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!

It begins!

Ah, the power of goals and public opinion (in this case my New Yorker siblings'... they arrive tomorrow!).  It was just the kick in the booty I needed to get a move on with my garden.  I realized after I started that the main reason I had been delaying was that I hate cleaning, of any sort (dishes, house, unpacking... you name it).  And a big part of getting the garden back in shape was uprooting, trimming, sweeping, trashing dead things.  It was not pleasant, and I almost got attacked by two large shady-looking black spiders, but it set me up for the fun part -- planning this season's perfect garden, choosing flowers with promise, that fresh smell of new damp potting soil and little wet leaves, and that optimistic feeling you get when everything is planted and looking so great!

I literally spent the whole day gardening yesterday (thus the blog post delay to today!) and now in addition to a good sore feeling in my muscles, I have a garden again.  Here's where we're at:

Dug up the tulip bulbs which are now safely stowed away in my fridge for next year

And then began planting.

Of course, there's the tomato.  

This time, not heirloom.  Armstrong's had this handy sign up, so I chose accordingly:

I went with the Roma tomato, both for its alleged ease of growth in pots as well as its versatility in cooking.

A few of the tomato plants at the nursery already had tomatoes on them.  You never want to buy a plant that's too mature (like a tomato plant with tomatoes already on it), but mine has a few flowers already.  I am feeling good about my tomato prospects this year.

In the wine crate, I went with a flat of Alyssum.

If you pay attention, you'll see these everywhere, especially used as borders because they have a spreading tendency.  I have an inexplicable love for this little plant.  I think the tiny flowers are cute (you'll see right now, I have Alyssum flowers as my background) and they smell really nice.  My hope is that they will spread into a big box of white flowers.  I think perhaps last year, I chose plants that were too tall (like basil or lavender) with the result that the shallow box could not support the roots.  Little box, little flowers... perfect.

Next up, in place of the tulips, I've got Geraniums.

I was never a geranium fan until I went to Italy and they were literally everywhere... little window boxes, restaurant patios, fancy gardens in giant terracotta containers, rooftops, everywhere!  There, they seem to love red geraniums.  I've chosen dark burgundy because I liked the color, but I like to think it's my little Italian influenced corner.

They are supposed to be very hardy and I've chosen an ivy-type variety, so with any luck they will trail down a bit down the ledge I've got them on.

On our tabletop, we've got a new addition, the Euphoriba millii. 

Baby succulent farm at left, new Euphorbia milii at right

It is in fact in the same family as the poinsettia, you may remember, with little red bracts at the top.

I've cleaned up our kitchen window with a few new Succulent additions.

And last but not least, what I am most tentatively excited about, is the Vertical Succulent Garden.

All succulents except top left, Dipladenia aka superhero plant

I did not buy a single one of these succulents, but actually used what was formerly the kitchen window disaster area as well as propagated succulents to mix and match into pockets!  (More on this next week...)

Lots of gardening!  I realized yesterday at the end of the day that I hadn't looked at my phone once, I had gotten so into the flow.  That's happiness for me :)

This week will be a big test for my new plants with their first heat wave.  It will also be a big week for me as it is my birthday this week and as I mentioned before, both of my siblings will be in town which is GREAT -- I can't even remember the last time the three of us were in LA together.  Celebrate!

An aside, before there was Pharrell...  Destiny's Child "Happy Face"

Motivation

I hope you all had a Happy Easter!  Here is a peek into our festivities:

I made the strawberry dessert and boiled the eggs.  I am very proud of myself.

My husband is responsible this time for the flowers, and I must say, he chose well:

Lilacs!

A couple of our lovely guests also brought the most beautiful arrangement of tulips:

And my wonderful auntie brought me an Easter basket full of plants!  How sweet!

Plus olive oil for chef Evan

Love!

What says spring-- time of rebirth and renewal! -- better than lilacs, tulips, and baby plants?

