A Story - "When Baby Came" - Calla Lily, Native Black-eyed Susan, Astrantia, Hostas and Cherry Bell Campanula, Bridging colours, Aggressive Purple-flowering Maple.

A Story

When Baby Came

 Lisa sighed gently as Peter brushed her hair, stroke after stroke. His hands tickled her neck as he gathered her hair together to make a ponytail.  He playfully swung her hair and then kissed her on the cheek.  She turned to him, and drew him into a full kiss. They had always been deeply in love but now that she was pregnant, they felt even closer. Peter rested his hand lightly on her swollen belly and smiled when he felt the baby's foot pressing outwardly. They were already connecting.

A few weeks later, Lisa went into labour.  Peter, who had attended pre-natal classes with her, knew to massage her back. He sang her favourite songs and wiped her brow with a cool cloth. He told her how much he loved her and how special it was to have a baby with her. When she was finally delivering, he held her hand and never flinched when she squeezed with all her might. Lisa was so thankful to have such a devoted husband.

Baby made a grand entrance, crying heartily and turning a bright rose red. Lisa cuddled her and laughed at her comical face.  Peter, on the other hand, stared at Baby mesmerized, totally enraptured with her.

That was the beginning of the competition between Lisa and Baby.

The summer before last I got these calla lily bulbs for free at the end of the season in August.  I potted them up and they grew a bit before the frost.  I overwintered them in their pot inside, basically just neglected them in the basement.  Last summer, I put the pot outside and they grew nice leaves but no flowers. Finally this summer, I have blooms.  Very pretty and worth the wait. They like a sunny location with ample moisture in the growing season.

Gardening is always full of surprises.  This year  three native rudbeckia (hirta) have popped up around the garden. They are a biennial plant unlike the usual perennial rudbeckia (goldstrum).  Their leaves are narrow and hairy. I guess some bird dropped their seeds in our yard. I'm enjoying having them.

Astrantia is such an unusual flower - spiky yet soft. The white ones have subtle colour variations with touches of green and pink here and there. They form a nice big clump but do not wander.  They prefer a half-shade location and adequate moisture.  A mulch around them to keep the soil from drying out is preferable.

Some of my favourite hostas, especially the green one with buttery yellow centres. I don't remember what varieties they are.  In front of them are some cherry-bell campanula which for some reason decided to make a nice ground cover this year in an area that I have struggled to find a plant for.  Campanulas in general like sun but also adequate moisture. These ones are flopping because they are not in full sun. However, they are growing well because the soil is not drying out.

To transition from the hot orange campion to the cool pink lily, I planted in a couple of miniature red roses.  The red serves as a bridge colour.

Purple-flowering maple has attractive flowers and will later make red raspberry-like fruit.  It is native to my area (zone 4).  It makes a shrub up to 5' tall. Sounds nice? Not really.  It is very aggressive and I would gladly do without it.  I spend considerable time trying to root it out of my gardens. It is sometimes sold as a garden plant  but it is a real thug. I didn't plant it in my yard - it was already here as it is a native plant. The bees like it though and birds will eat the edible, but not tasty, fruit.

A Story - "Silence" and Dried Flower Arrangements

 A Story

Silence

After the funeral, friends hugged James,  They promised to deliver casseroles, arranged to do chores, shared memories of his lovely wife who had died just before her sixtieth birthday.  His daughter assured him she'd call every day.  His son encouraged him to come with him on holiday.  Robert was glad to see his friend being supported.

Reluctantly, Robert returned home because the carer was due to leave.  His wife was still sleeping.  He mindlessly made a sandwich after noticing the message light wasn't flashing.  Silence engulfed him.  The lonely emptiness of caring for someone with dementia left him swaying precariously.

It can be fun to experiment with drying various flowers.  I was surprised at how well pink peonies dried.  They're the main feature in this arrangement. As well as the usual statice,  some astrantia, sedum, ornamental onion seed heads fill out the arrangement. For some longer wispy accents, I used coral bell seed heads and grape hyacinth popped-open seed stems.

This little posey has quite a few dried roses - some regular size, some miniature. In the back are some ornamental onions that still have petals, some yarrow and some astrantia.

This is a more traditional collection of dried flowers.  I didn't grow them. So there is strawflowers, statice, gomphrena, and a bit of wheat. I have in the past had good success growing gomphrena and the flowers keep their colour for a long time. Gomphrena usually comes in pink, red, and white.

Story - "The Falling Sky" and September Flowers

 Here's another story.

The Falling Sky

Ever since he could remember, Matt had heard that the sky was going to fall.

One cloudy day, he began his trek to school.  Suddenly, a mist materialized around him.  The clouds were plummeting.  The sky was crashing down.  He started to run but the fog grew so thick that he couldn't see.

He cried out in terror.  He was going to die.  In agony, he stumbled and fell.

Prostrate, trembling, eternity later, a gentle breeze began nudging him.  Nervously, he peeked up at the sky.

The fog was gone.  The sky was azure blue.  The sun was shining.

It's the season for chrysanthemums but I still have some summer flowers to enjoy so I haven't bought any chrysanthemums.

Crazy little red miniature rose just keeps on blooming.  I like the classic rose shape.

The zinnias are still making new blooms.  I have left the old flowers on the plants as I am hoping to save some of my own seeds this year. 

Yellow dahlia just never stops blooming. What a great plant.

