Magic in the Garden!

        Sometimes my "making" involves observing that which needs nurturing, watering, transplanting.  That's what today's post is about.

        I love gardening because it is full of magic.  I don't mean Harry Potter cast-a-spell magic.  Rather, magic that is the delightful surprises that come because, as Dr. Ian Malcolm said in the 1993 movie Jurassic Park, "life, um, finds a way".  As when plants revive in spite of extreme heat and dryness, in spite of freezes, in spite of neglect.  Yes it often does.  This morning brought several magical surprises.  The fact that I have to sit down every minute or so to relieve the pain in my back is a gift, because it forces me to be still and simply be.  Observe.  Look, listen, feel, smell.

Common Paper Wasp

        A large sturdy wasp hovered, then landed on our half-a-century-old rocker.  Along the edge of the slats it landed on, the wood was very pale - as if someone had taken a plane and scraped off a few inches.  This mystified me until the wasp grasped the corner edge of the slat with its jaws, and worked them a bit.  Wow.  It was chewing on the wood.  And apparently had been doing so for quite a while.  I never knew that there are species of wasps that eat wood!

Cope's Gray Tree Frog

        As I was watering, something pale jumped away from the small watering can.  I sat and gazed in the direction of the movement, and there was a new-to-me species of frog, sitting, watching me back.  The lovely creature is a Cope's Gray Tree Frog (Hyla chrysoscelis)  To hear its song, go to https://srelherp.uga.edu/anurans/sounds/hylchr.mp3 .

Jade Plant

        Our jade plant, a gift from a dear friend, is sprouting tiny leaves all over.  Even the leaves that have fallen off are producing rootlets.  Propagation is one of my favorite garden activities - especially when the plant itself gets a head start producing "volunteers".

Pothos

        Early last year my attempt to propagate a beautiful Pothos failed; more often than not, such failures occur because I forget to water the plants.  Out of sight, out of mind.  The Tradescantia I planted in the same pot thrived, but every one of the five or six pothos cuttings dried up.  This morning, right in the middle of the soil in that pot, these two brilliant green leaves screamed "I'm ALIVE!"  My heart nearly burst with joy.  I had not seen this particular color of Pothos in over a year!

Dragon Fruit???

        We will see.  The leaves are sending roots, desperate for more nutrients.  Notice the Southern Anole resting a few inches away?

Split-Leaf Philodendron

        The plant pictured below is sending roots up the inside of its pot... this is a severely pot-bound split-leaf philodendron that has managed to both survive a move and being stuck in its too-small pot for far too long - and now it's seeking new ground to obtain nutrients and water.

        The fact that, yes, life will find a way, is magic to me.  It doesn't matter that I could give lectures on aerial roots and phototropism, on dormancy and propagation and plant anatomy and composting and shade gardening in the South. What I've learned, so far, is but a drop in  the ocean of botanical and horticultural knowledge.  For me, the joy comes in discovery and learning.  JOY JOY JOY!!!

July 21, 2022, Thursday