Visit your local garden center

and get a little colour in your life.

The smell of growing plants is so GOOOD this time of year.

So pretty. I haven't done any decorating as I'm leaving on Wednesday Dec. 13 to fly to Ontario to be with my daughter, granddaughter and sil for 2+ weeks. DH is flying out on the 21st for a week. I think this is the first year I haven't had pointsettias.

Couldn't get over how nice it was in there.

They had a bit more than poinsettias, but most of the colour definately came from those. Here's a table with some others for my exotic loving freinds.

This message was edited Dec 7, 2006 2:18 PM

Something nice on that table, Chlorophytum

and last one, some Strings of Pearls, a plant that I had never seen in bloom before

Hope you have a great trip Jeanne. That's the way to spend Christmas, for sure. The decorating and fuss dosn't amount to much if you can't be with the ones you love. I've had a small poinsettia for a few weeks now. Notice that the cats had broken it already. Maybe now I'll have to get another one.......or two.....

poinsettia has only two t's in it? I didn't know.

This message was edited Dec 7, 2006 2:20 PM

I didn't even know that Strings of Pearls did bloom. How pretty. I think I need some poinsettias too - and I believe I'll probably have the same tussle with cats over them :-)

Hey Jeanne, where abouts in Ontario will you be? I hope you enjoy your stay in my fair province - you should be just in time to catch up with all the snow you guys sent our way :-)

--Ginny

The poinsettias really make a great showing when they're en masse. We usually visit the green houses and growers in January. That's when a lot of stuff is on sale. ~:0)

Ginny, my daughter lives just north of Barrie. She said they're getting snow right now and lots of it. Ours is all gone, thank goodness.

Barrie is just a little too far away for a quick visit :-) We're all getting lots of snow right now back here. But it's supposed to get mild beginning Sunday. You might get lucky yet :-)

--Ginny

A sea of poinsettias! I love the little egg-shaped hanging containers in your last pic. Cute. Richmond Nursery, not far from me, have their greenhouses full of poinsettias at this time of year too but I've never gone. I shall make a point of it next trip to the city as I think the smell of dirt would give me a big lift.

Sandy

You got it, that certain smell. Can't even say earth smell, as I'm sure there isn't a pot of real soil in there, but the smell of peat and compost or whatever, along with the plants and humidity, it's so uplifting. I feel a trip to the conservatory coming on. They do such a great job every year, changing the scene every few weeks, I think it gets even better just after Christmas. Talk about wonderful smells! and real earth there too, and even some birds.

LOLOLOL I was just about to post about the smell! I MISS it!

Years ago we came down from the Battleford's for my Grandfather's funeral. My son (2 then) had a bad cold and the day after the funeral he became really, really sick (pneumonia). When he was finally released from the hospital we hit the road but stopped at a greenhouse in Saskatoon for a break. The humidity/warmth broke the awful congestion he still had. I remember the smell, thinking how wonderful the humidity would be for him and how quickly his chest cleared there (like it was yesterday). Greenhouses will always be special to me.

p.s. echoes I'd love to visit one certain table. ;)

Nice photos Echoes!
We all sure need some color this time of the year. We have been busy decorating the house and always have a nice poinsettia on the hearth.

In the last photo did you notice the Hoya mmm they smell pretty when they bloom. They are one of my favorites and have them all in the house now so the windows look a little like a jungle.

Brugcrazy...... Here is wishing you a Merry Christmas, hope you have a wonderful time!

Bea

I didn't really notice that it was a Hoya, and it wasn't blooming. But yes, some sure have a strong fragrance when they bloom. I have one in the living room that almost becomes overpowering. I wish my bella had more fragrance.

We really do need more colour in the winter. And more light. Apart from Christmas decorations that is. Seems like all the clothes for the winter are dark drab colours too, or beige.

Visited local garden centre yesterday. Here in Virginia you are planting pansies at the moment. And amazing -tres expensive - outdoor decorations. Swags wound around posts, along brick walls and so on. Containing lotus, proteas, seed pods I have never seen before. Many houses have wreaths with a big red bow on EVERY road-facing window. Seems so strange for this northener with no snow, T-shirt weather by afternoon. Poinsettias everywhere - all diff. colours -even blue-gold sprayed ones.

Pixs will follow when I connect with my own computer.
inanda

I did a tour of Avon Valley last week. They are the major producer for potted Poinsettias for Atlantic Canada, with two outlets, one in NB the other in NS.

They also grow a major crop of cut chrysanthemums