Friday, February 24, 2006

 

My house plants- added a new one!

Ever go out to a grocery store and see a plant you just felt you wanted to own? Thats what happened to me this morning.
It is supposed to snow tomorrow, so I felt it wise to do my shopping today. No more than I entered the store and started walking to the first side, there were so many pretty flowering plants sitting around. I looked them all over and first thought of getting more African Violets to sit on my tall plant holder. i do love them. Then I looked around, and on the very top was this larger white wicker basket with some tall "Calla Lillys" sitting in the planter inside the basket. The flower colors are a varigated lighter orchid, or maybe a lavender shade of purple. So pretty, shaped like little bells. Here were all those pretty flowering plants, and must admit, I loved them all, but this Calla Lily was one I hadn`t boughten before. So, It was the first item that was put into my grocery cart-- right up in the top little seat where it wouldn`t get smashed.
I had it sitting on my kitchen table where it could get the full morning sun till the sun went overhead. Then I moved it into the my Horse collection room. I have a large floor toolbox that sits infront of the daybed. It is one of those that has wheels and a handle that can be pulled out when needed. it is just the height of a coffee table. I had made a pretty floor lengthed cloth tablecloth cover for it, even added a ruffle that goes around the top outside edge. So, unless I told you it was a toolbox, you would think it was realy a stand sitting there. Now the Lilly planter is sitting on top of the toolbox cover.
Now, my big problem will be to hope I can keep it alive. The tag said it was grown in Canada at the Homestead growers Vineland, and that it requires a temperature of 60-65 F or 16-18 C. I can provide the full sun, the moderate water, but how can I keep it that cool in the summertime? I learned that the true name of this Lily is Zantedeschia. I can see why they gave it an easier name for us to remember. The picture shows the blossoms in many different colors- yellow, white, variegated reddish and purplish. Right now only the one color is opened. I am looking forward to seeing the other plants blossoming.
I have already check on the net for proper planting and growing advice and this was what I found.
Calla Lily Planting Guide
Help
How to plant callas:
Plant callas lilies outdoors in a location that gets bright, morning light. They like some late afternoon shade, particularly in hot-summer areas. Keep them well-watered and weeded. Callas grow best in a moist soil that includes some organic matter. Plant the bulbs 4 to 6 inches deep and 1 to 2 feet apart. They can be planted 6 to 12 inches apart when grown in pots. Fertilize monthly with a good all-purpose fertilizer.

When to plant callas:
Although calla lilies are known as 'spring bulbs,' in tropical climates or USDA zones 8-10, calla lilies thrive outdoors year-round. They can be planted at any time!

In other areas, they can be planted when temperatures rest higher than 55 degrees F (below 55 degrees, calla lilies stop growing). Just make sure that there is no danger of frost or of temperatures dropping below 55 degrees in the first 12 weeks after planting.

Did you know...calla lilies make excellent houseplants! They maintain lush green foliage year-round!

During the winter:
In tropical climates (zones 8-10), calla lilies can be left in the ground over winter without trouble, although some gardeners prefer to mulch with bark or straw during the colder months.

In other areas, lift the bulbs before the first frost, clean off excess soil, let dry out of the direct sun for a few days, then store in a dry location that remains between 50 and 60 degrees F. Re-plant in spring after the soil has warmed and all danger of frost has passed.

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Only thing it didn`t tell me is when grown as a house plant, should it be set away for a rest period between flowering seasons like the Amerillas need? It says it keeps green folliage year around, but not if it can reblossom without the bulbs being removed and dried.

That reminds me, I better make a trip upstairs to check on my amerillas. When I was up there a couple days ago I noticed that one of the plants had a flower stalk growing. They grow up so fast that if you forget them for a few days, you will miss watching that huge beautiful flower bulb open up-- have had as many as 4 flowers in the past on the one stem. Anxious to see how many blooms this one will have. I have many of these plants . The only bad thing about growing them is how fast they multiply and in a few years you have way too many plants to keep up with. i just hate tossing any new ones away. Many are large enough to start blossoming. Had 4 plants blossom last year.

I just gave away another large planter filled with aloe plants. They also keep multiplying way too fast. In the past year I have given many away to my Family, a sister-in-law and yesterday to a nephews son`s girfriend.

Same goes for the spider plants. Have given some of them away.

I have other plants, some flowering, some now, plus can`t remember the name of the tree like plant that grows on and on like a heavy wooden vine. it was so tall that I had to tie it to a hook at the ceiling. After years of growing, it was getting so jumbled that this past fall I cut it down, rerooted some new sections and starting them all over again. They are already starting to get tall.

My begonia is in bloom now and the spider plants have small white blossoms on them, I have a couple different kinds of them and their flowers are different.

Also last fall my Texan Cactus had 6 flowers on it. I can`t wait till next summer to see if it has even more blossoms next time.

