I mentioned the other day that I have been given the Great Responsibility to care for a friend's African violet (Saintpaulia sp.) that was once his mother's and before that it was his grandfather's. I am taking my Great Responsibility seriously. For starters, I read up on the care of African violets, even though I know how to care for African violets. I wanted to be sure I didn't have any gaps of knowledge and understanding of African violets brought on not by my advanced years but by simply … [Read more...] about The Great Responsibiity
indoor gardening
Kokedama – Must be willing to make a little bit of a mess…
Kokedama with ivy I just finished cleaning up the sunroom after making my first kokedama. Kokedama is a Japanese word that translates into English as "moss balls" though all the auto-correct editors want to translate it into chokedamp. The idea is to mix a combination of peat and clay soil, generally a 70-30 ratio, so you can form the soil into a ball and it stays as a ball. Then you plant something in the ball, generally a plant that will like the same moist conditions moss likes, and cover … [Read more...] about Kokedama – Must be willing to make a little bit of a mess…
The Tale of the Amaryllis and Other Bulbs to Force in the Wintertime
Miniature Amaryllis My amaryllis bulbs, including the miniature amaryllis bulbs, are all up and in various stages of bud and bloom. The miniature amaryllis is pretty but isn't the variety I ordered. So I wrote the company this morning to see what they can do. My first choice is to get the variety I ordered, but it is sold out. But I've ordered from this company for years with great success so I'm sure we'll get it all sorted out after the holidays are over. In the meantime, I can … [Read more...] about The Tale of the Amaryllis and Other Bulbs to Force in the Wintertime
Miniature Amaryllis
Amaryllis bulb, just planted. You know how amaryllis can get really tall and floppy and sometimes requiring elaborate staking to keep them from toppling over, no matter how heavy their pot is? And the elaborate staking, with only the depth of a pot to anchor the actual stakes, can look like something Gilligan himself tried to put together using sticks and vines he found on an uncharted, deserted isle? Well, I found some miniature amaryllis for sale from John Scheeper's bulbs which should … [Read more...] about Miniature Amaryllis
Phases of house plant care identified
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. --After extensive study and observation, Dr. V. Q. Hortfreud recently determined that those who have house plants generally follow a predictable and repeatable pattern in caring for their house plants. She further observed that this pattern of care can be broken down into four phases. In the first phase, which Dr. Hortfreud labeled Acquire, the indoor gardener acquires the house plant with promises to care for it and give it a spot where it will get the best light in the … [Read more...] about Phases of house plant care identified
Potting Tidy
Do you know the proper name for this? The proper name for it is "Potting Tidy". I love having a potting tidy because it makes the whole business of potting up plants neater than say, laying out some newspapers and dumping potting soil on the papers. Really, potting soil on newspapers? How very uncivilized. You are gardening, not trying to make a mess. Do the right thing and get yourself a potting tidy. A potting tidy makes potting up plants indoors a positively pleasant proposition. Not to … [Read more...] about Potting Tidy
