Monday, July 28, 2014

Miscellaneous Succulent Plants

These are some of the plants which stay in our back yard during the summer: Cyphostemma juttae on the left and, beginning in the front, an Aloe, followed by large Crassula ovata 'Gollum' and two large plants of variegated Euphorbia ammak (Euphorbia erythreae variegate) 

Sunday, July 27, 2014

Some time with our Granddaughter

Our granddaughter lives quite a way from us, so it was nice to have her with us for a couple of weeks. Today she left and she'll certainly be missed. The first picture is her and her dad; the second is of her with Grandma, Grandpa (me) and - of course - Ladybug.

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Sanseveria kirkii var. pulchra 'Coppertone'

Grown with less shade, the plant will show off its true colors, but the flower says it all. It is native to Zanzibar, off the coast of Tanzania.

Oregon Cactus & Succulent Society "Succulent Plant Fest"

Another OCSS show and sale is over and was very successful. The weather cooperated and we had a large number of people show up. A special "thank you" is due to James and Debra for their usual fine collection of plants, to Lynn for her first year of participation with some lovely plants and to Juanita for her wonderful hand made pottery, designed with succulents in mind. Our tables are pictured above.

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Opuntia erinacea (syn. Opuntia polycantha var. erinacea) "Grizzly Bear Cactus"

I'm not usually much of an opuntia fan, but this is an exception: the Grizzly Bear or Porcupine cactus. I usually try to avoid common names, but this one is so appropriate!

We're busy making the final arrangements for the "Succulent Plant Fest" at the Stark Street Portland Nursery this weekend. If you're in the area you owe it to yourself to come by. And, of course, we'd love to see you.

Friday, July 11, 2014

They used to be called service stations....!

Lately I've been having problems with our vehicle, a 1995 Ford Aerostar. I guess I should expect it. It almost has 200,000 miles on it. Lately it's been blowing some of its soft plugs (=freeze plugs), which causes the engine to lose all its coolant.

I had it in the shop and when I picked it up, it appears they finally did get it fixed. But then, after driving across town to get some nursery supplies, I decided to get some gas. A pretty good plan, since the gauge was showing empty. So I stopped at the friendly Chevron station and one of the higher priced places around at $4.05 a gallon of regular. While getting the gas, we noticed it was losing water, a lot of water. When I finally was able to take off the radiator cap, it was clear I needed some water, so I asked if they had any. You know: service station, gas, air, water...it seemed like a natural.

The end of this sorry story is, yes  - I did get some water - but only after the attendant asked me not to tell anyone, as he would get in trouble with his boss!
That's why they're not called service stations anymore.

And - oh - the van seems to be running OK now.

Thursday, July 10, 2014

Preparing for the Show and Sale

We're busy potting up plants for the Summer Show and Sale of the Oregon Cactus & Succulent Society. The sale is on July 18, 19 & 20 at the Portland Nursery, 5050 SE Stark St. in Portland. There will be three venders and there should be lots of succulent plants and a wide variety as well. If you're in Portland, we hope to see you there.
Also, there will be two nice specimen plants being raffled off. Entries will close on Sunday morning at 11:00 am and the winning tickets drawn. The winners will need to pick up their plants by 3:30 pm on Sunday.
I will also be leading a seminar on growing succulent plants at 11 am on Sunday.
Now all I have to do is get the car out of the shop so I have some wheels!!!

Thursday, July 3, 2014

Gymnocalycium pflanzii var. lagunillasense

 Gymnocalyciums are real gems of the cactus world: easy to grow, easy to get to flower, and they make very nice specimens in a relatively short while.
 The variety name is no longer accepted by botanists. It's simply G. pflantzii. I just throw in that nice long variety name as a teaser. And it's fun.
For those of you in the Portland, Oregon area...hold those dates: July 18, 19 & 20. Those are the dates for the Oregon Cactus & Succulent Society Summer Show and Sale. Check it out here, and I hope to see you there.
Enjoy your plants!