Well, guess you get the ides that I also enjoy plants. These are just the ones I have growing in my house now. I like to grow them all along the front of the house-- on either side of the front porch. I Have a flower box made from cement blocks that are 3 high all around that goes along the side of my driveway. Another large flower bed out back on the next lot near my back porch, plus a wood boxed in one where I grow a flower bed to draw both butterflies and Hummingbirds.

Well, guess thats enough about my growing plants. But I also do love my fresh veggie garden that i have every year. Couldn`t get to the ground to care for the large garden we used to have, so now I have a lot of what is caklled Earth boxes where I grow my garden. I made a standard to hold the planters up off the ground so I could care for them standing up and just walking around the frame.

There is almost always a way to continue doing something we love, we just need to make some adjustments to accomplish it.

Comments:
I just love flowers and plants, the only thing is, they don't seem to love me too much and I always seem to kill them no matter how much I care for them.

Well, one good thing, at least I won't have to find homes for any plants when I move. :)
 
Lifelessions: I never had much time to take care of plants, but always had some anyway. Even now, but I'm not maintaining them myself. It's nice to have something growing, alive though.

Mrs Lifecruiser: I had a time in my life when I had a lot of plants, even out in the garden. Liked to plant new ones, planning the garden, see them grow and bloom. Then my back broked down, so I had to give up that interest. Sad, but I had to adjust to reality....
 
deni. thats right, as you already have enough to do. I have had a couple plants that no matter what I did, I still lost them, but I am lucky with most.
 
Yes, lifelessions plants are nice to watch grow and also healthy to have around.

Mrs lifecruiser, I thought I was going to have to stop growing a garden once I started having trouble getting back up. Then I got the bright idea of making a way to stand up and still have a garden. I used 2x4`s and some boards were 2x6`s that were hanging around being used for nothing. Some were from when we did some old re-construction. I made a framework just high enough so that the planter boxes were waist high, but the plants grew so tall that I had to cut down the legs and lower the frame inorder to reach the top of the tomato plants without using the step ladder. If only your hand could do the work, this type of garden could be done even from a wheelchair. I call it my stand-up garden because everything is in reach without bending or climbing. i place the boxes in such a way that I can reach both sides of the boxes from the outside. Weeds don`t grow in these covered boxes as long as you use potting soil in them- so no weeding to do. To water you just hold a hose in the tubes in the corner of the boxes and fill the under section with water. So, they don`t need watering every day most of the time. If you look in my blog under Oct. 05 for wednesday oct 19th you will see what I am talking about. I have been growing my veggie garden this way for over 5 years now. We used to have a huge garden at my Aunts farm where we even grew enough potatoes to feed our family for one whole winter. Then we started using the empty lot we own next door for a garden. I miss the big gardens, but settled for the Earth garden boxes on the low standard. I hope i can continue this way for more years.
 
lucky for me that you all commented as I had forgotten to recheck the Amerillas upstairs. I just ran up and noticed that all the Amerilla plants needed watering. I keep watering jugs filled so that I can water them whenever I climb the stairs. Something else I won`t be doing for many more years as getting harder every year to climb the stairs. I mostly pull myself up with my arms , hand over hand on the banister. The blossom stem is still only about an inch high, so it will be a while yet before the stem gets tall enough for the blossoms to open. I am so anxious to see how many blossomes it will have.
 
dot
I would like to see the picture of your bloom; every one of them, especially the Cactus.
 
Jac, you can see a picture of the cactus in a former post- "Summer 2005". Look under Oct. `05 and that post is the 3rd from the last post under that month.
This last time it had a total of 6 blossoms in all. They opened 2 at a time. the picture shows 2 newly opened yellow blossoms, plus the 2 pinkish ones are the last blossoms that are dying, and the 2 brown stems were the first 2 that blossomed. Rigjht now I still have the 6 brownish tiny stems where the blossoms once were. Five of the 6 tiny stems now have red round bead shaped what I think might be seeds. I wish I knew more about these red items that encircle the end of the old blossom stem where it connects to the top of the plant. I feel they might be used to start new cactus plants, but I am not sure how to go about it. I have tried planting it to no resultand sitting it in water didn`t help. It is a cactus straight from an old friend who lived in Texas. Maybe someone who lives in Texas can educate me about it. Iusually break them off so they don`t weaken the plant. Ts time Ileft them to see if they will grow larger. Hoping for more blossoms this summer.
Jac, if you don`t find the cactus picture and write up, let me know and I will repost it for you.
 
hello dot. it has been a long time since you made a post. it is march 29th. we all need a good one from you.
 
Heya¡­my very first comment on your site. ,I have been reading your blog for a while and thought I would completely pop in and drop a friendly note. . It is great stuff indeed. I also wanted to ask..is there a way to subscribe to your site via email?

Kitchen garden
 
http://dotmm.blogspot.com

use copy/paste- e-mail to yourself, then you can use it to either go to my site or can make a shortcut onto your desktop for easier way.

I answered before, but do not see where it posted, so trying again. thanks for stopping by. I checked and saw your blog consists mostly of plants.Happy blogging.
 
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