Category Archives: gardening

Help Me With This Poor Apostle Plant

Knowing that I absolutely love iris, my dear friend Luis gave me this Apostle plant several months ago.

IMG_0555

As much as I love to garden outside and grow things in pots I have this weird difficulty with houseplants. The light in my house is completely filtered almost everywhere and we keep the house on the cool side. I think it’s too cold (60 to 65 degrees) for most tropical plants that do well in filtered sun and there’s not enough sun for plants that would do well in cooler temps as long as they have lots of light.

So, getting back to the apostle plant. It’s also known as a walking iris and it can be grown as a perennial in warmer zones, up to zone 8, we are zone 5/6. The flat leaves are actually flower stems. I haven’t seen that yet but I hope to soon. As I read about them it sounds like it may become dormant in winter then bloom seasonally. I’m really hoping that happens! I’m wondering if I’m watering it properly. It’s in filtered light. Of course it is, it’s in my house.

This is it’s little sister, who I’m afraid isn’t doing well. When she arrived there were lots of leaf/stems. I’ve moved this plant around quite a bit trying to find a spot where it will be happy.

IMG_0549So what do you think? Has anyone grown apostle plant successfully? Do I just need to wait a little while?

Here’s what it will look like someday:

Neomarica flower (walking iris, apostle plant)
Neomarica flower (walking iris, apostle plant) (Photo credit: Joel Abroad)

Of course what you really want to know is, did I finish the financial aid forms from the other day? The answer is no, not yet, but I have made tremendous progress. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel so I treated myself to a quick blog post.

I’ll also treat myself to reading your comments and suggestions about what’s up with my plants 😉

Help me out!

Love,  Michele

A Little More Houzz–Winter Gardens

In between grocery shopping (done!) and working on our taxes and financial aid forms (definitely not done),  I just spent “a few minutes” poking around on Houzz.  I love to look at everything but of course the gardens draw me in the most.  Here’s a few highlights from my little break in the action:

A beautiful witch hazel tree, said to flower in winter and do well in zones 5-8.  Hmmm….

Hamamelis mollis landscape

Beautiful!

Glencoe Residence Winter 3 landscape

Wow…

January check list traditional-landscape

Yellow-twigged dogwood, looks like a nice alternative to red-twigged…

Cornus sericea 'Flaviramea' traditional-landscape

More beauty…

Glencoe Residence Winter 5 landscape

Very interesting. Michael will love this, but it’s a stretch for me.

Between Naps on the Porch eclectic-landscape

And finally, some sculpture…

Evanson Horses mediterranean-landscape

That’s it! Time to get back to work~

Enjoy Everything!

Michele

Related articles

What’s Happening In the Garden– January Thaw Edition

It’s been awhile since I’ve posted a garden update.  It’s time to get out there and look around!

Our winter has been mild so far. We’ve had lots of warmer than normal days, with a little bit of snow and ice. Here in the Boston area a common saying about the weather is “if you don’t like the weather, wait an hour.” It’s true, we have dramatic changes year round, sometimes in the course of a single day.  The warm ocean is so close yet the cold air from Canada is right in our backyard. We never know exactly what type of weather the next week will bring. We’re officially in the middle of a January thaw right now so there’s some wonderful hints of green in the garden.

Here are a few things that I enjoyed this morning:

Lots of oregano…IMG_0537

Rosemary! It just needs to be covered  if  when it gets cold. This plant is getting big.  Maybe someday it will resemble my Mother-in-law’s beautiful Rosemary plant  in Delaware. IMG_0542

There are fresh, new thyme leaves, plenty of them!DSC01492

The foxglove is just thinking about spring..IMG_0539

And this garlic is confused. I’m confused actually. It died in the heat last summer, now it’s back? What to do? I’m not sure, I’m just thinking about it.DSC01494

And there’s mesclun! This will make a nice lunch today.DSC01495

Hi ladies, sweet little girls…DSC01497

The snapdragon is poufing up. I wonder if we’ll see blooms if it stays this warm.DSC01501

Creeping sedum… this always pops up when we have a warm day. It’s everywhere and I smile every time I see it.DSC01503

And the highlight of my photo tour, the snowdrops are coming up! These are real! Everything else is kind of a warm weather fluke/treat but the snowdrops really are a sign that spring is on the way. Yesterday I was enjoying gardening blogs from the United Kingdom and France and saw lots of snow drops in all of their glory. It seemed that I would have to wait a very long time for that but maybe not!DSC01507

Red twigged dogwood is so pretty in the winter. DSC01515

Lamb’s ear peeping through.DSC01521

And looking up at the gray sky, there are buds on the flowering pear that we planted last spring.DSC01512

I’m likely to be posting photos of my kids sledding over my buried pumpkins next week, but spring will be here before we know it!

Enjoy Everything!

Michele

Related articles

Who’s found Houzz?

I have and I think we’re in trouble here!

Houzz.com is kind of a gathering place for anyone and anything related to design, decorating and gardening. It probably extends beyond that but I’m completely overwhelmed and I’m too lost to explain further.

You can browse rooms;  both indoor and outdoor in any style or decorating interest area that you can think of.  You can also create your own idea board and look at thousands of others ideas, including designers everywhere. It looks like you can post photos of your project and ask for input from others. You can collect ideas and post them to your idea book, or to pinterest or to facebook or to your blog/website.

It’s madness!

I can easily share things that I find there, here.

