Wordless Wednesday: Snoopy Loves Plants Too!

 

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Wordless Wednesday: Leaf Stretching

Featuring the Blue Star Fern (phlebodium aureum).

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Plant Shopping: Halloween-ish Home Depot Trip

I was in need of more supplies, so I took a trip to Home Depot. 

And of course, I ended up in my sanctuary, aka the houseplant area. The timing was excellent, they had so many more tropical plants than my last visit. 

So many large green leaves.

And look at those tradescantias hanging above the huge elephant ears.

And this bromeliad is beautiful, I just wish I had the space for it.

Here's all the bags of potting mixes and amendments. This was the real reason for this trip.

Here's some "seasonal" plants. They're easy care houseplants wrapped in Halloween print packaging. I'm tempted to come back after Halloween to see if they go on clearance. 

Here's a flock of false Bird of Paradise (heliconia psittacorum). Get it? Flock?

These appear to be coral cactus. I don't have the right conditions for them, at least not yet.

Speaking of cacti, here's the succulents table (and an unfortunately blurry photo). There was a fresh batch of cute succulents, individual and grouped.

But, among the grouped succulents were these holiday themed ones.

Three assorted succulents packed in cute Halloween skull pots.

It has a Nightmare Before Christmas vibe, and the $6.98 price for 3 succulents is actually pretty good. Plus, the pots actually have a drainage hole, so they're not just a cheap decoration. 

Before I could leave, I spotted the Venus fly trap display. Boxes of carnivorous cuties crying out "take me home!"

So, what did I actually take home?

Well, I did take advantage of the good deal on the skull succulents. 

It just took ages for me to decide on one that had three plants that I actually wanted.

This pot includes a jade plant (crassula ovata)...

...Moonstone (pachyphytum oviferum)...

...and Golden Sedum (sedum adolphi).

I still haven't decided if I want to split them up or keep them potted together. 

And yes, I did bring home one of the Venus fly traps (dionaea muscipula).

I picked one that seemed to have fewer black leaves compared to the rest. It also had few new baby leaves.

As soon as I got it home, I got out the tweesers to carefully remove the black leaves and other debris.

Behold, the fruits of my labor.

I took my new Venus Fly Trap to work and set it up in the breakroom. It will live here for few weeks dealing with a fly problem before settling back at home.

Hopefully this one will survive longer that the last one I had. Oh, what happened to it you ask? That's a story for another day.

Stay green. 

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Wordless Wednesday: Take Us Home!

Taken at Summer Winds Nursery in Mesa, Arizona.

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Plant Problems: The Lucky Bamboo That Could

I am a fan of Ikea. I shop there as often as I can with my sister. It's a little like going to an amusement park for us, but with better food. Plus, they sell plants, fake and real in their showroom.

But, that's not where I got this heavily yellowed Lucky Bamboo.

It was in their "as is" section. They marked it down to $2 because of the yellowing. 

A well-meaning fellow shopper tried to warn me not to buy it. She claimed it was basically dying because the yellowing was from the bottom going up. I bought it anyway. 

Because I know that when you have a plant in such a bad state, then the only solution is to chop off the good part and try to root it. So, I cut this Lucky Bamboo about 2 inches above the extremely long yellowed bit, then stuck it in water hoping for the best.

It took a few weeks, but it did pop out some roots and later new leaves.

The difference is incredible. I had to cut back the right side because it was getting a little too tall. Not bad for a plant that was supposedly a goner.

Hopefully this Lucky Bamboo will continue being lucky for me.

Stay green. 

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Wordless Wednesday: Llama! Guardian of the Window Plants

 This post may contain affiliate links, please check out my disclosures page for more info.  Thanks!

Featuring a thrifted llama plant pot, get your own llama here.

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Plant Shopping: The Plant Mill, a Local Plant Boutique

There's a cute plant boutique up the street from where I work called The Plant Mill. It's on Mill Ave in downtown Tempe, Arizona in case you wanted to check it out.

Anyway, I pass by it regularly thinking I would stop by eventually. 

And coincidentally, the day I chose to actually stop by was the day Arizona had one of its biggest storms in years.

I trudged through the river-like puddles to get to the store, because I insisted, "today would be the day!"

By the time I arrived, I was dripping wet and had to wait outside to dry a little. I didn't want to soak the store on my first visit.

Inside was wonderful, so many plants to look at in such a small place.

I would have taken more photos, but I was so busy looking at everything.

Everywhere I looked I saw plants that I've been drooling over online, like these peperomia watermelon. 

And is that a whole shelf of coffee plants?

They also had tons of plant related novelties, books and art. Potting supplies too!

There is such a wide range of plants with a wide range of prices too. It made it difficult to choose which to actually buy.

I did eventually pick two to carry home with me in the thankfully lighter rain.

I also left with one of their store cards.

It's a punch card. Every time I spend $10 at their shop, I get a punch. And a full card means $10 off any purchase.

Here's what I bought with this purchase.

First is this cute baby Bonnie Spider plant (chlorophytum comosum ‘Bonnie’ ) also known at the curly spider plant. It was only $6.

I used to have one years ago that unfortunately died on me. Hopefully, I've learned enough since then to keep this one alive and well.

I've always been fascinated by spider plants for their ribbon like leaves and their ease at propagation (they make cute little babies!). This cultivar has all that plus the curliness.

The second plant is this satin pothos (scindapsus pictus).

It was $14, which was technically more than I wanted to pay for one plant. But, I couldn't resist those speckled leaves.

I mean look at them, they are so pretty and have a subtle softness that makes it hard not to touch them. Too bad they are toxic, better go wash my hands.

And it will be so much find taking cuttings to propagate it. Pretty little pothos for all!

Overall, this was a great plant shopping trip. I will be sure to visit The Plant Mill again in the future. Please visit them if you get the chance, or just take a peak at your local plant shop.

Stay green!

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