Seed update

It has been several weeks and most of the seeds have sprouted. The butterfly weed seeds are the only ones that have not sprouted. I think they were a couple of years old so it doesn't surprise me. I think I sowed the pepper seeds a little to thick. It is time to get them planted in bigger pots.
I bought some peat pots at Lowes but quickly ran out. Lots of little plants to transplant. Looks like I have a lot of work ahead of me. I also bought some marigold seeds to plant soon. Hope its not too late to start them.

Seeds planted

A couple of weeks ago I got out the grow lights. Actually I went out and bought new fixtures and bulbs. I had read an article in Horticulture magazine about what lights to use as grow lights. The article suggested using a cool or warm white foresent bulb with a full spectrum bulb. So that is what I bought was two cool white light bulbs and two full spectum light bulbs. I put my airplane plant babies from last fall and some herb seedlings under the light. They all seem to be doing much better now than when they were in the window.

Today I had a holiday from work for presidents day. This gave me some extra time to plant up some seeds I had saved from last year and the year before. I planted up several containers with 2 kinds of orimental peppers, double yellow Datura, white columbine and white pasque flower. We will see how it goes.

Things I treasure......

I guess I am what some would call a pack rat and others may say sentimental. But I will let you make up your mind about me after you finish reading this post. Now let me explain. I like to have items, things or junk that remind me of a places or someone. Here are some examples of the small things that I have kept. There are a couple of drinking glasses from Red Lobster where I went with a date many years ago. The bottle cap to a bottle of beer from the last time I saw someone who I was very smitten over. Then there are all the cards I have ever received for birthdays, Christmas and just because someone was thinking of me. And let's not forget the countless pictures that fill up a 20 gallon plus rubbermaid tote.

Then there are the ones that have extreme sentimental value. Here are the pictues of them and why I value them so much. They aren't in any particular order and this isn't all of them.

These are a couple of toys that I believe my Father played with as a child. One is a box of dominos and the other is Pluto, a Disney toy. It feels good to look at these and remember my father. He has been gone just about 12 years now.

Then there is this 3 tiered table. My great grandfather made it. The legs I was told was made out of old broom handles and the molding on each shelf was from a doctors office that use to be in Holstein, Missouri. I was also told that he made 3 different tables but I'm not sure where the others are.

This is a clock that I have to remember my great Uncle John and Aunt Mandy. They were the nicest couple I ever meet. Aunt Mandy always said that she wanted to dance with me at my wedding. I am sad to say that never happened.

Here is a quilt my mother made and gave to me. She calls it Touch of Blue. The stiching is called candle wicking. It is hard to tell by the picture but there is alot of detail in this quilt. I believe she made it sometime in the 1980's. I have it draped on the back of a chair that belonged to her mother.




Here is an art glass bowl Scott and I bought on our first trip to San Francisco. We wanted something to remember such a wonderful trip and what a great time we had.

This last two are prints that we gave each other on our 40th birthdays. The first one is a Pacso print that one I gave scott. It is number and signed by Pacso granddaughter or so we were told. The 2nd one is a print form the 1800's that Scott gave me. We had found it in a junk store for $50 and I thought that was too much to spend on it. He went the next day and bought it without me knowing. It was a great surprise. It was also nice to find the same print online for sale for $500. It is worth 100 times that to me now.

These are just a few of my treasuries that hold special meaning for me. Thanks for taking the time to read

Should I keep it or........

I have this decision to make every year around now. Keep the poinsetta or let it become compost for the garden in the spring? Here is what I have done in the past. Put them in the basement where they only get watered once a week. This way only the strong survive. If they survive I put them out with all the other house plants for the summer. As long as they grow and look healthy I say to myself "I am going to try and get them to bloom for Christmas". I think this because my mother does this almost every year and has moderate success. Well the summer comes and goes and fall arrives and getting the light set up with a timer to give the poinsettia the correct amount of light is the last thing on my mind. So I let the poinsettia freeze and add it to the compost pile.
So how so you really keep it and have it bloom? Mom brings the poinsettia in the house in September and puts it under a grow light with a timer so it gets 12 hours of light a day. She just keeps it watered and it does ok. The red leaves don't get very big but she enjoys it, so that is all that matters. I have read online at one place the poinsettia needs 12 hours light another says 14 hours. One site said to cut the stems off about the height you want it and let sprout out and the new leaves will turn red.
If anyone has kept the poinsettia over the summer and has had luck with getting it to rebloom feel free to post your secrets. I guess I will see if this one survives and if it does see what next fall brings.

What is a gardener to do.....

I was talking with a fellow gardener recently and she mentioned that this time of year is hard for her. She could really explain why it was hard for her other than she was in a funk. I too find this time of year more difficult when it comes to my moods. It is also harder to come up with ideal to blog about. I still have been reading my favorite blogs off and on but for me there is less to blog about. I could post pictures of snow or bear trees and I am sure you don't want to see the piles of dog poo frozen in the yard. Which reminds me need to get that picked up. Do I have any volunteers? Thought not!


Anyway back to this funk I am in. This happens every year and around now is when I notice it. I really think it starts in the fall when the garden starts it's decline to winter. It just take until now for it to fully set in since the holiday keep me busy in other ways. So my question to all of you in blog land is what are your secrets to less the effect of the funk, that is if you get in that mood?


Here are a couple of things I do that helps a little but nothing can replace the sun and working in the yard.


Read all the garden magazines from the summer months the I have just stacked up in a pile.

Set unrealistic goals for what I want to do next summer from looking at all the wonderful things in the magazines.


Make wish lists from all the seed catalogs that are starting to come in the mail.

Order seed that I will never get around to planting. Hope I am not the only one that does this one.

Go to my favorite websites and see what they show is new for this year.

Mark on the calendar when the garden shows are and make plans to go.

Schedule vacation time now so I am sure to gets the days off I want to work in the garden.

Have the Doctor up the meds or as Scott call them the anti bastard pills (he is so loving)

Make phone call to catch up with old friends and family that I don't get to see that much in the summer because I am working in the garden.

If you would have any other ideals please let me know.

Merry Christmas!!

Here is my attempt to decorate for for the holidays this year...

I want to take this post to wish everyone in blog land the very best this holiday season, from myself,Scott, Butch and Bonnie....Happy Holidays!!!!

Extra plant space

No I am not posting this so you can see a messy closet. I copied this ideal from a blog I saw a year or more ago. Not sure whose blog it was but I thought it was a great ideal so I put up these shelves this fall and put some of my house plants on them.

Part of my problem with our house is that I don't have very good windows to put plants in front of. The front of the house faces east and only have two windows. One of them looks out on the porch so not enough light comes in for plants and the other is in the master closet. This one gets great light and is why I put the shelves up to take advantage of this.

The whole project cost about $50 and took about and hour to assemble. There is a metal bar on each side of the window that a bracket snaps into to. Then an 8 inch board sets on top of it. The window is 36 inches wide and the boards are 48. I was going to cut the extra off but decided that I could store extra pairs of shoes on the extra(you can never have enough room for shoes). Also the one orchid I have can't take the full sun from this window so it set to the side out of the sun. I will need to paint the boards but since no one see it but us I thought it could wait until next year.