RIP Cilantro

May 14, 2010 - May 23, 2010

Murdered.  Suspect still on the loose.

Baby Cilantro & Garden Stakes

The cilantro is starting to grow.  At least I hope it is the cilantro and not the green onions.  Hmmm... Guess I will find out soon enough!

Purchased these beautiful set of three garden stakes (sage not shown) from a seller on etsy.com.  etsy.com showcases all homemade items.  I have purchased three items from three different sellers and all of them have been beautiful and well crafted.  These garden stakes are so beautiful, colorful, and sturdy.  I plan on buying some more in the near future.  If you are interested go buying these garden stakes or see what else they sell go to: http://www.fromartisanhands.etsy.com/

Rescuing the Hydrangea

Publix was selling beautiful pink blooming (lacecap?) Hydrangeas over Mother's Day.  After Mother's Day passed I noticed a few still left and were waiting for homes.  I picked one up but put it back and went about my shopping.  I thought about the Hydrangea afterwards remembering how beautiful the plant was.  Tonight I was at Publix and there was one lonely Hydrangea amongst beautiful oriental lillies.  It was on clearance.  The soil was dry and low.  I decided to take it home and add it to my growing collection.  Will need to pick up a terra cotta pot from my parent's home and repot it as soon as I can.

Night Blooming Jasmine and Rearranging

Aloe I bought at the Great Outdoors Nursery in Austin in 2000 or 2001.

Pink purslane flowers opening in the sun

Smelling the purslane flowers

Rearranged some of the pots.  Herbs and onions on top ledge.  Gardenia on table.  Aloe and other cactus on the plant stand. The aqua flowery pillow I just acquired from World Market.  They have a cute, brightly colored selection of outdoor pillows!
Night blooming jasmine.  Some of the leaves look a little funny, so I will need to investigate what that could be.

Creating a Container Garden On My Balcony

Gardening ah, gardening.  My experience thus far with gardening has not been very successful  I've planted in the earth a small veggie garden but have never been successful sustaining the life of the vegetables.  I've had better luck with a potted herb garden that produced a bounty of delicious herbs.  After moving into my new place, I've only had one or two plants on my east facing balcony.  One plant died but my aloe, which I've had since about 2000 or 2001, has been resilient despite my past neglect.  I love growing herbs and the smell of blooming flowers so I decided to add some plants and herbs and to try my hand at container gardening once again. 

Rearranging my balcony furniture created more space but less seating.  The extra room is perfect for the potted gardening that I have planned. In addition to my aloe and born again basil (I almost killed it but it's regrowing) I added another cactus, gardenia plant, purslane, a polka dot plant, planted cilantro and green onions from seeds. I plan on adding a night blooming jasmine to my collection soon and may try growing tomatoes. 

My purpose for rearranging this area of my home is to create a peaceful and inviting place to "just be".  I enjoy sitting outside and watching the birds in the nearby retention pond but what has been lacking besides the bounty of herbs, are the scents, colors, textures, and whimisical ornaments that would make this area a real treat!