I know...that was last year. Sorry, I had to sneak in some color, because this year I'm still desperate! It's rather white outdoors, and what plants I have inside are just green with no blooms.
I have been pleased that 5 of last years plants have survived the year in pots inside my house, despite having a cat who would like to tear them up. I haven't been good with getting them to rebloom, however. (As soon as I started writing this post, the cat managed to chew down one of the plants by about a quarter. What's a cat lover to do?)...
I watched an amaryllis bloom a couple of weeks ago and thought it was finished, after putting up 2 stalks with 5 to 6 blooms on each. What surprised me is to see a 3rd stock beginning to grow. Does that mean it's going to give me yet another bunch of blooms?
I watched a paper white bloom a week or two ago, as well. There are still 2 bulbs that haven't done much other than grow little green tips. I want to believe there is still a chance they will grow and put on a show--but I'm thinking they just aren't going to make it. What do you think?
I'll close with just the bloom of a red rose, from the Valentine's day bouquet of roses from my husband:
Join Garden Bloggers Bloom Day on the 15th of each month at May Dreams Gardens, to see posts by gardeners around the world showing what's blooming in their gardens.
--Today I am thankful for last February's floral collage:-)
Words and photos by Jan Huston DobleThanks For 2 Day.
Those bloom days don't always correspond with the month's blooms, do they? I really love that last photo of the red rose. Gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteWow - that's one amazing red rose! Beautiful!! (and yes, I think it's perfectly okay to sneak in a few photos from past months...what's a gardener supposed to do, anyway??) ;)
ReplyDeleteYour photo shoot makes my heart sing, Jan! Better than me, you shared photos ... today (in between 3 1/2 hour inspection for young son's 1st home), I visited the nursery and 'fed my soul'! Perhaps tomorrow (in my crazy life), I'll take/share my goodies :)
ReplyDeleteIt will be interesting to see if you get a third bloom (very possible) or just new leaves to replenish the amaryllis bulb for next year's bloom. Eventually you get leaves; sometimes you get the thid bloom stalk. It's all amazing to watch.
ReplyDeleteHappy Bloom Day.
Hello Jan! I just came across your blog today and have to say that your pictures are amazing!!!! I'm new to blogging and am in the midst of learning to use a new Canon D60. What camera do you use? I'm truly inspired by your blog/pictures :)
ReplyDeleteJan, I don't think any one will deny your bloom day post. We can't all live in the warmer climes where something is blooming in our gardens all year long. :) I had to buy and borrow to get blooms for mine. Yours are lovely and how great that the amaryllis is going to give you more. I am impressed!
ReplyDeleteBTW, are you tired of winter, too?
I guess I'm fortunate to live where the cat and I can go outdoors and select some especially delectable grasses for a little salad course. Fortunately she shows no interest in greenery indoors. Good luck with your second planting of paperwhites. Hopefully yours are just taking a quick breather before showering you with clouds of flowers...
ReplyDeleteDamn cats! I go to great extreme measures to keep certain plants segregated from the cats. I am not worried about them eating anything toxic, but they are hell on plants.
ReplyDeleteIt is always cats. My sisters cat is the same way. They bu cat grass for him, but he still devourers and green plant that they bring indoors!
ReplyDeleteI remember your post from last year. It was brilliant. :)
ReplyDeleteJan - your pots are so pretty -- green is lovely, too, you know! I smiled about your cats - no cats here, but the digging dog that loves to eat my bulbs outdoors. I guess it's always something, isn't it! Happy GBBD - hope you see green outside soon, too.
ReplyDeleteHi Jan; this beautiful mosaic with all these wonderful flowers in all the rainbow colours surely cheered you up. I also think the seed packets are so attractive be it vegetables orf flowers to keep them in a basket so they are always on view. The rose is perfect. I think the paper whites will still flower given time. Perhaps they might need a bit more space.
ReplyDeleteGive your house-plants from time to time a spell in a shady protected nook in the garden in spring and summer.
Keep faith, Jan. The bulbs might surprise you. I wish they do! Good luck with them.
ReplyDeleteJan - Oh, for color this time of year! I am no good with indoor plants, so have no useful advice, alas. Fertilizer, maybe?? Or maybe it's just all the cat's fault!! Lovely rose, you have a sweet hubby. :) Hope you had a happy V-day!
ReplyDeleteHappy bloom day Jan! What a lovely rose. It's those little things that count.
ReplyDeleteThe red rose is just perfect for Valentine... ~bangchik
ReplyDeleteGorgeous montage Jan and all the greens and blooms are inspiring! Green tips on your paper whites look promising. ;>)
ReplyDeleteHappy GBBD Jan! Sorry I can’t oblige with a colourful offering either. Stunning array of colour in your montage… very nice. I pulled last year’s montage and had foliage for my main colour as you’ve seen.
