Snow, Slush and Rain

Most people are probably not thrilled with a forecast that starts out with 3 to 5 inches of snow, turning to rain! Now we have an interesting mix of stuff on the ground, but I smile when I look outside because all my small pots of perennials are cozy under the snow. The rain is replenishing our groundwater and keeping dessication at bay. I'm going to start some pansies this week from seed.
The begonias under lights are coming into bloom and looking very happy. B. 'Marmaduke' is looking very good which surprises me since I haven't cared for the looks of it before. One little plant insists on getting mildew but I just hit it with Lysol spray and it behaves itself for a while. The other problem in the light garden is the mice which insist on digging in the pots. I put out peanut butter baited traps but they must have heard about the salmonella problem; they are avoiding the traps!

In The Greenhouse

With the high temperature today well below freezing, I visited my greenhouses to see if everything was doing OK. The black leaved cotton plant isn't happy with the lack of light or with the aphids attacking it. I hacked back a scented leaf geranium that escaped from its pot and has taken over one end of a bench... who knew they could be invasive? The Spanish lavendar is 4 feet high and just coming into bloom right next to a fragrant camellia. The vining jasmine will open its buds tomorrow if we have sun. The plants know that the days are getting longer, but the ice is thick on the ground and the snow that covers the ice makes it even more treacherous to walk outside. With weather like this, I'm planning a trip to Danielson, CT to visit Logees!

The Living Wreath

Step one for creating a living wreath is to have plenty of plant material. I've done about 30 4" variegated ivy cuttings that are sitting in a vase to root. Today I was at a big box store getting some seed starter mix and saw a beautiful variegated  spider plant. Have you met 'Bonnie'? The young plants are distinctly different from an average spider plant; the leaves are twisted and curly. This parent plant had so many babies that I couldn't resist. Tomorrow I will start those little guys rooting! The mature plants lose some of the curly quality (at least mine have) so I'll need lots of young 'uns to cover the coir liner. Looks like I'll be making two wreaths!

Insect Pests

Oh, the dreaded mealybug! How I hate to see that tell-tale clump of fluffy white stuff! I get out the sprayer of rubbing alcohol and enjoy watching them do a melt down as I spray. Aphids aren't as tough to banish and scale is pretty easy to control with Pokon brand plant polish, but I struggle with mealy. 

Winter gardening

Welcome to my blog! The snow is deep and the forecast is for bitter cold this week, so I turn to my indoor garden for relief. The begonias are looking good under lights and the carnivorous Nepenthes are happy with the humidity they get in the bathroom skylight. The cuttings of the Nepenthes Rokko x spectabilis I did yesterday got a little dry so I popped them into a closed terrarium and will hope for the best.
My Christmas tree is a California Wax Privet (Ligustrum texanum) that stands about 8 feet high. Tomorrow I'll take off the ornaments but I'm thinking about leaving the lights on for a while because it is just so lovely when it's dark outside and the white lights are reflected in the windows.
This is one of the best times of the year... the plant catalogs are pouring in and I can create a million gardens in my mind without requiring a single aspirin for my aching back!

Living Wreaths

I've been enjoying Teddi Colberts book on living wreaths and will be making one soon. The question is what plant to use? I'm torn between ivy, spider plants and strawberry begonias. Decisions, decisions.... maybe I'll make three wreaths!