• balcony - Canna - outdoors - plants

    Das Canna-Projekt – 1

    16 April, 2012 - By 

    Heute habe ich meine Canna-Rhizome bekommen. Sie hatten eine ruppige Reise wie es scheint. Und der tolle Hermes-Fahrer hatte den Karton in den für alle Welt zugänglichen Briefkasten gestopft. Das nennt sich dann zugestellt…naja, Hermes halt, ist man bei denen ja schon gewohnt. (Hätte ich vorher gesehen das der Versand über die geht, hätte ich da nichts bestellt.)
    So sah das Päckchen aus:
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    Zum Glück sind die Rhizome recht kompakt, da war jedenfalls nichts gebrochen oder so… Leider hab ich nur ein Bild von vor dem Auspacken, weil ich danach Erde an den Handschuhen hatte und so die Kamera nicht mehr halten konnte.
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    Sie sahen ungefähr so aus, nur viel erdiger und ohne Austrieb:
    http://green-24.de/forum/files/thumbs/t_rhizome_127.jpg

    Da beide recht klein sind und das eine irgendwie ein bisschen mickerig aussah, habe ich sie nun erstmal beide zusammen in den großen Topf gepflanzt. Sollten sie da explodieren, kann ich sie ja immer noch trennen. Wuchshöhe ist übrigens mit 1m angegeben, was perfekt für den Balkon wäre.

    Da sind sie nun drin, die Schildchen markieren die Seiten auf denen ich die Knollen vergraben habe. Das gelbe Klebeschild ist da drin, damit eventuelle Trauermücken nicht weit kommen.
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    Jetzt bin ich mal gespannt ob da was austreibt. Bis nach den Eisheiligen (11.5.-15.5.) bleibt der Topf drinnen, danach können sie dann raus.

    The Canna-Project – 1

    Today, my Canna rhizomes arrived. Judging from the state of their packaging, they had a rough ride. The „awesome“ delivery guy of Hermes had stuffed the box into the public letter box, where everybody could have picked it up again.But I am not surprised, I was kind of expecting bad service, I never had one single pleasant shipping experience with them – and had I seen that the shop uses them, I wouldn’t have ordered there.
    The first picture shows the state the parcel was in upon me finding it. Luckily, the rhizomes seem to be sturdy, there were no breaks or palpable damages to them.

    Because I was carried away by eagerness, I just have the view of them on image two and forgot to take one out of the foil. They looked roughly like these: http://green-24.de/forum/files/thumbs/t_rhizome_127.jpg Just that mine were less „clean“ and had no growing activity, yet.
    Since they are both pretty small, I put them into one big Pot together, in case of them exploding, I still can seperate them later. *g* So now they sit in their pot (image 3), the little signs marking the sides where I have buried the rhizomes and the yellow thing in the middle is a sticky one, to catch any possible Sciaridae before they can get into my plants. The huge pot has to be indoors until after the Eisheiligen (frosty nights in the middle of May) afterall, or any tender sproutings would freeze to death outdoors.
    And now comes the most exciting part- will they sprout or not?

  • balcony - orchids - plants - plush worm - spring

    Frohe Ostern, Würmer und Pflanzen *g*

    9 April, 2012 - By 

    Erstmal Frohe Ostern!
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    Diese (kleine) Orchidee habe ich auf dem Wochenmarkt (!) gefunden und sie als Ersatz für meine dahingeschiedenen gelben Hybriden mitgenommen (eine hat noch eine 1% Chance zu überleben). Ich liebe die runde Form der Blüte.

    Dann liebe ich es jedes Frühjahr wieder die Frau vom Blumenladen zu zitieren, die sagte, man könne die Steinheide nicht im Topf auf dem Balkon halten.
    Kann man doch! *g*
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    Ich versuche nun von dieser Pflanze einen Steckling zu ziehen, dann hätte ich wieder zwei und der Ableger kommt von einer Pflanze die bewiesen hat, dass sie überlebenstauglich ist.