Well, I've managed to start this week with a rather terrible cold.  As someone who almost never gets sick, I've been an exceptional baby about it, sitting around the house uselessly when I am not at work.  If I am honest about it, here we are, well into April, and I haven't done much useful gardening yet either.  After my big test at the beginning of April, I was so excited to have all this extra free time to be uber-productive, planting plants, baking cakes, painting pictures, exercising up a storm, etc.  

You know what I have done instead?  I've spent an awful lot of time looking at facebook and reading buzzfeed articles/quizzes (apparently my aura is green, if I were a dog, I'd be a Corgi, and the city I belong in is Paris).  And I've managed to get sick for the first time in maybe a year.

So.  As a slightly goal-oriented Type A person, I love lists and resolutions and goals (embrace it, my fellow Type A-ers).  It is still early in the year for greenery and growth, and thus, I've decided to make my New Year's Gardening Resolutions for this year (since Spring is the beginning of the gardening year... get it?)

1. Stay faithful

The Key to successful gardening.  Plants are living little beings and if you neglect them even for a short time, they will look neglected, or worse, die.  And let's be honest, this is kind of hard.  Just as it's hard to go to the gym on a regular basis or having your daily quiet time or consistently cook healthy for yourself (instead of going to Taco Bell), etc.  All worthwhile habits require consistency, and with gardening, truly you reap what you sow.

2. Learn something new

Because failing isn't failure if you've learned something.  This year, I hope to learn more about tomatoes (maybe not of the heirloom variety this time), bulbs (my tulips will be ready to be exhumed soon), and propagating succulents (an ongoing project -- perhaps I will try additional varieties).  

3. Maintain an aesthetic baseline

This is an extension of staying committed to your garden but for me, warrants it's own point.  I tend to garden in spurts -- beautiful garden, slow death, replant, repeat.  It's because I hate pulling up plants that are still alive (i.e. killing them).  But successful gardeners know when to call it and plant for the next season -- everything has it's time!

4. Get started.

Specifically, this week, before my siblings get here because I am very vain and like people to think that I am a great gardener.  Getting started is the first step!  And then you've got momentum.

The end!  So I promise you that soon and very soon, I will have some actual gardening updates for you.  That, and I may be messing around with alternate blog templates... feedback welcome.

Do you have any gardening resolutions??

A pleasant aside: Crosby, Stills, & Nash - "Suite Judy Blue Eyes"

And when I am sad, I eat cake...

So this past week, we found out that our landlord is selling our townhouse that we have been living in for the last two years.  Kindly, he offered to let us have first bid on the place, but given that we anticipate wanting a bigger place pretty soon, we declined.  

So we gotta move!  

This is sad for a few reasons:
1. We have to move.  I hate moving.  More accurately, I hate packing and unpacking.  It's the worst.
2.  We have to move out of this place, which I so treacherously scoured the internet 2 years ago to find, with such glory when we did find this place, in Santa Monica with the biggest, nicest patio I had seen in a rental property.  I now consider anything less in outdoor space unlivable.
3.  Because we are moving soon and may or may not have a place to put all my plants, I can't buy any plants or plant any plants in good conscience, until we're settled.  

And of course, it's hard to uproot what's growing...

So while I've been handicapped in the gardening front, I have been baking.  3 cakes/loafs/breads in the last week, in fact.  Here's a couple:

Cranberry-orange-hazelnut loaf

As a side note, this is what cranberries look like on the inside:

Fascinating

Mocha bread

This actually collapsed 10 minutes after taking this picture because it apparently was not fully cooked, but I will not post a picture of that sadness.

Anyway, obviously, this is not the end of the world and I'm trying to see all of this business from the positive angle, because you know, happiness and optimism and all that:
1. We could save money
2. Ending up in a not as nice place might actually motivate us to become grown-ups and buy a place
3. Who knows, we could end up with a nicer place (oh la la)

Plus, how can I really complain?  Santa Monica is so lovely.  Here's some photos from my grocery trip detour today:

I love you Santa Monica

As an aside, to continue on the note of happiness in 2014, I’ve noticed I do a lot of whining.  This apartment business is a good example.  And while I am in no way comparing my mini-inconveniences to the back-story of these inspiring people (I mean this as a total aside), this week, there are two pretty awesome people that I learned about.  

