Year: 2016

Sometimes, A Brown Thumb

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I’m new with poinsettias.  Like I was with daylilies and garlic 5 years ago. And, so, I’m down one from last week. Another is in ICU with my begonias.  They don’t like cold. That’s for sure.

I also have a couple new additions. This little deeper orange guy is cool.

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And, this pink and red dapple replaces my sweet peppermint colored one.

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This one has neat red and white coloring. It was the closest thing to peppermint I could find.

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It funny how much less fragile poinsettias are after a summer in the garden. These guys are bloomed as throw aways. I’m guessing I’ll loose more, but still excited to see which ones choose to stay.

 

Poinsettia Addict or Daylily Grieving?

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I am surprised at my addiction to poinsettias and amaryllis this year.  I have always liked them, but never wanted to be surrounded by so many.  Maybe it is because I am working from home and they add a certain joy.  Maybe it is stress management for a new job.  Maybe it is cause (despite a lot of blunders) I got my orange one from last year to bloom.  Or, possible it is daylily withdraw.  Or, all of the above.

This week, I picked up a few more.  Today, I went back for the variegated one, and the first one I picked up lost a limb when I went to look for a pot.  The woman in floral saw me replace it with another.  It was an odd moment, but I did not bump it with any force, so my guess is that it was partially off before.  I felt bad . . . but they have made a huge profit off of my poinsettia journey this year.  And, these were $9, so they kept their profit 🙂  They should give poinsettia points instead of gas points.

So, here are the new ones.  (I am not sure on names on most of these and am wanting a book with that info if anyone knows of one):

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A dappled pink one (above).

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A dark pink one (above).  My beautiful lighter pink one is dying 😦

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This one is called Ice Punch, I believe (above).

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This one is huge – reminds me of peppermint (above).

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This one is a variegated red one.  Yes, I finally got a red one . . . but it is unique!

I have ideas for the short day lighting these guys need to rebloom.  This year, I tried the cellar with some extra light on a timer.  To cold and dark, so while it bloomed, it dropped a lot of leaves.  Very leggy now beneath those blooms.  Next year, I will try a much warmer closet and add more lights for the first 4 weeks.  After that, they will go up on the bookshelf in my basement room, with boosted lights via timer.  I am hopeful that this will work . . . and keep me gardening into fall without overwhelming myself with covering and uncovering these.  Oh, and I also need to follow the pruning and fertilizer routine much better than this year.

I am guessing some will not make it to spring, but most will.  They will be out in my garden this summer with the daylilies.  I am jazzed by a winter hobby.  But, it is time to call it good and stay out of the poinsettias!

 

Poinsettias: A daylily gardener’s winter smile :-)

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My daylily gardens are under a few inches of mulch as it spits snow.  My family is headed home after a Thanksgiving visit.  Christmas and winter are upon us.  What is a daylily hobbiest to do?  How about invest in some cool colored Poinsettias?

I am working from home, so I am really enjoying my indoor garden this year.  And, poinsettias are cool because the blooms last most of the winter months.  Then, come spring, they and the amaryllis can grow strong for next winter by hanging out between the blooming daylilies in my garden.

I am trying to learn the names of the poinsettias this year.  So, bear with me and don’t take this as gospel!  This one is called Picasso, I believe:

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And, this one is called Pink Carousel:

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This one is Mars Marble:

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The one below also looks like Mars Marble.  This one has a cool half-and-half effect of the hybridizing.  (PS that is why I got a second one like this!)

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This one is White Star, I believe:

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The one below I purchased last year for Thanksgiving.  It was a very pretty orange.  It is just starting to put out bracks now, so I am guessing when I say it could be Cinnamon Star. PS – I have new ideas to improve my blooming process next year.

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This is a Sonora White Glitter:

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This one may be Ice Chrystals:

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And, just a guess, this could be Premium Lipstick Pink:

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The one below is a purple/burgundy color with pink marbles.  I looked and could not find a clear match.  If any readers have ideas on the name of this variety – or any others – please let me know!

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Next up, the Amaryllis.  See you then!  Thank heaven for the sanity that winter blooms bring!  Who else loves these???

Late Bloomers

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I have not blogged for a couple of months. Daylily season has passed. I started a new job. It’s almost Thanksgiving.  No, wait, Red Hot Returns and Ruby Stella are still blooming despite a few freezes. Grit.

Red Hot Returns

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Ruby Stella

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Speaking of winter, this year I’m taking up Amaryllis.  Their big bright flowers remind me of daylilies. And, their spring is just starting.  Watching for signs of new growth every day. And, when they fade, it’ll be time for the daylilies, again.

 

A Time to Every Purpose

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Today, Ruby Stella bloomed.  She only has two buds left and freeze is headed our way soon.  I was thinking of firsts and lasts today.  My first daylily bloomed in March . . . in zone 6A.  Indian Sky was accidentally forced on my porch and produced two blooms.  She did not rebloom this year.

 

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Indian Sky – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

My first in-yard bloom was another container that was forced a bit early from winter on the porch – Electric Lizard.

 

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Electric Lizard – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

My first planted in the dirt daylily to bloom was Dream Keeper (6/13) – this is my daughter’s choice for a painting for her birthday.

 

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Dream Keeper – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

And, the last . . .  Miss Ruby Stella from today.  Last, but not least.

 

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Ruby Stella – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

They spanned seven months . . . maybe we make it to October?  Then, eight.

