Please, no rocks! That would be hard to explain. I'm admiring a view of three amaryllis bulbs, all started on the same day and all developing at different rates. Two are definitely taller, one shorter, but they all have at least two stalks. The shorter one bloomed first and is now on its second stalk, but by happy coincidence, the two taller ones bloomed at the same time, so it's just a blaze of pink and white over there. I should get the PCA to turn them all. They are listing toward the sun the way I do. Well, I tilt a lot, no matter where the sun is!
#13 Practical Matters for Physically Challenged Gardeners
Carrie, Please take just one rock!!!. Thats all this ole mountain has to offer. Some people even suspect they mate and multiply. Tho the white rocks came from SE Okla. No one, but no one here beleives I would import rocks from elsewhere.
I love your articles Carrie and several other peoples articles too.So try to read most things that pop up.
Have been thinking about starting a journal just for fun. and maybe doing more at DG.
Has anyone got any seed catalogs yet?
Got a Park
Ah-h-h, Vickie, you may rescue mongrels to be your fur-buddies, but you had some mineral equivalents of poodles and Pomeranians among the rock collection you have shared. :-)
Here, Carrie, you can choose among the remaining quartz litter. Amargia will kennel your pet rock for you until you’re ready. ROFL. You have to choose one and give it a name though. They make wonderful pets. They don’t chew on your shoes or furniture and they don’t puddle on the floor. True, they may not be as interesting as a dog, cat or amaryllis. But, quartz has an unusual amount of personality for a pet rock, especially resting in a place it can play with changing light. You can trust a pet rock to keep your paperwork in place without making a mess of it. That can’t be said for a canine, a feline or even an Amaryllidaceae. I wish I had a sunny place for an amaryllis in winter. I would like to try the fragrant variety, ‘Jewel’. All my sunny windows are over-crowded with plants already. .
Feeling okay, Debra? I am so-o-o ready for some outdoor time. Being on the front porch is something, I guess. But, that is really Jim’s realm. He still has all the rail planters and hanging baskets in winter veggies and edibles. He’s decided to forgive me for snagging the ‘Sugar Snap’ peas in the hanging basket. What can I say? I love peas. I’m growing accustomed to the veggie themed front porch. It is practical, fun and a little off-the-wall. Just like Jim! :-) k*
Kay, do you Armagians grow any tea, Camellia sinesis? It sounds like something that would do well down there.
No, Vickie, please no rocks, but thank you for the terribly kind offer!
Feeling better, just a little weird yet. Still speaking in "word salad" sometimes--go to talk to the dogs first thing in the mornings and what comes out makes no sense a'tall. My sister 'allowed' me to drive myself to the store today. Yea! LOL
Vickie, you reminded me of a favorite funny scene in The Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini. When the main character, Eragon, learns about how crystals grow, he decides he has found the answer to something that always puzzled him. He recalls how he, his father and brother struggled to remove all the rocks from a field before plowing, but the next time that same field was cultivated there were more rocks that had to be removed. After learning about crystals, he decides the rocks on his farm grew back during fallow years. . :-)
I think we’ve received a Southern Exposure Seed Exchange catalog, but the majority of the catalogs seem to arrive in January. I’m surprised we still get any at all. I’m the only one that looks at the print catalogs and I rarely make the purchases.
It is funny you mention tea camellias, Carrie. MK wanted to try some of the named varieties this year. We wanted to see if there was a real difference in taste between the named varieties and the grown-from-seed types we have. When we got ready to order, the company wasn’t listing them anymore. Hopefully, just temporarily out-of-stock. We keep checking back and have put the word out to local nurseries we are looking for some.
‘Lady Kay’ is the only camellia we have that isn’t a source for tea or grown for fragrance. MK claims she bought it for me because of the highly reflective leaves. It will be a great addition to MY moonlight garden, she says. Yeah, right. Uh-huh. I believe that. :-)
Debra, one of MK's sisters experienced something similar a few months ago. It took her several weeks to fully recover. It must have been a full recovery because she is a hospital administrator and I know she is back at work. It sure spooked her though. You seem to be handling it very well. ~N~
Oh, Debra, BIGGEST hugs! I was at PT the other day, and there is an aid (PTA) there named Craig whom I have known for several years, although he doesn't necessarily call me by name nor the other way around. Still, I know perfectly well (and have for some time) that his name IS Craig. So the other day, a particularly MS-y day, apparently, he and I were standing near each other -- I guess I was waiting for my therapist and he was waiting for his client or had just finished, so we were face to face, and I could not make my mouth say Craig, or maybe it was my brain that was on strike, but I knew his name started with a "C" so I said "hi Carlos!" Now I KNEW that wasn't his name but it seemed like a close enough approximation that I might be forgiven. Especially since he had an enormous ID badge that said CRAIG on it affixed to his body. I'm still taking heat for that...but it wasn't me, it was MS.
