Transplanting Large succulents: Christmas Cactus

My Great Grandmother's Christmas Cactus,
ready for repotting

I have been graced to own my great grandmothers Christmas cactus.  I tell myself that it’s over 100 years old – but I have no idea of its age, only it’s provenance. As a mature succulent, it needs to be transplanted periodicaly without increasing the post size. Most cacti and succulents do best in pots that are quite small in proportion to the size of their top growth, my Christmas Cactus is no exception.  The plant grows over 8-10 inches over the soil top, and a 18 inches wider all around the container. It’s already so big and heavy – there is no need to increase the container size. If you have a smaller succulent, when you decide to repot them, move up one size larger than the one they are in. always use plenty of drainage material in the bottom of the pot.  Leaving succulents in small containers works  - they may dwarf and slow in growth.

How do I know when it’s time to repot my succulent?

Failing health - time to repot! 

I have a few general rules I use to determine when to repot my succulents. You know it's time:

When roots come out the bottom of the pot. 

When the succulent start to pup (Put off new growth at the base)

When growth slows down or plant health fails

When if flowers off cycle

When you have to water much more  frequently 

My poor Christmas Cactus was off color, not holding water, and blooming off cycle. So unhappy and screaming for a new pot and some TLC!

New Year's Resolutions - Avoiding the Epic Fail

Silver Linings - Garfield Park Conservatory, Chicago 2014

I have been pondering the "New Year's Resolution" history and success rates. Very interesting reading on history from my sites. 

New Year's Resolutions track to the Babylonians who used the new year to try to make amends for their wrongdoings of the past year or to purify themselves for the new year. These days New Year’s celebrations are elaborate parties and drinking, as well as the custom of making resolutions for a fresh start the next year.  More people make New Year's Resolutions than ever before. 

Here are the most resolutions that I've made in the past that have actually stuck! 

- Become more involved in volunteering

- Become more environmentally responsible

- Taking a trip (usually expeditions :)

It's very interesting that with all the intentions and "shoulds" not many people actually succeed. Wiki says "88% of those who set New Year resolutions fail despite the fact that 52% of the study's participants were confident of success at the beginning."  Other studies say 92% fail. Success comes when the resolution is paired with a measurable goal and when the goals are made public and involve support from others.

What's in the cards for me this year?

Stay Tuned.

Singing Christmas Carols :)

Teresa Marie

Historic Fern Room Construction Update - Chicago's Garfield Park Conservatory

The historic Fern Room at Chicago's Garfield Park Conservatory is undergoing repairs and

Historic Fern Room At Garfield Park Conservatory

renovations after the 100+ year old roof was destroyed by Hail in July 2011.  While the room was open after a temporary (plastic) roof was in place, only recently was the roof returned back to glass.
Currently (Fall 2014) the Fern room is undergoing redesign and replanting. The stone walls, originally placed by Jens Jensen, are all easily visible now as moss and liverwort have died back or been pulled away.  The new design for the Fern Room will have more cycads and a wider diversity of ferns. It will also have no philodendrons climbing up the pillars.  This will create a very different feeling!

Here is a photo of the Fern room from before the hails storm and then immediately afterwards.  The removal of the glass from all the beds took lots of time. The process of restoring this historic room at the Garfield Park Conservatory has been ongoing for years. You can see my other posts about this wonderful place and the renovations.

Container Gardening - Inspiration from Rick Bayless Garden, Chicago

Architecture: containers
adding height to the garden

In an earlier post I highlighted the urban agriculture and leisure areas in Chef Rick Bayless' farm/garden in downtown Chicago.  I was also very pleased to see all the containers used in the garden.

I've captured a few of my favorites here for your consideration and inspiration.  I use quite a few containers in my own garden and teach others on the subject. So I'm always on the look out for tips, examples, and motivation. 

One thing that I find interesting in this case is that many of the plantings seem to stay consistent over the years - as I compare photos from prior tours and blogs.  Hitting on something that works and sticking to it is not a bad thing at all! I'm still in trial and error state in many parts of my garden. 

Some interesting aspects of the use of containers:

Architectural elements along pathways and within/raised gardens. For example the raised pots in the photo just above right. We were told that the sun hits the top of the garden much more than the floor - hence the high sun items raised up to greet the day.   Another interesting use of containers was to add strong vertical structure to the porch area. These large containers create an effective screen from prying eyes looking into the house, beautiful colors, and vegetables too. The climbing vine is a spinach variety!  This photo also transitions well to my next point which is clustering more than one container together in one vignette. 

Review - Chihuly at Denver Botanic Garden

Chihuly - Blue Spiky Glass at
Denver Botanic Garden, 2014

Denver Botanic Gardens presented an outdoor exhibit artwork by celebrated American artist, Dale Chihuly.  The Glass from Chihuly's sculptures – ranging in size and form – added bold colors and dramatic beauty to the Gardens' 24-acre urban oasis.  Chihuly first exhibited glass within a garden setting at Chicago's Garfield Park Conservatory - which houses a permanent exhibit of Chihuly glass in it's Aroid House. 

The glass in Denver was on such a large scale. In some cases the glass over took the surroundings it was so overbearing, beautiful, creative, and yet at times not in sync with the surroundings.  Which is not to say that I didn't love the exhibit - I adore the Denver Botanic Gardens, I think I just had very different expectations.  There was a piece of art glass almost around every corner - so much to take in.  

Take a virtual tour, see what you think from the photos below.