Weather, Mr Unpredictable
Might I just start off by saying thanks to everyone who put their input in on the moving idea. So far it’s been some of the most valuable advice I’ve received yet. There are still a couple unknowns, and my decision will be made sometime after the 20th. You, the readers are too kind for words.
In other more positive plant news, today was a snow day. Actually it’s been a bit of a snow week. Flurries flutter on and off, from blizzard to sprinkle, then blasting white sunshine and repeat. For the most part the sun has kept the accumulation in check and as a whole there really isn’t anymore then a couple cms sticking on the ground. The effect is much like a sprinkling of powdered icying sugar, the streets are glazed in a surreal white glow. While I had been relishing in the fact that this is one of the most mild winters to memory, nature hits full force and tells you who’s boss. The tender plants that shouldn’t have made it this far, are surely fried after this is all said and done. My Melianthus major having looked prestine just a couple days ago is surely going to feel this cold snap. We expect temperatures as low as -6 C tonight (roughly 20 degrees farenheit for my U.S readers)and after not being taken seriously all season, winter flexes it’s muscles.
At work things were rather relaxed. The bosses are away in Europe on business and a friend and I have been filling the role. It’s nice to have a little more responsibility and a great opportunity to flex one’s nurseryman skills. Watering, heaters, phone calls and orders, it’s a lot to keep track of.
“With great power, also comes great responsibility” – feel free to read this quote with the most mystical accent in your repetoire!
Much of the day was spent rearranging orders as garden centers called in panicked of receiving more primulas in a snow storm. We moved hellebores that were covered in snow, and brought them to shelter. The girl’s have been busy planting mixed planters, and our delivery men were away in Vancouver picking up plugs. Early spring is a beautiful time of year to work at a greenhouse and on day’s like this you can really bask in the fact that this is what you do for a living. Green sactuaries as it blizzards outside, there really isn’t anything more beautiful then that. While some aspect of my life are in chaos I’m happy to say work life is pretty damn good.
A friend of mine hamming it up in the blizzard.
Whew! What a week!
The weather in Victoria seems to be declining steadily, shorts have been replaced with pants and a sweater seems almost essential to leave the house in the morning. The temperature has dropped down to 10 C and I fear a frost is right around the corner. Everyday after work is a mad dash to catch some sunlight and sort my plants into various groups of tenders, tropicals and succulents. With the sun now almost completely set at 7:00pm, the few hours I have after work are precious. It’s like cleaning up after a big party, the garden is slowly but surely dismantled and cleaned up. For the moment it’s a complete mess, no time to worry about day to day tidying, I have to find warm homes for my plants before it’s too late. My house is absolutely stuffed, and everyday I bring another load to the greenhouse.
“Oh hey (insert boss’s name here) mind if I overwinter some plants at the greenhouse?”
“Sure thing Nat, just put them in the corner”
(Evil laughter as a cube van pulls up with 1 million plants)
Passiflora caerulea loves the cool autumn weather.
Luckily I have excellent boss’s that encourage such plant madness or life would be much more depressing right now. While the first bay of the main house slowly fills with strange tropical specimens, a couple friend’s and I embark on building a greenhouse of our own at the back of the property. We got the A-OK from our fearless leaders and hope to get started pretty quick here. If everything works out it should be roughly 40ft long and 16ft wide, not bad for a couple of plant geeks.
I must admit at this time of plant dismantling I’m a bit overwelmed by it all. It’s only now that I get to see the sheer volume of my collection, and quite frankly it’s a bit out of control. A quick walk around the house counts a staggering 90+ potted plants, not including any cuttings or would be seed projects. Outside is a fully stocked garden 360 around the house, and now the greenhouse at work slowly fills up. I suppose my mission this year was to learn about plants, and what better way of doing it then to grow them. You’ve got to grow them to learn about them. I would say books barely scratch the surface with the idiosyncrasies of plants, watching them you seem to learn something new everyday.
With the cold chill in the air today I decided to take the matter of saving my tree echium into my own hands. I can”t wait for a truck any longer, I folded down my seats in my VW Golf and managed to get it in. The guy who car pools with me often makes a jokes when there isn’t any plants in my car, as if something’s amiss. You know when you’ve gone down the deep end when.
Quickie Fall Tour October 2011:
Autumn spiders are out in full force.
A valentines day Gerbera that I bought for my girlfriend, allowed to rest, is now in the midst of another impressive display of flowers. Excellent.
Some fall asters I bought from a gardener near Shawnigan Lake really brighten up the place.
A sumac bonsai has great autumn colors.
Autumn colchicum spring out of nowhere.
Flowering from May until frost works just fine for me, Abutilon megapotamicum is a must have. While some treat this as an annual, this one is definitely getting stored in the greenhouse this year.
Last but not least, the cyclamen. If there is any reason to love fall, it’s these amazing little showstoppers.
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Thanks for stopping by!
