Saturday, January 2, 2016

Gardening Indoors/Geranium Germinated

New Years Eve used to be a time that we gathered as a family but this tradition has long passed. Now we stay in our own homes or attend church and the younger family members do what some traditionally do. Join friends at parties, watch the ball drop in New York City, or go see the firework display. I watch the ball drop and hopefully I'm still awake to welcome in the new year. My daughter usually out with friends or her cousin, stayed home last night with me. How nice. She said she was tired as she still had to work yesterday. 

Today was a chance to get some plants transplanted into larger containers and start taking down Christmas decorations. I got most of the plants done except the peace lily in my bedroom Yep, bought another one month's ago and it's actually been living and producing new leaves every few days after a period of adjustment where it dropped lots of leaves.

The first geranium seed germinated sometime between last night and this  morning.
Kitty and I are taking down the Christmas decorations. I feel so bad for her as she loved sleeping under the tree and laying on the skirt. Till next year.

If I could get up to the window to get that squirrel.
This is the first year that our tree did not dry out. It wasn't stiff with needles dropped everywhere. Thank you El Nino for the warm weather with little heat needed inside the house.
I've never in over 20 years had these few needles after taking down the tree. Usually they're in the house, on the porch, sidewalk and everywhere.
I knew that the berries, pine cones, and branches were alive and fresh but to my surprise everything was not. I dismantled it and saved parts for next year including the metal piece used to attach the branches. Maybe it'll save me from buying one next year but sometimes you don't save if you still have to buy branches and don't have enough from your tree.

Everything was attached to this wire.



Saving this for next Christmas.
The first candidate for transplant. Most of the leaves died when I bought her home probably because a lot of soil fell out and I didn't replace it till now maybe a year later. Even without enough soil it finally started adding new leaves and looks healthy.




That's an excellent price for the pot. As always, I look for bargains.
Only because I broke a small clay pot. I would never save these to cover holes in the bottom of pots.
Who really does this. I usually use landscape fabric which I think is better because it allows water to exit but no chance of soil getting out.
She was ready to be transplanted.


Potted up and I'll finish with stones. supposedly it stops fungus gnats from laying eggs in the soil.
Next to be transplanted Alocasia Polly. I thought they go dormant but not. She did lose a few very large leaves at the start of spring. She's getting tall and I really love this plant.

I take a little of the dried skins off but not too many as to harm the plant.
So glad I bought 2 bags of these before they disappeared from the shelves until about now. The holidays are over and big box stores are already preparing for spring. Seed racks are already out at Home Depot.

Ficus with weeds. I'll have to pick those clover like weeds out. I killed a miniature one of these last year. Love variegated leaves.
Added to the bottom for drainage as it sits in a cache pot and will also give some humidity.
Umbrella plant, not her botanical name but the tag is not next to me. I killed a large tree one of these a few years ago.  Obtained as a gift from a gardening class given by the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. They always give out wonderful freebies.

The last one transplanted. The pot it came in is a four inch pot and it requires watering too frequently. They don't require large pots though and I thought I've read that they like to be pot bound. Normally I like them in clay pots but I'm not washing out another container today so...
Potted up and taken back to their home.


My daughter gets mad because she sits on the sofa next to this table and complains about all the plants. I pay her no mind because she knows my plants aren't going anywhere. Actually I would like my table to be a table so I'm going to buy a light and put most of these on a plant rack.

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