Fairy Garden supercedes Super Bowl!

OK...here it is: MY FAIRY GARDEN!!!!!
Click on each photo for more detail!










For plants I used Mexican Heather, Aralia, and Ivy. Found all my little parts and peices at JoAnn Fabrics, Crafts N Stuff, and Walmart today! This was all fun, and sheer pleasure. I especially like that it will be indoors right near my front door where I can view it several times every day...and have many moments of happiness....all I have to do now is wait for the fairys to arrive!

Kitten Ears coming back to life!

Here is a picture of my Kitten Ears before they started dying outside in my succulent tires...I thought they needed more water (because we have been in a drought all summer, fall and winter), except for an occasional rain. (This is my blog title photo above). So I watered them, and they continued to die. Finally I went out there and pulled them all out and threw them on the ground...not bothering to pick them up. I saved one little peice that had about 4 leaves on it (it was rooted). I placed it in this planter below and put it in my kitchen window to give it TLC! Each day one more leaf shriveled up, until I pulled it out and threw it out as well. I was sad, dejected, and grieving...I couldn't bear to move the pot, or do anything with it. Well, after a few weeks, a little white furry thing started poking its head up through the soil (below)!

Well, it was so white and furry, I didn't recognize it until it had gotten about 1/2 inch high!!! Then I could see the teeney little leaves forming in a swirling pattern! How surprised and happy I am! I must have left a little root down under the soil!!! Every day it grows a little more and looks perfectly healthy! I am scared to water it. Scared to breath on it. Scared to look at it sideways!!! LOL. I decided to just WATCH it. Period.


Well, last week I walked out to my succulent tires to check on things close-up.....and guess what I saw??? All of the roots I had thrown on the ground were now making new plants just like the one in the kitchen!!! WOW! They love having dry, dry, dryness. Anyway...I am watching everyday and will keep you posted. I have to get these dry roots in a pot soon...I think!

Here is the info on Kitten Ears, or Cobweb Spider Wort:
Tradescantia sillamontana
Description:
10-12” x 18” wide, (cutting/division propagated). Cobweb spiderwort is a fascinatingly beautiful plant. With its gray-green leaves and thick stems covered with white cobwebs and deep pink three petal flowers, it can be a showpiece in both ground beds and container gardens. Hailing from the mountains of northern Mexico, the plant is highly adaptable thriving in both sunny and shady light conditions and a variety of soil types. Zones 7-10. That is a good thing...I am in Zone 10!!!

Miniature Fairy or Gnome gardens

Now this is a twist...I got interested in making a fairy garden last night while looking around online at gnomes..I started doing this after visiting Kellys blog (see links). These are cute little gardens, and I do think that the fairies in our areas would appreciate having a place to rest at night! LOL. I found this little house while thrift shopping today, and you can see the scale next to the can. I am looking forward to making one in either a larger shallow bowl, or turning one of my succulent tires into one. I think I need moss for the "ground"...but does any type of moss do well in full sun???...this I must inverstigate! It will be fun. I have always loved miniatures, but never considered a garden before! Check out some pics at Miniature Gardens

A new home for "Tippy"!

I found this perfect jar at the thrift store today for 2 dollars! I cleaned it all up and it became home for Tippy. She looks pretty happy so far. I used large black rocks in the bottom for a drain off area, and a modern feel, for sure! Then I laid a peice of screen and a cut peice of coffee filter over the rocks and carefully put in the soil. Tippy was barely able to fit through the top, so it was a bit of a challenge. I think the making of something like this actually takes a bit of practice and trial and error...so next time will come out even better! I love the idea of something like this for a gift!
Julie

Clean indoor air!

An excerpt from an article by
Christine Arpe Gang
Special to The Commercial Appeal
Friday, February 1, 2008


Some of the most common, easy-to-grow and readily available houseplants have been found to be the best air cleaners.

A classic NASA study found that in 24 hours houseplants can remove up to 87 percent of indoor air toxins in a sealed environment.

Those toxins include ammonia, formaldehyde, benzene, xylene and trichloroethylene.

They are common volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) emitted by carpets, building materials, paint, cleaning products, fabrics, tobacco products and other materials in our homes.

Because fresh air exchange is reduced as homes become better insulated, indoor pollution can be a real problem, especially for people with asthma, allergies and other chronic health problems.

Dr. B. C. Wolverton, a retired NASA scientist, has distilled the agency's research into usable information in his book, "How to Grow Fresh Air: 50 Houseplants that Purify Your Home or Office," published by Penguin Books in 1996.

He is president of Wolverton Environmental Services Inc. in Picayune, Miss.

Three palms top Wolverton's list of houseplants with exceptional ability to remove chemical vapors:

The areca palm, which is sometimes called butterfly palm, is the common feathery tropical plant we see in vast quantities in the spring.

Lady palm has fan-like foliage at the end of the stems.

Bamboo palm has clusters of bamboo-like canes and fan-shaped foliage.

Others at the top of his list are rubber plant, Janet Craig dracaena, English ivy, dwarf date palm, Ficus alii (also less finicky than Ficus benjamina), Boston fern, peace lily, corn plant and florist mum.

In the next tier are dragon tree, several philodendrons, dieffenbachia, parlor palm, weeping fig (Benjamina), schefflera and wax begonia.

Flowering plants, with the exception of mums and peace lily, are a little less powerful in air-scrubbing ability, but they still have cleansing qualities.

Wolverton lists Christmas cactus, dendrobium orchid, anthurium, poinsettia, dwarf azaleas, cyclamen, bromeliads, potted tulips, moth orchids and kalanchoes. They are about half as effective as the palms at the top of the list.

It's recommended that a homeowner place 15 to 18 medium-sized plants in an-1,800 square foot house for effective VOC removal.

"A growing body of research shows cultivating plants indoors and outdoors may be the best medicine available for improving mental and physical wellbeing at any age," Wolverton writes.
Read the whole story here:
Healthy Plants