The Good, Bad, and Downright Ugly

It's Thursday, folks! Can you believe it? Even though I couldn't be more relieved that tomorrow is the last day of the work week I'm still blown away that it all happened so fast. Every week engages me in a "shock and awe." By Friday night I'm sitting on the couch like a zombie, the previous days having blown my week to bits, leaving me sitting there with cookie crumbs on my chest, staring at the wall saying "what in the heck happened this week?"

Usually I try to spend time in my garden after getting home each day. This slows me down, helps me relax and brings my blood pressure to a managable level before I go into the kitchen to cook dinner. If I don't relax I make a mess, burn stuff, and snap at my husband. It's awful really.

This week I've had no time to be out there. John has been watering them all week, but yesterday I had just enough time before heading out of the house again to give things a quick water and snap these shots. Guys, my garden is looking good in a lot of ways, and like utter crap in others. Let's celebrate the good first....


Gerbera Daisies


Aren't they pretty? These grow without me having to do anything at all. I water them, sometimes sing them a song and leave it at that. They definitely aren't florist quality, but I like their imperfections and the little family of them that has sprouted up. They are so cute because, opposite of sunflowers, they bow down to the sun when it gets to hot. I used to think they were wilting, but they are sturdy as can be. They just turn their little heads down to protect their faces from sunburn. :)


Orchid

 My orchid is also doing well. All the buds have opened up and they are quite happy anywhere I put them. It's so much fun to watch the buds open up. As soon as one starts to break open you are guaranteed a new flower by the end of the day. I wish I had a little video camera set up to see it all happen. This plant is one of my favorites, and I love how long each flower is lasting. Thanks for the awesome plant, Mom!

Now, let's talk about the runts of the litter. The ones that are really getting my goat. The orchid above looks perfectly healthy, does it not? Well, let's take a closer look...

Ahh! An unhealthy leaf! I don't even know what this means. I have my suspicion on John, who while trying to do good in watering them allowed the water to go into the leaves. I mean, he had no way of knowing that doing so could result in rot. Bless his little cotton socks. What do you guys think? Are there any orchid experts out there? Is the plant rotting, or is it just getting too much sun?



Yucky-looking bibb lettuce


Here's my other "bad apple." It is really my fault. We had a week of awful storms here in Florida last week. We saw winds coming in at 70 mph. That's almost hurricane force! I pulled them under the hangover, but neglected to bring them inside where they would be completely unbothered by the wind. All the leaves are soggy and droopy, even after a week in the sun. I'm not sure there is any salvaging it. What do you think? I'm so bummed because it was just about ready for eating.


I like to garden, but how do you cool down after a long day?