    Und Würmer…gestern bei meinen Eltern wieder ausgegraben- kennt die noch jemand, die waren in den 1980iger Jahren der Hit.
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    Die Form an sich gibts sogar noch zu kaufen, allerdings anscheinend nicht mehr die Farbenvielfalt von früher: Würmchen-Link

    Happy Easter, worms and plants *g*

    First of all, Happy Easter!

    This (small) orchid I found on the market-place(!) amongst the gardenplants and had to bring it home as a replacement for my deceased/dying yellow hybrids. I love the round shape of its flowers. It’s compact size is also very appealing.

    Then, every year in spring the same procedure, I quote that flowershop-lady who said that the stoneheather can not thrive in a pot on a balcony.
    Yes, it does, LOL!!
    I am now trying to raise an offspring of it, so I could have two of those again, as they make formidable shade in the window they are standing in.

    And worms! Those three were unearthed (amongst other things) yesterday at my parent’s place. Does anybody else know them, still? They were such a hit amongst us kiddos in the 80ies.
    The worm-form has survived until today, I see, just the many colours did not: worm-link

  • decorations - easter - first green - ludisia - spring

    Nochmehr Frühling

    1 April, 2012 - By 

    Nun hab ichs doch gemacht- die Zweige sahen ohne Deko irgendwie so leer aus. *g*
    Now I finally caved in and did get some decoration afterall…the twigs looked so empty without…
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    Außerdem konnte ich an diesen Laternen nicht vorbeigehen:
    I couldn’t resist those cute little lanterns:
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    Ein Blick in meine „Dschungel-Ecke“- bei grauem Wetter vielleicht etwas trist:
    A quick look into the jungle-corner, a little bit gray, but the weather is gray, too…
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    Und die Ludisia ist nun ganz offen
    Ludisia discolor has opened up all flowers now:
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  • appletree - bicycle - hydrangea - spring

    Frühlingsgefühle

    31 März, 2012 - By 

    Nicht alles was tot aussieht ist auch tot, wie die fleissig austreibenden Pflänzchen zeigen.
    Apfelbaum:
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    Hortensie:
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    Und dieses Trimmrad habe ich heute von meinen Eltern geerbt *freu* und werde es gleichmal ein bisschen testen. Ich kann ja dabei Musik hören oder sogar Filme gucken. *g*
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    Not everything that looks dead is without life, as the busily greening little plants prove. See above my hydrangea and my little appletree.

    And today I got this hometrainer from my parents, who did not use it anymore. But I do intend to make use of it.

  • appletree - balcony - indoors - orchids - outdoors - plants

    Growing

    24 März, 2012 - By 

    The more sun they get, the more growing takes place amongst the plants.
    Indoors, the Miltoniopsis really managed to open all blossoms, hooray!
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    And outdoors, I have a new lavender:
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    And my little Apple-tree starts to grow, whee!!
    I got it for my birthday from my parents and it looked like this, when it arrived:
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    Just a stick in a pot (here pictured with protection against the cold nights).

    Now the „stick“ has proven that there is life in it:
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  • ludisia - orchids

    Something different

    10 März, 2012 - By 

    Another orchid, but this one grows terrestial (= on/in the earth) and can thrive in soil. At the homeworker’s supply store, I found this Ludisia discolor „Red Velvet“ today and couldn’t resist.
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    Size comparision with the Croton and the Oncidium:
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    More detail pictures are to follow, the leaves are beautiful with their red veins.
    And now that I have read up on this plant some, I have to giggle at myself- this one seems to have the same ambitions as the Monstera, if it feels well. Plants that reach such dimensions after a couple of years are apparently not all that few:
    http://goorganicgardening.com/wp-content/uploads/birkett_jewel.jpg

    And the Oncidium is now busily opening up all those buds.
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  • lotr - the hobbit

    Coming December in the cinema, yay!

    31 Januar, 2012 - By 

    The Hobbit, yay! Can’t waaaait!! Here is the trailer:
    Trailer for The Hobbit
    (I so wish they’d do some of the Silmarilion story-lines, too!)

