Say ‘Hello’ to Huey, Dewey, and Louie, our growth-spurt garlic!
Peppers Popping
It’s ALIIIIIIVE!!!!
Potato
Also alive! Unintentionally.
I assume almost every household has faced the sprouting of forgotten potatoes, at least once. Plucky and amusing, but the musty odor is not to be tolerated.
To the compost it goes.
Tradescantia No More
This week we bid farewell to a great matriarch, a housewarming gift from a friend. All Tradescantia Zebrinas spread throughout my home originated from this one cutting.
Cause of death seems to be:
- Repotting in the same jar
- Using moisture-control soil
Despite the rocks at the bottom of the jar (to allow excess water to rest until the roots above soak it up), the soil was still moist, even on the surface. I hadn’t watered this plant in weeks.
The formulated dirt definitely does what it advertises: retains moisture. But best not used in this context, i.e. glass jar with no bottom drainage.
One final set of cuttings from the founder.
Mystery Dust
A mystery no more. It’s mold. Good old mold. Thankfully not an immediate hazard to myself or the plant.
Scraped off with a spoon (thoroughly sanitized afterwards) and added a layer of cinnamon as an anti-fungal. May have added too much. Hoping it’s only humans, not plants, that have an excess cinnamon threshold.
The mold-prone dampness was not a surprise, with the mug having no drainage, only rocks at the bottom for ‘faux drainage.’ Unfortunately, I think I also repotted this guy with the moisture-control dirt. Might need to repot in regular potting soil if the cinnamon does not fix the problem.
Flowering Basil
Apparently we’re not supposed to allow basil to flower, because it makes the leaves bitter. My bad. Time to go Morticia Addams on this little guy and nip the bloom.
I sampled the leaves lower on the clipped stem. Either my palette is not refined enough to notice the bitterness (plausible), or I salvaged this bit in the nick of time. I also saved the top little bundle of flower and leaves to make into a mini centerpiece for my table. Rather chuffed overall.
Gratitude
To all the people who continue to listen to me blather on about my plants (akin to how other people talk about their human babies), despite me now having a perfect outlet in this blog. Ironically, my verbal deluge has only grown.
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