It's become clear to me through posts and PMs that there are some gardeners here just waiting for the chance to discuss gardening!
So, I was thinking... how do you use gardening, or how does it affect you if you need a break, need some respite, need to relax, need inspiration....how do you use it as a therapy tool in caregiving?
What are your activities: Do you go out and pull weeds, read a magazine, design new beds? Look through garden catalogues? Go to garden stores?
And what interests have you added to your gardening? Visit estate or garden displays? Do you go to garden shows?
Does anyone design and plant Knot Gardens? Raised bed planters? Assistive gardens? Pollinator gardens (and have you thought of ways to help the bees and butterflies?)
Are your gardens primarily for pleasure or food, or a mix of both? Do you grow plants for medicinal purposes? Which ones, how do you harvest and process them? Any suggestions?
Do you grow plants that can be used in crafts, such as grapevines for wreaths and lavender for lavender wands? Do you make herbal products such as creams, lotions, chapstick?
What else can you share about gardening and the means in which it nurtures your soul?
I made better then pizza and I thought about you and your boys because of the adventures in potatoes conversation a while ago. I modified mine from the original recipe and it was a hit with everyone, love recipes that work with our tastes.
It is worth checking it out and creating another new experience for your guys.
I love reading about how well they are doing under your love. Well done Mom!
I like blueberry muffins too but blueberry pancakes are my favorite! Do you ever make a cobbler? My youngest daughter loves cobbler.
I also like berries in my oatmeal.
Oh, and the shovelling, nobody likes the shovelling .
Or the winter driving🚗❄️
Snow is beautiful! I just don’t like being cold for that long! Although, our summers are absolutely miserable. So, it’s a trade off, I suppose.
I don’t think that I could ever get used to the brutal winters that you experience!
Thanks for the article and the wonderful advice!
https://orchidresourcecenter.com/6-stages-in-the-life-cycle-of-an-orchid/#:~:text=It%20can%20take%20an%20orchid,to%20grow%20a%20new%20one.
here is a good article. interesting what it says about how to remove dead stems to tell the plant to send another. I’ve never done that.
I do have more than one in this window and have orchids blooming often. ~
The guy that got me started with them told me to use Osmocote (the green container). I see there are two diff kinds now. There is a “plus” in a pink container. You just sprinkle on top and it slowly releases nutrients each time you water. I haven’t noticed how often they bloom. I spend a lot of time away so it’s hard to keep up with when they bloom. The one that is old was one actually part of a multi planting in a large silver pot I bought at Sam’s when they were getting rid of what they had left. I remember I bought several and I gave one to a friend who has since passed. That is the only reason I know about how old it is.
The leaves will be kind of wrinkly when I am away too long and DH forgets to water. I just pour about 2 cups of tap water in each pot and the little dish of stones and the leaves perk up. I also keep an artificial one mixed among the pots. It looks real surrounded by the other big green leaves. I use all white though I do like all the other colors.
My MIL also had a green thumb. She had her African violets in a couple of spots in her home. She would give me huge pot plants. They would get too large for her to manage. I have fond memories of taking her to nurseries. She would always pick out just one plant that she had been thinking about. I think I did try the African violets without success years ago in a different home. I really think my orchid success is more about it being the “right” spot and not anything special I do.
The guy at the farmer’s market had beautiful orchids. He supplied them for weddings. I always visited his booth when we went to that market and tried to learn a bit more but that’s been a long tome ago.
Do yours continuously bloom? Mine still haven’t bloomed again.
My MIL grew beautiful African violets. I want to buy a couple of those. She started new plants from her cuttings. She had a green thumb though. She always had pretty plants in her greenhouse that she was tending to.
Meant to also add a hello to Garden Artist if she checks in at all.
Some have died off.
There are 2 little pea pods, just two. So cute.
The grasshoppers ate the lettuce.
Everything else planted is a bust in this heat.
End of my garden-fail tale. 🤣😰🐸🍨🍦🍭🍿
I miss seeing the beautiful flowers.
I just checked the internet and apparently it is pretty easy to keep them and make them rebloom. You might want to look it up.
I wonder what her secret was.
I researched online to see if they are able to bloom again. They say that there has to be a drop in temperature in order for them to bloom again.
Have anyone seen their orchids bloom again and did you use this method?
I love wild flowers! Sounds like you will have a pretty garden when you finish your planting.
I hope your strawberry rocks do the trick! My neighbor has strawberries growing. I don’t know what she does to keep the birds away.
I would have fun painting the rocks. 😆. I have looked at painted rocks on different sites. They are cute!
My neighbor down the street has a pecan tree. He has an issue with squirrels getting to his pecans before he can get them.
I cut it back after our freeze during the winter. I was afraid that I was too aggressive with trimming it. It’s looking good now!
We can only plant things that can tolerate our long, hot summers!
Heavy labor in the garden/yard going on.
Want to stop and talk.
Actually rant about their lives.
It's getting dark.
Just cannot do this.