    „Far over the misty mountains cold
    To dungeons deep and caverns old
    We must away ere break of day
    To seek the pale enchanted gold.
    The dwarves of yore made mighty spells,
    While hammers fell like ringing bells
    In places deep, where dark things sleep,
    In hollow halls beneath the fells.
    …“
    (snippet of the Dwarves‘ Song – An Unexpected Party. J.R.R. Tolkien)

  • orchids - saving plants - unknown orchid

    To the rescue!

    15 Januar, 2012 - By 

    This plant was saved from the litterbox because my salt was empty. (And I found it on the verge of getting thrown away at the supermarket) So lucky coincidence made me find it and pick it up:
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    It looked thirsty and not happy with its surroundings but apart from that, it seemed healthy.

    It got emergency treatment and then spent the night in the bathroom, where it is cool and humid.
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    Yesterday I thought it would drop all blossoms today, but quite the contrary- they even seem to have recovered a little and are much less floppy and dangly today.
    Since this type of orchid likes it cooler, it graces my kitchen windowsill now.
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    And even if they aren’t in top shape, aren’t the blossoms wonderful?
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    Now I am curious if I can find out if it has a name. The tag just said „Cambria Hybrid“ (which is very misleading).

  • orchids

    Orchid news

    7 Januar, 2012 - By 

    Bad news first- little „Nopsi“ did not make it, it practially died overnight and when I pried it apart to learn from what was left of it, I found its heart had gone black. Rot had caught it after all. 🙁

    The rest of the band are sprouting funny looking areas under the leaves and while I never managed to catch any creepy crawly in the act of damage, I decided that I better take out the chemical nerfbat now while the plants are still vital and help in the fight. So today I got to use this:
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    *ggg*
    I gave them all a good dose, even if not all are similarly affected. Next weekend the repeat procedure and then we’ll see…

    I have several piccies of happily growing plants to add here now:
    The little Dtps. Black Jack that got so cross about being sent by parcel and then also being moved from moss to substrate that it threw all flowers and dried their stalks seems to be more at ease with its situation now, because it makes a new leaf. 🙂
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    Also making a new leaf – and me very happy- is the Phal. Elegant Debora:
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    There is zero improvement on the roots, still, but the leaves are „filled out“ nicely and now the leaf in the making makes me carefully optimistic that it might be out of the woods now.

    Remember the cute little red leaf on the Phal. Mashimo? Well, that one has grown up – and green- afterall and does now look rather impressive already. (The one that stands up)
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    The Phal. Zoro Amato is building my character as it keeps me waiting for the blossom to open…
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    …and waiting, and waiting… aarrggh! I am sooooooooooo curious!! 😀
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    This one is new, it arrived on Thursday, its botanical name is „Ornithophora radicans“, but I suppose it will just be called „sprinkles“ here. *g*
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    Here you can see that it grows from little bulbs just like the large orchids of that „type“:
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  • music - orchids - winter

    Kilroy and some happy plants *g*

    3 Januar, 2012 - By 

    After reading that my orchids would be used to 12 hours of daylight in their natural habitat and considering that the plants raised here might be content with 10 hours, too, still those rainy winter days must be too short, so to speak.
    They do still grow, but very very slow. So I have now decided to borrow them my lamp from my „worktable“, which has a „daylight spectrum“ light in it. It is not a true plant-lamp, but it is better than a simple lightbulb and it sure is more light. If I keep it on from when I get home to when I go to bed, they do get some extra five hours each day. Am now curious if it will show any results. (If so, I might consider to buy them a plant-light)
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    Of course I am secretly hoping that this will speed on the blossom that I am waiting for on the Phal. Zoro Amato. *looks innocent*

    And something to watch- I stumbled across some 80’s favourites on CD lately. „Mr. Roboto“ by Styx is sure one of mine. Here I found an awesome orchestra version of it on youtube:

    Enjoy!