Flower Focus: Plumeria

Oh, the lovely Plumeria!  As a flower-lover, it's hard to miss them if you visit Hawaii.  They're everywhere, and so fragrant!  Even if you somehow manage to miss the ubiquitous plumeria plants outdoors, ranging in size from small shrubs to 35ft trees, surely you will notice that these flowers are widely used to make leis as well as perfumes. 

 

As I mentioned last week, I brought a cutting back with me in the hopes of having my own plumeria plant one day soon.

As you can tell from the picture, the cutting is about 12 inches long and if all goes well, will produce pink-yellow flowers.  The plumeria flowers range in color from white with yellow centers to various shades of peach-pink with or without yellow centers. 

Here are the directions that came with the cutting:

According to the Sunset Western Garden Book, plumerias are very easy to grow from cuttings... in Hawaii.  On the mainland, it's safer to buy a plant.  But it is still possible.  The biggest obstacle is maintaining a delicate balance of sun-water such that the plant is just above dry.  In Hawaii, where it rains often and is always warm, this is quite easy!  In SoCal, it almost never rains and the air is quite dry.  Also, temperatures tend to drop quite a bit at night.  Water too much and you end up with a rotten plant.  Water too little and it dries out and dies.

Good luck, little guy.  I've planted the cutting about 3-4 inches into the ground in regular soil.  It was a bit calloused at the end before I did so, which is what is recommended to avoid rot.  You can also use rooting hormone if you have it to promote rooting.

A few interesting facts about the lovely plumeria:

• Another common name is Frangipani
• The sap is milky and quite caustic to the skin
• In Polynesian culture, a flower over the right ear means a woman is seeking a relationship.  Over the left means she is taken.
• In some parts of Asia, local beliefs state that plumeria trees shelter ghosts and demons, and as a result, plumeria are often planted in cemeteries.
• Blooming begins in the spring and continues for more than 6 months.

I bought my cutting at a fruit stand by the highway and these cutting are available widely, including at general stores on the islands.  I think that there's a higher probability for success given our Santa Monica climate.  But given their enthusiasm to sell these cuttings to anyone and everyone (at the fruit stand at least), I'm not going to get my hopes too high.  We'll see....

Meanwhile, here's a gratuitous shot of the Maui beach that I am missing at the moment.

And I leave you with a clip of some fabulous previous world cup celebrations.  I hope to see many more from Holland and USA in the next few weeks still!

Flower focus: Geraniums

Meet my favorite flower of the moment, the mighty geranium:

These are no delicate little spring buds to sneeze at, they are hardy easy-care plants and live up to that reputation.

But the buds are fuzzy and cute

A few interesting facts:

-What we commonly call geraniums (the plants pictured here) are not true geraniums.  There is a different flower that is technically a geranium in botany world.  Our commonly referred to as geraniums here are actually of the Pelargonium species.  Confusing, isn't it?

-Many different types exist, including the "common geranium," ivy geraniums (what I have), and scented geraniums.

-The leaves of scented geraniums can be used to flavor jelly and cold drinks.

Should you plant geraniums?

If you live in a warm, dry days and cool nights with mild winters, than this is a perfect flower for you!  That is to say, if you live in California, yes!

Care:

-Light -- full sun unless you live in a very hot area, in which case partial shade is better.

-Water -- Moderate to regular water

-Soil -- well-draining soil

-Feeding -- depends on the quality of your soil.  Generally, light feeding required.

-Other -- Pinch spent flowers to encourage blooms!

Ivy geraniums differ from common geraniums in that they grow 1-1.5 feet high but can trail 3-5 feet.  Both types have fleshy succulent-type leaves with bloom clusters in the white-red-light purple color spectrum.

I was first inspired by the ubiquitous geranium in terracotta pots and window boxes that I saw in Italy and decided to put a little Italy in my patio garden.  What great flowers!  

An aside, the music video is totally weird, but I love this song-- Big Data, "Dangerous" 

Crazy About Air Plants! Part 2: Decor ideas

Now that we're acclimated to the titillating Tillandsia plant and the ease with which they grow, let's talk about things you can do with air plants:

1.  Hang them from a string!

Available on Etsy by GemsoftheSoil

As seen here

2.  Put them in a shell!

Available on Etsy by PetitBeast

Available on Etsy by robincharlotteStudio

3.  Put them in a branch!

Available on Etsy by Plantzilla

Available on Etsy by seaandasters

4.  Make a weird sculpture!

Available on Etsy by EarthSeaWarrior

Same seller, equally awesome.

