GBBD - February 2012

It was love at first sight when I saw this potted ivy at Whole Foods.  No price tag and I was sure it would be a total rip off, but it was very reasonably priced.  Cheap actually.  Isn't it gorgeous?

My hellebores are all in bloom...Here, the best way to enjoy them - floating in a bowl of water.  

Oh, this guy is so special to me...here's why.  It will probably be about 20 years old this year!

Sunday's view of the vegetable garden.  Sometime very soon, Scamp's got to learn to refrain from peeing where the raspberries will grow.  

And an update on how Scamp's doing after rupturing a disk and having surgery - you can clearly see how he's doing from the footprints below.  Short of this evidence that he's still dragging a little, he's doing just as well as he probably ever will!

Finally, this tangram bloom was created by the 13 year old who, due to totally unacceptable second marking period grades, has lost the use of facebook and her cell phone.  All that's left for her to do is create things, talk to friends on the landline, and participating in real life once again.  

And for other real life blooms around the world, be sure to visit May Dreams Gardens!

GBBD; GTTC; pondering bonsai; ch-ch-ch-chia!

Have you ever stepped out at night after a day long snow fall? Probably not a feeling that can be conveyed in words, but a glorious stillness, coolness, and beauty that prompted me to name my first born child Winter.

Garden Blogger's Bloom Day - January - is pretty unspectacular on this blog since I am not an indoor plant enthusiast, and outdoors, we have a dusting of snow. I can't even show you snow here in Maryland (guess you'll have to travel to a Southern blog to see that!). However, I was amazed to see this on my tiny orchid that I have managed to keep alive for about a year now. I have never been able to repeat a bloom on any orchid so I'm pretty darn excited about this!

Ch-ch-ch-Chia! Don't know what happened to Homer. I guess it's male pattern baldness. I wish I could have found THIS instead.

Indoors at my parents' house, a really pretty bonsai. The whole thing was $20 at Sam's Club (which has all sorts of implications as it is). My question for you about bonsai is: treasured artform...or...plant torture? I'm not quite sure. I think the idea of training a plant to take these gorgeous natural shapes is very cool. Someone gave me a bonsai book though, and in a photo of a tree being "trained" with copper wire around the stems, with pennies weighing down certain branches, there was definitely was a sadistic feel. On the flip side, I appreciate that the little tree is a living being, but not sure it is a sentient being? What do you think?

And finally, this week's Garden to Table Challenge comes from the pantry. This delicious cobbler (which I want so bad right now) was made using the apple pie filling I canned (and gifted much of) this fall.

Is your garden frozen like mine is? Are you harvesting? Dining on any seasonal specials that others would want to know about? Share here (and also have the opportunity to win half of my spring seed order) !

Last week, both Charlotte and Holly linked with food ideas containing "carrots", which are ranked (randomly) high on my secret list of veggies. Even though they both listed other veggies as well, I just counted the one that appeared highest on my list. Any other veggies they may have written about are still in play. Both get a letter 'G'. First person to collect 'GTTC' wins. To review, Ricki has a 'G', and Meems has a 'GT'. If you're confused, review the rules in the link above. If you're still confused, just trust me and go with it. :) btw - we may not be harvesting, but if you're cooking with these seasonal veggies, it counts.

Merry Christmas (cactus) !

Christmas cactus greetings!

These two merry flowers may seem insignificant to the houseplant enthusiast, but they carry with them 18 years of history.

• Purchased in a Stop and Shop in North Kingstown, Rhode Island in 1992, the Christmas cactus in full bloom enjoyed it's sunny window in a third floor apartment. Despite being the lean college years, the plant enjoyed a decadent life. The Christmas cactus was treated to a few drops of Miracle-Gro every once in a while, and was watered religiously. There is nothing that makes an 18 year old person feel more like an adult than meticulously caring for a houseplant.
• In 1996, the Christmas cactus traveled in a Budget moving van 400 miles south to Maryland. Its next home was in front of a sunny window in another lovely third floor apartment in a horrendously horrible apartment complex. The moment the lease was up, we moved again.
• From 1997 to 2001, the Christmas cactus enjoyed a sunny spot on the windowsill of a rented basement apartment in a charming yellow Victorian house. In the beginning, it enjoyed its new neighbors - many African violets and my sister's houseplants we inherited when she left for graduate school. When the baby came along, the houseplants that couldn't take care of themselves were tossed and the Christmas cactus remained.
• In 2001, the charming yellow Victorian house was sold by the owners, leaving us without a home. Off with hubby, baby, 2 cats, dog, 1 houseplant to my parents' basement for the next 8 months. The Christmas cactus is now suffering not only neglect, but lack of any sunlight at all.
• Spring 2002 to present - the people, animals, and 1 houseplant all move into the house we bought under the tall maple trees. The Christmas cactus is joined by a couple other houseplants, but goes through cycles of being the sole survivor of severe neglect as the number of people increase and the number of chores increase, preventing the Christmas cactus from receiving any care at all save for a watering every now and then.
• From it's humble first home in Rhode Island 18 years ago, to it's only slightly-better situation today, this merry little Christmas cactus bids you a good day!