Two years ago, one of my brothers experienced transient global amnesia that lasted several hours. The doctors found no sign of disease and all the neurological scans came out clean. Thus far, there has been no repeat of the experience. His job is supervising the maintenance of enormous stretches of railway and he was out on the road when it happened. A witness said he pulled smoothly over to the side of the road and just sit there. His ability to drive was unaffected. He even turned on the emergency flashers and emergency brake. He simply had no idea who he was or where he was going. I believe it was one of those odd neurological experiences former football players report in their advanced years. It seems only logical that having your brain slammed repeatedly against the inside of your skull is going to have some long-term effects. He was a former linebacker and they take more blows than most. He feels vindicated in his choice to play football since his siblings have now all experienced neurological gliches of their own. . None of us have experienced total amnesia for such a long period, however. I still think it is payment for his football glory years in early onset and severity, if not in causation. He ranks 7th among the 8 siblings. (I’m #8.) There is almost 20 years between he and our eldest sister. I fear he has yet to be presented with the full bill. It will come due in the next 20 years. He maintains he would still have chosen to play football even if he had known the risk. Aside from financial benefits, he thinks it helped him manage his aggressive tendencies. One of the problems with being the youngest in a large family is you get all the previews of what you might expect in your own future. There is something to be said for blissful ignorance. :-)
It has been unseasonably warm for days. Some Belles of Ireland, pink fairy Bells and jonquils decided to take advantage. Southern Christmas bells? :-) There is a possible light freeze tonight and temps will become more normal for us. I’d better go bring in some houseplats I put outside. k*
Ooooooh, so jealous, Kay of your blooms! EVERYTHING is shutting down here, if anything was left.
The camellias and the osmanthus haven't started doing their thing yet so the unseasonable blooms were a treat. Every year we say we are going to add some helleboris to the beds, but every year I forget until I see their image on Christmas wrapping paper.
I give Kay a hard time about being a rock hound, but seriously I can’t imagine a garden that doesn’t feature rocks. Kay’s smaller acquisitions have a way of migrating into my spaces. The result of years stationed in Japan followed by years stationed in the New Mexico desert I suppose. You see interesting rocks resting on pedestals in Japanese gardens as natural art. And, of course, there are the Zen gardens. (I’m making a mini one of those for the porch with an in-scale bamboo rake to maintain it. There is something about the sound of a bamboo rake moving across the pebbles I find soothing..) I know most of our succulents are native to temperate and tropical regions, but I like giving them a desert feel with a top dressing of sand and some properly placed stones.
Nadine found some tiny ornaments at the craft store sale. I’ve been using them to decorate mini wreaths small enough to use as Christmas magnets on the fridge. (I had some powerful magnets around I’ve taken out of computers I scrapped over the years.) Vickie, I put something I thought you might like for upcoming scrapbooking and paper projects in with your Christmas card. It’s more appropriate for another holiday, but, since I got my cards out so late, you wouldn’t have had time to use the Christmas stuff anyway. Sending out cards brought absences into my forebrain. Has anyone seen Sheri and Katiebear around the other forums? (Jim)
I haven't BEEN on any other forums! I wish we could grow camellias and gardenias up here....oh well. We got a new whiz-bang vacuum cleaner in the mail so DD will be able to breathe better and DH is trying to make it work - no luck so far. Boo hoo.
Katie has popped in a few times, but not in the last couple of weeks. Haven't seen anything of Sherri for a long time. I'll Dmail Katie. Anyone have Sheri's number to call?
I think I did have Sheri,s ph#. I'll look and see.She's sometimes on the Pet Forum. Bet Katie is busy with her Christmas toy project. Thank you, thank you, thankyou, Jim. I am donating most of my craft stuff to our Group therapy class. We've decided to start scrapbooking in January. I decided I had to downsize my craft room(not enough room left for me in here.)
I know the feeling, Vickie!
From Katie:
================================================
Hi Debra,
The battery on my computer died and, this being Mexico, it's taking some time to get it replace. Thanks for checking up on me. I'm having a very good Christmas season. Have a twenty/five pound box of hard candies and several boxes of stuffed toys ready for my Christmas gig as Santa. My neighbors and I are getting along very well and I'm helping raise money for the animal clinic which Dana is very involved in. All our dogs are well and so are the cats.
Physical problems are ongoing but somewhat aleviated by my lsoing twenty pounds over the past couple of months.
