THIS IS MAY?????

This has to be the coldest May I can remember...And I have lived in Alabama for many decades. Low 70's during the day and low 50's at night? Crazy!

Yesterday I spent fertilizing all the bamboo groves. I usually do not use chemicals, but I didn't have enough of my Bunny-Worm compost to do the job this time. It sells out faster than they (my bunnies and worms) can make it! LOL! It really does the job and is so good for Mother Earth. I was saddened to use the 13-13-13, but the groves were not fertilized in February so I had to get something down. Their shooting season was very disappointing this spring.

I'm starting more Lotus seeds for containers and getting more Castor Bean plants out in the ground or large containers. I am growing the New Zealand Purple along with all my others this year and am very excited by their coloring and vigor. I think they will end up being fantastic for my hybridiation program. I have been hybridizing Ricinus for many years. Some I use cross pollinization and some I nuke the seeds with my microwave. To do this I tape seeds all over the front of my microwaves door and leave them there for about a month or more. By doing this, I get some crazy hybrids that you can find nowhere else on earth! Some experiments have produced Metallic Blue new leaves which change to lime green with red veins that are absolutely stunning. The stalk and branches were a metallic bright pink! No one could figure out what these plants were. I sold out in a heart beat once people saw pictures of the plants or saw them in my gardens.

I have also gotten some pretty strange variegations of the leaves. Blue splotches mixed in with green or red was another stunner. Each season is always a new surprise for both me and my new and loyal customers alike!

My grown son and hubby surprised me on Mothers Day with mushy cards filled with what every wife and mother loves....$$$ Db said, "Well, Miss Debbi, where do you want to go spend your loot, Lowes?" (he knows me so well!)

I am not thrilled with our Lowes store here in Prattville, AL. The buyer has no imagination and there is seldom anything new or exciting in the garden section but I did find a gallon Japanese Painted Holly Fern and a gallon Old Fashioned Holly Hock before I left so it wasn't a total waste. I also bought a light fixture for over my kitchen sink which I have wanted for awhile. Now you will think we are running a whore house since I didn't realize that the red shade would be quite as "red" as it is. LOL! Changing to a frosted bulb may help so I will try that.

Today will be spent working on the mosaic I am doing on the floor in the third bedroom before my grands get here for the summer break. I'm almost done and will be able to start the grouting soon. If I have the energy, the rest of the day will be spent working outside getting more things planted out. Later gator!