ReplyDeleteLovely shades of red here though. LOL… I’ll try to make a note to remind you to plant some snowdrops for next year… still no colour for you though ;-)
Hi Jan, who can forget that cheerful montage of yours? I remember oohing and aahing at it. Most beautiful! I'm glad you posted it again. Stunning amaryllis and of course that rose is a winner!
ReplyDeleteHave a great week!
Jan girl ! How are you ? : )
ReplyDeleteLove the post .. no matter when the shots were taken .. we NEED colour !! Our weather is going to be cloudy with flurries past Friday .. now how fair is that I ask you ? .. I have another stalk on my Apple Blossom amaryllis and being my first, everything it does is new to me !! especially when it tried to grow OUT of the box before I potted it ? haha
beautiful flower shots girl : )
Joy
Hi FG & Rebecca, no-those bloom days don't correspond to what's in our gardens! Glad you agree it was ok to use my photo from last year! I had to come up with 'some' color, right?
ReplyDeleteJoey, so glad to have 'fed your soul';-) You are always so busy doing that for the rest of us, it's time you did it for you, too! I look forward to your photos, as always.
Hi Nell, I really didn't know a 3rd shoot could actually come up...so thanks for that info. Your observation that they send up leaves for food throughout the rest of the year is 'probably' what's happening, though. I'll let you know if I get a third stalk/bloom. That would be wonderful!
Hi Judy, welcome to blogging & thanks for visiting. My camera is a Nikon D 40-X.
Glad to hear you 'borrowed & bought' for bloom day, Beckie...nice to hear I wasn't alone when I did that last year. I resorted to a photo this year instead of buying more but if I didn't have a knee in a brace I probably would have been out shopping for some!
Hi James, you are indeed fortunate with your cat. I've provided ours with cat grasses more times than I can even remember, but he still goes for my plants. I always end up having to put them in places where I can't enjoy them in order to keep them, & they don't get the light as well that way either. I hope you're right about my paperwhites...I'll let you know if they actually end up blooming!
Les & Zach, Some cats just can't be tamed, I guess! I go as far as putting the plants on the top of bookshelves, the fireplace mantle, etc...where he can't get them. It's when I bring them down to photograph them, and decide I like them where I can see them, that the problems occur! I'm doomed until the cat joins the great cat-box in the sky;-)
Diana, if it's not cats, its dogs...haha. So true! But we love our pets, don't we;-) What we go through to keep plants AND pets! Usually my pets win;-) We have 2 dogs too, so the back gardens take their share of 'wear & tear', grrr!
Thanks, Titania...I hope you're right about the paperwhites & I'll consider your suggestions for my plants! I had them all outdoors during the summer, in my screened in porch. They seemed fine out there. At least the cat wasn't eating them then!
Thanks Chandramouli & Karen...I hope the bulbs will bloom. And you might be right about the fertilizer...hmm, I haven't given them any plant food for quite some time. Duh. I'll get right on it Karen!
Tm & Bangchik, glad you enjoyed the rose...I had 12 of them to enjoy! I seem to be a magnet for them on valentines day! (Last yr.I asked my husband to stop giving me chocolate but now I wish I hadn't! I sure could use some!)
Hope you're right about the paperwhites 'promise', Carol. And Shirl, snowdrops reminder would be nice, although, if we get snow again next year, they won't be adding any color will they?!?
Kanak, how nice you remembered the collage from last year. Sweetbay said the same thing. A bunch of color in the middle of winter is a necessity!
Joy, I'm glad you're feeling better! Sorry about more snow. Is it your first 'apple blossom' amaryllis or first amaryllis in general? Either way, show photos! They are a must in the winter;-)
Thank you all for your visit! I recently realized that most of you would get my replies in your emails. I had no idea earlier, so I usually didn't reply on my own blog. I look forward to seeing all of your bloom day posts, too;-) Jan
Hi Jan finally making it over to see everyone elses blooms - that rose is a stunner and what a fabulous montage.
ReplyDeleteWhat’s a cat lover to do? Clean up the barf mess, talk to your plants and explain things and keep on loving those fur babies! That is what I do. Then I put the plants behind closed doors. lol....
ReplyDeleteGreat blooms and yes, I think you will have yet another amaryllis bloom there! You have more color them me as I have none right now. None anywhere but soon, I will…
Beautiful colours, much needed during this long winter.
ReplyDeleteOh yes, color is definitely appreciated this time of year! My hubby hauled dirt and sod for me instead of giving roses, but what a lovely rose you have. Hang in there til spring.
