New Avenues for Growth

It’s 108 degrees outside and will likely get hotter. And to think that we had night-time temperatures in the 50’s earlier in the week! That’s the great thing about living in the Southern Piedmont region; June almost always holds a “cold snap” (except in last year’s brutal heat). My “rooster plant” is maturing nicely and is sprouting branches along its “trunk”. The red hibiscus not only survived the cut (pruning) but as hoped, is branching out in new directions. More branches equal more flowers!

Orange Bounty

Today I have bounty of orange hibiscus! Orange flowers are harder to find than the prevalent pink ones so I’m always searching (marigolds don’t’ work well for me since the smell isn’t suited for the close quarters I have in my garden, and they tend to be aphid magnets) but these one-day-wonders are definitely filling the need for floral sunshine!

Outdoor Writing

Today is another Red Hibiscus Day. The weather was so mild, I was able to sit outside for awhile to write. Now, it’s not so mild. Lots of plants are blooming or on the verge of blooming and the birds are singing. It’s good.

Soaking Wet

Last night’s hard rain slanted in on my garden without harming it. The plants are wet—most of them, and the air is drenched. This morning the heavy moisture escaped the soil as a misty fog. The sun’s getting through the clouds a bit now but hasn’t made it very far into my home; it’s dark in here! It’s another Red Hibiscus Day and the garden is flowering.

Oh Deer!

My miniature pomegranate is settling in and blooming well--but only on the less sunny side though its tag says that it needs full sun. The tag also says that it’s “deer resistant”. That’s a good thing I’m sure, but if a deer ever leaps up here to my second floor balcony, though technically it’s probably possible, it will be a strange day and I’ll be leaping somewhere else! Fortunately we don’t even have squirrels near us. The last place we lived was overrun with them; they ate my plants down to the nubs. They seemed to especially like purple flowers—my specialty. Though I tried really hard to think of them as cute, I couldn’t any longer. I prayed to be able to appreciate this creation of God’s. And I prayed some more. At last, I focused on their amazing acrobatic ability and praised God for his wonderful creation. But I was reminded of the time, in the movie Fiddler on the Roof, when the village rabbi was asked if there was a blessing for the Russian Tsar. The rabbi responded, “May the Lord bless and keep the Tsar…far away from us!” Ditto the squirrels. However, I’m the one who had to move.

Orange-flowered Bush

Prettiest Petunias?

These white-edge fuchsia petunias that have come back for a second round may be the prettiest and healthiest ones I’ve ever grown! The leaves are larger, their cascade is more graceful and they’re blooming profusely. And I haven’t done a thing except water the stumps all winter.

I discovered that they make good cut flowers as well; who would have thought it? I accidentally broke off a branch and joined it with a bouquet I already had; it has lasted several days and is still in good shape.

At Last!

As I arranged my garden yesterday I thought that my beautiful pink daylily given to me by my fellow artist S. in the ‘90’s might benefit from a move to the sunnier end of the balcony. It hasn’t bloomed in five or so years; every year I think, “I’ll fertilize it, make sure it gets enough water but if it doesn’t bloom this year it has to go.” It never did but I couldn’t get rid of it. I was all around it the last two days and saw no changes but today this flower stalk that holds at least two blossoms “suddenly materialized!” I’m getting a late start in posting today because I simply chose to sit in the garden and read scripture. If not for the strong 90 degree afternoon sun or the indoor things I must do, I could stay out there all day.

Four!

On Saturday, every time I caught a glimpse of the red hibiscus bush, I exclaimed in amazement, “Four!” Four blossoms opened on one day! I’ve never seen so many on this bush at one time—perhaps there’s some beauty queen competition now that there’s a new hibiscus in the garden. I know, I know, plants don’t think. I exclaimed in wonderment so many times that my husband was beginning to think I was losing my memory since each time it sounded like I hadn’t seen them before.☺ Wonder shouldn’t expire with familiarity.

Another Beauty Queen

Yesterday was yet another Red Hibiscus Day but now that beauty has competition—or perhaps a companion in beauty. I finally found an orange hibiscus I liked (size, price, color). The orange flowers are smaller than the red and seem to be slower to open but they have an unusual deep pink throat; when I saw the color combination, I knew it was the one.

The red flowers would have been open at dawn while these are only half-opened at mid-day. It’s possible that the orange ones will stay open longer. We’ll see. The bush is full of buds so I’ll be posting plenty of pictures in weeks to come.


I put it in the sun to see if it would open faster and keep checking in hope that I can show you how it looks fully open. Alas, that will have to be for another post but it did make a little progress—here’s a picture of a half-opened orange hibiscus.

Every Day

Ever since I got this lovely magenta/fuchsia (with an unusual green cast) phalaenopsis orchid plant in February, a week or so before Valentine’s Day, every day has been an Orchid Day! All of the flowers except one have lasted for at least two months and more have opened along the way!

Even if you think you can’t grow orchids, at today’s low prices (resulting from newer propagation methods); you can enjoy the flowers for longer than any bouquet of cut flowers. Then when the flowers are finished you can give the plant to someone who has the ability to coax them into reblooming, or you or they can enjoy the low maintenance green plant.

And yes, today is another Red Hibiscus Day!

Ever Faithful

I can always count on Sweet William’s brilliant color to be the first to brighten my garden—year after year. I do have to cut back the stragglers and replace some of the plants from time to time but they grow well in my large pot. Their bloom surge is in the spring with another in the fall though they bloom here and there throughout the summer. They make fairly good cut flowers in small vases.

