

Thankfully, I hate giving up, so last year, I tried again and planted Marie Bracy, Pink Perfection, Yuletide and Nuccio’s Gem, all in pots this time with filtered sun, under my orange tree. My persistence paid off and ALL are still alive one year later! In fact, I have blooms or buds on the Yuletide, Marie Bracy and Nuccio’s Gem! I’m still waiting on Pink Perfection, but she seems like she is doing good so I am not worried.

I guess it’s true in gardening like it is in real estate, LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION! I am so happy I found the perfect location for my camellias and that I didn’t give up!

Happy New Year!

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I finally got around to planting a few of my $1 Walmart tulips in the front yard by my fountain. I only had 4, so it wasn’t really enough to make a gardening statement, but I thought, oh well, why not? Let’s see how it looks and if I like it, next year I will go all out and buy more. I felt confident that if I planted them out front they would be safe from my chicks! Needless to say, I thought I was golden.

Oops! I forgot about…THE SQUIRREL!! The bad one. The one that always tries to eat my roses. The one that always gets into my bird feeders if I forget to put food out for him. THAT SQUIRREL. Well today he found my tulips and dug a few of them up. I caught him in the act as he was happily munching on them! Bad, bad, bad squirrel

*Sigh* It seems like I am doomed to a life and garden full of chickenwire, no matter where I plant my flowers, LOL. Oh well, if that is all I have to worry about in this life, then I guess I truly am golden

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Peace in Spite of Covid

Wow! Can you believe 2021 is just about over? I honestly can’t say I’m sad to see it go. I mean, my whole family contracted COVID in September, which was not fun; Losing my sense of smell was one of the weirdest things I have ever experienced. Fortunately, we all recovered, but unfortunately, COVID also stole a few loved ones from us as I know it did from many of you. Yeah, I’m done with 2021 and I am so over COVID as well!

To be honest, this has all felt like a really bad dream that I will wake up from, but I know it’s not a dream, it’s real and I am awake. But the good news is, even though at times I may feel down, I know that God is in control and he will sustain me through all the madness.

I think that may be why he lead me to gardening a few years back. The theater shut down, lots of other activities I loved doing shut down, but heck, I could still go out in my backyard, plant a few things, pick fruit from my trees and listen to the birds sing their glorious songs. I could be still and sit in the garden for hours doing absolutely nothing, and all the while, draw closer to God. I was able to find peace amidst all the craziness in the world and I am so very thankful for that.

My imperfect garden has been such a blessing to me this past year and I know I will be able to face 2022 with God’s help and a few roses, camellias and carnations!

Here’s wishing everyone a Glorious, Peaceful and Happy New Year! Now go sit in your garden

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The winter solstice has always been special to me as a barren darkness that gives birth to a verdant future beyond imagination, a time of pain and withdrawal that produces something joyfully inconceivable, like a monarch butterfly masterfully extracting itself from the confines of its cocoon, bursting forth into unexpected glory.

Gary Zukav

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Legend of the Poinsettia

The legend of the poinsettia dates back several centuries, to a Christmas Eve in Mexico when a little girl named Pepita had no gift to present to the Christ child at Christmas Eve Service. 

As Pepita walked slowly to the chapel with her cousin Pedro, her heart was filled with sadness rather than joy. I am sure, Pepita, that even the most humble gift, if given in love, will be acceptable in His eyes,” said Pedro consolingly.

Not knowing what else to do, Pepita knelt by the roadside and gathered a handful of common weeds, fashioning them into a small bouquet. Looking at the scraggly bunch of weeds, she felt more saddened and embarrassed than ever by the humbleness of her offering. She fought back a tear as she entered the small village chapel.

As she approached the altar, she remembered Pedro’s kind words: “Even the most humble gift, if given in love, will be acceptable in His eyes.” She felt her spirit lift as she knelt to lay the bouquet at the foot of the nativity scene. Suddenly, the bouquet of weeds burst into blooms of brilliant red, and all who saw them were certain that they had witnessed a Christmas miracle right before their eyes.

From that day on, the bright red flowers were known as the Flores de Noche Buena “Flowers of the Holy Night” for they bloomed each year during the Christmas season. We now refer to this plant as the poinsettia.

Quick Facts about Poinsettias

• Poinsettias bloom when the days get shorter.
• The colorful “flowers” of poinsettias are actually modified leaves called “bracts.”
• Poinsettias grow well in moist soil and temperatures between 65 and 70 degrees F.
• They can be grown outdoors during summer.
• Poinsettias are not poisonous, but the sap may cause dermatitis.

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This was my beautiful Mystic Sparkler Dahlia. It was love at first sight when I first spotted it at Armstrong’s Nursery and I knew I had to have it.

I’ve never grown a dahlia before but decided to take a chance, purchased it and took it home. I was so excited, anticipating I would be able to enjoy the beautiful blooms for many months to come. Alas, that was not to be the case.

In July, my son and I went away for a week to Oregon for our annual family reunion. Before we left, I deep watered everything including my dahlia thinking it would be ok. I was wrong. When we got home, I noticed it was stressed, so out of love and concern, I watered it. And watered it, and watered it! I gave it sooo much love, I think I killed it; Death by drowning . I watched as it seemingly died a slow and painful death, taking part of my heart with it. I really didn’t want to give up on it, but I finally decided to face reality and dug it up to make way for something else that was obviously alive.

As I was pulling it out of the pot to throw in the compost pile, I noticed a small tuber. Hmmm, was it large enough to come back?? I had no idea as I had never grown a dahlia before, lol. Well, nothing ventured nothing gained I always say, so I stuck it in an empty unused pot just in case, and forgot about it.

Fast forward to today. There is something growing in that pot! It is definitely NOT a weed, but I’m not sure it’s a dahlia either. It could be a potato as I remember throwing some seed potatoes in that same pot, LOL. I have no idea what it is at this point, but I am hoping for a dahlia and not a potato. I guess time will tell

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I like to keep things really simple (K.I.S.S?) When I get a cutting or a division, I basically just stick it in the soil, water it and hope for the best! That’s it! If it takes, it takes, if not, oh well on to the next one. Rarely do I use a rooting hormone, but when I try to propagate roses, I sometimes do.

Like I said, I keep it very simple, BUT if you are the kind of person that wants more in depth information on propagation, there is a lot of it out there to be had. A fun and informative book about propagation is Free Plants for Everyone by David the Good. It’s easy to read and has lots of great information. It’s available on Amazon for under $20. Of course if you Google “Plant Propagation” you will get tons of information as well.

Plant propagation can be easy and fun so don’t let lack of funds stop you from growing things! Get creative! Save those seeds from your grocery store produce, ask a friend to divide up some of their plants to share with you and get to growing!

Resources

Books on Plant Propagation:

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