ReplyDeleteWith cats in the house, I don't even try to keep house plants. Just couldn't face anymore disasters--shattered containers and potting soil all over the floor. I keep a couple amaryllis here at work where they are safe from four footed vandals.
ReplyDeleteMarnie
You're doing well- it IS winter and you DO have cats... :-)
ReplyDeleteLove the montage and photos.
Cameron
Jan,
ReplyDeleteI too am enjoying a third stalk on my Amaryllis. Initially, I thought it to be a leaf but I am delighted by a big, fat bud which will be opening any day now. Your rose is just beautiful as well as your greenery. I have posted my contribution to the Sustainable Living project, and must say it was very enjoyable to write. Thank you so much for giving us this opportunity to take part in this.
Roses from your husband are the best kind of bloom for GBBD! Just think of what you will have blooming in just 4 weeks.
ReplyDeleteI'm longing for color, too, Jan. Thanks for such a bright and cheery collage. Your amaryllis is a beauty--I didn't even know they might put up more than one stalk! Mine suffered from a boisterous dog:)
ReplyDeleteMany will bloom again for you. You just wait and see ... Just don't forget to share the pictures k.
ReplyDeleteThe photo of that rose is beautiful, Jan. I just keep looking at it! Such a wonderful shade of color and you photographed it splendidly.
ReplyDeleteVery colorful post. I love the primroses, they are just beautiful.
ReplyDeleteJan, what better blooms could you have than roses from your husband?
ReplyDeleteIt made me smile to see the last year/this year photos of your houseplants. Last year the flowers were impressive, this the pretty pots get the attention.
Let me know when you figure out the answer to, "What's a catlover to do?"
donna
The rose is gorgeous, even if the cut flower trade is giving us both ethical concerns. :) (Thanks for stopping by my blog and discussing it!)
ReplyDeleteLast year, you had a houseful of blossoms! Those purple primroses are my favorites, btw. I do think your houseplants and bulbs are lovely, even if not in bloom, but I can totally understand your frustration. I have much less than that growing in the house because our home is very shaded by overhanging trees and not much wants to survive, even in a windowsill. *Sigh.*
Come on, Spring!!
Very nice montage, remember you soon will be outside surrounded by beautiful flowers, spring is around the corner.
ReplyDeleteWhat's a cat lover to do? Plants and cats just don't seem to mix well. Recently one of my cats had the crazies and ended his wild run through the house by jumping into the pot my lemon tree's in!
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of an amaryllis putting on a third stalk. You are really very lucky despite the lack of flowers currently!
I remember your blooms from last year too Jan. I felt like following suit but didn't. This year I just bought a bunch of bulbs and they've kept me going all winter. I am betting your amaryllis and paperwhites will all bloom. Don't give up on them!
ReplyDeleteI agree that if there is no colour out in the garden then you have just got to create it indoors.
ReplyDeleteThe cat thinks you are growing a series of tasty, green, indoor snacks :-)
Jan, I read your comment on Rosey's blog and felt the need to tell you that my feelings will never be hurt when you don't have time to read my posts or leave comments. When blogging begins to feel like a burden, then it's not worth it. I luv ya just the way you are, don't change.
ReplyDeletedonna
Aren't those archived photos Meant for reliving great memories? And isn't it worth bringing them out again? Sometimes, that's all you need. :-) Have a great day.
ReplyDeleteIts white outside in Norway to. All to cold for me I think. Only thing to do is waiting for summer.
ReplyDeleteGreat pics! You have tons of house plants!
ReplyDeleteDesperate for color.... that just about sums it up. I've got none outside, and not so much inside (although lovely calla lilies for v-day - very creative I thought). I've been hiding out at botanical gardens and garden centers with greenhouses! They help for sure. Thanks for the great pics. Kelly
ReplyDeleteYour pictures are so bright and cheery, it is hard not to be uplifted by them. I am still trying to figure out how to get your button on my sidebar. It's a battle of wills between me and wordpress. I think they are winning. I will get though because I am stubborn.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed looking at the vivid colours of your blooming pictures. Even the flower containers look great. Jan, I am realky enjoying your beautiful photos here.
ReplyDeleteAwesome color! I think you did fantastic to keep your potted plants alive with the cats too. From what I've heard cats are most hard on indoor plants. Beautiful amaryllis!
ReplyDeleteThis spring see if you can get a hold of a lemon grass plant. Plant it outside for the summer and it will grow to a clump. Bring it inside in the fall, your cat will love it. Actually you can eat it and make tea with it too, but most cats keep the grass trimmed. Often the plant lives to be planted outside again ti regrow. If your cat likes it he might leave your other plants alone!
ReplyDeleteLove the rose how you did it with the other photo behinde, MB
ReplyDelete