Proserpina's WunderBlog

Good morning PROS. I remember Palm Sundays growing up as a kid in a Catholic home. The tradition of bringing home the length of palm frond and putting it up to bless the house. Gosh that was so long ago, I doubt the tradition is followed much these days. Still for some of the old folks, tradition is hard to break, thank goodness.

Anyway, dear one, have a blessed day and a safe week ahead. Thinking of you.

A blessd Palm Sunday, Pros.

I hope your day is a good one.

I doubt I'll be out and about much today; it's very, very wet here. I see there's about 3 inches in the rain gauge and the rain doesn't look to stop any time soon.

Happy Palm Sunday! Those palms in your photo are beautiful. Are they from church today? I'm always amazed at the kinds of weaving and other artistry people do with them. Methodists were pretty much given to just waving them around. ;)

It's blustery and "cold" here. Of course it really isn't cold - it's 61 degrees, for heaven's sake. But when the wind blows straight from the north - and straight through the cracks around my windows - it can feel much colder than it is.

I had a busy week at work, and a bit of a challenge. My task was to repaint sections of a boat hull that had been damaged, and where the paint simply had started to flake off. The boat has a deep blue hull, and the paint-less spots were white. You can imagine what a mess it was.

I'm not a painter. Figuring out what to use, matching to color (easier than I thought) and doing a half-decent job was quite a trick. I got it done before this weekend though,which was my goal. The boat belongs to the Commodore of the Yacht Club, and this weekend is the Blessing of the Fleet. Great goings-on, of course, and I know it was important for him to have his own boat looking decent. It's too bad the wind is going to make their festivities a pain in the rear, but at least I might be able to hear the cannons firing!

I'm going to head into Houston to see Carolyn pretty soon. She's off her IV antibiotics and may be going home this week. I certainly hope so - it's nearly five months since she fell, and she allows as how her patience is about gone.

I'm really sorry to see your forecast still is so wintry. Of course, Easter's as early as it can be this year, so I guess the weather isn't that surprising. We had snowy winters when I was growing up - the good news was that it always melted away fairly quickly.

Hope your day goes well tomorrow and the weather doesn't cause you any problem!

ADD: that's quite a story about your "house-breaker". Good to find out about that with no damage done!

thanks for the beautiful Palm Sunday greeting. Yes, we do celebrate.
Hopefully your weather (and ours) will start feeling more springlike soon.

Quoting Proserpina:
I am not happy! I just looked outside and light snow is coming down. I really do NOT want an accumulation of snow! Is there a 'go away snow dance' that can be performed?

Your gizmo says light snow/mist for your areas, but I hope it is just the light stuff and the road crews have kept the roads open with grit and salt. We still have a couple of inches in the garden from Friday, but all the roads have been kept open...unlike some of the the areas further north. There are 15-20 foot snow drifts in some places!!

Hope you can get to where you are going, and I hope it all goes well...thinking of you :)

Good Morning,
It is chilly here too. I missed seeing any Palm Sunday services as was working. So what do you think of the new Pope. We really like him over here so far.

Didn't make it back to Skye's blog last night, but we came through the storms fine. Thanks for asking!

Quoting Proserpina:
For those who might be on the lookout for the National Cherry Blossom Festival, here is a site to visit:

http://www.nationalcherryblossomfestival.org/abou t/bloom-watch/

I will update if more info becomes available.

We are expecting rain and snow tonight but hopefully, DC will not get any snow.

Thanks Pros. Let me know if the local news has something new.

Careful on the road with that snow.

Good Morning, (((Pros))) ~

Sorry that your area and others are still being effected by the dreaded snow or storms! It certainly puts a big crimp on this special week ahead! Can't wait till winter's snowbunnies are finally replaced by our more favorited Easter variety!

Remarkably, this week, we show no further signs of any snow in our weekly forecast and there's the promise of temps reaching more normal temps of the 50's by mid-week!! I guess this might be due to our having had our snowblower fixed but, whatever the case, I can live with the investment and miraculously escaping any any further signs of white! Hoping, too, that April Fools Day (one week away) won't trick us, since ole Punxsutawney Phil already played the all time prank on us two months ago!

Be well and may any snows your way be very very light then vanquish!

In honor of Cherry Blossom time, I give you Perez Prado and his Orchestra playing the instrumental tune, "Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom Time." Thought you might recognize and get a real kick out of it!

Mass~ Great Cherry blossom video..


Hi Pros!

I was making a coffee a little while ago and thought of you, wondering if you were back. I then came back into the living room, picked up my IPad and checked Flickr, and saw a comment about someone liking Rossetti :-)

How did the day go? Hope the journey wasn't to bad.

Good morning - I do not see you wandering around in your night attire, so I hope that means you were tired after you long day yesterday and are still slumbering.