Post office was closed today, at least when i went by so no new battery today.
Please tell all I'm doing ok except for no puter. Will be back soon.
hugs to all, katie
===================================================================================
Thanks Debra. She sounds pretty good.Guess we're all going to have flare ups wih health problems. So proud of her for losing 20 lbs.
Losing twenty pounds is pretty amazing! Rah rah rah! I'm afraid I've gained a little......can I blame my husband for feeding me too much?
Yes, you can. Part of the privileges of married life, Carrie. :-)
Sure, Carrie, Kay blames me for her weight gain since we've been married. There might even be a shread of truth to it.
I can relate to that too, Vickie. Kay declared my workroom a disaster area. She had a minor meltdown when she tried to find a hammer. It WAS exceptionally bad in there. I had been saving some broken glass with the intention of running it through the tumbler. Somehow I had ended up accumulating more than I could process in our little tumbler in a year and I couldn’t remember exactly what I had been planning to do with all that tumbled glass anyway. (I’m sure it was a fine idea though.). There were electronic components I couldn’t say why I saved. (..But, I’m sure I had a reason once.) There were a surprising number of three quarters finished woodworking projects. (I’m one of those people who tend to flag near the finish line.) Cans and other things destined for the recycling center seem to have gotten only as far as my workroom. (Being environmentally responsible can get messy if you don’t stay on top of things.)
Good to hear Kb is doing okay. I sent Sheri a card so she has Amargia's address. Jim
Hi - As we have all noted before, pain sucks. However, I am nothing if not persistent and I know Christmas is a prime time for flareups both mental and physical so I've been working steadily to get the stuffed animals ready for their new homes. I have several big bags of them ready to go, along with 25 pounds of candy.
There is a very lound man at the puter next to me so I'll sign off and be back soon, probably not til after Christmas.
Merry Christmas to all.
hugs all around, katie
Truly excellent article, Carrie! I didn’t find it too long or too data dense at all. It was just right. The best new article I’ve seen in a while. .
I spent yesterday in the realm of jasmines trying to decide what to keep and what to add among jasminums. I think ‘Belle of India’ will be the only sanbac that stays. It appears to be the hardiest of the sanbacs although it still needs winter protection here. (I just can’t bring myself to give up all the Sanbacs. Jim has two tender bottle palms (aka; Ponytail Palms, Beaucarnea recurvata)
that have to come inside for the winter. I should be able to get away with one or two high maintenance jasmines. :-) All the others I chose are fully hardy in our zone.
I came across a new-to-me jasmine that sounds lovely, but learned Zone 8 is too hot for it. That was the first time too HOT had ever been a problem with a jasminum. Variegated poet’s jasmine (Jasminum officinalis is worth a look-see for those in more northern climes. It’s said to be hardy from Zone 4 thru 7.
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/48894/
I’m doing the same sort of research on roses today I did on jasmines yesterday. Seeking out the most highly fragrant, disease resistant, non-invasive rose varieties and cultivars, then culling the list with local experience.
Non-sterile rose types (“self-cleaning” cultivars in the vocabulary of rose advertising.) are okay with me if the rose fruit is showy. That is as good as repeat blooming, in my opinion, since the colorful hips extend the season of interest as well as repeat blooms and for an even longer period of time. (Plus, most hips make great tea.). My criteria is set. On to list making. K*
Kay's makin' a list.
She's checkin' it twice.
Finding' out which plants are naughty and nice...
Sorry. I couldn't resist. :-) My dearly beloved does love her list!
The nandina has saved itself once again. The berries are a gorgeous punch of color on a warm, but rainy, day and they make good holiday decorations. . We snag the nandina branches with berries and bring them inside as soon as they color up to prevent the Nandina from spreading. If the American holly ever starts performing its Christmas duty, the nandina's days will be numbered. When Nadine was young and gullible, someone used the name similarity to "gift" Nadie with their orphaned nandina. That is how we ended up with it. She says when I bred a pretty plant and name it after her, she will dig the nandina up. ;-)
Tea olive is about to bloom. (Jim)
I wrote an entire post about how all of you have your names enshrined in plant names somewhere, but no one has ever named a plant cultivar Nadine. Even Carrie has a mango cultivar, but, alas, no Nadine. Then, Mama Kay came along and told me there is some obscure begonia cultivar named ‘Nadine.’ I hate it when that happens! lol.
I like the new writer whose article appeared the same day as Carrie’s. We need to adapt those song lyrics to a raised bed style of gardening though. -) ~N~
What good does a mango cultivar do me in New England? Sorry, just my Grinchiness coming through again. I'll have to check this "new writer" because it's unlikely they would have two actually new articles the same day.
