January is for Dreaming

[galmal]

Here in Tennessee, it's been so cold and rainy, bleak, barren and brown. To cheer myself up, I pulled out my garden catalogs. I've learned over the years that the best way to beat the New Year blah's is to dream. I look at all the wonderful plants and figure out how they would work in my existing garden, or even plan new ones. I pull out the graph paper and start designing. Of course, most of my garden plans never make if off the paper, but it's fun to imagine.

I read a blog from a woman in Australia and she's been talking about how well her garden is doing, she's starting to can her veggies and the pictures she posts are beautiful. And it got my wondering what it would be like to have fresh, home grown fruits and veggies for Christmas dinner or to be able to decorate your home with fresh cut flowers for New Years.

Oh well, I guess I'll just make myself a nice hot cup of tea, and sit here with my catalogs and dream a little.

 

[zigs]

Yep, it's dreary here in Dorset too, days of no sun

Been repairing the greenhouse, but it's too grey to get into it today, roll on Spring.

 

[ACSAPA]

It poured rain this morning here too.
I've been apartment hunting again, after losing my apartment, so my dreaming consisted of poring over the rental ads in the paper.

 

[zigs]

It poured rain this morning here too.
I've been apartment hunting again, after losing my apartment, so my dreaming consisted of poring over the rental ads in the paper.

That must be tough, will you not find it difficult to get another one? Usually need all sorts of paperwork over here to show you'd kept up with rent/mortgage payments and a reference from the last landlord.

 

[Pat]

I agree January is for dreaming. I hope to be in my own place in time for planting a garden for the early spring growth. Right now my indoor plants are keeping me happy. I would like to add a few but there is not enough room to house more plants.

 

[kammy]

I wish i could say the same however that is almost impossible as the weather that i experience is next to perfect other than some torrential occasional torrential downpours which means there is always lots of work to be done which leaves me with little or no time for dreaming.

 

[galmal]

I wish i could say the same however that is almost impossible as the weather that i experience is next to perfect other than some torrential occasional torrential downpours which means there is always lots of work to be done which leaves me with little or no time for dreaming.

Kammy, where do you live? I've always wanted to live somewhere with near perfect weather, but to be honest, I think I would miss the seasons. While I complain about the cold, I can't image living without a crisp, cool autumn afternoon, or waking up to heavy frost on the grass, or even the occasional snow storm. For me, perfect weather would be 10 months of 70-80 degree, sunny days with 1 month of hot weather and 1 month of winter weather.

 

[CanadianLori]

NO NO NO This is the time to start slow sprouters!

I have three seedlings up already in soil blocks that I planted christmas day.

This is the time to explore new gadgets. Lighting, heating, watering, all of that stuff.

yes, I get out graph paper too. Usually go through a fill pad of it by the beginning of march.

This is too exciting! All this extra time to source seeds and toys and plan changes and yes dream too..

 

[Bandit26]

flipping though catalogs, reading books, watching youtube videos, making shopping lists..

Bought 10 planter boxes (almost 3 feet long with trellises) on clearance in late fall. They are stacked in the garage. Picked up a new garden bench with arbor over it at 90% off.. waiting for spring to be assembled.. what do I want to grow on it... Upgrading the greenhouse to a bigger version (current one is still going strong even with a few inches of snow on it right now.. Cant wait to get some lettuce and broccoli started in there in a few months.

About a month away from starting the cool/cold weather seedlings indoors.

 

[Rosyrain]

It really is the time for dreaming. There is not much else to do when the weather is yucky. Sometimes I wished I lived somewhere where the weather was nice, but then I would miss the evergreen colors of the Pacific Northwest. It is a small price to pay I guess. I have been doing a lot of dreaming about the day I will get to own a house and have a bug garden. It will be complete with a fountain. Looking through catalogs to pass the time is a nice way to dream of beautiful gardens to come.

 

[claudine]

Dreaming is good
I spend a lot of time looking for pretty plants online. It's fun I want to buy two orchids and grow them on a window sill in my new apartment. They'll make a wonderful room decoration.

 

[kammy]

Kammy, where do you live? I've always wanted to live somewhere with near perfect weather, but to be honest, I think I would miss the seasons. While I complain about the cold, I can't image living without a crisp, cool autumn afternoon, or waking up to heavy frost on the grass, or even the occasional snow storm. For me, perfect weather would be 10 months of 70-80 degree, sunny days with 1 month of hot weather and 1 month of winter weather.

I live in Jamaica and as such i can't say i've really experienced any bad weather more than torrential rainfall in the rainy season...but other than that the weather is just fine.

 

[galmal]

Dreaming is good
I spend a lot of time looking for pretty plants online. It's fun I want to buy two orchids and grow them on a window sill in my new apartment. They'll make a wonderful room decoration.

Orchids are wonderful. My mother used to have over a dozen of them, and she kept them in a bay window. The plants themselves aren't that pretty, but they bloom for such a long time, with such vivid colors and markings. She would buy me one from time to time, but I was never very successful in keeping them alive for more than a year or so. Post a picture if you do decide to buy one, so we can enjoy it too!

 

[claudine]

Orchids are wonderful. My mother used to have over a dozen of them, and she kept them in a bay window. The plants themselves aren't that pretty, but they bloom for such a long time, with such vivid colors and markings. She would buy me one from time to time, but I was never very successful in keeping them alive for more than a year or so. Post a picture if you do decide to buy one, so we can enjoy it too!

I'll definitely post a picture of them
Are orchids hard to grow? I've never tried to do it, but I'm willing to experiment. Blooming orchids look like pieces of art, I love admiring them!

 

[Rosyrain]

I have found that orchids are very hard to keep alive, at least in my neck of the woods. I sometimes get one as a gift on Mothers Day and they do not last long despite the fact that I follow the growing instructions. I know that they love dry rocky soil and the ground is almost always moist around here.