April Bloom Day

Life's been more than a little hectic in recent months, and I've been taking a break from blogging.  All's well here though.  Life has been going on as usual, and spring is upon us once again in the Chicago area.  Snowdrops are fading,

Hellebores are blooming,

scillas too.

 

This hellebore may be reverting to single blooms.  There are more singles than doubles. These blooms are on the same plant as the doubles up above.  Last year this plant didn't bloom at all.  Maybe it didn't like the early-spring heat.

This hellebore is still doing what it's always done.

Warmer weekend weather coaxed a few daffodil buds open.

I love these split-cup daffodils. 

We're way behind in blooms compared to last year when March brought temperatures in the 70's and even 80's.  This has been a more normal spring, actually a bit cooler than usual, and a lot rainier than last year.  I'm grateful.  Last spring's hot, dry weather continued through summer.  A cooler, rainier summer would be nice this year.  Can we order that?  Trees and shrubs, everything flora and fauna could use a break. 

Hope you all here in the northern hemisphere are enjoying normal spring weather, and enough rain. To see more April blooms, please visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens.

January Bloom Day

It's another relatively mild winter so far in Chicagoland.  The snow thrower hasn't moved from its storage spot yet this winter.  We've had a few snow flurries, and a little rain.  Drought in our area continues.

Again this month we have no outdoor blooms. A single Helleborus niger (Christmas rose) bud continues growing in the garden, showing no sign of opening anytime soon.  Maybe next month.

We do have this kalachoe blooming in our dining room.   Kalanchoes kept indoors here tend to get somewhat leggy,  and not so pretty when left to their own devices.  So after they bloom I'll cut them back, strip the bottom three or four sets of leaves from the cuttings, and let the cut end dry out for a day, maybe two.  Next the cuttings go in a pot filled with moist soil, deep enough to cover the stripped leaf nodes. The pot will be watered sparingly, but enough to prevent the soil from drying out until the cuttings have rooted.  Then  we'll have more of these sweet, colorful blooms next winter on new plants. The old plants don't seem to recover very well from being hacked, so they'll probably be composted.

Cactus potting soil works well for kalanchoes.  I don't bother with special soil for them though.  All-purpose potting soil works fine here as long as the pots have drain holes.  These get watered once every week or two at most.

Kalanchoes thrive on neglect. They like this sunny south window, and they like to dry out between watering once they're well-rooted.  In December they get a little fertilizer, and by sometime in January they bloom.

The African violet has been blooming for over a month - cheap thrills and winter color. 

The Thanksgiving cactus bloomed on time, and again at Christmas. This month it has a few fat buds and one about to open, with many more small buds still growing. This plant will often rebloom through spring if I remember to fertilize it now and then.

I hope you're enjoying a few blooms this month, either in your garden or indoors.   To see more Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day posts, please visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens.

Happy New Year

Enjoy - breathtaking, inspiring, and sublime, complements of  Mother Nature, and the indomitable human spirit.

 Happy New Year - one beautiful moment at a time.

December Bloom Day

It's that time of year again, when we turn to indoor blooms for entertainment.  The African violet gets little attention during the gardening season, but now that the outdoor blooms are gone for awhile,  she gets some love, and a little fertilizer, and she'll bloom off and on all winter.  African violets are cheap thrills - this one came from the grocery store for under $5.00.  She's perfectly happy with a little water, good drainage, and some fertilizer now and then.

African violets can get leggy, floppy, unstable, and start looking unattractive as older, lower leaves wilt and fall off.   The solution I've found for that is every year, maybe two,  I re-pot.  All I do is carefully remove the pot, slice off an inch or two of roots at the bottom, and add a little fresh soil to the bottom of the pot - just a little.  I leave enough room in the pot to sink the plant down enough to cover the leggy stem and stabilize the plant so it's not floppy anymore.  Then I add more soil to the top of the pot, water, and fertilize.  It renews the plant beautifully, and it looks brand-new again.  I've done it twice with this one, and I'll do it again whenever it needs a fresh start. 

A few things are blooming in the basement greenhouse, including this little fuchsia.  If she makes it through winter, she'll be visited by hummingbirds in the garden again next year, spring through fall.

I hope you're enjoying a few indoor blooms this month too, or you're somewhere warm and still enjoying blooms in your garden.

Happy Bloom Day all!  To see more Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day posts, please visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens.

Peeling Garlic the Easy Way

Do you grow garlic in your garden?  I have, but garlic does best with full sun - a luxury we don't have in our veggie beds.  When I've grown garlic here it was delicious, but the bulbs were very small. 

Mom and her Garden Buddy grow garlic every year, and share some of theirs with us, both fresh, and their homemade garlic powder.  We like to call it Life-Changing Garlic.  Yep - it's that good!

If you're like me you may love cooking with garlic, but could do without the peeling.   Here's a quick, easy tip I learned a couple of years ago for peeling it the easy way, in just seconds.  It's easier and neater than the smash-and-peel method, and your fingers don't get all garlicky.

You'll need two same-sized metal bowls.  Medium-to-large-sized bowls work best, as you'll want some space for the garlic to bounce around in.  Separate the garlic bulb into cloves, and place the cloves into one of the bowls.  Place the rims of the two bowls together as in the photo above.  Use both hands to hold the rims together, and shake vigorously for 15 or 20 seconds.  Separate the bowls, and your garlic will be peeled, just like the photo at the top of this post.  That's it!  Now it's ready to slice, press, or use whole.

Did you know this trick already?  If not, try it - it works!