I learned much of what I know about gardening and plants from my Mother-in-law. She passed away in 2008. But for the last five years of her life she lived with us.
When she moved in with us, she brought many plants from her yard in North Carolina. So many that I was a little overwhelmed with what to do with them.
But I learned to love and appreciate them. And she told me how to care for them.
She didn’t always know the proper name of a plant, or what to call some of them. Hers was a life where growing up on a farm meant that she had to quit school early to come home and cook for the family.
In one sense, I think that a sign that the Lord was taking her home was the fact that the iris she brought never bloomed until the May she left us. These days, they’re a precious reminder.
But there’s one plant that baffles me. She brought it, but she didn’t know what it was, or what to call it. All she knew was that her Mother-in-law (with whom she lived when first married) had this plant and for that reason it was special.
It’s pictured here. Whatever it is, it remains healthy and comes back year after year. Sometimes there are little white blooms.
There’s about a million varieties (well — closer to 400) that come in just about every shape, color, and size. They all have about three qualities: they are easy to grow, they are colorful, and they are almost impossible to kill accidentally… as in, you gotta go in and kill the damn things with Roundup or rip ’em out to kill ’em.
Great plants to share too… you can pick on of the stems, set it in water, and it’ll sprout roots. Then you transplant and tada! — new sedum plant! Probably one of my favorite flowers (next to the columbine, and those are hard to grow but awesome when they come up).
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In one sense, I think that a sign that the Lord was taking her home was the fact that the iris she brought never bloomed until the May she left us. These days, they’re a precious reminder.
2 comments
Sedum.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedum
There’s about a million varieties (well — closer to 400) that come in just about every shape, color, and size. They all have about three qualities: they are easy to grow, they are colorful, and they are almost impossible to kill accidentally… as in, you gotta go in and kill the damn things with Roundup or rip ’em out to kill ’em.
Great plants to share too… you can pick on of the stems, set it in water, and it’ll sprout roots. Then you transplant and tada! — new sedum plant! Probably one of my favorite flowers (next to the columbine, and those are hard to grow but awesome when they come up).
Author
Thanks. She also brought some sedum that’s more of a ground cover. I didn’t realize there were so many varieties.