Check out these photos of winter arrangements:

Houzz Photo
Houzz Photo

and fun garden markers

Basil Mint Rosemary Thyme Silverware Garden Marker Set By Beach House Living eclectic-gardening-accessories

and beautiful rooms

Cat Mountain Residence transitional-living-room

You can then click on the photo and you’ll land right at the houzz page that I found it on.

Then you can create your own profile and idea board

and we can share, and discuss our projects and ideas

and I may never get another room vacuumed again.

Help!!!

This is so. much. fun!!!

Check it out and follow me and I’ll follow you!

and we’ll all eat take out tonight.

Here’s a great post about garden-based learning from a blog in Texas that I started to follow recently. Here’s to many more garden experiences for children in 2013!

Dallas Garden Buzz's avatarDALLAS GARDEN BUZZ

Happy New Year from

The Earth-Kind® WaterWise Demonstration Garden

 on Joe Field Road. 

We hope you will take steps in 2013 to cure Nature Deficit Order.

 Book a trip our garden!

Excerpts from the Great American Campout website and American Academy of Pediatrics: 

  • An “indoor childhood” hurts bodies & spirits.
  • Today’s kids are more likely to “tag” a friend on Facebook than outdoors in a game of “freeze tag.”
  • Kids today run from school to activities to sports w/ barely a minute to catch their breath.  Loss of free time can contribute to stress, anxiety, & depression in children. (American Academy of Pediatrics)
  • Studies show being outdoors is the perfect anecdote.  Time in green spaces reduces children’s tension levels & enhances their social interactions, helping them to feel more connected to self and others. 

Learning in the Garden 

Sources cited:

  • Growing Food LiFE Curriculum Series
  •  Botany on Your Plate (Univ…

View original post 594 more words

Winter Morning In the Salem Garden

Michael took these shots while I was still sleeping. I love the early morning but he’s much better at getting out there than I am…

Waiting for spring…DSC01421

The asparagus bed…DSC01422

A cold little girl…DSC01423

She’s not too happy…DSC01425

The rest of the ladies preferred to stay in the warm coop (kind of like their mama)  😉 DSC01427

Compost bin, still cooking (I hope)..DSC01429

The birds need some food. Michael sat down to eat breakfast and glanced out at the feeder.  As soon as he was reminded of it he ran outside to give them some seed before he ate. He really takes care of things, unlike me… I would have finished my french toast. DSC01431

The boys wasted no time… I’m not sure about why their using a wagon. We do have sleds??

DSC01435

I just looked out and the yard is full of kids and sleds. I love these days!

Enjoy Everything~

Michele

Is It Just Me?

I know, I know, this is silly, but, when I take apart the planters it’s hard for me to throw the old plants into the compost. I’ll miss them. They were beautiful and I feel a sense of loss. I can throw anything away in the house with no problem, but plants are different. I tend to hang on for a long, long time. So the other day I took everything out of the big front porch planter and went down to the compost bin. In went the spike plant, the verbena and the stock…. then I got to the geraniums. I threw one in and took it out. Then I looked at the four plants in my hand and I knew what I had to do. So, up they went to the kitchen counter. Michael came home and they were still there. Of course he said something like “oh, please, no, not again… you know that these are going to hang out all winter and your never going to do anything with them. In the spring you’ll be buying more”…   Well, he’s probably right. I do that.  I have great thoughts about wintering things over  and re-using them.  But maybe this is the one time it will work. Maybe these geraniums will come back as beautiful as ever. So for now I’ve tucked them away in a dark, cool corner of the basement. Just hanging out, waiting for spring.

DSC01192

Maybe they’ll be back, we’ll see!

A Few Thoughts About Garden-Based Learning

This morning over coffee I read this link   to a story about garden-based learning on Jamie Oliver’s website. It describes a school program in Morgantown, West Virginia and the work that’s being done to teach children experientially, using the garden. It sounds quite similar to the garden that I talked about here when I blogged about the Nathaniel Bowditch School in Salem last summer. Gardens are popping up in schools all over the country as we come to realize that our children need to learn, in a very hands on way, about where their food comes from, or perhaps I should say “where it should come from”.  Many American children are growing up with the idea that food comes from a box at the grocery store. I recently sent some zucchini home with one of my kid’s friends and heard later that they had no idea what it was. It really made me think about what I could do to share home grown food with people. I’ve always liked to give vegetables and eggs away.  Now I’m trying to give them to those who might not experience them often rather than to those whom I know will appreciate them. Even if someone looks at the zucchini on the counter for a few days wondering about how to cook it, then tosses it, at least there’s some thought about where it grew. Sorry, I’m digressing a bit, the point is, kids (and adults) really benefit from the hands on experience of planting, growing, harvesting and eating. Most kids don’t experience this at home for so many reasons so it needs to happen in school. Their health and the health of our planet depends on it.  Check out the link if you have a few minutes, think about giving some veggies away freely, and consider supporting your local school’s garden.

Thank you for indulging me for a few minutes while I stood on my soapbox! Sometimes I just can’t help it 😉

Enjoy Everything!

Michele

Related articles

Pickles Anyone?

We have nice fresh dill growing in the front yard. I’ve had dill volunteering in this spot for a few years. We just never know when it’s going to pop up. We had it growing most of the winter last year. It’s amazing that a plant that looks this delicate could actually be so hardy.

I think I’ll go buy some cucumbers, or a nice piece of fish.

Enjoy everything!

Michele