Today is yet another Red Hibiscus Day! I could get spoiled.

Back Out

The “mother” spider plant, along with its companion geranium, is enjoying freedom outdoors back on its hook again. The spider plant did fine indoors—when I didn’t trip on its branches, but the geranium will do much better outdoors. When we lived in New England, I knew a woman who kept her geraniums blooming indoors through the harsh, snowy winters but I’ve never been able to pull that off.


Today is also another Red Hibiscus Day! The gorgeous red blossoms are opening nearly every day now.

Morning Peace

A red hibiscus (flower of peace) greeted me this morning. The buds start as tiny green knobs and seem to take forever to develop but once they achieve a certain level of maturity their growth accelerates. Once the roll of petals emerges, I can tell about what day it will bloom—usually in two to three days.

The hibiscus will need pruning soon. I don’t really like pruning but I would like more flowers. Maybe I can find a bright orange one at a good price this year.

In the photo you can see the pollen-laden pine trees through the window; other areas have pollen-dropping oak trees. Both kinds of pollen have covered everything outside for miles around. Even an aerial photo of one of our lakes shows a huge amount of yellow pollen on its surface. Reportedly, it’s the worst pollen “season” in a long time—maybe ever. I enjoy trees but I will be glad when they finish this cycle so that my eyes and nose can be at peace!

To Flourish

The prayer plant is blooming again. This is the kind of little white flower that I told you about that made the seed pod that dropped the tiny seeds that grew the new baby prayer plant. The flower lasts only about a day so the process is very quick—no wonder I missed it last time. Both plants are blooming; they must be happy.

That reminds me of the old saying that I’ve come to dread, “Bloom where you’re planted.” It’s plain that a gardener didn’t come up with it since plants grow well and bloom in good soil, light and water conditions. While they can overcome difficult circumstances, they typically don’t flourish unless they have what they need. God didn’t come up with it either. Jesus made plain in his “Parable of the Sower” that plants flourish in good soil, using plants as a metaphor for people who flourish spiritually when they understand the “message about the kingdom” and aren’t distracted by “the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of riches” (Matthew 13:1-23 NIV).

Good conditions grow good plants—and people. However, God has a different definition of good than most people and includes persecution for Jesus’ name but it does not include sickness or tragedy since, “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work” (1 John 3:8 NIV).

Parade

The light is already changing in the east windows as the white pear blossoms are replaced with spring green leaves. Sunlight still feeds the pentas, Angelonias and prayer plants from another angle though since the maples and oaks haven’t leafed out yet.

Since the air conditioner is finally on, we won’t need the fan any more for awhile so it’s back in its corner but the bougainvillea that surrounded it is still outdoors. The calendar says it’s the first day of spring but it could still get cold—but probably not that cold. More plants may go out soon.

Over the weekend, we saw lots of red-violet redbuds, yellow forsythias, and added to the colorful parade were the yellow-green beginnings of dogwood bracts, purple wisteria and the palest of pink cherry blossoms. A few pink or orange tulips joined in as well. Spring is definitely here! And though I’m sneezing through it, I love it!

Few & Far Between

A “Red Hibiscus Day” again—at last. The bush doesn’t bloom very often indoors but it does bloom and I’m happy for it. The beautiful red blooms always brighten my day and after a day like yesterday—“one of those days” I’m ready for all the brightening I can get!

I first became “taken” with the red hibiscus when I saw them everywhere in Spain and found that they represent peace. Peace is a good thing.

Party Worthy

A fellow art student fascinated me with the story of the Night Blooming Cereus given to her by a friend who inherited it from her mother. The plant was so valuable her friend said that in case of fire, it would be grabbed to go. It had, I was told, a wonderful short-lived flower with a glorious fragrance.

While looking through some of my old photos for something “new” to paint, I was elated to find a picture of my California aunt’s Night Blooming Cereus.

When I exhibited the resulting painting another artist gifted me with a cutting from her special plant. When her Night Blooming Cereus blooms, she throws a party so her friends can enjoy the fragrance with her!

I’ve been growing the cutting in the same little pot for about twelve years; it hasn’t grown very much though it’s happiest in its current space. More sun and more water seem to suit it well. I’ve been hesitant to repot it since I had heard somewhere along the way that they need to be pot bound in order to bloom; I’m always hopeful. However, I think this year is its time to spread out—and maybe get it some fertilizer.

*Oil Painting Night Blooming Cereus

A Better Place

In Orchids Simplified, by Henry Jaworski (I find lots of good information at my local library), I found that my phalaenopsis orchid needs more light in order to bloom (I suspected that) and that it benefits from being in an eastern window. The added suggestion that it needs a cool spot this time of year in order to begin blooming can be happily accommodated by moving it to the morning window! It should also get a bit more air circulation there. I like it when things coordinate so easily! Hopefully the strong morning sun won’t overwhelm it since the bottom half of the window is covered with fine black screening material (on the outside).

More New Growth

The baby prayer plant is growing and now has four leaves! I’d like to say that it’s the first prayer plant I’ve grown from seed but the fact is that the seed planted itself—as it was created to do and I only watered it and gave it sunlight.


The bougainvillea has adjusted so well to its indoor spot that not only is it growing lots of new leaves (to replace the ones it dropped) but it’s growing new branches too! According to the Bougainvillea Growers International, they bloom on new growth!

I’m looking forward to today’s much warmer weather but not yet another day of water outage for pipe repairs. So far the water is still on.