I knew when I saw one, that I must have one clinging to my wall.
The high part of the carport wall has looked barren for years.
Now it has a creeping fig/ Ficus pumila to add color and interest.
I have not tried to guide or train this in any way.
It is interesting seeing how it hugs the cracks and flattens against the rough surface.
I love that the new leaves have various colors.
Some has slithered over the top.
Where will it go now?
I love the creep!
FLOWER
Just when you thought you could stash your spent Schlumbergeras in the basement,
you have one more assignment. You need to purge the excess foliage.
This is NOT the same as taking cuttings to root new plants.
I covered this last winter in the post, https://floweralley.org/2016/12/30/in-with-the-new/
In that case, you twist off healthy pieces that are three or more links long.
Purging is when you read the plant’s foliage to guide you on what should be removed.
I look for the shriveled sections and cut them off.
These plants have a form of triage.
When a shoot has too many branches to be supported, one gets bypassed and begins to die.
Cutting off the shriveled parts accelerates this process.
I cut all these pieces off of this one cactus.
You cannot tell it has been purged,
except that it is less cluttered and healthier in appearance.
Do not bother trying to revive and root these pieces unless it is a very special specimen that you only have one of.
I have tried various techniques. None have worked well for me.
You will be rewarded next year by taking this step now.
It is also a good time to shape up those lopsided plants.
If you can’t stand to toss a healthy branch in the compost,
dip it in a rooting hormone
and push the piece down in the soil around the mama plant.
Hey. It’s winter, you’re stuck inside. It’s an excuse to play with your plants indoors.
FLOWER
This is a new spurge for me.
Euphorbia x martinii / Ascot Rainbow /Martin’s spurge
It is a dwarf evergreen that is drought tolerant and deer resistant.
Win, win, win.
It is toxic, so it will not be anywhere near the bunny yard.
It caught my eye due to its lovely variegated leaves and shape.
It definitely stands out among other plants.
Luckily, I planted it in a newly-created feature spot near the entrance.
Wow is it showing off now. Yes, now, when everything else is wilting and brown.
The lovely leaves are blushing pink.
It is truly a bright spot.
I look forward to seeing its flowers in the spring, but I can’t imagine it being any prettier than it is right now.
FLOWER
There are three parades each year that I try not to miss.
The Blowing Rock parade on Thanksgiving weekend is one of them.
I am always glad to see some of the same characters every year.
The leader is a lady clown on her three-wheeler with a basket and balloons.
Among the old trucks is the “Mater” truck with a stained glass window and a swing for a seat.
I always look forward to the woman pulling the tiny truck carrying a Christmas tree.
There are also noisy groups of happy cloggers.
and dance troupes.
This year they were in Nutcracker costumes.
A Grinch or two shows up.
Anyone can join in the parade. Big or little.
Two legs or four legs.
We debated whether this was Scooby Doo or a Kangaroo?
I see all this as an opportunity for anyone to stop traffic and strut their stuffing.
It’s such a family friendly event.
Santa brings up the rear riding in a bucket firetruck.
I love this parade of characters.
FLOWER
I have planted hundreds of bulbs in my gardens.
Some stick around and multiply, others disappear.
Where do they go?
I mark them with swizzle sticks, so I won’t dig them up by accident or plop a plant on top of them.
So I know where they were planted.
I go back to that spot and there is nothing but soil.
Hmmmmm?
Did they rot or were they eaten?
We shall see.
I am planting two sets of crocus bulbs inside suet baskets.
These are no longer needed here, because our raccoons love suet.
I learned this in the middle of an experiment to learn which suet was preferred by which birds.
The raccoons ripped the baskets out of the trees and carried them off to open them and eat the suet.
By the way, the raccoons liked the berry suet best. It always got torn down first.
I had three baskets last year. Two were found in isolated locations. One was never found.
I have put five bulbs in each of two suet baskets.
I doubt my little friends can eat their way through these.
I will share the results in the spring.
Maybe I can close down the bulb buffet.
FLOWER
While you are packing, cooking, driving, eating…
Be sure to include some moments.
Pause and take in the scene.
Look into faces, listen to voices, hug people, ask questions.
I call this the “pregnant pause.”
It will give birth to a treasured memory.
Stop, look and listen before some of these folks are gone.
Then you will have only photographs.
Enjoy all that food, but relish your time with family.
Happy Holidays
FLOWER
When it gets cold, the Flower has to play inside.
So I invite friends over to make things.
This weekend, a group of creative folks decorated all sorts of things with napkins.
I have a napkin collection you see. I search far and wide for beautiful napkins.
My friends do, too. Then we get together and share our paper treasures.
We sit around a big table covered with supplies: ModPodge glue, glitter, scissors, sponge brushes and paper plates to work on.
We peel napkins down to one ply, cut them in sections
and glue them onto anything we care to embelish.
There was a wide assortment of objects.
There was also some new talent at the table.
I always enjoy watching other artist at work.
I learn something new every time I have a “workshop.”
It’s a cheap thrill.
“He is the richest man, who has the cheapest treasures.”
I love my napkin collection, but my friends are my treasures.
FLOWER
At my age, with my experience, I should know better.
There were signs early on, which I chose to ignore.
There was just something so irresistible about
its seeds.
That’s right, seeds. Those carmine-colored, tiny, shiny rubies.
Not the flowers, although they are a magical spray of tiny pink of blooms on wiry stems.
Nor the chartreuse leaves which give it the name ‘Limon.’
It was the tiny jewels of seeds.
Thus the name, ‘Jewels of Opar’ for this Talinum paniculatum/ Fameflower.
I should have suspected when little, lime green leaves appeared in neighboring pots.
I should have realized its tenaciousness, when every cutting grew roots.
It should have been a warning sign when even tiny cuttings produced flowers and seeds.
I was blinded by those seeds. Fall in love first, ask questions later.
Finally, I did some research.
Caution! Self-sowing. Deep tap root. Eradication difficult. Invasive.
These warnings are for Zones 10 through 15, I am in Zone 7.
I still will not be putting any in the ground or sharing my many new plants
until I see if our winters will kill back seeds and sprouts.
I did read that the leaves are edible and can be made into smoothies.
If this becomes a problem, I will eat my way out of it. That always works well.
Sometimes, I just can’t help myself.
The heart wants what the heart wants. Bully or no.
FLOWER
No, I am not referring to cicadas.
I have wanted this shrub since the year 2000.
I helped plant a church courtyard in all white flowers.
I desperately wanted the Camellia japonica ‘White by the Gate’.
It looked like the Lutheran symbol, the white rose.
We had to settle for some other white camellias.
We also planted a white rose and white azaleas.
Nothing on that side thrived, except the Japanese anemones ‘Honorine Jobert.’
Eventually all shrubs came out for rehab and the anemones took over.
Now there are no plants there, due to a new project going in.
When I stumbled upon this lovely shrub after all these years,
I took it as a sign to accept this change.
Now this long-awaited shrub is in my yard.
The bloom is everything I dreamed it would be.
Hold on to those dreams.
They may eventually come true, even if it is seventeen years later.
FLOWER
