Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everybody!
I just returned from my annual Christmas trip to see the family on Salt Spring Island. The highlights include some nice moments shared with family and friends, eggnog’s, scotch and rum, and a plethora of delicious sweets and savory snacks. As Christmas day came to an end, the turkey dinner vanquished, I passed out in a Trypophan daze.
Anyhow back to the topic of plants, while visiting my grandparents I noticed their greenhouse could use a little TLC and I did just that. A little Windex, and some gentle plant manicuring and voila the place shined. My grandmother has quite the green thumb and it was my honor to spend a little time in her beautiful glass greenhouse. I’m amazed by how healthy everything was for the middle of December in an unheated greenhouse. Their Bougainvillea was still in flower, spider plants a plenty, and the datura I gave her for her birthday a couple months earlier was about 4 times as big as the one I have at home.
What I believe to be an old growth yucca was severely overgrown, pushing it’s way into the window and developing a strange mold. A little action with the sectaurs and arborist saw and it was fixed right up. It was as simple as topping the overgrown branches, and removing the dead and diseased leaves. I think they look better like palm trees anyhow!
My grandmother has a knack for propagating and when she’s not busy painting she peacefully duplicates her plants. Her speciality remains jade plants and spider plants (Chlorophytum) which thrive like no other. Just a friendly reminder that small time growers exist everywhere, and while garden centers are a great source of plant material, you neighbors might be just as good.
brugmansia / datura almost 1 metre across
For your further enjoyment please enjoy the artwork of my grandmother Jan Sharkey Thomas.
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