Well, the poinsettias are just about ready to go now. Last week we sold 45 which is good because it freed up a lot more room for those plants still in the greenhouse. Although I have not lost a plant yet, many of my plants lost several leaves because they had become to large and were starting to crowd each other. I had been checking them, and not noticed anything the week before, but since all of last week I was home sick, I did not have a chance to monitor them.

Sick today. Stayed home. not fun

Well I was really bummed, but since Tamar took the time to compose a new limerick on my blog, I will repost mine, minimally edited so as to reach a fair compromise with the language police here at blogspot.

It was in response to the lesson Peter gave us regarding the Roman farmer who was commissioned by the Emperor Tiberius to grow cucumbers for him all year round. The process was as simple as it was definitively Roman. The farmer dug a pit, filled it with excrement, planted his seeds and covered it with mica, which kept everything out except for the sunlight. Given my personal perspectives regarding the Romans, I found this so amusing that my laughter must have caught the ear of either Erato, Polyhymnia or Thalia. Whichever Greek muse condescended to grace me with the spark of inspiration, apparently I warranted no further attention than a quick grope, as my flash of creativity was limited to a simple, five-line limerick which I now humbly submit to you, my friends, classmates, colleagues and instructors:

There once was a bright Roman git
Who once dug a deep Roman pit
For the Emperor's hunger
He would grow cucumbers
But started by shovelling..........uncomposted animal solid waste!!!

Oh, and my poinsettias are starting to colour up nice

Well it appears that one of my posts is missing. Of all the posts to vanish, why did it have to be the one with the limmerick?
I'm really bummed. Is this censorship?
Not much new. There is snow on the ground so I guess the raspberries are ok for the winter.

Well it has finally started. My poinsettias are actually turning the colour for which they were named. The creamy yellow has been replaced with a still somewhat muted red.

The rest of the class has matured much more quickly (doesn't that sound familiar!), but Peter thinks that that means that when mine do turn they will look spectacular. I remember my mom giving me a similar speech once during my middle teens...
Anyways, this has brought up an issue that a greenhouse manager may face. Left as is, the more mature ones will continue to do so and may flower out too early. If they lower the temperature, then mine might not mature at all. The obvious answer would be to move the more advanced plants to another greenhouse, but which one? It is these practical, logistical quandries that terrify me. Anyhow, here is how the rest of the class's plants look:


Here are the reds...





...and the whites...


...and finally the pinks.

Nothing new learned today on account of Peter's illness. However, I did notice that the lilies are just starting to break colour. Also, my poinsettias, which are a late bloomer, after having begun by turning a creamy yellow-white, have now begun to assume the red colour for which this cultivar was named.

It's November and my flowers are coming along nicely. My pot mums are filling in well, as seen on the left. It really is amazing how much they filled out with just one pinch. I wonder if I will even have to do another.

Also, my poinsettias are starting to colour up!! It is hard to see in the photo below but the bracts are turning yellow. As awesome as my Precious (ie my iPhone) is, it cannot take perfect photos.

Well, I managed to do the VectoBac spray yesterday. I got suited up with the gas mask aparatus, and hosed down all the vegetables with a drench. It was hot, and not very exciting, but it was good experience. Thanks Peter

This morning I found a white powdery substance on my cut mums. After dispelling my initial thoughts of a plant party (When flowers go WILD!), my next suspicion was powdery mildew. Fortunately, Peter discovered that is was merely the residue of a pesticide spray. Had it been powdery mildew it would not have been so widespread. Infections tend to have a single point of origin, Peter told me, they don't start spread out across a number of different plants and cultivars.

Yesterday we put up the aluminum greenhouse. I learned many things. I learned the value of preparation, of clear instructions and delegation of duties. I also learned that it really is faster to take the thing down than to put up, unless you don't use washers.

Well, we pinched the pot mums last week and I can already see some lateral growth. This is a new sensation for me! Throughout my academic career, I was always studying events after the fact. The student of history and mythologist is more observer than actor, chroniclers of those that were responsible for great events. Here, now, I am the beginning of the process. I am the process. I act, and there is a visible response to my actions.

Today we continued to pot the new stock: snapdragons and cinerareas. They have not been assigned yet, so I don't know which ones I need to care for, but I am looking forward to it now! My interest in our projects, even if they are flowers, is starting to build steam. Seeing the results in my lilies, my mums and my poinsettias makes all the difference. This is the practical stuff I came here for in the first place!

Nothing new to report on my plants, they are all growing happily now. This itself is worthy of discussion in the context of how much trouble my classmates seem to be having with Pythium. Many poinsettias had to be removed but none of mine have developed any symptoms. However, this does not mean that the pathogen is not on my plants. The fungicide that was sprayed in the greenhouse may prevent it from spreading to my plants.

Peter postulated as to how the outbreak started, and his hypothesis is that spores on the floor came into contact with the hose when it was left on the floor. The water that was allowed to pool on the floor would have helped maintain not only the fungus itself, but also the algae that feeds its vector: fungus gnats.

I also forgot to mention yesterday that we planted snapdragons, but none have been assigned yet to students. Soon I will be reporting on that too.

The wire mesh is up above our curt mums now. This should stabilize them when their stalks get longer, but for now my Vyrons have yet to touch the metal. That's Zack's leg in the back.

