J got a new radio for his truck for Christmas and finally got around to installing that today. We had to go to Walmart for some kind of wiring thing, and they had their red & green rubber storage bins on clearance for $3.00. I didn't care what color they were, they're going into the attic, not on display. I stocked up while they were so cheap. Usually they're $6.97 and I knew I would be needing more of them as I go along with my de-hoarding project.
I was hanging around outside and saw that our Spring flowers "Johnny-jump-ups" (Jonquils) were already starting to grow. Usually they don't until later in February or sometimes into March.
I was kinda kicking the leaves around, or something, anyway I noticed a whole bunch of bulbs growing inside one of the cement blocks, just like right there on top of the ground.
I decided since they were right there for me to just pick up without having to dig them up, I'd take them and plant them somewhere else in the yard. But where?
A couple of years ago we built a shed to put our lawnmower and trailer and various other stuff, but designed the front of it to look like a little old'ish house (still needs detail work done to complete the effect). Anyway I wanted big, beautiful bushy Hydrangea bushes growing all across the front of it.
My Mom has a plethora of Hydrangea, so she dug me up 4 plants and brought for me to plant.
Turned out it wasn't an ideal place for them to grow. After quite a few years now, one of the plants had died and the other three lived, but didn't thrive. They got some green leaves, and one bloomed some colorless flowers, but they didn't grow.
Mom said Hydrangea grew fine or better in partial sun, but after I got to noticing other people's big, beautiful bushy Hydrangea, and even Mom's, they are in full sun.
The front of this shed faces West, so the Summer sun comes up from behind the building and the Hydrangea were only getting late evening sun, and I think that just wasn't good enough.
The Jonquils, however, grow in front of the house/carport, which also faces West, so I fairly well know, at least as far as sunlight goes, it should be exactly the same growing conditions in front of the lawnmower shed.
So I dug up the Hydrangea and relocated them to the side yard out back, and planted a row of the Jonquils in front of the lawnmower shed instead.
Not the big, beautiful bushy Hydrangea I was hoping for, but I think a row of yellow Jonquils will look nice across there (if they grow). They're a Spring flower, so I considered adding a climbing rose bushes behind them, where they'd climb up the front/side of the shed. No idea how they'd grow there, though.
Speaking of the climbing roses, last May I cut some pink miniature roses from the ancient church cemetary across the road and started conducting an experiment to see if I could root them and grow a new plant.
I attempted 3 different techniques: (1) Rooting a stem in a glass of water, (2) Sticking a stem in dirt, and (3) Sticking a stem in dirt and placing a mason jar over the top.
This is the one I put in a bottle of water and it grew some roots and I planted it in a pot. I brought it inside when the weather was cold, and took it outside to get some sun when the weather was milder, and kept it watered. It's still mostly alive. Kitty ate the leaves off it, though.
The one I just stuck into the dirt doesn't seem to have survived, while the one I stuck into the dirt and covered with a mason jar seems to be doing well.
What I don't know is, how it would have fared if I hadn't brought it inside when the temps dropped to freezing and we got a frost.
If I cut more stems, and plant them directly into the ground where I want them to grow and cover them with a jar, will they grow, or will they freeze and die? I'll have to remember to try that next time and see.
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