Lookie, My New Fishies…

Coleus Cuttings Aquarium (Front View)

Coleus Cuttings Aquarium (Top View)

Cheap planting pots that are readily available…

My Coleus and Plectranthus cuttings at work have rooted, so I really have to get some pots and plant them in soil. I don’t want to bring a bunch of mismatched 4 inch pots to work, because they are sitting my co-workers office, and I don’t want them too look too unsightly. I searched the internet for bulk pots that were taller than regular 4 inch pots, but not wider. I couldn’t fine any; they were either too expensive or too large a quantity to buy.

I went to my friend’s Christmas party this evening and they had clear plastic Solo drinking cups. Measuring 4 inches at the top lip, 2.5 inches at the base and 5 inches tall, they were close to the size I wanted… so, at the end of the party, I helped clean up, collected the drinking cups and brought them home. The only thing I didn’t like was the fact that they were clear.

I stopped by the grocery and found opaque ones called SoloGrips in different colors. I can use these as the pots. I’ll cut the clear one to about an inch tall and use those as the saucers. Very Cool!!!… Cheap planting pots that are readily available!

I’ll make one up and take photos to illustrate what I said above.

I started a Coleus group on Flickr…

I’m so excited, because I took my passion for Coleus (Solenostemon scutellarioides) and started a group on Flickr devoted to… guess what?… Coleus!!!

My ultimate goal is to have a central location where you can view photos of Coleus from people all around the world. There is also an area where you can discuss these colorful plants.

Coleus

So, if you have any Coleus photos and a Flickr account, stop by an share with the group. Here’s the link:

http://www.flickr.com/groups/coleus/

( Also posted in Gardening )

Quick Response + Rose Stumps + Gardening Thoughts…

I wrote an email to White Flower Farm last night asking if they knew what varieties of Coleus my coworker purchased from them… and this morning, I got a response with the names. They are Black Magic, Peridot, Bronze Pagoda, Garnet Robe and Rattlesnake… Now I’ll update my previous entry and my flickr page to reflect this information.

My Mom finally cut down the Roses in the front yard to about a foot from the stump. There were a few flowers left, but nothing significant. Our front yard looks so bare now.

As I was watching A Gardener’s Diary before bed last night, I saw this gardener who grew Clematis through one of her bushes. It made the illusion that bush was flowering. That gave me an idea. How it would look if we grew Clematis next to our White Birch tree in the front. Would it enhance the tree with flowers or would it look too weird. Hmm???… My Mom doesn’t really like the Birch tree, but we can not chop it down because of our city’s municipal code prohibits it.

I was also thinking about making a make-shift grow-light thingy-a-gig in my room like my LiveJournal friend, lblanchard. Just a small one… maybe I can take one of my old aquariums, replace the light with a warm white fluorescent bulb and add mirrors on the sides to intensify the light. I’ll add gravel or stones the the bottom with just a little bit of water to add some humidity. Hmm?… That’s an idea… Lemme research that on Google…

More…

More for my Coleus Collection set on flicker.com.

Coleus “New Orleans Red”
New Orleans Red

Photos from the Garden

I love my new Canon PowerShot A610 camera, because it can take much better macros than my old Canon PowerShot SD100. I can shoot as close as 1cm. Below are some photos I took earlier today.

Jade Plant Flowers
Jade Plant Flowers

Coleus “Alabama Sunset” Seed Stalk
Coleus Alabama Sunset Seed Stalk

Dried up Dusty Miller seed heads
Dried up Dusty Miller seed heads

Dusty Miller photo

I’m Starting My Coleus Photo Set…

I’m finally organizing my coleus photos and will start uploading a few of them at a time. Click any of the photos below to view my Coleus set on flicker.com.

Coleus “Alabama Sunset”
Alabama Sunset

Coleus “Sedona”
Sedona

Coleus “Peter Wonder”
Peter Wonder

More photos to come…

Late, but…

I took a day off of work today to bring my mom to a doctor’s appointment. Before we left, I had the chance to check out the back garden, which I hardly get to see in daylight since the days are so damn short.

I turned the compost in our new Smith & Hawkins BioStack Composter, which I won at a city composting workshop, and can definitely feel the heat being generated. I want to get another one, so if you are in the San Francisco Bay Area and want to get rid of yours, I’ll take it.

Compost bin photo