5.  Give them a tiny terrarium home!

Available on Etsy by MidnightinSeattle

Available on Etsy by seaandasters

6. Make a little wreath!

Available on Etsy by Peacocktaco

Excellent how-to here

7.  Put them anywhere there is space for them!

Available on Etsy by tinyterra

I am rather partial to this cute idea -- on Etsy by saltandginger

One more by EarthSeaWarrior on Etsy

You see?  The sky is the limit!  The world is your oyster!  Use your imagination!

If you want to start from scratch, I recommend Michael's or a similar craft store or the internet.

If you want to buy an air plant creation already made -- screw creativity! -- then many Etsy users are willing to sell you their creations at a nominal price (and I have given you many options above).

If you are somewhere in between on your air plant skills, a good third option is.......  Armstrong's Garden Center (my favorite place they are so lovely!).  I went there this past week for a new aphid killer in my continual quest to win the war against those despicable mini-terrorists and was surprised to discover that this ubiquitous garden center have gotten in on this air plant fad.  They sell air plants pre-stuffed in shells, tiny pots, and equipment for terrariums including the glass and gravel, as well as props such as tiny chairs if you would like to make a miniature garden (and ooohh is that a world of it's own).

It's not terribly cheap -- a glass plus some gravel is $13.99, a small tillandsia is $5.99 and a large up to $19.99 which is twice as much as what they cost at The Jungle, but it is an easy option.

Hope that was helpful!  As we lead up to this Easter weekend, let's be thankful for all we've been given.  :)

An aside, to listen:  Sufjan Stevens "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing"

Crazy about Air Plants! Part 1: What + How

Perhaps you have read this blog and you're thinking, "Michelle, I love plants but I've got a black thumb and all my plants die" or "I am too busy to care for anything" or "I don't have enough space" or "I don't have any dirt -- no yard, no patio, no planters, not even a kitchen window!"

WELL, you are in luck, because there is a plant for everyone, and there is a plant for you.  And it is called the air plant, otherwise known as Tillandsia.

Not only is it literally the easiest plant in the world to grow and take care of, it is also very trendy at the moment.  I present to you the crop top of plants:

So hot right now...

There are actually several different kinds.  You may remember these little guys as the Tillandsia I bought from The Jungle (available for $3 a piece).  There are also several larger varieties (also available at the Jungle for $10 each).

Big mama

If you pay attention, you will notice these plants everywhere -- they are often in installations at restaurants and shops (like Tinga for all my Westside LA people), or being sold in tiny glass bulbs at shops (like West Elm or the Japanese trinket shops on Sawtelle), or on Pinterest.

This variety is often on living walls

And for good reason... they are really easy to grow.  In fact, it is this simple:

Soil--
They do not need soil.  Put them anywhere

Light--
They prefer filtered (indirect) light, so they can go almost anywhere in your house.

Water--
They need minimal water -- some sources recommend a light mist every few days and others (namely The Sunset Western Garden Book which is my favorite gardening guide) recommend a drench every few days, or a soak if the plant gets too dry.  Note that this is contrary to the myth that these plants don't need any water... they are plants, after all.

Fertilizer--
Only if you're feeling very motivated... then you can spritz them with diluted liquid fertilizer.

Easy peasy!

Interesting texture, like grey scales

Some of these plants will bloom brightly, after which point they die (like my other monocarpic plant, the Aeonium), unless they have made side shoots.  One of my little Tillandsia has already made a side shoot:

Baby

So next time you want to buy a plant for your plant-killer friend or baby mama friend or studying for the oral boards friend (oh wait, that's me...), pick up an air plant!  Stay tuned next week for Tillandsia inspiration...

In the meantime, here's a song to pick up your day: Janelle Monae "What is Love" -- I'm kind of obsessed with it at the moment.  Hug your loved one today!

Tulip Saga, Part 2: How to...

It is a little funny for me to be writing a post on how to grow tulips because full disclosure, I bought my tulips this year as budding bulbs already.

