Saturday, March 1, 2008

The happiest day of the year!

We live in a very northern part of a southern state. We are so northern that most of the state doesn't want to claim us. They call us "pretend southerners."

Anyhow, in spite of this, my husband likes to grow things.

And he's good at it.

He especially likes to grow tropical things. It kind of helps him to pretend that he lives in Hawaii instead of smack dippity-do-dab in the middle of the continental US of A. (Actually, we probably aren't "smack" in the middle. I have forgotten all of my geography and am to lazy to look up a map.)

Regardless, there are 70 (yes, I counted) tropical plants that grow around my house in the summer. There are a variety of orchids, palm trees, banana trees, plumeria and citrus trees. (And other species as well that I cannot recall.) They look absolutely beautiful in the summer. Transforms the deck into some kind of tropical oasis. Makes the front of the house look positively balmy.

However, just as day turns to night, winter follows summer. (No, I didn't forget about fall.) And tropical plants do not like winter in northern parts of southern states.

So all 70 plants come inside. My house. (Except for 6 plumeria trees that are still small enough to be transported by truck to my mother-in-laws shower.) Of the 63 remaining plants, 7 are plumeria trees (one over 6 feet) and 3 are citrus trees. (two lemons and an orange.)

Now, I don't particularly mourn when the plants come inside. The orchids bloom all year long and it's nice to have fragrant flowers blooming in the dead of winter (and the plumeria have bloomed this winter too.)

But I do rejoice when they all go back outside. Hence the celebration of the happiest day of the year. (I always do a little happy dance at work when this day comes. Everyone who works there knows what it means. )

No more navigating around giant pots. No more keeping kitty out of the dirt. No more doggies burying treats in the big pots of dirt. No more frogs in the house. (One year we brought "trevor the giant frog" in unknowingly. Trevor lived in the pot for months before we noticed. Or rather, the cat noticed. Trevor went back outside.)

So, all this to say, regardless of the fact that some silly weatherman is threatening me with an "up to 20 inch" snowfall next week, it's March! Which means the happiest day of the year is just right around the corner!

2 comments:

annette said...

Oh I love plumeria. I didn't know it was tropical. I let mine almost die each winter lose all its leaves and come back each spring. It has buds and new leaves as we speak.
I can relate to Trevor. We once brought the plants in for an expected freeze, and I heard a scream coming from the bathroom and quite an assortment of Spanish words spewing from our housekeeper's mouth. Unbeknownst to us we had brought in a little grass snake that had wandered into the bathroom where it was cozy. I was never more thankful Mike was still home.

LOVE, MERCY AND GRACE...GOD'S GRACE said...

I am absolutely terrible with any kind of plants!! I so admire you!!