Friday, August 17, 2012

IT'S A BEAUTY!

Night Blooming Cereus

Several years ago, my friend Pat W., gifted
me with a Night Blooming Cereus Plant.  She
assured me that it would be
BEAUTIFUL - REALLY??

The first year. after starting a new plant,
it does'nt bloom.  Many plants are this way,
so I did not expect it to bloom.
Knowing nothing about this plant, I did
not know what to look for the second year.
Therefore, I missed the
whole show."  I have had the plant down in the
family room near the sliding doors so that it
could get light without direct sun.  When I finally
went into the family room the dead flowers
were on the floor beside the plant.  It
had had two blooms.


 This is one of the ugliest plants I have ever seen.
It is a distant cousin of cactus.
It needs very little water and care during
the winter months but needs a bit
more to drink during the summer months.
 This is how the bud looks when it is
about a week into its growth.  It starts out as a tiny
"pine cone" shape on the edge of the leaf.
The leaves are quite large and rubbery.
 I consider myself lucky for this year there
were 4 blooms.  As you can see these two
are starting to open.  The process of opening began
about 9pm and the last one didn't open until
about 11:30pm.

 Here are the  two beauties on the
upper level of the plant.
 The aroma filled the whole house!
Just lovely.
 Just look at this beauty!  These blooms are
very large and heavy.
 This is the beginning of the end!  By
about 9am they were gone.  So much beauty
in such a short time.
These are the blooms on the lower tier.
I have to say that I was so thrilled that this plant
bloomed because I thought it would not and
had really neglected it.  It sure was worth
waiting for.  I have taken some cuttings and some
leaves and will try to root them.
A TRUE THING OF BEAUTY IN THIS
NOT SO BEAUTIFUL WORLD.

In the meantime I have been in the dye pots.
They are like the Siren's call of old, to the sailors. 
I cannot stay away from them.
My friend Traci and I are working together
to "redo" my hooking and wool room.
Until today I did not know how much wool I
had - we carried in the storage containers
from the garage - geesh!!!
A bonanza of goodies.


Quote of the day:
I could not at any age be content to take my place in a corner by the fireside and simply look on.
Eleanor Roosevelt.
I could not just look on either.
Until next time keep a smile and hook on!

Doris and Eloise