Be Appreciative!

  A few years back, my brother brought home a pathetic looking plant.  "Here.  Take this.  I found it on the side of the road."  Well, gee!  Thanks!  I guess.  The plant was all withered and brittle, the pot had a huge crack in the side and I really could not tell what type of plant it was.  Well, I would try.  If a brother comes handing you a gift, you accept even if it is a dead plant.  Perhaps, he had more faith in my gardening ability than I did.  

  Well, I did try.  The plant was taken out of the broken pot and the roots cleaned of the hardened soil.  Then, the stalks were cut back to about six inches above the root ball.  The whole thing was replanted in fresh soil and given a nice dousing with the water hose.  After caring for the plant it finally started to show new growth!  I had hope! 

 

  Now, the plant is about 4ft in height and has dozens of healthy stalks. The leaves are lush and colorful!  Darling Daughter has informed me that this is a Hawaiian Ti Plant and is supposed to bring good luck.  Nice! I had no idea!   It is funny because my nephew recently sent me cuttings from a Ti Plant.  Now I have two beautiful plants!

  I guess the point is to always be gracious about accepting gifts even if you think it has seen better days.   Be appreciative of all things. Things can change given a little time and a lot of love.  

Non-working Camouflage

  Camouflage in the critter world is crucial.  Predators use it as a means to hide so they can easily ambush their unsuspecting prey and smaller critters use it to keep from becoming prey.  At times, the camouflage is so good that it is difficult to spot the critter.  Cottonmouths can blend with dead leaves, tree frogs can sit unobserved on a leaf and spotted baby deer disappear on a sun-dappled forest floor.  Many, many times, people walk right past a critter without ever realizing it is there.

  While a green anole can hide perfectly well on green leaves, it does not do so well on purple.  This morning, one decided to hide in the Hawaiian Ti plant.  He was doing quite well with the "sit still" part but its bright green coloring stuck out like a sore thumb against the reds and purples of the leaves.  Silly lizard!  You are not hiding!  I welcome the lizard hiding among my plants as they are sure helpful with garden pests. Carry on, lizard, carry on/

Salvaged Plants

  Sometimes when gardening, the unexpected works best.  Expensive things can just get in the way while "recycled" or "repurposed" ones seem to fit the bill.  I have used many odd things as flower pots or yard structures.  Usually, these are donated by a hurricane and it is easier to make use of stuff than try to find a way of discarding it. 

  The same goes for plants.  I am finding more and more that purchasing seeds and plants is ridiculous as the seeds do not germinate or the plants die quickly.  Case in point.  Just recently, my nephew sent a surprise package of assorted tropical seeds and "starts" from Hawaii.  He lives on an island in the South Pacific and was passing through Honolulu when he spied the packets.  Knowing I am game to try most anything, he sent an assortment.  Sadly, most did not even sprout even though I followed the instructions to a T.  At about the same time, my brother salvaged a dead looking plant from the garbage and brought it to me.  He thought I may need the pot.   Well, I did but when I started removing the dead plant, I noticed that one small shoot appeared to still have some life in it.  This was one of the same plants that were in the parcel from my nephew.  Well, it could not hurt to try and salvage the plant!

  Needless to say, that plant is thriving!  The expensive ones are dead.  Perhaps the salvaged one just appreciated being helped and is rewarding my efforts.  Now I have a lovely Hawaiian Ti plant that is doing well surrounded by purple basil.  Nice!