How Has COVID Changed Your Life?

 I'm wondering if my feelings are universal or am I just plain crazy? Even when I'm out among the plants (my favorite place to be) I feel like a wild bird in a small cage. Bill and I have been well and for the most part, we have done life as usual. Of course, the masks are a pain in the butt and honestly, I'm not so sure how much they help. We have ordered our groceries and picked them up for the first few months. Lately, we have gone to the store wearing our masks and shopped as normal. Now that there seems to be an uptick in cases we may go back to order and pick up.

I have planned to have nine people in my little dining room for Thanksgiving. I pray (seriously) that we will be safe and remain healthy. We haven't decided about Christmas yet.

The greenhouse has been the place where I can escape and feel safe. It is so crowded with plants that can't survive the winter outside, that there is hardly room for me now. The Meyer Lemon is full of lovely fruit and I have enjoyed them in my hot tea every morning. It's barely the end of autumn and I'm already wishing for spring. 

Yes, I will open again next spring. Early April if the Lord is willing. My major supplier in McMinnville is closing so I will either have to start early and grow my own or order little plugs and grow them up. Either way, there will be herbs and flowers for sale at Mimi's next spring. 

I'd appreciate your comments, especially about how you are making the best of the COVID situation. 

Don't Toss Those Mums! Winter Them Over...

 

I want to share a link with you today from my buddy Mike @ Mike's Backyard Nursery. I've followed Mike for over 20 years and he has never steered me wrong! 

Here's the link to his post about mums and how to save them for next year: https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/2014/09/mums-word/

Now Is a Good Time To Learn New Gardening Skills

I don't know about you, but I've done more reading since we have been locked down. Granted, I'm feeling better about getting out more lately, but I'm still not the gadabout I was before.

Take some time to hone your gardening skills and learn how to multiply your plant collection for free! My gardening book, Gardening Tips For Small Spaces (pictured on the right) has many tips and ideas for growing plants, propagating the ones you have, as well as money-saving tips too. The Kindle version is only $3.99! Click the title to find it on Amazon

If you want a good fiction book to help pass the time, check out Mary of Bethany, The Untold Story, it's also on Amazon. This one is Biblical fiction based on the life of Mary of Bethany.

In my book, Mary first met Jesus by accident when she was a young girl and in a place she should never have been. She would have been in terrible trouble if Jesus had not been there too. 

Travel the dusty streets of Israel to Mary’s home in Bethany, visit places and meet people you may have never known before. In my book, Mary is a gardener. Read Mary's story to find out what important crop she grows and how it impacts the lives of others. 

See Mary and her family in a whole new way, Come, experience the life of one of the most famous women in the Bible, and learn her untold story.

If you like my books please leave a review on Amazon 💖

My Ruby Slippers Hydrangea

 I think the pictures say it better than any text I could print. Ruby Slippers is a miniature Oak Leaf Hydrangea. Even miniature varieties are not tiny, my Ruby Slippers is planted in a huge tub. The plant is about six or seven years old and is probably 4 feet tall by 3 feet wide. The blooms are large and full every spring. They start out lime green, turn white and fade to deep pink. Finally, at summers end they are beige but still attractive.  Sometimes I pick them when they have first bloomed and they last for weeks in a vase. 

Baby plants come up from the roots around the plant and can be replanted elsewhere. These are not invasive, only one or two a year will sprout.  They are easy to root via cuttings. 

My Ruby Slippers gets morning sun and shade in the afternoon. I honestly think it would be fine in full sun. Butterflies love it too! 

Hydrangeas are easy to propagate. My plant propagation book (available on Amazon) has complete instructions. See the link on the right sidebar. 

I often have Ruby Slippers plants for sale at Mimi's Greenhouse in the spring. 

Ruby Slippers Mature Bloom

Pandemic, Miniature Egg Plants and Other Ways to Keep My Sanity...

OK, So I know the virus is a real thing but I only know one person who has had it. She was pretty sick and her whole family got it too. Thank God, my friends and family have remained well but I am so tired of being cooped up in the house and yard!

I have decided that I'm done with the sheltering in place! We have been to Walmart, Dollar Store, Cracker Barrel, and most importantly, Church! I wore my mask to Walmart, mostly with respect to the employees who are forced to wear them. Dollar Store didn't seem to care one way or the other and we were socially separated in church. Let's be real here, how can you eat in a restaurant with a mask on? So, no, I didn't wear the mask at Cracker Barrel. 

What would you be willing to bet that as soon as the election is over, we will find that the pandemic is over too? 

I will say, I've gotten a lot done in the Greenhouse and plant sale yard this summer. There have been lots of customers too. I guess I'm not the only one who is bored and working in the yard.  

I discovered miniature Egg Plants. The plant itself is about 2 feet tall. I put them in 2-gallon pots and they are very happy. The only problem is the Thrips that have recently gotten on them but it doesn't seem to have affected the fruit. The little fruit tastes just like the big ones. I cooked them with onions in a stir fry and they were really good. Who knew? I bought them at Lowe's in the markdown section of the garden center. I wonder if I can save seeds? I guess there is no harm in trying. 

The Hydrangeas have outdone themselves!  So have the Begonias and the Meyer lemon is loaded with fruit. I can't wait till October when they are ripe.

 

Butterflies are all over the Buddleia! It is right by the path from the house to the greenhouse. They don't mind if we pass by while they are sipping the nectar. No wonder it's nicknamed Butterfly Bush. 

I feel sorry for folks who don't have a yard to escape to. Maybe I should open mine just for visits. 😊

Things To Do During Pandemic Lock Down

   OK, so the first week wasn't so bad...we caught up on TV, read, weeded the yard, mowed the yard, watched more TV, I even cooked. Now I'm bored! So here are a few suggestions for keeping your sanity. 

Start veggie seeds inside to plant as soon as the weather stabilizes...I'm writing this on April 14 and it is snowing outside my window! I live in Middle Tennessee and it was nearly 80 degrees last week! This too shall pass! We will need our vegetable gardens more than ever this year. Look at my post about seed starting here. 

Go online and dream about all the cool plants out there that you might want to add to your landscape. Check out Burpee Seeds, Search eBay for "plants" you'll be amazed by what you might find. Here are a few of my favorites: https://www.johnnyseeds.com/,  Park Seeds and plants,  Gardeners Supply Company  even ETSY

Get my Gardening book on Amazon for more tips and lessons on gardening 

Step By Step Guide To Plant Propagation Revised Edition

  Share with us here in the comments about what you are doing to keep from being bored out of your mind.