Kay, I think that jasmine is hardy to z. 4 if it's in a pot and you bring it inside; the PlantFiles ratings get screwed up sometimes by people putting in their zipcodes who aren't growing under normal outdoor conditions.
Oh, that must be why I’m so ‘Bah, Humbug.” I haven’t watched “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” this year. I always get that warm and fuzzy Christmas feeling when the Grinch’s dog, Max, gets his big slice of roast beast. What all due respect to Jim Carrey, it’s got to be the old, cartoon version to work the magic.
You can watch the whole thing on youtube, if you don't mind switching between chapters or commercial breaks.
Almost Christmas eve, When something magic happens.animals talk,peace is everywhere,there are angels among us. Then we wake from our dreams and are in choas again.and the bills come rolling in.
Bah!! humbug!! LOL
Will be cooking tomorrow.actually today.Had veggie soup yesterday.
Gotta make somekind of goodie for the dogs and cats.maybe a dogfood cake.
Bet they'd like an oatmeal cake, and it'd be easy to make and good for them, too.
Happy Christmas, Vickie and Nadine and Carrie and Kay and Jim and Sheri and Katie. (Bas HUGS gum) :-)
Fenny gets a whole sleeve of saltine crackers in her Christmas stocking....if she's been good. That's her favorite people food. Old Tater's favorites don't lend themselves to being put in a stocking so she gets a new squeaky toy. The squeaker part of Tater's toys always mysteriously disappear a few days after Christmas. I suspect Kay is behind these disappearances. No one has ever seen her surgically removing a squeaker from one of Tate's toys, but the circumstantial evidence is overwhelming. Kay is startled by the squeak when she steps on a toy Tate has left laying about and the squeaker component from the toy inevitably disappears soon after. But, you can't convict someone on circumstantial evidence and there is a vague possibility she isn't the one doing it. After all, I thought it was Kay who kept removing the batteries from my motion activated, singing Christmas tree, but new evidence suggest someone else is responsible. I have the singing tree under surveillance. ;-)
Merry Christmas, Everyone! (Jim)
Merry Christmas! Both DDs are home--they're ok when alone together, but add a third person, like Grandma or me or any of their friends and pandemonium breaks out. I called DD#1 a terrorist yesterday--she was acting like one! Our entire relationship takes place via text messages.
I got my hair cut today. Amazing - the salon was empty. She said this year was an economic slump. This is a little two or three woman operation that does hair cuts and mani-pedis and eyebrows, and sells knock-off designer bags in the back room. Everyone's hair grows!
I admit I have cut cost by having my hair trimmed at Wal-Mart. (My cut is so simple I can get away with that.) Still have to go to the beauty shop to get it thinned out though.
I’m not entirely sure why, but when my sister and I are on our own, she treats me as her equal. But, when older people are around, she goes into bossy, big sister mode. I assume it has something to do with the decade age difference between us and a choice of what generation to ally herself with.
I think PJ’s singing Christmas tree would make a good Halloween decoration. Its eyes pop open when you walk into the room and it shifts its gaze around while it is singing. This is not a confession. I’m just pointing out there are many here who think that tree is much more appealing with its eyes closed and its mouth shut. Poor Fenny is afraid of it. I know I’ve been moved to the top of Papa Jim’s battery thieving suspect list, but I assure you, it is a loooong list of possible suspects. Papa Jim and Tater-dog are the only ones around who like the tree. (Making the tree perform is a puppy power trip for Tate.)
Wishing you all a non-creepy Christmas tree and other good stuff. Holiday hugs. ~N~
Hi Dillon, Scoot, Willie, Zuzu, Pookie, Jenny and all the gang. It’s Fenny. You know how it goes, we get the gift of speech once a year and there is no one awake to talk to. Everybody is asleep here, even Tater. (The old dingbat exhausted herself playing with that creepy tree. Trees should not talk! Even on Christmas, that just ain’t right.) Since we can communicate via the computer anytime we can slip it passed our monkeys, being able to talk ain’t the big deal it once was. I’ll let the old alpha sleep. She always goes on and on about her toys and her tennis ball collection when she can talk. I will enjoy a year without having to listen to all that to be honest. I’ve never understood the appeal of a plushy toy squirrel when I can go outside and chase the real deal. Maybe, one of you can explain the game of fetch to me. My intelligence has been called into question because I don’t play fetch. I figure it this way. If some mangy monkey throws a ball, that mangy monkey should be the one to go and get it. And, if I do go to the trouble of going to get the ball, it seems only right to me that I should get to keep the ball. Scant fur and opposable thumbs don’t always make the monkey rational. I’m sure none of you needed me to tell you that.
