Best/Worse/What did I learn today? Pt.41 Visit with Friends

MUST be getting difficult to download for those not on hight speed so thought I'd move us over....

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/843510/

hiya gang,

betty you are probably right, lets hope tonight is a better one.
mothers day next sunday so that should be fun.

Yes betty my birthday is the 17th of July, sorry i didnt miss that just forgot to mention it.

still stitching away at the quilt, it will be sometime before i have an end product but it will be worth it in the end.

cheers for now

xx

Well here I am up and at it this morning I think. Head is ringing and can't hear out of left ear, The right one feels funny too. It has been going off and on for about a month now very miserable!! Went to doc and he said nowax just fluid build up behind ear drums and gave me Clarinex which after a week is not working. Feel like I am going deaf. No wonder I fell straight over backwards 4 times in the last year. Please say prayers because Scotty can't hear and that would surely be a big mess for us. Thank all you good people and have a good day. I have to get out there and cut them bushes back and plant somemore. Talk later . HUGS BEV

Dawn--

I am not any Wisteria expert either--but my "pea brain" tends to retain all kinds of unusual, trivia information--especially on plants. So, here are two things I have heard.

1--Blooming depends on whether the Wisteria was grown from seed or from a cutting. One does--the other has a hard time blooming. Don't remember which is which.

2--If you have an older Wisteria that does not bloom, you can "shock it" into blooming by severing the roots around it with a shovel. NOT all around--but say--N-S-W-E. Many plants respond to this kind of drastic "intervention" by thinking their "doomsday" has arrived--and they put out bloom as a last effort.

I have even heard you can "shock" an African Violet into blooming by giving the pot a couple good whacks on the table. This tears away some of the small roots and the AV will bloom--kind of the same reasoning....
....that's what I have heard........

Just for you all---Here is the front of my house. You can see my beautiful Camellia in full bloom on the left of my front door....

Gita

Both pictures are quite special. Thank you ladies for sharing.

Ruby

Gita..Love your Camellia..
Thanks for all your tips about growing. I can't tell you how often I think about you when I look at my few seedlings..and think "Gita says"
I have also heard the tip about cutting into the roots of Wisteria to make it bloom...and cutting back some of the vining branches.

Dragonfly..hope your ear gets better soon.

Morning Ruby....waving to you all.

Hey there Starzz. Yep, Gita is quite a gardener. I am the lucky recipient of three of her offerings. I first became the owner of a Pregnant Onion that she had several of at a plant swap we both attended last June. Mine has never done very much, if the truth be told.

The same day I also became the owner of a type of bamboo that she gave me. The label is marked Nandina, Heavenly Bamboo. Gita, I kept it all winter as a houseplant and was thrilled a few months ago and it began putting of new shoots. I somehow over watered it and it is ailing a bit these days. I tried not watering for a while but it is not looking too great. Should I try putting it in the ground this summer or maybe repot in new soil and keep indoors? I want it to recover. It is not dead, but just not as healthy as it once was.

Last summer as we were heading in to fall, Gita also offered me starts of an Angel Wing Begonia. It has done beautifully for me thankfully. Very healthy looking but no blooms yet. Thank you so much for all of the plants Gita.

Yep Gita, we need your expertise here. Always lots of questions that need answers.

The extent of my gardening today will be getting together an assortment of things that I have an abundance of and giving to my massage therapist tomorrow when I have my massage. I am giving him some Sedum Autumn Joy, Lamb's Ear and Artemesia (?sp.) None of these have especially pretty blooms, but will spread fast and delight new gardeners. In the fall we will thin our hostas and I will take him some of those then. If John is feeling in a giving mood then, we will probably share some day lilies with him also. He ought to be happy with these things. I am also thinking of giving him some of the indoor things that I have more than one of.

So, I am glad that I sat down and began writing this because I had forgotten that I needed to get these things together. I hope that everyone is enjoying their day. Take care everyone.

Ruby

Ruby! You are too kind.....

OK! The Nandina is an outdoor, hardy plant--NOT a Houseplant!. It is a form of baboo. Very indestructible! Please plant it outside asap. You could take it outside in the pot it is in and find a partial sun spot (full sun is also OK--eventually--just need to acclimatize it since you had it inside). It grows fairly slowly NS WILL SUCHER AND SPREAD WAY OFF INTO MATURITY. It has beautiful horizontal stems, and looks very "airy" witht he fine foliage. It makes a spike at he top in early summer with little white blooms--which turn into bright red berries that stay on the plant all winter. They are still there at this time. It grows in any type of soil, drought does not bother it, NO diseases!