The other thing I hope spans a lot of months are the new labels.  What a project to make these for every daylily, not just the 50 or so southwestern garden ones that I blogged about earlier this month.  They have held up, so I am giving it a shot.  I just want labels that last more than a month or two.  So, we will see.  Fingers crossed.

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PS – I did become a Doctor of Nursing Practice.  And, then I went on a camping road trip through SE Utah.  New job starts next week.  Time to get cracking with some winter strong labels!

 

The Art of Labels

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It used to be that I adopted miscellaneous daylilies and planted th em in amidst my other flowers without much thought.  What’s in a name, after all, as long as the flower is hardy. Then, I started collecting them.  Some I got for the names.  Others, I just needed to organize.  So, I got cool software called Plantstep to manage my habit.  One part I like about the software is that you can print labels for each flower.  However, with inkjet, they never lasted long.  And, I have enough now that relabeling is a major chore.  What to do?

My first thought was to paint names on my plastic labels . .prime, outdoor paint, polyurethane.  I especially wanted my Roberts southwestern garden to have sustainable labels until I learn the blooms.  Somewhere in the process, I began to wonder if you could seal the inkjet labels with the polyurethane.  It worked!  (I googled it later, and they use the process to seal inkjet photographs).

So, I decided that my Southwest garden will have two-sided labels.  One side is painted, the other is a plasticized label.  I’m only half done – it is a multi-step process.  But, I have a good start with the first batch in.  I think I will just use the plasticized labels on the other gardens for now.  It is an experiment . . . we will see what spring brings.  (I like that I painted the label with the color of each bloom.)

My blooms for today are Heirloom Heaven (almost done for this cycle):

 

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Heirloom Heaven – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

And, Red Hot Returns (darn thrips are back):

 

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Red Hot Returns – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

Best of all, it looks like Ruby Stella is sending up yet another scape!  This may be my graduation day flower!!! Rock on Ruby.  2016 came in with the yellows and is going out with the reds.

 

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My new Ruby scape!!!

 

Just a Painter Passing Through in History

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“If you want to know my secret don’t come runnin’ after me
For I am just a painter passing through in history” – Gordon Lightfoot

“A musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write, if he is to be ultimately at peace with himself. What a man can be, he must be” – Abraham Maslow

 

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Painting of Kokopelli by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

And, so it is.  Yesterday, I painted Kokopelli.  One of my early bloomers is now always in bloom in my house.  It settles my nerves.  Lots going on in my life – but I slept like a baby.

I woke up to a pretty bloom from Red Hot Returns.  Nice way to start the day.

 

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Red Hot Returns – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

 

Fall Blooms and Roots

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Time flies . . . it has been a couple of weeks since I posted.  A lot has happened. I am less than two weeks away from my doctorate.  And, I believe I have a full-time job in my future. A couple cultivators are still in bloom, and I have new roots in the ground.  Perhaps returning to school is like planting new roots.  You give them water, soil, sunshine, and fertilizer.  Then, in time they bloom.  Blooms are like jobs – the reward for the TLC given to the roots.

Today’s blooms were Heirloom Heaven:

 

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Heirloom Heaven – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

And, Red Hot Returns (with less thrip damage than before):

 

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Red Hot Returns – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

As promised, here are the Painted Petroglyph roots from a couple weeks ago next to the photo from a few days ago:

Progress toward that 2017 bloom.  Like submitting an assignment . . .  it takes time.

Fall is here and my attention is turning to my winter indoor blooms.  My amaryllis bulbs and poinsettia need to go dark soon.  I got a new mum, Thanksgiving cactus, and designer begonia.  My Gerber Daisy is in bloom, as is my azalea. Oh, and those geraniums.  They tend to be my winter bloomers.   I will probably blog about those some over the winter.

I’m also working on my fall daylily fertilizing program.  My re-bloomers ran out of steam this year, so that is a sign that they need more nutrients.   I have added some great Ned Roberts roots to my Southwest daylily patch – Glen Eyrie, Adios Albuquerque, Twirling Pinata, and Truchas Sunrise.  I got extra fans (as bonuses) of Echo Canyon and Desert Icicle that will thicken up my existing plants.  My Navajo Rodeo roots are booming this time.  And, I think I am already getting my spring daylily order planned.  That paycheck will be great to feed my daylily habit.

The Scapes of Late August

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Today, my granddaughter, Maia, turned 10.  Today, my daughter started nurse practitioner school.  Today, I interviewed for a job.  And, today Ruby Stella started sending up a new scape.  It is late August.  Back to school time.  And, I still have scapes.  I might – just might – make it to freeze.  In spring these things are thick as fur on an angora.  Now, I savor each one.   When I brought Ruby home, she had one bud left . . . that has been a month ago.  A sign that the earth is still alive.

 

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Ruby Stella scape from today – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

Actual blooms today were Heirloom Heaven:

 

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Heirloom Heaven – Photo by Colorado Kid Dalilies – C. Hartt

 

Red Hot Returns:

 

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Red Hot Returns – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

My last Orange Flurry in wth my big old Banana Yucca:

 

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Orange Flurry – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

 

And, both colors of Stella:

It is threatening to rain . . . it is suppose to be raining.  At least it is cool.  Not a drop on my desert daylilies yet, though.  Come on, August showers bring September growth.  Getting strong for the spring.