Well, I just wanted to touch base and wish you guys a happy holiday. Sounds like you and Scoot lucked out this year, Dillon. It’s ham and crackers for me. As long as they keep my water bowl full and don’t smear all that fruit and sweet stuff all over a perfectly good pig, I’ll be happy.
Better go. There is a bobcat I’ve got a few choice words for before the magic is gone. Hope Santa Paws does right by all of you. Yeah, even you Miss Kitty. Peace on Earth and all that. `Fenrira’
Hey, no laughing! You all know you would have done it too for a big bowl of milk. I wouldn’t sit still for it until they gave me the much cooler looking “Bah Humbug” hat. I do have my standards. –F-
Dear Fenny, Thank you for the good christmas wishes. I don't really understand Christmas,except i get lots of goodies to eat.Mom still won't let me chase the cats. and i can make them run so fast and to watch them climb a tree is pure pleasure. I also don't see why I'm not allowed to take shoes outside to play with. They're just left lying around. mom goes barefoot in the house anyway. So whats the big deal!!? Her voice can go 2 octaves when she hollars.Hurts my ears! I do try to be good but i look at those shoes and i hear a voice saying "Go get those shoes and RUN."Sometimes i think the voice must be from the CAT. The black cat loves to wait for me to come in the doggie door and hiss at me.Mom is very strict about anyone getting violent so all we can do is growl,hiss,bark or meow.
anyway Merry Christmas!
Scoot
Since Jim, Nadi and I draw from a shared resource pool, we decided it was sort of silly to buy each other costly presents. If one of us needs or really wants something at Christmas, we just tell the others and buy it for ourselves. But, we found we missed a Christmas morning without a few fun surprises. So..Jim is playing withe the slinky he found in his stocking this morning. Nadi is looking at recipes for the hard-to-come-by cooking ingredients Santa brought her. . Tater is patiently waiting in front of the stove for the ham to finish cooking and Fenny is sleeping off her yearly cracker binge. I am munching on or planning where to sow the contents of my stocking and waiting on calls. Amargia's hearth and heart children tend to report back in on Christmas Day. This is one of my favorite parts of Christmas. I didn't even mind the one who forgot about the time zone difference and called in at 5;30 this morning...well, not too much. ;-)
My genetic children, on the other hand, expect Mom to call them, but I've learned to wait until the GC's have settled down some from the excitement of new toys to call.
Hope everyone is having a comfortable and peaceful Christmas Day. k*
Merry Christmas!
Hope all have recouped from the Christmas fun. I've injoyed just appreciating my fur kids today.Did i tell you guys my cats love my singing. It is really awful singing,but....Oh well!!!!!
After the first I can get serious about gardening.Dreaming that is.Seed catalogs start coming in.
Kay is keeping the hopes of garden future alive with her list. She’s still working on the Fragrance Garden list, if that can be called a distinct list anymore. I notice there were way too many plants on the Fragrant Garden list…more than could be fitted into the area designated for scented plants. Then, I deduced her cunning plan. She is slipping fragrant plants into other people’s garden spaces under the guise of her generosity and our garden themes. A ‘Fourth of July’ rose for the Old Soldiers Garden and a new Bee balm in the bee corner, etc. We know what she’s up to now because the plants are on both list. Oh well, I can handle a nice smelling O.S.G. Two can play that game! I can find plants with manly, military sounding names as long as they have some scent and claim that I’m buying them for the Fragrance Garden.
We moved about 100 jonquils yesterday. They were on the front slope of the Fragrance Garden and would have been buried when we leveled that section. I’m diving into the confusing world of daffodils-narcissus-jonquils trying to find out exactly what we already have. I’m 90% sure what we moved WERE jonquils even though the color wasn’t what I think of when I think of jonquils. They look like they’ve been the victim of a jonquil vampire. The piercing yellow petals are anemic almost too white. Kay’s theory is that they are indeed the common bright yellow jonquils that pop up everywhere in spring. They are just bleached out looking because of the exceptionally early bloom time and from being in more shade than they like. We’ll know soon. Most of what we moved hadn’t bloomed yet. I decided to trust Kay’s Jimmy Dirante nose for now. She was right about the paperwhites based on scent. I doubted what we had been calling paperwhites actually were because I couldn’t find a pic that perfectly matched. Kay had no doubt insisting the smell of paperwhites is unmistakable. I found a picture of a paperwhite that matches what we have. The nose knows! (Jim)
Jim, in spite of the frou frou fragrance, the Fourth of July rose is perfect for the Old Soldier's Garden. Bright red and white and absolutely glorious in bloom.
