"They" said that it only happens every one hundred years, every ten years or even every year but only once. I am talking about all of the myths and untruths surrounding the Night-blooming Cereus. Depending upon who is doing the talking, this poor plant may as well give up ever setting a bloom. Granted, that "once a year" thing is more accurate than the others and, granted, the blooms only last one night but it is ridiculous to think that it only blooms once a decade or once a century. Nope...it just does not happen that way.
I admit that I am a bit surprised at the frequency that my plants are setting buds. This is their seventh budding this summer and we still have several months of warm enough weather to see that number rise. Crazy thing is I do nothing for these poor plants other than take them out of the greenhouse with the first warm spell and plunk them on the bench under the oak tree. It must be the perfect spot as, ever since I have been putting them in this spot, they have flourished. Maybe placement is all it takes. The plants just completed a blooming cycle last week and today I noticed tiny nodules on the leaves. Those mean more blooms are coming!
My plants are all "starts" from my granddad. He kept two large hanging plants but rooted many. I received mine and have rooted hundreds. To start, I was careful of how I attempted taking the cuttings and how I placed them for rooting. Now, I simply break off a leaf and drop it in Pebble Creek. The water does the rest. It takes about a week for the leaf to have enough roots to be on its own. Usually, I take the time to pot them but, lately, laziness has gotten in the way of that. I merely leave them in the running water until someone wishes to have their own Night-bloomer. "Here! Take one...or two...or maybe ten!" It is all good!
No comments:
Post a Comment