This week in the garden - #84

It's another gray and drizzly day in what has been mostly a gray and drizzly week. It is definitely December weather.

We did have one day of brilliant sunshine, just to remind us that it was possible, and to lift our spirits if only for a day, but it looks as though gray days are about all we have to look forward to for the foreseeable future.

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Meanwhile, inside, the timing of my seasonal plants has been decidedly off. My "Christmas" cactus turned out to be more a between Thanksgiving and Christmas cactus. It bloomed nicely but either too early or too late for the holidays. It still has a few buds but I seriously doubt they will develop. At least not in time for the holidays.

Same goes for the three amaryllis bulbs I've been nurturing in pots in my bathroom window. Two of them are coming along nicely, but one is just beginning to show a little green. I really don't think any of them will develop sufficiently to bloom for Christmas. New Year's Day maybe. I guess I should have started them a couple of weeks earlier.

This is 'Flamenco Queen,' the first one to poke its leaves out.

This is 'Cherry Nymph' which was second but has had a growth spurt over the last couple of days. It may be my best bet for a Christmas bloom.

And then there is the laggard, 'Grand Diva.' If I'm lucky it might bloom by Valentine's Day! Of course it was a bit handicapped by the fact that the nursery cut it so high. The leaves have to make their way through about an inch-and-a-half of last year's plant before they can emerge.

It's obvious that if I want some color indoors for this holiday season, I need to make another trip to the nursery. Maybe this weekend.

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Actually, I need color for outdoors, too. There isn't that much going on in the garden right now. I did add some pansies a couple of weeks ago, and there are a few indomitables that are still blooming, but mostly the garden looks brown and gray. Gray just like the sky and my mood.