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| I overheard my gardenias this morning, saying they were dreading the weather I like to play in, and thinking of hoofing it to the deep south this time around..
I guess they saw this pic yesterday while showing my friends surrounded by them...Do they have eyes too?
Traiters they are,after all I do for them! |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by consentida 5 Montreal (My Page) on Fri, Jul 17, 09 at 0:10
| Hahahahahah!!! Hi Mike. Reading your posts in different forums, I realize that you also struggle with gardenias, like me, and you are quite a pro with clivias, while I'm just a beginner hoping to learn from members like you. This evening , though, I just want you to know that after a stressful day at the office, it feels good to be able to read your post, see the picture and laugh hard before going to bed. Good night and thank you! Consentida. |
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- Posted by hopefulauthor z5IL (My Page) on Fri, Jul 17, 09 at 18:30
| Mike, although the scene is beautiful, I'd appreciate it more in Dec-Feb..lol Temps here have dropped considerably. I am SO depressed. A few mins ago we had another downpour. Rain rain rain. Winds have picked up again. Been outside 3 times today, picking up plants. One flew out of the pot, the pot broke! It's also sunless.. Our poor Gardenias..they're waiting for sun, warmth and humidity..where is it? If 2009's summer over? In July? Toni |
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- Posted by meyermike_1micha 5 (My Page) on Mon, Jul 20, 09 at 16:23
| Lol.. Well I am glad I was able to make someones day... Now I need to find a way to keep my gardenias happy!! I hear ya on the weather..STINKS!!!!!! I did loose one plumies..It tooks it toll. I hate this summer..Then fall before we know it!! I have been depressed too...ouch Consetida, keep laughing, becuase you havn't even seen how vicious our denias can be to us once October rolls around..This place will be hoping with us trying to look for help on how not to murder our plants!! Take care all, Mike |
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- Posted by hopefulauthor z5IL (My Page) on Wed, Jul 22, 09 at 13:29
| Mike, I had no idea the guy in the pic was you..you're a very good-looking guy.. You sprained your wrist? Ouch..When was this pic taken? Mike, please do me a favor..before bringing your plants indoors come autumn, please spray them..promise me..okay? |
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- Posted by meyermike_1micha 5 (My Page) on Wed, Jul 22, 09 at 14:45
| Hi toni!! Yes it is me, and thanks for the compliment..lol. I rather think it was a terrible picture...lol My wrist healed fast with having message therapists, chiropractors and workout buff friends to help me get better..LOL...They know nothing of plants though, except my buddy from Mexico.. I PROMISE..I will spray... Do me a favor..k Hey toni.....Do you miss merciepoo? I SURE DO!!! I also miss Rick, and many others. God, I hope they are all doing ok... Much love, Mike:-) |
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- Posted by consentida 5 Montreal (My Page) on Wed, Jul 22, 09 at 22:57
| Hi Mike, I laugh because your picture reminded me of the irony of the situation. Here we are, waiting anxiously for summer to let us forget the long white winter left behind and what do we get? rain, rain and more rain all month of June and July. I preferrred to laugh then to cry because the weather is really depressing. Oh!I do not have to wait until october to see how vicious my gardenia is to me. This lady is vicious NOW. I bought it in April and to this day I have not have the priviledge of having a single bud to open for me. I guess that I'm not doing everything that I should be doing, I'm still learning and I refuse to give up, so even if the two of us struggle with one another I will keep on trying to please her and hopefully she will reward me with a few flowers, perhaps?. I HOPE SO! Toni, would it be too much to ask where to find your insecticide recipe? Did you post it in another forum? I'm relatively new in GW and have not come accross it. I will treat my plants and follow the advice you are giving to Mike before I bring them indoors in the fall. Thanks! Consentida |
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- Posted by meyermike_1micha 5 (My Page) on Thu, Jul 23, 09 at 10:47
| Hey consentida, Do you suppose your gardenia might be a male and is so insulted you are calling it a she, that it is not going to be nice to you? hahahahaha You too funny too.....I hate this summer too..It is only 68 degrees today and 60's tommorrow. Rain rain, rain, and mold, slugs, mosss, weeds, and anything but the growth of my plants properly.. But my container plants although smaller than usual, are so GREEN!!! Lol. Like Ireland. Mike..:-) |
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- Posted by consentida 5 Montreal (My Page) on Sun, Jul 26, 09 at 10:58
