Random updates, orchids, books, corsets, etc
wow... Spring already?
well i am having the usual symptoms. a deep desire to plant things, and a tendency to do indoor gardening until it actually warms up out there.... might explain the sudden influx of orchids in the house.....
The book "miniature Orchids" by Steven A Frownie is great. i would like more detail on a few spots, but it covers Orchids from under 3 inches adult size, up to about 10 inches. Since i have limited space i am trying to keep to smaller plants. The Orchids that grow maybe to 2 inches tall, or where they say you really need a magnifier to see the flowers are so cute, i am thinking about re doing my "fairy garden" theme in a terrarium.
i got some nice mini orchids from Sentinal Orchids including one where the cork bark it is mounted on is only two inches or so tall. and the orchid is about as big as a quarter! (no, the whole plant, not the flower)
i am re doing the room my Macaw lives in for more lights, and putting some grid wall in to hang the mounted orchids. (the Bird room is the one room we keep the door closed so the cats dont go in. my cats seem to like to eat plants....) i followed the idea in Orchids for Dummies (yes its the same Steven A Frownie, author) and bought what they call "egg crate louver" or plastic grid meant for drop ceilings, and have cut it down to fit into plant trays. so i dont have to worry about how to keep the plant pots above the water, while still keeping water in the trays for humidity. Blake (the macaw) seems happier with the humidity up too. so its a win-win situation.
and my 'rescue genes" (you know , the reason we have seven cats and a dog) kicked in. there were two Cymbidium Orchids at Home Depot, one of them literally fell out of its pot entirely on me. so i brought it home and re potted it. i decided to do something a bit silly with it, and potted it in a glass "vase" (cube) where i could see the roots. i will have to be careful about watering, but still. it lets me watch for new root growth.
i am up to TEN caught books on bookcrossing, ten!
(if you want a link directly to my little home on the bookcrossing web page it is HERE.)
currently reading (re reading) The Hot Zone and Demon in the Freezer, two of my favorite bio books. i have a shelf of books that makes me look quite morbid, i suspect; all about the flu epidemics, the yellow fever outbreak, smallpox, plague, bioweapons, and various Lassa/ebola.etc fevers.... right next to my books on Orchids and my books on religious studies.
Its Easter already, i never did get that Pysanki (Ukrainian easter eggs) project done. i know how to do the beeswax and dye stuff, but i kept "meaning to order supplies" so i could give Pysanki to folks for Easter. ah well, next year.
Sir Arthur C Clarke has left the planet. Godspeed and good travels. One of the real visionaries of hard science and space.
well i am having the usual symptoms. a deep desire to plant things, and a tendency to do indoor gardening until it actually warms up out there.... might explain the sudden influx of orchids in the house.....
The book "miniature Orchids" by Steven A Frownie is great. i would like more detail on a few spots, but it covers Orchids from under 3 inches adult size, up to about 10 inches. Since i have limited space i am trying to keep to smaller plants. The Orchids that grow maybe to 2 inches tall, or where they say you really need a magnifier to see the flowers are so cute, i am thinking about re doing my "fairy garden" theme in a terrarium.
i got some nice mini orchids from Sentinal Orchids including one where the cork bark it is mounted on is only two inches or so tall. and the orchid is about as big as a quarter! (no, the whole plant, not the flower)
i am re doing the room my Macaw lives in for more lights, and putting some grid wall in to hang the mounted orchids. (the Bird room is the one room we keep the door closed so the cats dont go in. my cats seem to like to eat plants....) i followed the idea in Orchids for Dummies (yes its the same Steven A Frownie, author) and bought what they call "egg crate louver" or plastic grid meant for drop ceilings, and have cut it down to fit into plant trays. so i dont have to worry about how to keep the plant pots above the water, while still keeping water in the trays for humidity. Blake (the macaw) seems happier with the humidity up too. so its a win-win situation.
and my 'rescue genes" (you know , the reason we have seven cats and a dog) kicked in. there were two Cymbidium Orchids at Home Depot, one of them literally fell out of its pot entirely on me. so i brought it home and re potted it. i decided to do something a bit silly with it, and potted it in a glass "vase" (cube) where i could see the roots. i will have to be careful about watering, but still. it lets me watch for new root growth.
i am up to TEN caught books on bookcrossing, ten!
(if you want a link directly to my little home on the bookcrossing web page it is HERE.)
currently reading (re reading) The Hot Zone and Demon in the Freezer, two of my favorite bio books. i have a shelf of books that makes me look quite morbid, i suspect; all about the flu epidemics, the yellow fever outbreak, smallpox, plague, bioweapons, and various Lassa/ebola.etc fevers.... right next to my books on Orchids and my books on religious studies.
Its Easter already, i never did get that Pysanki (Ukrainian easter eggs) project done. i know how to do the beeswax and dye stuff, but i kept "meaning to order supplies" so i could give Pysanki to folks for Easter. ah well, next year.
Sir Arthur C Clarke has left the planet. Godspeed and good travels. One of the real visionaries of hard science and space.