Hot House Flowers

 A gray and rainy spring day is framed by the windows of my dining room.

Silver drops of cold hang from sharp holly leaves.

Winter smoky fog and sage greens linger peacefully in the ravine.

Tiny bright green noses of flowers to come

push through the newly laid chocolate mulch 

as if they were hungry pups looking for their mother.

And at my table

sheltered in the artificial warmth

these brazen hussies fly open.

Full-faced trumpets imploring for touch and kiss and more.

Flowers of summer with their own

self-stimulation to satisfy their high ardor. 

Inside Blooms

Warm your cold hands and feet by these little beauties.
(Click to get warmer.)

Potential

Sexy
Passionate
Luscious
Every year the same.

Well Behaved Greeters

These little faces will be so lovely for company this afternoon and all from only two bulbs a few years ago. The deep red and larger blossoms are bursting their green covers and it appears they will be following in a few days.

Just the Beginning

Looks like this corner of the kitchen is going to be prettier in just a few days. The buds in the back standing like big thumbs are the deep red flowers that get boldly large. This year I have carefully staked them and tied with landscape velcro.

It Takes So Little to Restore the Energy of Spring

How appropriate so close to Valentine's Day! Let the show begin! The first to open are the smaller pink amaryllis blossoms. This one just opened with the big smile of hope this morning, and as can be seen, the stamens are still drooping. I have a few other plants as close to blossoming. I hate to be away this weekend and miss the beginning of the show. But I will return for the encore on Sunday. (It takes to little to energize my thoughts.)

And below, these are the stars that provide my husband hope.

Timing is everything.

I moved all of the bulbs from the basement and now have a happy grouping near the windows. If we can get more sunny days this would be nice. I am like the lady with too many cats, I know. I just cannot throw them out and no one seems to want them.

These lovely ladies are very close to providing me with some nice color to break the bleak gray days. I think they are the pink or a smaller amaryllis and not the brilliant red ones.


This odd looking bud was trying to shoot toward light at the bottom of the pile of bulbs in the dark bag that I had left for planting this week. Clearly I have messed with it's time clock. I spread the planting time over the month of January, but I don't label the bulbs by time...so they get quite confused. It will be interesting to see how it does.

These are now the tiny kaffir limes that have set on the branches. There are way too many for this small tree as I have about four branches like this. But I will see how they do as move toward early spring. This lime rind can be bitter, so just the juice is what I want to use in drinks and cooking and of course the lovely pungent and savory leaves add that very unique flavor and smell.

The Beginning of Winter Red

I found these little brave faces peaking at the sun in the 30 degree temperature from a pot on the deck and wanted to share.


I unpacked from the black garbage bags about a third of my amaryllis and re-potted them in pots of new soil and after soaking them in water as hot as my hands could tolerate, I placed them in the sun in my kitchen corner. Already one or two are sending up lime green shoots. I was worried because I no longer have a cold basement...these were stored in a cool but heated corner of the storage room. I worry that the last group I bring up will have mold or fungus. I will see.

Amaryllis Step 2

Here in my garage sit the various amaryllis and the lily I propagated from a bulb I purchased many years ago. They got their last drink of water---just a little last week and now they will not get anymore water and very little sun. Soon they should begin to go to sleep, I hope! Then I will put them in dark garbage bags and move them to my basement. I do not really have a cold basement, so their is always the chance they will spoil, but they have not thus far. This past winter I had to replant the lilies in the cold of March and as a result, they bloomed in late spring and early summer. I hope to reset their clocks!

Amaryllis: Fall Steps

I have had great success with my amaryllis bulbs over the years. I started with two or three and now I have dozens and find that I have to give them away every few years. Since bloggers have asked what I do, I will start with my fall regimen to prepare the bulbs for rest. (Please note that this is what works for me and is something I just did without too much research!) My amaryllis plants are moved outside in the spring as soon as the weather is warm enough and there are no frosts and they sit outside in pots through the summer months. They are on the northeast side of the house and do not get a lot of direct sun. The first week of September I stop watering and feeding these bulbs. If we are getting lots of rain, I will move them to a sheltered area where they will get no water. Since I see we are possibly facing the remnants of at least two more hurricanes, I will move these pots to sheltered areas. This is the beginning process of forcing them to go dormant early so that I can encourage blooms in January and February inside my house.

Post Script: The bulbs are currently planted with the top half of the bulb exposed in a good potting soil that drains well. The pot is not too big and so by fall the bulbs can be somewhat root bound. The pot in the photo above has four small bulbs that I transplanted this past winter. They are too small to bloom so all I got this year was the nice foliage.