Gardening in Winter

Mary · Joined: 18 May 2006 Posts: 761

Closeup of the flowers.

God's Warrior · Posted: Sat Jan 24, 2009 4:03 pm Post subject:

What tiny fragile blooms for such a sturdy type plant. Really pretty!

Do they have an aroma? I know that a lot of those kinds of plants will have a very sweet odored bloom, probably to attract insects.

Mary · Joined: 18 May 2006 Posts: 761

One of the Christmas or Thanksgiving cactus, also frozen. It was in full bloom and I was going to bring it back into the house to enjoy on the day that I put the insulation on the greenhouse vents, but decided it was too cold outside to safely carry it to the house. Sad

Mary · Joined: 18 May 2006 Posts: 761

My favorite amaryllis, picotee, which came in a box from a discount store, and was not what I thought I was buying, but praise God, it was much better! I have hope for the amaryllis, the tops froze but the bulbs appear to be firm and some are sprouting new leaves. Hopefully, this one will too.

Mary · Joined: 18 May 2006 Posts: 761

This ripsallis came as a start I bummed from a friend, who didn't know what it was and said it had never bloomed. It got too much sun last summer and looked horrible, so I took some leaves from a protected spot to root in water on my kitchen windowsill. Now, having been subjected to temps in the 20's overnight, it really looks bad, but something might still be alive, so I'm not tossing it out yet.

God's Warrior · Posted: Sat Jan 24, 2009 4:27 pm Post subject:

That cactus was absolutely awesome. What a shame that is is history now. That amaryllis is beautiful. Hopefully the bulb didn't freeze completely. I am like you in the fact that I don't toss anything as long as there appears to be any life of any sort surviving.

Mary · Joined: 18 May 2006 Posts: 761

Elena, I never noticed any good smells when the jade bloomed, and I am sure I must have given it the sniff test.

God's Warrior · Posted: Sat Jan 24, 2009 4:52 pm Post subject:

The particular fragrance I am refering to can't go unnoticed. It is very strong and can best be described like a perfume that someone has spilled in a room. The first time I had a plant that smelled like that was years ago when i had a mother-in laws-tongue to bloom. It was hidden by a window curtain and I sniffed my way all over that room looking for the perfume I was sure my girls had spilled,

CajuninKy · Joined: 24 May 2006 Posts: 553 Location: Kentucky

She never knew why it didn't bloom. It was there plenty long enough and all the trees around it were doing fine. She just figured it was a dud.

I didn't know Mother in law tongues bloomed.

I know the kind of smell you are talking about. The Sweet Olive Tree has that kind of smell.

Why do you take the gardenia in and out? In my experience you can't kill one of those things.

God's Warrior · Posted: Sun Jan 25, 2009 10:57 pm Post subject:

The gardenia is my favorite plant. I have babied that shrub for all these years because of that fact. They can't survive the cold winters. The furtherest north I have known of one living is Memphis and that is where this one came from as a bloom that my sister's landlady cut for me. I rooted it and have loved it ever since. A really harsh winter killed the parent plant not long after that.