(If I knew who the cartoonist is, I would attribute it.)
-
-
I always forget to take pictures when I’m in the middle of a project and regret it when I’m through.
I couldn’t stand it any longer. So, I abused the quince.
I knew there were a couple of suckers that I hoped I could turn into yard bushes. It had bloomed out and was pretty much through. So, I shook out as much soil as I could and stuck it in a bucket of water while I prepped one of Patti’s pots.
The roots were a tangled mess. And by the time I had clipped away what I was clearly not going to keep, I had 2 usable pieces for bonsai and one really good chunk of roots with some starting bush branches to work with.
I decided to bonsai the larger trunk and I put the other pieces back in regular soil to grow there until I transplant it by the deck. I want to baby them for the summer.
The larger piece in the standard soil is a decent backup if the one I put in the bonsai pot can’t stand the stress of the work I did to it today. And I’ll still have a dark pink quince by the deck, eventually.
-
Once upon a time in the murky, distant past, I developed a yen for a yellow Xmas/Thanksgiving cactus. I saw pictures of some on FaceBook and thought they were spectacular. I had one that was white with fuchsia edges, already.
A neighbor of my mother had put her collection of Schlumbergeri out by the elevator on their floor and she had a yellow one blooming. I stole a pinch. Then, I told her I’d done it and she told me I was welcome to as many cuttings as I wanted.
As I waited for it to grow, I decided to hit up Home Depot to see if they had any yellow ones after Xmas. Just in case the cutting didn’t thrive. And there was a pot of light colored buds. “Ah ha!” thinks I. “A yellow one. Waiting for me!” I brought it home and all the buds fell off.
So, I waited. And in the Fall, the fuchsia one bloomed. And the pinched one got unexpected buds!! And the “yellow” one did, too.
But, the pinched one had dark buds. Apparently, there were 2 plants in that pot and I got the wrong one.
“Yellow” turned out to be peach.
It’s still attractive and I do like it. But, it’s not yellow.
And the pinched one is a lovely red.
Again, it’s lovely. But, still not what I was aiming for.
Last Spring, visiting my mother, again, the yellow one was blooming. I took a pinch that had a freakin’ flower on it.
Now, I have this.
Addendum:
It took 13 days longer to bloom.
I’m delighted.
-
My husband is a big fan of Andrew Wyeth. We have already been to the Wyeth place in Chadd’s Ford, PA and it was wonderful. But, we would like to see Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland, ME, too.
Chuck and I saw an exhibition of Childe Hassam‘s work at the NCMA a couple of years ago. In particular, paintings from the Isles of Shoals on the New Hampshire / Maine border. (Hassam was an American Impressionist and photos of his work don’t begin to do it justice.)
The Isles of Shoals aren’t particularly tourist friendly. At least, not for spending the night. But, there is a boat trip around them from Portsmouth, NH. And it’s possible to see the Celia Thaxter Gardens where Hassam stayed and painted, if you go at the right time.
Portsmouth is only an hour from Boston on the way to (or from) Rockland. And Rockland is 2 and half hours further along. And there are some interesting places to pause along the way.
This is a trip I intend to make happen.
-
I couldn’t stand it any longer. I have new pots, new planting medium and an itch. I really don’t want to start working the quince when it’s already starting to bloom. So, I dug up a crepe myrtle. It’s my first yamadori (wild collected bonsai).
I have 9 ‘Tuscarora’ crepe myrtles planted along the fence and they are sending out runners like crazy. They’ve been there since I bought the house. So, I probably shouldn’t be surprised.
The first one I went for had no rootlets. Seriously, none. Just stick. So, I ripped up another one. And it looks pretty good.
I trimmed that large side root back and stuck it in a bucket of water while I got the screens in the pot and the anchoring wires set. One of the anchors was too short and had to be replaced.
I didn’t have enough of the old medium. So, that’s on the bottom and I topped it with the new, which is a little bigger. I guess I could have mixed them. But I didn’t want to keep messing with the already abused rootlets.
It’s potted and soaked. Now, fingers crossed that I get leaves.
I am the Audience 