Thursday, May 30, 2019

Those sneaky Gardenias



Those cars of my youth (50’s)

Ol' Rick described the Gardenia a couple days ago on Life 101. 
Now here in North Carolina:

My wife’s MOST favorite flower (looks and smell) is the Gardenia. Friend Glenda drove from Okeechobee to Deltonia to plant one for Sherry once. Sherry petted it but in a year did not get a bloom. When we gave the house to Mark he sent his mama a picture last week, the Gardenia had bloomed. She was tickled.

A few days ago it was time to trim the scraggly shrubs around here, so I gave them a scalping. Later we were down in the swing in our grove of trees (Our peace place) and she noticed a plant with two flowers she had not seen. She was, “WOW! That is a Gardenia, I did not know Shirl had one back here. She had one up front, she must have moved it back here.”

A day or two later I noticed a white object out front in a bush when I left to go to Lowes.


I remembered to tell Sherry on my return. I thought it might have been a piece of white paper. She looked, “It is a GARDENIA!” she yelled, and I went out. Knowing this was one of the bushes I had scalped! BUT lo and behold as I looked there were hundreds of buds about to break out, I had not cut deep enough to get them all, but I did get a few.

Here is the bush in bloom with hundreds more to come.



People like me are lucky. I had no idea this was a Gardenia bush. I have never been wise to shrubs or flowers. When I built houses to sell I simple bought 10 shrubs, mostly Azaleas, to plant at the new house. This house was no exception, Sister Shirl planted the Gardenias.



In closing, I shot that last picture after dark. Stormy D was waiting for me on the porch for a petting. I also got her some milk to celebrate the Gardenia crop!
Quick update:
 I am proud of myself. Neighbor Michelle gave us this Daisy a few weeks ago and I haven't killed it yet. (Mama said 'Son you love plants to death.') The Daisy was one of Sherry's mama's favorites.
 

Nite Shipslog

5 comments:

betty said...

Beautiful plant and how neat that Shirl planted something Sherry enjoyed so that now even with Shirl passed, she lives on!

betty

Mevely317 said...

So happy for Sherry!
My mother's favorite was the gardenia, too. She had a beautiful BIG bush in the back that always seemed to bloom (presto, overnight) around her April birthday. Hers were big wide milky blossoms, but these at our house here are more petite. I really didn't think they were gardenias until I was walking by and caught the scent. (Ya, I know next to NOTHING about plants.)

Chatty Crone said...

Shirl gave you a God wink today - to remember her.

I'm mostly known as 'MA' said...

What a happy post today! Flower do make us smile for sure. I love gardenias, but here it is too cold in the winter for them to winter over when planted outside. When I retired my employers gave me a beautiful gardenia bush with flowers on it. I kept it in the planter it came in and put it on the patio until fall and then took it inside, sadly it did not make it. So glad you found the gardenias on your property there to enjoy. Seems to me that your thumb is getting greener these days. Everything looks to be doing well.

Dar said...

In less than a week, your Gardenia burst into a bridal bouquet for your bride.
I love the scent of Gardenias too but like 'MA' we are too far north for the survival of one. Your Poinsettia on the porch is also doing wonderful, as well as the daisy that looks like a Gazinia. You have a green thumb afterall, or Shirl did. :)
love n' hugs from up north where there's been a haze over the sun the past few days due to the Canadian fires. It's eerie out there. Have a great weekend.