The first is Jiro Ono, subject of Jiro Dreams of Sushi and now 86 or 87 year old chef at the 3-star Michelin sushi restaurant Sukiyabashi Jiro in Tokyo.  Here's a link to the trailer of the documentary which was quite excellent (I just watched it again and I am so hungry now).

Here is a quote that gives at the beginning of the movie:

"Once you decide on your occupation... you must immerse yourself in your work. You have to fall in love with your work. Never complain about your job. You must dedicate your life to mastering your skill. That's the secret of success... and is the key to being regarded honorably."

As a side note, Jiro's beginnings are humble -- he was kicked out of the house at age 9.  In his youth, he started making sushi, and never looked back, still aspiring to be better (even though he is considered by many to be the best).

And the second is Aimee Mullins, athlete, model, actress, speaker of this TED talk and this TED talk and... bilateral amputee.  She has transformed her disability into, for her, potential ("I don't feel disabled").  She's amazing.

I read about this and wonder about my own potential if I just change my way of thinking.  What could I achieve in my field?  What expertise could I build outside of work if I just put my mind to it?  What if I just spent a little less time on the internet and in front of the TV!

It's just a thought :)

I know the last two weeks have been a little hodge-podgy.  Less gardening.  More feelings.  (Yes, I am made of "billions of cells and millions of feelings", thank you Mindy).  Not enough plants.  In the upcoming months, there might be more general gardening and plants, more food (after all, gardening is so intricately linked with cooking!), and the like because I won't be getting as much dirt under my fingernails.  But for next week at least, I plan to talk straight plants again.  Here's a preview...

Baby succulents!

Until then, Let the Sunshine In!  (Unless you're somewhere cold, then maybe turn on a heat lamp... or come visit me!)

On Happiness...

Do you make New Year's Resolutions?

I do.

And why do we?  Isn't it because want to be happier and better, and by being better, happier?  I've been thinking about happiness recently, for whatever reason...  maybe because I am 30 and when you're 30, all of a sudden, it seems like maybe life isn't as long as you thought it was and you better get a move on things if you're going to make anything of it all.  Or maybe it's because I am thinking about the changes on the horizon at work and at home.  Or maybe because everywhere I look, there are resolutions promising a better me:  "New Year, New Butt!" was my favorite (and I will admit, with that advertisement, I almost bought a class package to Pop Physique despite already having a gym membership).

So how do we go about obtaining happiness? 

Well, I haven't found the answer, but like I said I have thought about this quite a bit recently, so here's what's out there:

There is a good chance that you've seen one of the various articles about the top 5 regrets of the dying:

1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.
2. I wish I hadn’t worked so hard.
3. I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.
4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.
5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.

Or maybe you've seen the TED talk about how getting what we want is not what makes us happier.  (Instead, as this TED talk explains, we are capable of and do synthesize happiness based on what we end up with in life, some better than others).

They've even made a whole documentary about the topic of happiness.  (Here is the link.  It is available on Netflix and it was quite good).

All of these things have the same conclusion:  that extrinsic things such as money, prestige, and image are not ultimately what make us happy.  Instead, things we can do to specifically "grow happiness" include new experiences, "flow" via play or even in work, physical exercise, gratitude, acts of kindness, and meditating on love and compassion.

Despite the fact that we all know this deep inside, it seems like most of us still spend most of our time chasing and working to build that extrinsic stack, myself included.  That's the first part of why I am sharing these thoughts with you...  it's a New Year and we all want to be happy.

So here's my New Year's Resolutions for this year:
1. Exercise at least 3x per week on average:  I think given that I am a doctor, I can at least follow the medical advice we give others on exercise.
2. Cook at least 3x per month:  health and personal education, what more can I say?

Product of my resolution last week.  Given that I rarely cook, I am quite proud.

