Why garden?

Why not?

There are many reasons to garden.  Some people do it for the food they produce and others do it for flowers.  I do it because it is simply who I am.  Poking around in the dirt soil is something I've done since I was old enough to crawl about the backyard.



My Mom, being the ultimate con artist,  had me believing at about age two that pulling weeds was the bestest fun ever.  Guess what?  She was right!  I still love to weed and in Idaho that could be is a full time job.  We have more weeds per square inch than anywhere in the entire country.

One of the best reasons for gardening is what it teaches us about patience.  Put a seed in the ground, water it,  keep it safe from creepy crawlies, and soon you will see a little sprout emerge.  In a few weeks you'll have a little bit of plant and in a few more weeks, or even months, you'll have a vase full of blooms or a luscious plate of fresh tomatoes.  This is the complete antithesis of the 30 second sound bite text messaging world we inhabit.  Something doesn't do well?  Oh well - there's always next year.

Oriental Lilies, Liatris, miniature roses

Anyone can garden.  And I mean anyone!  I cringe whenever someone says, "I have a black thumb."  There is no such thing.  Do you really think that every thing I stick in the ground grows and thrives?  That would be nice if it were true, but the reality is many seeds don't germinate, an occasional bout of blossom end rot strikes, or something weird strikes a tree branch causing it to rot and die. 

With the advent of the internet learning about gardening seemed to become easier but often as not caused more confusion than help.   Have a wart on a branch and don't know what it is?  Pretty hard to find it on the internet unless you have honed your search skills.  A few good books are still the best way to learn to garden.

My all time favorite for disease identification is still the Ortho Home Gardener's Problem Solver.  Once you find your problem you can hop on the web and do more research. 

For your indoor plants the Ortho Guide to Houseplants should do the trick.

And for inspiration you can't beat Tasha Tudor

I may have to start dressing like Tasha when I garden

A new book, an update on my "Christmas tree", and the art of keeping your mouth shut...

This year we didn't put up our Christmas tree and I can report there have been no long-lasting negative ramifications to our mental health. Actually, the first of January rolled around and I was pretty happy not to have to put the tree and decorations away.

A friend of ours was so disturbed by our lack of a tree she gifted us with a dwarf Alberta spruce with appropriate decorations. I've since removed the decorations and that cute little spruce is growing up a storm.

 Check out all the new growth

Our Christmas cactus bloomed heavily this spring in the late fall and just a few days ago it put out one lovely perfect bloom...

That's pollen dusted on it's petals...

And the book?

I went a bit crazy at Amazon last week and ordered three new books.  Absolutely outrageous for cheap thrifty little moi, but since we have met and exceeded all our Dave Ramsey goals I figured it was ok.   The Spiritual Art of Being Organized arrived today. I won't offer a yay or nay until I've finished reading it (which will probably be later today.) 

How About Keeping Our Mouths Shut?? (which is almost impossible for me)

Another book I ordered is "The Way We're Working Isn't Working", which I've mentioned before.  It was a library book and I was quite impressed.  I gave it to my husband to read (a workaholic) and managed to keep my mouth shut (we women talk way too much) the entire time he was reading it. 

I never questioned him (a miracle) or worse said, "See - I've been telling you that stuff for years" (waaaaay not good!)   After reading the book for about a week I witnessed him closing down his office at a somewhat normal time and actually sitting in the living room reading a book.  Hmmmmmmmmm.  Still, I said nothing.  About two weeks after that he started quoting stuff from the book.  Whoooooooooeeeee!  Still, I said nothing.

At the end of last week I mentioned I wanted to re-read parts of the book but it was due back Monday.  Veeeerrry nonchalantly he said, "Maybe you should get us our own copy from Amazon."  Still, I said nothing.  Aren't you proud of me?

It's out in paperback now...

Living with Plants

I can't imagine living in a home without plants. It always surprises me when I hear ladies (or men) say, "I have a brown thumb", or  "I kill all my plants." With the number of fine books on the subject and a gazillion internet sites devoted to plant culture, there really is no reason not to have a few simple plants in our homes.

Plants do as much to clean impurities from the air of our homes as any air filter.  I used to have over 30 LARGE plants in my home, as well as a quite large African violet collection.  I have cut back considerably, but I'm sure some folks would still call it over-kill.

There is a ceiling height "pass through" between my dining room and kitchen. It houses two Heart leaf Philodendrons and a solid green spider.  All three of these plants were started from cuttings I obtained from friends.  

I like the look of weathered clay pots but it's not always practical because of the weight. These three pots are plastic clay colored (cheap, cheap, cheap) that that have been smeared with acrylic paint and wiped down.  I even added a bit of green here and there for the look of moss. 

In the corner below these three lovelies is a plant I've had for about 20 years. When it gets too big I just chop the top off.

I have a Golden Pothos hanging between the kitchen and dining room to cut down of the size of the opening.  And yes, that's a flamingo sitting on the match stick blind.  I use the blind to keep the sun beating through the sky light from frying what's left of my brain.  A bit of whimsy is fun...  He used to sit on the other section and after knocking him down with the mop handle and breaking his poor little neck (at least three times), I moved him to the other section.

In the corner of the dining room on a pedestal is yet another fun plant. I purchased this and really didn't expect it to live more than a year. That was two years ago.  

That black object hanging on the wall is a photo backdrop.  It's a great place to take ebay and Etsy pictures during the day.  I couldn't find my black cloth so that is actually one of my skirts push pinned to the wall.  Classy!

This hanging plant is always getting whacked back and the extra goes into little jars or vases and stuffed here and there.  Here is some on the bookshelves in the living room.

The bedroom sports more Golden Pothos started from the hanging plant.  The poor guy is in desperate need of a new pot but I've been too busy. 

Also in the bedroom is a ficus that I purchased as a 6" baby. I don't usually have a box under the little antique dresser. I had to unpack a trunk to get at some Christmas stuff and stuffed the top section under the dresser. I promise when you come for coffee you won't see it.  ;-)

And finally - the geraniums.  I usually bring in 4 pots of outside geraniums in the fall.  These will bloom all winter and brighten the house. In the early spring I will start cutting them back and root the cuttings for my garden. Last year I started about 150 or so geraniums for the yard.   Much as I enjoy the flowers during the winter, by spring I'm happy to see them head back outside!

Back to work...

Have a wonderful day...