Garden Journal 08-13-07, Cataloging & Vivarium

I have now started (attempting to...LOL...) cataloging my plants. Hopefully I will find a way to set up an online index or something. But that is a project for a later date. I am just doing some of the work now, bit by bit as I go. The big thing is the progress that we made on the viva. I am think that there is an easy way to fix the water collecting in the bottom, increase the temp, and to increase the humidity. If I buy one of those lizard heating pads, one that gets things up to about 85 degrees F or so, that should do it. Anyway, here are the pix:

Ok...this disturbed me.

In doing some research on Spanish moss I came across an info sheet and at the end was the following. It all seemed to make sense to me until the very last line, then I became worried... How many people have to have done that in order for there to be a warning like that?!? I also have to wonder, should people who do that really be allowed to own a microwave?!? Disturbing...

WARNING
Don't use Spanish moss for bedding or packing without first treating it to kill tiny pests (especially red bugs or chiggers) that may be lurking within. Microwaving works well, as does heating or boiling in water. (Remove bats, lizards and snakes before microwaving.)

Here is the site if you are curious:
http://www.floridata.com/ref/t/till_usn.cfm

Garden Journal 08-10-07

Just a super quick update on my Jatropha sprouts which I think I will have too many so I may call the Arboretum and the Conservatory and see if they want any. Anyway, here are today's pix of them:

Garden Journal 08-09-07, again...

Alright, now I decided to do a couple of updates quick...

These are next semester's books, they came yesterday and I just opened them today. I will now be dropping all the other stuff I was reading and focus instead on these:



This is gonna be good...LOL...

Of course, I need to show the progress of the Jatropha sprouts:


Now my baby Lemon Eucalyptus:


Here are the pix of my recent orders from eBay dealer cowboyflowerman. I highly suggest that you checkout the store, SECRET GARDEN RARE PLANTS, it is really awesome. They have some good deals and some really cool stuff for sale. As you can see I have purchased four plants from them. I could throw the pix they post too I guess for comparison.

RHIPSALIS RIVERO'S RED SPECIES:



HOYA CUMMINGIANA:



Variegated Purple Passion Plant, Gynura aurantiaca 'Variegata':



SCILLA VIOLACEA, THE QUILL PLANT:



Well, I got stuff to do to start my day, so bye!

Garden Journal 08-09-07

Ok, again, I have gotten behind on posting a couple things that I wanted to so here we go. Just 8 hrs after the pix I took of the Jatropha on 08-06-07, they looked like this:



Then the next day on 08-07-07:


I can't get over how quickly the grow. It really is amazing. As a testament to their awesome power, there is "Spontaneous Tomato." I am not sure if a branch had broke off into the compost, or if I threw a dead plant or a broken branch in there or what, but this is the result:





Sorry the first two are blurry, but my digi doesn't do well with super-closeups and I really wanted to show this to everyone. I at first thought that it was part of the one right next to it, but it is its own independent, FRUIT-BEARING plant! Crazy, huh? Just wanted to share this, now I gotta find my breakfast!

Yadda, yadda, yadda...

Here I am again, up too late. But I love to do all my li'l internet hobbies. I am behind on reading Sam and Amy's blogs, will have to do that, but I have a list of crap to accomplish tomorrow. Anyway, had a visitor late tonight...the bat got in AGAIN! I kept thinking I was going crazy 'cause this little black shadow kept shooting by...not so crazy was I! I had to herd the little bugger out without waking anyone...it was NOT as easy as I would have thought! I need sleep, so have a good night!

Lata' ya'll!

Vegetative State

Last night, my wife and I were sitting in the living room and I said to her, "I never want to live in a vegetative state, dependent on some machine and fluids from a bottle. If that ever happens, just pull the plug."

She got up, unplugged the TV and threw out my beer. She's such a bitch.

Garden Journal 08-06-07 p1

Ok, so I am a few days behind here but here is a pictoral follow up of how well my Jatropha is doing and how much I have damaged (and moved now) my Angel's Tears which had seemed to be doing better and then totally went down hill. Ok, so this is from Sat 08/04/07 (I've included the pix of the terrarium too):






As you can see my sprouts are doing nicely and I have added a Venus Fly trap into the ter. Now, on Sun you can see my Angel's Tears and my sprouts:

Garden Journal 08-06-07 p2

You are probably wondering why I would wait any longer to do anything about the A.T., but I had changed the humidity level so I thought I would wait. I had REALLY wanted that plant in there and Bachman's had said it really like humidity... Well, here it is today...:











As you can see, the sprouts look great! However, my A.T., not so great, so we'll see. I'm kinda bummed about it 'cause I think it is a really cool plant. Anyway, here is my water feature "skeleton" as of right now:




Maybe we should run to the other PetSmart and see what they have for reptile terrariums... But if we got one, then we would have to go to Ikea and pick up our rocks and the Bachman's for our orchid bark and finally to Home Depot for charcoal. Then it would be a matter of waiting for the pump I ordered in the mail.

Oh, I am also addicted to Yahoo! Answers. I am going nuts answering people's gardening questions. I have a few I have to get to, but you should check it out. Still active and having fun in the NHGC, I have to mail out a plant exchange with another member tomorrow, don't forget! (I just might...LOL)

Alright, let's all hope and pray now that my little A.T. pulls through!

Garden Journal 08-02-07

I can see, when I looked tonight, that 3 of my Jatropa (is that how it is spelled?) or Coral Plant seeds are sprouting. They seem to be thick little buggers, and judging by their seed size, I am not surprised. I'm gonna take pics in a second here and I should have them posted by tomorrow. I can't really think of anything else cool that is worth mentioning. I might have hurt my Angel's/Baby's Tears plant. It just looks a little weird, it may have been that I created TOO MUCH humidity intially, which I have since corrected. Anyway, I'll put up a pic of that too. I need to remember to post 'em in the club. Oh, just now when I went to take the pics of the Coral Plant seedlings (Jatropha Multifia, I double checked...LOL) I noticed that there was one more and judging by the dirt formation in another cell, I think that another is pushing its way through. Oh, one more thing. That funky cutting that my Gemma gave me that FINALLY looks like it is getting roots after sitting two months or so in water, well, I think that it may be Amaranthus tricolor 'Joseph's Coat'. Well, that's it for now!