Today's word is "heartbreaking". Just a day after Valentine's Day, too. But before I discuss the weather in my zone 5b Johnson City, New York garden and the possible end of an experiment, here are the indoor flowers that gladden my heart today.
My Mother's Day gift, a phalaenopsis, is re blooming. Four flowers open as of this morning, with more buds swelling.
My last forced hyacinth flower. I bought a bulb, in water and in bud, back in January at a local discount market and how it has rewarded me. Now, I wonder if I should pot it up or not.
A couple of hanging baskets I brought inside at the end of summer are still alive, under light. My Calibrachoa, another Mother's Day gift, is starting to rebloom.
My begonia, bought at the same discount store as the hyacinth, had been on clearance, half dead. It thrived all summer and is starting to rebloom, too.
(Looking at these, I have to wonder - why are they all pink?)
To mock me, even the Weather Channel turned pink.
Living in my yard was a purchase from spring of 2015. We decided to try to grow one of my favorite flowers, the camilla, outside of its zone. We had visited a camilla nursery in Wake Forest, NC that specializes in hardy camillas and purchased one of their hardiest, called April Rose. (Yes, pink). It was thriving in the record mild winter weather, buds all set for spring. It was my Impossible Dream.
And then yesterday happened. At our house, it only reached -10 but that may have been past its limit. Officially, it is only hardy to zone 6b. And I should know better, right? Wrong.
Right now it has a protective cover, but I dread imagining what I will find under it when it warms up again.
But, as all gardeners do, I will continue to pursue my Impossible Dream.
Now, head on over to May Dreams Gardens, which hosts this meme every 15th of the month, and see what is blooming in yards and houses all over the world.
yea, a brutal frigid dip here in NJ too. :(
ReplyDeleteWe are supposed to get up to 47 tomorrow. Strange!
DeleteI feel for you in the freeze. Every year it is a crap shoot on what will winter over or die. Last year we had a few days of freeze and 2 artichock plants did not come back. This year our winter is mild and all is good so far but it is only February!
ReplyDeleteWill keep fingers crossed for both of us.
DeleteBrrr!!! Those are some cold temps you've got there. Even so, your flowers are beautiful. I got a phalaenopsis for Valentine's Day. I would love to be able to have it rebloom for me some day. I've seldom had much luck with that with my orchids.
ReplyDeleteI am a skilled orchid killer myself. That's why I am so proud when one reblooms. Whether I can keep this one alive for next year remains to be seen.
DeleteWhat a terrible shock -- from mild temps to brutal! I'm dreaming of the Camellia's survival right along with you. Around here, everybody's garden dream is to have a ripe tomato by the 4th of July. Every year, my husband swears off trying to grow tomatoes because they always get blighted, but we just bought seeds yesterday, so the dream lives on. lol
ReplyDeleteWe have had the same kind of winter here after it had been the mildest December through January on record. Plants can be resilient so there is hope for those experiencing the deep cold. Your indoor blooms are a sight for sore eyes.
ReplyDeleteNice, thank you for bringing this to us
ReplyDeleteI'm so sorry. Too bad the mild didn't last all winter.
ReplyDeleteHow strange.. The role of climates
ReplyDeleteWhat lovely flowers and then the dip. Sorry the weather did not stay as is. Hopefully, it will change for good.
ReplyDeleteThe pictures are stunning. How know how to capture the beauty forever.. I just hope you get what you want and pursue your dream!
ReplyDeleteCheers
Goodness that's cold. I do hope the camellia survives. It had protection from the wind.. you never know.
ReplyDelete