| Hi Mike! Oops! you may be right! My gardenia could be nasty to me because I have the gender all wrong! You see, in my native language, Gardenia is a "she", but who knows what happens in the plant world? Gardenias are acid loving plants, Right? I have mine in mixed soil composed of peat moss, compost and good soil. I water it solely with rain water (of which we have plenty) I do not let the soil completely dry out. It gets sun in the morning and later on in the afternoon; total about 3 hours. I fertilize it with coffee tea every 2 weeks.( I haven't been able to find Miracid in my area). At the moment the plant has two buds, but they are like that for the last 3 weeks and they do not open. What am I doing wrong? Is there another acid fertilizer that I could use? anything , at all that I could do to get it t o bloom? I have checked for insects and the plants seems healthy otherwise. What is it?Please help!! Europe is going through a heat wave, no rain and we here in the east are short of having a deluge. Every plant is nice and green but my tomatoes are waiting for some sun to ripen. My geraniums are reeling from so much water. I lost two pelargoniums and who knows what else I will lose! Mike thanks for the offer to come to the rescue with the insecticide recipe. My plants will apreciate and so will I! |
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- Posted by meyermike_1micha 5 (My Page) on Mon, Jul 27, 09 at 14:42
| Ok...I am here.. To me, it is a myth that that they need miracid. What I use on mine is foiliage pro. Epsom Salts, and Iron are a help, but I havn't had to use them this year. How much sun does your plant get? Does it get morning and late in the day sun? Here is a very most important thing. Because of your area, not the hot tropical and sunny area,your plants vitality and performance is abosolutely depenadant on the soiless mix you use from growing leaves to flowering. Please, take a gander to the other side, the container forum, and see what even yellowthumb says about denias. You will do well, and can ask as many questions to us as you need be. I forgot the rest you asked, because when I went to refresh my page, i lost the thread, except what I am writing.. Mike |
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- Posted by meyermike_1micha 5 (My Page) on Mon, Jul 27, 09 at 14:45
| So sorry, what I meant to ask was, can you give it more than 3 hours of sun? The late in the day and early morining kind? The less sun, the less of chance of blossom opening. |
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- Posted by yellowthumb 5a Ontario (My Page) on Mon, Jul 27, 09 at 14:54
| Mike is right on the sun. You weather is exactly like mine. Our full sun is far less powerful than Florida's. That's why we can never grow apples and pears as sweet as our south neighbour's. Nothing you can do about it. Although we indeed has lots of UV. I normally give my denia all day sun except from 12:00 to 3pm. Or full day if I forget to bring them in the shade. If they have healthy roots, they love the sun and the heat. Remember, more sun, more water usage, more frequent to water, more air to the roots and most importantly more sugar produced. Bigger plants and more flowers. Once you get all the environment factors right, fertilizer is not as important as you think. Your container mix is the most important factor and your current mix is a NO NO in Montreal area. Your only chance is to use extreme fast draining mix like gritty mix. |
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- Posted by meyermike_1micha 5 (My Page) on Mon, Jul 27, 09 at 15:31
| Right on yellowthumb!!:-) |
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- Posted by consentida 5 Montreal (My Page) on Mon, Jul 27, 09 at 23:17
| Well... No wonder my gardenia is rebelling . I don't know the very basics! I will place it in full sun except between 12:00 - 3:00 pm and I will transfer it to the gritty mix ( Hopefully I"ll find the ingredients without too much trouble). What is the best season or time to switch to the gritty mix? Yellowthumb and Mike, my most sincere thanks for your advice so graciously given. I will keep you posted of my progress. I believe that I have my work cut out for my upcoming vacation: I will print and take along with me the great Encycopedia that is found in the container forum. There is so much reading material that I need some extra time to go through it all, but it will be worth it. P.S. It is really a great experience to go through the posts. People are helpful, they are funny and most of all very generous with their talents and time. A BIG THANKS! |
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- Posted by yellowthumb 5a Ontario (My Page) on Mon, Jul 27, 09 at 23:35
| The ideal best season would be the spring. But I doubt your denia is able to see the coming spring. So now is the best time to repot, since we have a cool and wet summer, it's ideal for plant to recover from the transplant stress. |
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- Posted by meyermike_1micha 5 (My Page) on Tue, Jul 28, 09 at 11:22
| AW, you are welcome! Yellowthumb has hit it right on again.... |
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- Posted by consentida 5 Montreal (My Page) on Tue, Jul 28, 09 at 12:19
| Ok, I'll try to do the transplanting right away. Hopefully this poor gardenia will survive. If it doesn't, at least I will know what to do the next time around. Thanks! I can't believe that we have in Montreal 2 consecutive days of sunny weather . Yahoo! |
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