Monday, August 29, 2011

Garden day

Today was a beautiful day.  Enjoyed coffee in the gazebo with Dad and my friend Melinda. 

Followed by breakfast with Mom and Dad, then it was time for playing in the garden.  I had a ton of things that needed to get repotted.  

 Red Anthurium
She kept having yellowing leaves and realized that she was root bound.  Lets see if that took care of the problem. FYI This is one plant that I always have a brain fart when trying to remember its name.

 This is the little Rubbertree plant that Dad gave me last year. I also repotted another larger Rubbertree plant.

 I have no idea what this plant is called.  Here is the back story to this plant.  Dad had accidentally broke it off a plant, then he put it in water to take root.  When it was full of roots, he gave it to me to plant.  I planted her.  She did really well but this part of the plant always looked out of place.  So I cut her from the rest of the plant, and put her in water.  She was full of roots again, so I planted her up and gave her to my niece Tiffany.  I am sure she is in good hands.

 This was a little volunteer growing beside the path.  I knew if I left her there she would die with the first frost.  So I dug her up and slapped her in a container.  Yes, just one more plant to overwinter, but she is small and won't take up much room.  


 These are Purple Queen Transcendentia.  This is another example of breaking off part of a plant and putting it in water to root.  I just can't throw them in the compost pile.  Its a sickness, I know.


A few more plants that were repotted.  I want to mention that I am at a full panic  mode with the Plumeria cuttings.  You can see one of the cuttings on the ground in front of the bench.  When I planted the cuttings, I believe I used moisture control potting soil.  I was worried that they would eventually rot if I did nothing.  I had more appropriate soil and decided to repot them.  That is when I noticed that two of them did not have any roots.  WTF!  How does this even happen.  All I can do is keep a close eye on them and hope for the best.

 I am embarrassed that I let the Purple Velvet plant get into this condition.  She has looked pale for awhile, and I was thinking she was not getting enough water.  Well, turns out she was a root bound mess.  So of course water was an issue.  I hate the pot I had to put her into, but there was no other options.  Note to self, get more pots at yard sales.  You know you can never have enough.

 My first Limelight Hydrangea cutting.  I put it in the fountain until a good amount of roots formed and, viola.

 Here is one of the other Limelight cuttings that I took much later.  The roots were not as good, but wish her luck.  In the pot to the right of the picture, is Arabian Jasmine cuttings.  I have no idea if this will work, but I will keep you posted.


The Holly Fern needed to get out of the small terracotta pot that it previously called home.  This pot is a little to big, but again, the planter choices are limited at this time.

 This little Impatien volunteer showed up in the front Hosta bed.  Avoiding another tragic end if the frost would get her, I slapped her into a pot.  We are a good month and a half away from the first frost, but trust, if I don't strike while the iron is hot, I might run out of time.

 My little Avocado tree. 
If you are interested in growing you're own tree, it is simple.  The next time you buy an Avocado from the grocery save the seed.  As soon as you use your Avocado, wash off the seed.  Plant it in some potting soil, just covering the seed.  Give it a nice drink and put it out to get some sunshine.  I put this one on the front porch where it received morning sun, then bright indirect light the rest of the day.

 Now this little volunteer is quite special.  I planted Coleus from seed last year and had them growing in a container just inches from where this little one came up.  Coleus are not hardy in my area, and as far as I know, they do not reseed in this zone either.  I am completely baffled at how she battled the odds to survive this past winter.  Another very small plant that will find its way into the warmth of the house for winter.  Yeah.

 I replanted this Corn Plant that my Phoenix family gave me.  I had one of these many years ago, and she died a quick death.  I have always been a little leary of getting another one.  Well, here it is and the pressure is on. lol  First she was blown over twice by ungodly winds.  Now I repotted her in a very large pot, and I have good vibes. Wish me luck.

 Another photo of the Arabian Jasmine cuttings.


I transplanted the Limelight Hydrangea that we got last year.  I am notorious for trying to force plants to grow where I want them, instead of where they want.  It will get you in trouble every time.  I transplanted two Swamp Mallow hibiscus plants, one Nikko Blue Hydrangea, and one Wine and Roses Weigela.


The 4 Oclocks and Gazania daisies are beautiful.


 I cannot believe that that this Hardy Banana tree has gotten this big.  From the pencil sized plant she was just a few months ago, she is definitely out to impress.


Japanese Windflower

More Gazania blooms.  Note to self, google collecting the seeds.


The Peach Hibiscus is starting to really set buds, and she is not dropping the leaves that she was.

The front Hosta bed.


Tomorrow's project.  Stay tuned.


Sunday, August 28, 2011

August evenings

I have not had a chance to check on the Plumeria bud until today.  It will take another month before she blooms.  


Today I found this fern sitting beside a dumpster.  I am not a big fan of overwintering these messy plants, but I can't stand to see a plant thrown away.  How pathetic am I?


I know that I just posted a picture of the hyacinth bean plant, but what the hell.  I am very very happy with her growth.

 I need to train the future plants to climb the fence.  Right after I paint the shed that was to get painted last fall.


This pathway full of Moon flower blooms  was absolutely intoxicating last night.  I highly recommend snipping off a couple of blooms and take them in the house.  They only last the night, but the fragrance is wonderful.

 

Friday, August 26, 2011

50th Wedding Anniversary!!!

Happy 50th Wedding Anniversary Mom and Dad. 

 I wanted to make their anniversary wonderful, and it really was.  They loved it. I am not posting photos of the backyard with the twinkle lights all around, you have seen plenty of them.  However, I thought I would throw you a couple photos of the buffet table area.  I did not have all of the food out there at the time of the photo, but don't get me started.  One more thing that I would like to mention, is the letter framed in the center is from the White house.
Here is the table after dark.  The Serenity garden was so romantic.

A new bench for the party.  I think it looks great, thanks dad for helping out with this.  I swear the top stone about killed me.
A few happenings with the flowers of the gardens.
The blooms of the Rose of Sharon on this plant are open much wider this season than in the past.  They look like stars from across the yard.

 I could not be more pleased with the Hyacinth bean plant.


 Celosia, this plant is at least 4 feet tall.  Is this normal?

 Celosia
 Japanese Windflower
 This is not even the largest leaf on this Castor plant.

I just wanted to add a little note to all of those who decided not to show up or participate in the party, shame on you, you know who you are.

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

August Happenings 2011



The Peach Hibiscus has started to bloom.

 
 The Red Plumeria is going to bloom again this year.
I have to report that I am a little concerned with the Plumeria cuttings.  I think that I have them planted in unsuitable soil.  After this weekend I will try to make that happen.

 I am under the assumption that the 4 O'clocks plants got their name because of the time of day that they bloom.  This is either false, or our 4 O'clocks cannot tell time.

 We went to the Indiana State fair today and sadly woke up the next day to the news of the tragedy that happened just hours after we left.  My thoughts go out to all of the friends and family of those involved. With that being said, we did not take many photos at the fair, but my friend Cat captured a few photos that I thought our friend Concert would enjoy.  So Concert, enjoy.





YW