I awoke to a loud crash....it was the snow sliding off the roof onto the conservatory. All seems fine, no damage, it was just the noise it made that woke me!

Pros,
Wanted to update you on our Pup,she got in yesterday afternoon,she is as beautiful as the pictures.And has already taken over the house.I had forgotten how much energy one little dog can have.My quiet mornings before work are gone for a while.And evenings too. I will try to post some pictures when I have a chance.The best part is she slept through her first night.Her name is going to be Belle

You know, Pros, walking on ice -- black or otherwise -- is an activity limited to experienced skaters only! I'm glad you made it back inside without mishap.

As a native of the Pacific Northwest, well experienced in all things wet, please allow me to make a couple of recommendations to improve visibility when driving in a downpour or trying to see past that infernal truck spray. First, I highly recommend a product called Rain-X, which is wiped on, wiped off of windshields. It leaves behind a transparent film of silicon which makes the rain drops roll quickly off the glass and prevents that blurry road film from building up. Second, get a pair of yellow clip-on lenses to go over your glasses or a pair of yellow-tinted "sunglasses". Looking through something yellow amazingly makes truck spray and fog nearly vanish before your eyes. Apparently yellow cancels out gray?

Good thing that nice young pest-control man was there to let you back in your house the other day. I learned the hard way about locking myself out once upon a time. And was able to figure out a way to get in by lifting out a window screen, then lifting the sliding window out of its tracks. And taught myself a lesson that deadbolts alone are not enough. Of course, nothing is, if a burglar is determined. Still, I purchased and installed several adjustable window locks.

Pros,
In reference to your almost slip.To me the early spring is the most dangerous time of the year and where you here of the most accidents on the road and on peoples steps and sidewalks.The little bit of moisture and just below freezing and people don't realize the black ice.In my evening walks,have had to be very careful some nights,when the temps just touch freezing and caught me by surprise.

Good Morning. It is almost warm enough to go out and finish my project. Yaaaay

Good morning, Pros!(Afternoon, to you!) I was checking out the Shenandoah NPS cam, and they still had plenty of snow! A pretty scene, but I'm ready for some green, lol!

Aren't the cherry blossoms in D.C. running behind this year? They have a cam of it, but it's wasn't a very good one, IMO.

Take care about the slick spots!

Hi (((Pros)))!

Glad to learn that you didn't get as much snow from that nasty system as others in parts of the Central and Mid-Atlantic regions! We were so lucky that it stayed well south of us and remained dry.

The past couple of days have rendered better signs of a more typically felt spring around here! Our temps have climbed to 50F and partly sunny rays have helped to melt all lingering traces of snow from our yards! Our remaining weekly forecast looks very decent as well. Unfortunately, next Tuesday, we resume a much colder than normal pattern, but without the threat of more snow. One can only hope!!!

Hope that with April's arrival, next Monday, it will bring us that much closer to those warmer days usually seen this time of year. Looking forward to when our neighborhood's gardens once again turn into the same colorful flowery display as seen in your blogheader. The only forseeable problem I see occurring, in the weeks ahead, will be for those severe seasonal allergy sufferers. A wet lingering winter usually means more potent pollen come spring. I guess it would be a good idea to stock up on those usually reliable allergy remedies ahead of time just in case.

Hope you're doing well and have a pleasant remainder to your day and week!

"Any suggestions on keeping the buds from falling off?"

Needle and thread usually works, although it is labor-intensive! ;' )

All kidding aside, I know nothing about gardenias. Was there not care instructions that came with the plant? Good luck!

Pros - I know the gardenias like it cooler, and they don't like to sit where they'll get heat from a furnace vent. I had a Christmas cactus in my bedroom that went through spates of dropping buds. Eventually, I found out it's another of the plants that doesn't like to have air blowing on it.

Here's another question for you. Do you eat your salad first or last at dinner? I'm asking because an Italian fellow who comments on my blog mentioned that their family always ate the salad last. On the other hand, relatives in Italy don't. It made me curious what your practice is.

Does anyone grow inside gardenias? Any suggestions on keeping the buds from falling off? Any hints on how to keep the whole plant alive? Thank you.

Pros.
When growing up I longed for a Gardenia houseplant.
From elementary school on I tried every year with mixed failure.
And as I remember I always purchased or was given one around Easter time.
Over the years I learned that paranoia and neglect were my worst enemies.

Things to know about gardenias and the condition of purchase.

Gardenias are drought TOLERANT when planted in the ground.
Gardenias can survive fairly long periods of dryness when they are established in the garden because they have a very extensive fibrous root system.

But when "you" purchase a Gardenia in a pot,the growers have pushed that plant to its root confining limits.
A confined Gardenia will produce the most blooms(ready for sale)
But it will most likely be very root bound.
In this state a gardenia cant dry out,and it cant be continuously wet.

