It Sure Has Been A While

First thing is first:  Just because I haven't been posting doesn't mean I haven't been busy with the container garden. Oh yeah, I had brain surgery which sure did keep me from busy and away from the computer.  So many awesome friends sent me get well garden gifts!  I got a surprise and mysterious (at first since there was no card!) aloe vera plant, which was so awesome and thoughtful.  Check it out in the succulent scape I posted.  I also scored some seeds, books, and gardening magazines (more like books themselves).  And, lastly, I got a really cool african violet in a fabulous pot.  So THANK YOU ALL!!!  They really put a huge smile on my face and distract me from the chaos--I even giggled at some of the silly things that are suggested in the Foods Not Lawns book.

I am in full preparation for spring.  I have done a ton of rearranging and even have a drip irrigation system in a box that I am going to try out.  There are no less than 15 mini seed starting gizmos all over my kitchen and living room-- more on that another day.  I've mapped out my plan for this season and am crossing my fingers that it will be a successful endeavor.

I want to show you a picture of the succulent scape I finally put together  (the new aloe gave me inspiration!).  Sorry for the poor quality pic, iphones aren't the best and neither am I.

This pot was SRCs and spent the last several years housing strawberries, pretty unsuccessfully-- the plants were always pissed off.  It is perfect for cactus, wide and squat.  So, I moved the strawberries into the red wood box my dad put together for me.  I had about five small pots cluttering my front porch area full of mini cactus.  No more! I added sand and rocks to some potting soil and stuck all the little cacti-guys in.  The Living Stones are blooming-- two flowers a piece for two of them! Last year only one of them flowered and only one bud.  So, they are clearly stoked to be living with me. I have two rosettes, green and black, that are just cuttings from larger plants.  I already have the black rose, and the green rosette I found in my driveway after the upstairs neighbor had a plant accident (I think wind was involved).  It found a home in my plants last spring and it just now seems to be growing.  So, if you see a succulent that you just have to have, you can always snap a few pieces off of a large plant and just stick them in some well draining soil.  Note: this could be considered theft so either ask the owner or be stealth!  But coming from someone that was recently been plant-napped, its not cool to steal plants!
I'm a huge fan of these cactus scapes.  They make lovely gifts and can be quite sophisticated.  The best part is that you can easily make one using mostly cuttings from plants you already have (if you don't already have a few succulents go a cutting!).  Or, just take a walk in the neighborhood (if you live in the Southwest) and help yourself.  Jade is everywhere, take a few inches.  Clip a black rose and anything else you fancy. Then stick it in a bowl shaped container with excellent drainage.  Add some sand or small stones to the top and there you go!