This is just one coleus plant although it has grown different shaped leaves with different coloration.

Interesting.

I think this is a very pretty cosmos.  Only really started blooming properly a couple of weeks ago. I like cosmos but they really would do better in a full sun, drier location.

After  quite a rainy summer, we are supposed to get several days of sun. It will be nice weather to spend outside tidying up the gardens for winter.  The hummingbirds have gone south.  In a couple of months, we will start feeding the winter birds.

A Story "Family" - and some red flowers

 Here is the second part of the story "Baby Plans".

Family

Laughing, panting, David called a stop to the soccer scrimmage with his stepson, Ben.

"Time for ice cream," Ben grinned.

"You betcha, kiddo," David returned with a big puff.

David slung his arm around Ben's shoulder as they headed for the house.  Jessica watched them from the kitchen, her heart singing as it always did when those two were together.  David couldn't have a biological child of his own, but he loved and cherished Ben as his son.

Jessica and David had debts; they rented their house; they weren't promoted.

All they had was treasure:  family and love.

This is a miniature rose.  The flower is a bit more than an inch across. I bought this at the grocery store last winter and it's doing well on the deck.  It has collected rainwater in the centre.

Flowers come in so many different shapes and sizes.  Here is some beebalm looking like it's having a bad hair day.

This dahlia is so neat and tidy.  Dramatic in its very structured way.

Probably my favourite daylily.  The lime green centre is such a good contrast to the rich red petals.

I like the glossy green leaves of this begonia. Very bright and cheerful.

Happy gardening.

A Story. - Lightning.

 Since I get fewer views on Youtube than I get on this blog, I've decided to put my very short stories up here instead.  They will go up about once a week.  

                                    Lightning

Paul had mentored Brad for several weeks and they were developing a good rapport.  Brad was at the residential centre for juveniles because of drug charges, petty theft.  They worked together cutting grass, tending gardens.  Gradually, Brad began to talk about his past:  his foster homes, his mother's addictions.  He shared with Brad that he wanted a job to earn some money.

Paul arranged an off-site work placement with a landscaper one day a week.

Brad was happier; Paul celebrated their progress.

But one morning, Brad, like lighting thunder, lashed out, yelling, swearing, punching Paul.  The past was not so easily left behind.

This story is loosely based on the experience of a friend of mine who worked with youth in a residential centre.  My friend, a kind-hearted soul, didn't stay in the field.  He got too emotionally involved with the kids and couldn't handle the realities of troubled lives. For those people who do stay in the work long-term, I have nothing but admiration.

And since this is a gardening blog, here is a little pink rose covered in raindrops.

Take care.

Spring Indoor Blooming Plants -Rose, Bougainvillae, African Violet, Orchid

In January, I bought this 4 plant pot of miniature roses. When I brought it home, it had a couple of stunted blooms and a few buds.  They all proceeded to fall off as well as many leaves.  This usually happens when you bring a greenhouse rose from the grocery store into your home. All the changes are just too much for the plant.  However,  I fertilized it with Miracle Grow- Ultra Bloom (15-30-15) liquid fertilizer and now it is blooming nicely with lots of new growth.

It is a bit floppy but that could just be the lower light on a windowsill as opposed to being outside.  I am thinking of putting a couple of the plants in a hanging basket with other plants for the summer.  In the fall, I will plant the four plants in the ground as they do not make a good permanent houseplant.  They are supposed to be hardy to zone 4.  In the past, I have had miniature roses that lasted several years in the garden.

Crazy bougainvillae.  It bloomed as it usually does in February.  After a time, the blooms fell off as well as quite a few leaves.  OK, I thought, now it needs a rest.  Well, no, it started to put on new growth and after a shot of fertilizer it is blooming again. Lovely bright pink flowers which dry beautifully.

 

A friend gave me this violet last fall.  It has been blooming constantly since January.  I had it close to a south window for the winter and now I have moved it back a bit so it doesn't get scorched by the strong spring sun.  

This lovely orchid blooms reliably every winter.  The flowers last for weeks.  When it is flowering, I feed it once a month with liquid fertilizer.  I always water it with rainwater or distilled water. I give it about 1/4 cup of room temperature water once a week.

The kalanchoe of my last post in January is still blooming. I have taken cuttings so that hopefully next year I will have even more kalanchoes in bloom.  Such an easy plant to grow. It's quite happy for the soil to dry out but can also handle a decent watering as long as it doesn't stay wet over a significant period of time. Just not fussy at all.

Spring is cool and rainy this year so having the indoor plants blooming is especially nice.

 

As The Leaves Fall

The flowers are few and far between at this time of year but the spots of colour are well appreciated.

This hardy geranium has been blooming since June. The main flush of flowers was earlier in the season but it has continued to make new leaves and a few flowers into autumn.  I really like the vibrant magenta with the dark centre.

A few zinnias.

The Japanese anemone are fun plants with their lime green centres. They are pretty tough and can be invasive in mild climates but in zone 4 they just add a nice bit of brightness when September rolls around.
 

From the Dark Ground

From the dark seemingly dead ground come beautiful fragrant roses.
Let's not be discouraged by the news.

Happy Valentine's Day

Love is patient, love is kind.
It does no envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails.

1 Corinthians 13: 4-8
NIV

Valentine's Bouquet

Lovely roses from my dear husband.