Day 1 -- I cheated

In all honesty, Southern California isn't the greatest place for tulips because the bulbs require a good solid winter chill in order to bloom, and that is one thing we do not have -- winter chills.  (I am not sad).  So this being my first attempt with tulips, I wanted to see if they would actually grow, what kind of care they needed, etc.  As you saw last week, they did!  Will I be trying tulips again?  Most definitely yes. 

Little buds and blooms, how cute!

So, from the beginning, here's what to do:

1.  Faking a winter chill:
If you buy bulbs -- and there is good reason to because there are so many more beautiful varieties out there -- you will need to trick your tulip into thinking it is somewhere where tulips belong, like Holland (or Washington State -- who knew?  Though of note, the family in charge of these tulip company are also Dutch).
How?  Your lettuce drawer in your refrigerator will do just the trick.  Refrigerate in a brown bag for 6 weeks prior to planting.  Avoid putting the bulbs near ripening fruit that emits ethylene (like apples) and if your crisper freezes things like ours does, keep it somewhere else in the fridge -- you do not want your bulbs to freeze.

2.  Planting:
If you live on the coast like I do, you will want to plant your bulbs around the holidays.  Ideally, you can find a spot that is shady during December/January and then sunny in February when your tulips are likely to start blooming.  
How?  Well, if you have pots, you can move them, or if your bulbs are in the ground, then you can cover them.  Why?  The shade will help tulips will put down better roots and full sun will prevent the flowers from leaning toward the sun when they've bloomed.
As for soil, well-draining soil is best.  If you've grown tulips in the same spot/pot previously, either replace the soil or plant your bulbs elsewhere.  Plant them a couple times deeper than they are wide and water daily.  Fertilizing with nitrogen based plant food before bloom is recommended, particularly if you plan on keeping your bulbs.

3.  After-care:
If you want to try to keep your bulbs for the following year, wait until the leaves wither and then dig them up (in the fall) and keep them in a cool dry place (like your garage) until you're ready to fake them out in the fridge again.  The problem is, this apparently doesn't always work that well -- the following blooms end up being shorter and smaller than the previous years... if they even bloom.  There are some exceptions, but the SoCal gardening sources I am using suggest buying new bulbs every year.
If you do have great success with replanting bulbs, wonderful!  At some point, as with most bulbs, they will grow big enough that you should divide them, which you should do in late summer.

4.  Trouble-shooting:
Potential pests include squirrels (they try to dig bulbs up -- this happened to me this year!  Fortunately, it gave up or failed), slugs/snails, and aphids.  You can cover your just-planted bulbs with chicken wire and there are sprays for the other slimeys and suckers.  I had a short-lived aphid issue on one of my tulips that disappeared as soon as I doused some Neem oil on.

Besides that, all there is left to do is enjoy!  

As of now, I think I will try to replant my bulbs, just to see what happens.  Right now, there's still some serious foliage going on though, and they're in a planter I would like to use for other purposes, so I will either have to plant around them or just keep on looking at the tulip leaves for awhile.

Lastly, for all my LA folk, unless you were a VERY deep sleeper, you experienced the earthquake this morning... 4.7 in the Santa Monica mountains!  As a Texas-bred girl, I realized today that I know what to do in tornados, but not in earthquakes.  So I looked up some earthquake safety tips and am sharing them here for your reading pleasure!

Sources for today's post include The Sunset Western Garden Book and Pat Welsh's Southern California Organic Gardening.

Tulip Saga, Part 1: The story of a tulip

If you know me and/or this blog, you know I love tulips.  Lots.  Because a picture is worth a thousand words, a pictorial for you, about a tulip.

2/5/14 - Infancy!

2/12/14

2/14/14 

2/17/14

2/20/14 

2/22/14 

2/26/14 - Fully mature!

2/28/14 - Ravaged by the storm

3/5/14 - And all good things come to an end.

It was my first tulip relationship. They only lasted a month, but it was a happy month for me!  Next week, I'll talk about what I learned and how to care for tulips, and I'll have a few more gratuitous close-ups.  

In the meantime, while we're on the theme of blooming flowers, I came across a gorgeous "documentary" on flowers on Netflix this week while "learning to relax".  It's actually a wordless, beautifully shot time-lapsed string of videos of blooming flowers of the sort you might see at a spa.  I found it mesmerizing and I LOVED it.  It's called Moving Art: Flowers (here is a shorter clip).  We have had daylight savings... Spring is nigh!  (March 20, 2014 to be exact!)  And you know what that means.... gearing up for gardening!