Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - December 2007

Call it positive thinking, but I honestly thought I'd have more than two flowers blooming in the middle of December. I know we've had an ice storm and right this moment, a "nor'easter" is about to make its grand entrance, but I still thought I'd have more. I'm not really disappointed though. In fact, it just makes me appreciate the toughness that some plants possess.

I've got two pictures to post of my outside blooms, and they aren't the best quality I've ever produced, but it was windy and cold out there this morning, so this will have to do.



Have a look at this viola! Little Johnny (Jump-Up) has seen better days, but look at its delicate petals sporting that violet and yellow! What a bright spot on the dreary winter landscape. In just a few hours, it will be buried under a warm blanket of snow, so hooray for this one last blast of color! No "calm before the storm" for this guy!




This might not count, but I'm counting it anyway. The Scotch Heather (Calluna vulgaris 'Tib') still has some flower buds. They're looking a little dehydrated, but its identical twin beside it isn't looking so good. Everything, including tiny flower buds, is brown. I got both of these for half-price at Lowe's earlier in the fall, because they appeared to be half dead. I knew there was still some life in them, but now I'm wondering if I'm not seeing another "half" going on. Spring will tell the story.

That's it for me, as far as the outside garden goes. The helleborus is looking vibrant and green while its neighbors are mounds of mush and my sister-in-law has a few purple blooms on her Vinca minor. No blooms on ours, but hers is on the south side of her house, where it's warmer.

Inside the house, we've got a few blooms, with more on the way.

One pelargonium, 'Red Happy Thoughts' is still in bloom...

The Flowering Maple (Abutilon 'Luteus) is still going, with more coming on.
















The Saintpaulia African Violet survived Jilly, although you can see evidence of her presence by the cat hairs clinging to its blossoms. I've got several other African Violets with blooms coming on, too.

The Crown of Thorns (Euphorbia milii) will have blooms all winter long in its south window location, but they won't be as abundant or deep in color as they are when the plant is outside in the summer.

The hoya is in bloom and smelling exotic. It's got more flower clusters forming and several of them should be blooming at the same time. That may be enough to perfume the entire room.





The Euphorbia 'Diamond Frost' has not stopped blooming since I dug it up from the garden and put it in pots to bring inside. It's not hardy to our zone (5) and I thought I'd try and keep them until next spring. So far so good, although both pots did drop a LOT of leaves just after I brought them in. They're not flowering as profusely as they did when they were outside either, but the prospect of them surviving the winter indoors is looking positive.







There are a couple of things that will be in full bloom in the next week or so, such as a brugmansia, amaryllis, orchid, more African violets, and this heliotrope (Heliotropium arborescens 'Marine').



And of course, there is the bouquet of Gerbera daisies (Gerbera jamesonii) I received earlier this week, which is just about as vibrant and happy as it gets - winter or summer. As cut flowers, they are technically dead, but it's an amazing thing that flowers can do, this pretending to be alive. But probably no more amazing than the water that allows them to do it.