Photoblogging the Day II: Plant Life (with Dog)

[dancinghorse]

And now, the various green things, either at the end of January or today. Featuring Spot the Dog.



This is called a cristate form of a large and ancient barrel cactus. No one knows why some cacti mutate like this. The one in my yard is so huge and so old that it has fallen over on its side--and keeps right on growing and mutating.



whitezinnia turned the palm tree from Cousin It into a lissome and lovely thing:



Spot poses in the yard, with the fallen cottonwood and the new young ones:



And in the house, we have Burgeoning of various sorts.

The mystery succulent on the kitchen windowsill, which nearly died last summer, has two flowers on it (making three all told this year), and if you look closely under the left-hand flower, you can see a bud.





Please don't tell the barn petunia it's an annual kthx. It's in the house this week due to forecast of freeze, having decided over the past few days to go bananarama. Buds are bustin' out all over:




The cats ate the hibiscus (in from the patio for the winter) down to bare sticks, then started in on the jasmine. Now all the plants the cats have been chowing down on are in one of the guest rooms, and are happily recovering, notably one of the hibiscus:




The Plant Room:

Comments

[raithen.livejournal.com]

I wish to ask the plants to please leave my room nice kthx ;).

PS: I am about as popular as a mosquito in a malaria zone with Juno and Star right now.... It has been Started.

[dancinghorse.livejournal.com]

Why, you planning on coming in the next month or so? They'll go back outside when the nights warm up. 8)

[foalstory.livejournal.com]

eek! mutant cactus! *runs*

[dancinghorse.livejournal.com]

It fell into a vat of Toxic-Trainer Waste!

[mizkit.livejournal.com]

Does it have SUPERPOWERS?!

[green-knight.livejournal.com]

The mystery succulent is very nice - I don't think I've seen one before.

I'm just hoping all my roses made it. The old ones will have survived - they've been here a long time - but last year's four might be a bit more fragile. Then again, we've had very little sharp frost, mostly just snow.

[dancinghorse.livejournal.com]

I don't know what it is. Found it at the Desert Museum. I like the flowers, and the plant is just cool.

Snow is an insulator, so your roses should be fine. In general they're pretty cold-tolerant. The canes will die back but the roots usually survive.

[monder.livejournal.com]

Floribundas? Hybrid teas? Minis? Old English?

Not sure where you are, but almost anything but the hybrid-teas will overwinter with little or no fussing, hybrid-teas do okay if you had the graft covered, my grandfather used to swear by hilling them with a little loose dirt and then covering them with the leaves from their trees and they like the snow, it's ice and frost that tend to get them and they like the snow, it's ice and frost that tend to get them. He had over 200 different varieties and types in his garden.

As I recall if you can wait till the canes green up and start to bud before you clear away around them and trim them that should help any that are a little touch and go.

Good luck!

she had not pulled a rose, a rose, a rose but barely one--

[matociquala.livejournal.com]

Survey says...

iceplant?

http://natureinthecity.org/coppermine/albums/userpics/10003/normal_iceplant1.JPG

Re: she had not pulled a rose, a rose, a rose but barely one--

[dancinghorse.livejournal.com]

That does look like it. Maybe this is a variant? Thanks!

Re: she had not pulled a rose, a rose, a rose but barely one--

[matociquala.livejournal.com]

Any time! I recognize it because they use it for erosion control in Cali.

[monder.livejournal.com]

Okay kittens are officially harder on the houseplants then the Chaos crew. :-)

[smoemeth.livejournal.com]

That room is perfect for a plant room, it gets so much sun in there...

Humbly requesting a saguaro pic pls? :)