3. Most importantly, learn to rest:  This was inspired by a sermon by my pastor on "honoring the Sabbath".  It was excellent and you can download it here ("The Fourth Word").  The thing that stuck with me was that the reason to have a "Sabbath" day of rest is so that we learn that our self-worth is not in what we achieve (but instead in God).

I THOUGHT THIS WAS A GARDENING BLOG!!

Yes, yes it is.  Which brings me to the second reason I share these thoughts...

A short argument for gardening:

A recent poll in the UK discovered that 80% of gardeners felt satisfied with their lives, compared to 67% of non-gardeners (and 55% of people who did not have any hobby).  Also, gardeners were less likely to have symptoms of depression compared to others.  

I will admit that polls are not terribly scientific.  So how's this for science: a published study shows that contact with a bacteria in soil Mycobacterium vaccae through the skin or respiratory system causes a release of serotonin (which is responsible for mood and learning).  Also, feeding this bacteria to mice made them more capable at learning mazes.  Sound gross?  Take from that what you will.

My personal argument is that gardening constantly exposes you to new experiences, provides a chance to stop paying attention to the noise from the rest of the world (some call it meditative), brings you outside into the sunlight (also associated with happiness), and the work you put in is directly related to the reward -- you reap what you sow, in the best way.  In essence, it is a chance to rest, which we all need.

So in summary, let's let ourselves be happier.  Even if we're busy, even if gardening is not your thing, I encourage you to find your flower somewhere... whether's it's cooking, writing, exercise, rock-climbing, surfing, or just stopping to smell the roses every once in awhile.

Happy 2014 to us!

Click for source

So long, 2013...

I don't know whether it's the prospect of going back to work again, the bit of wistfulness that comes with the end of the year, or the sight of our dead Christmas tree but that post-party blues feeling is hovering overhead.  But that's only true because Christmas was awesome -- got to see family, eat delicious holiday food, open presents (more on that in a second), and most importantly, reflect on our spiritual blessings.  I cannot complain.  And thanks to the loving generosity of some wonderful people in my life, I have a few things to be excited about in my garden...

Making tea:

I was not aware that Williams-Sonoma had this awesome "Agrarian" department online in which they sell everything from chicken coops to bee-keeping equipment to vertical gardens to...

Tea making gardening sets!

Obviously awesome!  In the kit are included 3 plants (Orange Bergamot mentha, peppermint, and German chamomile), honey, a very cute honey dipper, and little tea bags.  

I planted the herbs today with great hopes of future delicious tea.  Fortunately, it's been so nice and warm in Southern California that I think the plants will have time to put some stable roots down before it gets cold again.

Good luck, little dudes

I also intend to continue to check out this Agrarian Williams-Sonoma business.  Some of it looks a little crazy (like a $700 vertical planter... no, thank you) but some of it looks like it may be worth a chance (another shot at tomatoes, anyone?).

Thank you, Cal and Rachel!  You know me too well!


Taking better pictures:

Because I got a new toy...

Thank you, wonderful husband!

For you photophilics, this is a Canon Powershot G16 (in a sweet vintage-y leather case that my husband picked).  It's a pretty new model, but the primary upgrade compared to the previous G15 model is the wifi capabilities, meaning that I can upload photos wirelessly directly onto my computer and smart-objects.  Gone are the days of taking a bunch of pictures which languish unseen forever on my point and shoot.  I also put this model on my Christmas list because it supposedly takes good macro (close-up) shots which, as a flower-lover, I can't help but do.

I played with it in my garden today...  

Super close-up shots of my garden:

String of pearls bloom cluster

The closer you get, the more you realize there is to see!

Ever wonder why citrus skin looks like that?

Sweet Jessamine bloom... such a nice color

Once I get the hang of it, I think the pictures will look even better, which will also hopefully mean this blog will look even better.  I'm excited!

Anyway, today instead of music, I leave you with a TED talk that I enjoyed about how to live Superbetter (because I discovered TED talks on Netflix and kind of love them).  Gardening = +10 points, for sure.  Enjoy the last few days of 2013!