Real, fake, real.
That’s the answer to yesterday’s quiz about poinsettias. I should have trimmed those little frays on the edges of the petals on the fake one, but I was too lazy to do that.
And what about those comments that I might be trying to play a trick or two with my quiz? No tricks! It’s the holidays. I’m trying to be good so that Santa will remove me from the bad list and put me on the good list!
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Yesterday was gloomy and cloudy and occasionally it rained. I was tired of shopping so it was a good day to go visit a greenhouse or two, which is where I took pictures of the real poinsettias.
One of the greenhouses I visited was at White River Gardens by the Indianapolis Zoo.
This is the view from the greenhouse balcony, overlooking the actual White River Gardens. You can see that most of the snow from the past week is gone and we are left with mud.
Mud is better than ice, any day.
For the holidays, they can’t just put poinsettias in the greenhouse and call it a day, they have to also have model trains.
In fact, they have mostly model trains, so if that’s what you want to see, this is a good place to go.
If you want to see more poinsettias, I recommend you go to the Garfield Park Conservatory. (The one in Indianapolis, not Chicago).
They had a few trains, but many more poinsettias.
And the greenhouse is full of tropical plants, including blooming orchids and other tropical flowers. Here you can smell that “earthy smell with perhaps a hint of tropical blooms” that makes me, and many other gardeners, happy.
Another reason to choose Garfield Park? Just around that bend, all set up to talk to the kids of all ages, was Santa Claus himself. If this greenhouse is good enough for Santa, it is plenty good enough for me.
There were already some kids talking to him when I was there, so I didn’t stay to give him my list. I’ll guess I’ll have to mail him a letter.
Dear Santa,
I am trying to be good, but you know how hard that can be. If you have some time after delivering all those toys to the little boys and girls, perhaps you could swing by May Dreams Gardens and drop a few items down the chimney for me? There are a couple of gardening books I’d like and a new hand digging tool. And if you see a hoe I might like, of course I wouldn’t turn it down. Oh, and while I’m asking, is it too much trouble to bring me a nice little greenhouse, maybe with some orchids in it?
Your gardening friend,
Carol
P.S. If you can swing it, Mary and David in North Carolina would both like some rain!
Oh…I was all wrong on the poinsettias!!! Ha ha ha.
Nice pics of gardens in your area…I love the trains in the poinsettias! Hope Santa brings you all your wishes!
HA! I knew it!!! 🙂 I can always tell a fake, even if it’s a good fake!
Santa came to my place early. Of course it helps to have a little blackmail on santa…
Good grief, when you say greenhouse you’re talking about something I don’t understand…balconies? trains? brick paths? I am beyond impressed…I expected rows of benches with plants, maybe 12 foot ceilings…nothing like this! Thanks for the eye opener! I hope Santa is good to you!
Those in charge at the municipal greenhouses are pretty smart – like Whoopi Goldberg in Sister Act, they need to “get some butts in the seats”, and miniature trains will do that.
If you need any character references to persuade Santa you’ve been good, your blogfans will be happy to provide them, Carol!
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
Chigiy at Gardener’s Anonymous said:
You fooled me.
I like your Santa letter.
Hoe, Hoe, Hoe.
Sorry,
I couldn’t resist.
Santa may just have a few surprises in store for May Dreams Gardens!
Thanks for a delightful post. It brought a smile to this Scrooge’s face. Thanks for all your posts, actually.
Frances at Faire Garden
Oh Carol this Poinsetta Quiz was such fun. You would have to be an awfully bad girl for Santa to take you off the Good List. You bring such joy to us in Blogger Land that I am sure Santa would over look any little indiscretion.
I almost can’t believe that you actually wrote out loud that you were “tired of shopping”. tee hee
How can that be??
Loved the tour of the conservatory. I could almost smell the greenhouse.
Does Santa bring greenhouses? If so, I’m going to have to sit down and write a letter of my own! I’m woefully behind on my correspondence anyway. 🙂 Lovely pictures!
~Angela 🙂
Carol, it wasn’t the frayed edge that gave away the fake 1 for me, it was the weave of the fabric (like I wrote, I cheated by enlarging). Even the silk 1s look good, so there’s no shame in having them where real 1s would be struggling. If you’re tired of shopping, then you must be getting things done. So far I’ve been to 1store to buy a Christmas present to give to someone (I picked up a present for my parents to give to my daughter, but that doesn’t count). So you must be doing better than I am.
Julie… Missed them all? The real ones do look almost too good to be real.
Tired Soles… You black-mailed Santa? Is that allowed?
Leslie… I guess I should have called these conservatories…
Annie in Austin… Thanks, I’ll let you know if I need some character witnesses.
Chigiy… What gardener can resist a Hoe Hoe Hoe at Christmas time?
Sister with the Homestead… Surprises? The gardener here loves surprises!
Frances… You’re welcome. What a nice comment!
Lisa at Greenbow… I’m not much of a shopper so it doesn’t take long for me to tire of it. Thanks for the kinds words!
Cottage Magpie… I don’t know if Santa brings greenhouses or not, but it sure doesn’t hurt to ask!
Mr. McGregor’s Daughter… I still have presents to buy, I’m just tired of shopping!
Carol, May Dreams Gardens
Thanks for putting in a good word for us, Carol. Merry Christmas!