Reason being at the point of purchase the Gardenia is so root bound that there is as much root as there is soil.
So if the root ball dries out all those life giving root hairs die. (sick plant)
On the otherhand if you keep the root ball too wet....you now have clumps of roots in a pot that have no moderating soil between them and you have essentially put the roots in a fishbowl.Can you say rotten roots?

Ok you have a few options.
Dont think this is hard it isnt.

To get the most out of your new root bound blooming Gardenia you need to monitor it daily.
I said MONITOR, not water it daily,but in some extreme cases that could be the result.
So... get to know the weight of your potted gardenia after a good watering. And I mean a good soaking watering.
Bounce it up and down in your hand and get a feel for its heft.
Then place your finger on the surface of the recently well watered soil. It should feel instantly moist to wet. Feel the weight again and remember it.

Now every day place your finger on the surface of the soil and notice how the moisture level is declining. then pick up the plant and give it an up and down motion.
You should start to notice it is getting less heavy.
When you place your finger on the surface of the soil and it doesnt cling or feel moist/wet and the potted Gardenia feels significantly less heavy ... give it a good soaking deep drenching watering.
You must get that dense rootball completely wet so there are no dry pockets in that bound up rootball mass.
Let it drain and make sure it drains completely.
And make sure at all times that your Gardenia is in a full sun window(inside) Outside give it the brightest non overhead light it can get. ie horizontal early morning and or very late evening horizontal sun.

OK at this point if you are still reading its not very difficult.

But remember you have a root bound plant.

A root bound plant must have exacting watering.
Not very consumer friendly.

So if you dont want to go through the daily checking of your plants moisture level for extended amounts of time and you dont care too much for the now gratification of instant Gardenia blooms for weeks on end you now have two options.

You can transplant it into a slightly larger pot and guess if the root bound rootball is getting a good soaking (Remember weight of plant)
The reason I say guess is because you now have a fair amount of new soil surrounding the newly potted plant,and you no longer have the edge of the pot to force the water into that dense root cluster called a rootball.
SO!

You must make sure you give the newly replanted Gardenia a thorough soaking to the get the original root ball thoroughly wet.
Think... No pot edge to force the water into the rootball,so water just sheds around dense rootball.

Best rule to remember. Fewer heavier watering are better than more frequent minimal waterings.

You must remember that to get all the parts of a dense rootball wet you must water the heck out of it,especially if you just repotted it and there is no longer a pot edge to force the water into the dense root packed root ball. Poking holes in rootball can help.(a pencil or something similar does wonders.
But dont keep in a soggy state. The original root mass must slightly dry out between waterings.

Or option two (for the brave only)....
You can pop the plant( gardenia) out of its pot and remove all the root on root mass...(usually just the obvious root gathering) then you must cut the plant back by 1/3 of branching structure,re-pot back in same pot with new soil and make sure you didnt re-pot it any deeper than it was originally.

You have just lost all this seasons blooms!
The watering scheme is the same,BUT!
Its not a daily exercise.

I dont recommend this last option for the timid plant person. But It was my first and only success up North in the house.

On a side note warning. I used to have to remove my Gardenia from my bedroom when it was in full bloom. It would awaken me at 2 am with the strongest of scents that were non sleep compliant.

Good luck. Its not difficult just being attentive or brave.
And if you should have any questions after this blog hog, please feel free to ask.
BTW Gardenias love a cool evening. So put it by a drafty window.. Constant temps are not Gardenia bliss.

Horticulture, when put to paper words/instruction, can seem like an overwhelming mathematical equation. But its not. Its more like chemistry that requires an artful eye and a desire to learn from your mistakes. That requires remembering what your mistakes were. All of my grower mentors had precise logg books.Dates and temps/results.
Sorry your teacher this evening is too wordy,but I had to cover all my mistakes and relay them.
Keep it cold up there Pros!
Sorry!
But I want to see the blossoms!
I think the Gods are with me for the 11th.
But ya never know :O)

Cherry cheers :O)

Thanks, spathy. I saved the Gardenia instruction manual. Have had pretty good luck with them when they can stay outdoors.

Hi Prose,
Hope life's treating you well. Spring's been taking it's time here. The hyacinth and daffodils are happy. The trees are slow. No redbud yet. Do you remember redbud trees from last year? Have a good Thurs. Way past my bedtime. 'Nite.
;)

Morning to you:)

I have two friends to meet today, One a=fro coffee and another for a late lunch, so I have a busy social day!

I saw Linda's query about salad. About 20 years ago I spent some time in France, staying with a French family for a couple of nights. I was amazed that they ate their salad separately, before their main meal, and then again after it with cheese.

Here in the UK, we eat salad with our meal, as part of the dish itself. Normally a salad is instead of vegetables.... although the French ate their vegetables on their own at a different course to the meat or fish!