Well, today I learned another good reason why you need to check on your plants constantly. You never know when they might get a spurt of growth and get too big for their britches, so to speak. Today I checked the Vyron and found that it had grown taller that the nametag! This is by no means a problem now, but looking ahead, and perhaps with other plants that need more space or in areas where disease transmission is a bigger issue, it can leads to further troubles later. Constant vigilance.

Thanksgiving weekend has given me something else to be thankful for. I am so happy to report that the Adele mums have recovered! Many were lost just after the transplant, and they remained wilted and sick-looking, until now! Just because there are setbacks, don't give up! Plants are more resilient than they

seem.

Well, as is plainly visible, the Vyron has grown so high that it has hidden the tag with my name on it! I must be doing something right, or more likely Vyron is just more hardy and idiot-proof than the Adele.

As for my lilies, they are starting to all sprout, some with more than one head coming up! However, I have noticed that some look different from the others. I don't know if this is a normal variation, or if a lily of another type was mixed in with mine.

Fertilizer on the Points

Recently I learned that if you aren't careful with the hose, and you spray fertilizer on the leaves instead of on the media where it is needed, you end up with a residue on the epidermis. I heard that the fertilizer should only be applied every other watering, to avoid burning the roots. From now on I will be more precise when applying fertilizer, and on the off waterings I will make sure that the leaves are sprayed down and any residues washed off if needed.

A New Project

I forgot to post yesterday, so today I offer a couple of entries. For yesterday, I was pleased and honoured when Peter asked me to take care of the raspberry bushes just outside the greenhouse. I have weeded them and removed a lot of dead material in addition to watering each pot, and I will continue to do what I can. As anyone can see, they are not in the best shape.


What did I learn? Pulling a thistle out of a raspberry patch is VERY tricky. I'm thinking of assembling a Lab Kit with gloves and other such items I might need.

Today I checked on my lilies and was surprised and pleased to see that they had sprouted! I am shocked at how fast that has taken place. I honestly had no idea how quickly bulbs can sprout up, far more quickly than seeds. They require more attention early.

Well, my Adelle pot mums are holding steady. Some have died, some have pulled through, and with frequent watering and some TLC the survivors should make it. Peter said that this batch of shoots was no good, and I've heard of other students whose crops have fared even worse!
Now that I've spaced out my pots and have started to check them twice per day, I hope to see some improvement.







The Vyron cut mums are doing very well. No signs of wilting or deficiency, and over half of the plants have grown taller than the crates they were planted in! I have certainly gained a valuable lesson in the selection of varieties: I need to avoid the frailer crops and stick to the stuff that can survive my inexperience!

My Vyron cut mums are doing well. Noticible in the photos included is pronounced growth in the two weeks since they were planted. Despite a minor setback due to unnoticed incomplete watering on my part, they are all robust and growing.

Seen to the left are my Vyrons just after planting. Below is the photo taken today. The growth seems healthy all around. It was a simple oversight, but this is an early milestone: I identified a problem with my crop, I correctly diagnosed the cause of the issue, and I took the appropriate steps. Now both the above boxes, viewed from opposite angles, are all of equal stature.

Today I planted twenty lily bulbs in a big milk crate. It felt counterintuitive to plant anything so deep, but that's the way it is with bulbs. At Peter's suggestion I will begin taking daily notes of observations not limited to what gets included here. There has been little change with the mums and virtually none with the poinsettias, but that will not last long. I anticipate it will be some time before I have anything new to report about these lilies.

Today I was the alternate waterer for the class, which meant that I did the watering for everyone else who didn't show up. I noticed that some of the plants in each student's group of poinsettias had dried out completely, while others were still a little moist. After the weekend watering is critical, but I think so is Friday. Perhaps all my plants should get a good dose of water, whether they need it or not, to ensure that they have adequate reserves to cover the weekend.

Spot watering requires constant monitoring. Several of the pots that I deemed still wet yesterday were bone dry today. I had no idea that a plant could dry out so quickly.

I am amazed at how fast my little plants bounced back. They were wilting yesterday and after one proper watering they have filled out and it looks as if there was never a problem.

Nothing much to report today. I went to check on my mums and noticed that one row was dry and starting to wilt. I deduced that while watering the side of the container was shielding it from the spray, and therefore was not getting sufficient moisture. Therefore, I will have to modify my watering methods to ensure that each plant gets all the water it needs.

Well, I'm not off to such a great start: my second post comes in a week after my first. Well, I have started my three crops, and so far I am enjoying taking care of them. I had to start spot watering: I must check each and every plant each day to see if they need water.

In my last post I mentioned that I have some photos from England. These are still forthcoming since I may not have the cord I need to transfer them onto my computer. In the meantime, I have two photos of my mums. To the left are my pot mums 'Adele' and to the right are my cut mums 'Vyron'.

It Begins!!

Well, here it is, my second blog while studying at Olds College. I really enjoyed my Summer of Trees, so I do look forward to my Autumn, even though I have had little interest in flowers. However, I embark on this new journey with and open mind. I took some photos of flowers and other plants while in England last week for my cousin's wedding. My next post will include some of them, once I can locate them!