Mid-September Bouquet

Last blooms of unnamed rose bush, with orange berries of the mountain ash tree in the background. Dozens of robins fought for a space on that tree today, as they gorged themselves on the ripe berries.Isn't it great to have flowers post-frost! We had a frost that wilted the petunias 3 days ago, but the perennials are tough enough to handle such small challenges! Oh yes, we also had wet snow for two days this past week, though nothing accumulated.

I cut this bouquet from my perennial beds for a party at our house today. The complimentary colors really represent the color scheme in my perennial beds quite nicely. My arranging skills may lack something, but the flowers look pretty regardless! Notice all THREE colors of my pacific giant delphiniums! (Guests say "Nice flowers." Me --the shameless flower nerd-- says while pointing: "There we have Summer Skies, Blue Bird, and King Arthur.")Digitalis flower, the "glove of the fox":

Delosperma, purchased this summer from the garden center as a "rock garden perennial", but from what I read, this succulent might not be hardy. I have no idea whether it will be there next spring or not! Fresh new Muscari armenianum (ordinary grape hyacinths)...no it's not a spring photo! This plant multiplies by seedlings and bulblets, growing thick like turf where it is not divided regularly. Now is the time to plant these bulbs for their bright blue flowers next April/May!

Orchids in Action

While my dendrobiums grow, bloom, and multiply faster than I can keep up with, I have waited patiently for my large phalaenopsis (moth orchid) to bloom. My largest one (Phal. Brother Mirage "Brother") has many aerial roots and lots of dark green healthy foliage. It sits inside a bright window with sheer curtains shielding it from direct sunlight.

This long-awaited flower spike is very exciting!

I'm not certain how to best treat this orchid now, but I'm following the tricks I learned from my Dendrobium nobile: give them little water and no fertilizer until the flower buds are definitely set, and then water and use a high phosphorus orchid fertilizer. The Dendrobium nobile would turn its little buds into new plants (keikis) instead of flowers if watered/fertilizer too soon.

A phalaenopsis reblooming from a spent spike: this one was purchased for us as a gift and we watched it bloom from May till late August. As recommended, I cut it off just above the uppermost green node (watch that you don't confuse the nodes for the marks left on the spike from where the dead flowers fell off -- you want to cut below these). You can see the beginnings of a new flower spike growing from this node.

Houseplant Predator

You may be familiar with this persistent pest of houseplants. It roams my house, tearing leaves off the banana plant and digging around its roots. It laughs at attempts to physically remove it from the houseplant. Its persistence is remarkable.

Banana Tree - favourite target of "The Pink Pestilence"

Oh, but where is my gardener's optimism? Okay, well here are the cultivating tools that surreptitiously aerate the banana tree roots:

And here is the soil quality analyzer, which enthusiastically consumes a small sample of dirt while spreading the rest on the carpet. Somehow this soil quality analyzer has a malfunction when it comes to more appealing items such as "Country chicken casserole".