Pregnant Onion--
Did you get a decent-sized bulb or one of the marble-sized ones? You say it is doing "nothing"...Could you post a picture? You can also put this plant outside now. Treat it as any other plant--just give it a well-draining soil-maybe a bit on the coarse side.
I keep mine in a very heavy, clay window box. I also keep it practically dormant all winter in my tiny Laundry Room window. It does yellow a lot of leaves while inside and dormant, but I just trim them off. Seems it does most of it's multiplying during the winter months--then just takes off when you put it outside. If you started with an itsy-bitsy baby onion--it will probably be a while before it gets big and "pregnant"....

The Angel Wing Begonia-----This time of year--you will want to cut all the tall tips back. Be brave! You are doing the plant a favor! Cut way down--maybe to 4"-5". Keep about 8" sections of the top growth--put them in a glass of water and let them root. This is easy as pie! Then cut away and discard any of the bare stems in between--OR--they would probably also root in soil.
The stubs left on the original plant will grow into a new, bushy plant, but may bloom only sparsly. The tip cuttings, when rooted and potted up, will bloom very well--because the blooms come on the tips of the canes.
By now--I also have this plant outside in shade and it is doing very well. Once it hardens off a bit--it can take some sun. The leaves will "burn" if you do not do this at a slow pace.... If you never cut it back, it will bloom nicely--but also be all gangly and tall--all "canes"---hence the name--"Cane Begonia"....
During the Winter--I bring it in and keep it on the dry side near a sunny window. It will drop all the leaves, except the ones att he growing tips. That is all you want to have anyway...
This is how I have kept it propagated for about 25 years! About every 2-3 years, I take the old plant out of it's 12" pot, knock all the soil off, pull all the rooted canes apart and see what is alive and "producing" and what is not. The "nots" are dead stems and get canned! The good roots get re-potted in fresh soil--and you should see how tha plant groes THAT year!!!!!
The potted starts you got were the Spring tip-cuttings.

End of "class"......:o)

Look here! The front pot is that Spring's new cuttings all potted up and blooming. The re-growing Mama is in the back.

Here is the Mama that was all cut back and re-potted and is now fully re-grown.
See! Do not be afraid to do this.....This is in about middle of July......I keep it on my front steps--gets very little direct sun--maybe some early morning sun....

The ideas are good Gita. It is not old though so I may not be able to be able to get it to bloom.

Dawn--Could you post a picture of what your AW Begonia looks like NOW? I think I could then better advise you....

Even a single tip cutting, once rooted and potted up, can bloom the same Summer. And the left-over stem on the Mama plant will branch out and make a fuller plant. And so it goes until it is a big, fat, luscious plant in a 12" pot--or something.....

Gita

No I don't have a Begonia, I have a wisteria that is not blooming. Thanks for your wisteria advice though. I think someone else has that problem with a Begonia though.

Morning all..gee...by the time I catch up with your great postings, DH says "Get dress, time to go!"
Ok..ok..just a gist. Carol, you'd be broke here if you love daylilies. Marietta Gardens and Roycraft within half an hour's drive.
Gita and Cathy, I wish I have your garden expertise, but that's earned with time, right?
Gilli, my DH is a big May the Force be With You, fan.
Betty, Betty, Betty..quit trying to find out who your secret pal is on the R,W & B swap. It's too soon!!
I had not started anything crafty for a long time now. Still has a lap quilt to finish. Shame on me, even with my swap, I'll be getting a store bought one. But this swap you are having here, with not much to spend on...will force me to just get supplies..and craft one! Blessings in disguise, actually!! So, Shar, yes, you are getting a handmade one, my not so secret buddie (Feminine for 'buddy' lol).
Oh oh!! DH just pointed to the time...
using this as my signature sign off, cause I really mean it, and besides one of you likes it!
Blessings Galore!!!
~Jaye

Are you all aware we have already moved on to #42?????

And--talk about catching up! There are 61 Posts there already......SO! Scoot!
Link is above--by Betty.....