Gardening Virus 2015 – Surviving Plant Seed Acquisition Syndrome (P.S.A.S.)

Ever since the poinsettias overstayed their Christmas welcome and were hustled out the door I have been feeling not quite right. Upon deep reflection I realize it’s not guilt, I just seem to be suffering from Plant Seed Acquisition Syndrome (P.S.A.S.). Luckily enough (or unluckily enough judging by the occasional look on my husband’s face) I happen to work at Little Mountain Greenhouses where I can easily get my daily plant/seed fix and make myself feel better. Some say it’s like the drug addict working in the pharmacy but I prefer to think of it as type of horticultural/shopping therapy. I just have to keep in mind that although my imagination and love of plants is unlimited, it is only the middle of January and my townhouse and cash ARE limited.
So as a part of this week’s Plant Seed Acquisition Syndrome (P.S.A.S.) treatment I bought a 6″  White Kalanchoe for my living room.

Flowering houseplants are an all natural anti-depressant and play an important part in Horticultural Therapy. Kalanchoe plants come in a variety of colors, bloom for weeks and make a great inexpensive gift. This one was found on a discount table with a $5 price tag and rumor has it that having a Kalanchoe will help to relieve the symptoms of Plant Seed Acquisition Syndrome! (P.S.A.S.).

To help out with additional symptoms of Plant Seed Acquisition Syndrome (P.S.A.S.), I sometimes hang out in the primula greenhouse at work. So far I have been able to resist buying any primulas even though they are on sale – 7 plants for $9.99. Although to be honest I don’t know how much longer I can hold out!

It’s only January here in the Pacific North West, but at Little Mountain Greenhouses it’s looking a lot like Spring!

As for the seeds…..well let’s just say that it’s too early to be choosing what I’m going to be growing yet because there are still several companies that have seeds on route to the store.

McKenzie Seed is just one of many seed companies that Little Mountain Greenhouses carries.

Also I’m thinking that maybe before buying any new seeds I should gather all the packets left over from last year that have been stashed around the house, in the freezer and various junk drawers. I can’t remember what kind of seeds or how many seed packets I have left but I do seem to remember some paper bags of vegetable seeds in the garage that I harvested from my community garden plot. I will need to retrieve them before my husband throws them out! It should be an impressive amount of seed once gathered up…… especially for someone who lives in a townhouse. It’s a fact, every spring I suffer from Plant Seed Acquisition Syndrome (P.S.A.S.) and I know I will not be able to resist the urge to buy more seeds. So as a part of my Guerilla Garden  Horticultural Therapy Plan I have been thinking of ways to use up some of my old seeds so I can justify (even if it’s just in my own mind) the buying some new seed packets. What can I say……I’m thinking that there just might be a Seed Bomb Making Adventure in the foreseeable future!

Bombs Away!

F.Y.I –  L. Castro
I know you were most likely worried about the poinsettias after reading about one of my previous Guerilla Garden Pointsettia Adventures but I can assure you that this year no poinsettias were harmed prior to, during, or after this post. As a matter of fact this year they were rescued by a fashionista friend on garbage day and taken to a good home!

$3 Last minute Garden Stocking Stuffer Idea – A Scented Daisy Clip!

This pink petal scented daisy vent clip that I found at Canadian Tire for $2.99 has a fun, bendable stem, and is said to eliminate odor in your car. It doesn’t really seem to have much of a scent, but it does look kind of funky. It only comes in pink and is maintenance free so even non-gardening, plant killing, and I don’t want to ruin my manicure kind of girly-girls would like to find one of these in their stocking.

FYI- No monetary transactions, services or products were awarded to me for mentioning this product or any company associated with it, although it would have been nice…just saying.

$10 Ultra Cool Garden Gift Idea – Glowee, the plant that glows in the dark!

There is a new Sansevieria plant from Costa Farms called Glowee that not only makes a good Christmas gift for children but also makes a unique gift choice for gardeners, non-gardeners and science geeks alike.
After all who wouldn’t want a plant that can glow in the dark?

The Glowee (Sansevieria) plant comes in a 4-inch pot and when I heard Frankie Flowers on Cityline state that they were currently available in Canada at WalMart, I decided I had to go on a Guerilla Garden Adventure to seek one out. I drove past Some-Sad-Company to the Chilliwack Walmart and I must admit that I had visions of glowing plants from the movie “Avatar,” dancing in my head.
Sansevieria plants in general are popular, low maintenance houseplants so when I found the Glowee Plant at the Chilliwack Walmart for $7.99 I just had to buy one. It has been residing in my house for about 2 months now and it glows for about 3-4 hours every night and makes a good conversation piece when guests come over.
The Glowee plant label says that it glows with different intensity and for varying amounts of time based on the brightness, duration, and type of light to which they are exposed. Apparently new leaves won’t have the glowing feature, but the old leaves will retain it for a year or more. So the glow option is truly just a temporary novelty. Like any glow-in-the-dark object, recharging the plant with intense light, such as sunlight, makes the glow stronger. I know what you’re thinking – Is it a toxic coating? Some kind of genetic mutant injection? Well, Costa Farms won’t reveal what the patented process entails (propriety information, etc.) but the company states that the plants are not toxic and are not genetically modified.
This is important information to have on hand in case you need to dodge a potential non-GMO rant on Christmas morning. Just saying, some people are extremely passionate about what they believe.
So if you find yourself looking for a rant free Ultra Cool Garden Gift under $10 you might want to drive to the Walmart and get yourself (or someone else) a Glowee. Just tell them the Guerilla Gardener sent you!

 

 

 

National Pointsettia Day!

 

Today only at Little Mountain  Greenhouses the 6″ poinsettias are buy one get one free. so of course I had to buy 2 to celebrate……

Zombie Flamingo Lawn Ornaments

Just when you think that you’ve seen it all, there’s a new lawn ornament in town for Halloween.

 Personally, I always thought that pink plastic flamingos were a little scary as lawn art but these guys are positively evil!

I couldn’t help but think who on earth would want these evil birds in their yard as lawn art.
Then my non-gardening, zombie loving, ex-coworker James S. from Some-Sad-Company came to mind. What can I say other than the 5 years that we worked together he talked an awful lot about zombies.

 

Seed Choices for Seed Bombs!

As posted last week seeds were on sale for 20 cents a package at the Home Hardware in Chilliwack. So I bought 10 packets of assorted seeds with the intention of making seed bombs or to potentially sprinkle on some unused piece of land that is in dire need of a Guerilla Garden Makeover. My seed choices for this future Guerilla Garden Adventure are as follows:
Mixed Asters
Four O’clock Flowers
Mixed Sunflowers
Giant Zinnias
Shirley Double Poppies
Sensation Mixed Cosmos
Mammoth Dill
So here’s to a potential seed bombing coming to an unused piece of property near you!

Seed Sale!

Seed sale at Home Hardware in Chilliwack!
For 20 cents a packet I’m going to put some in my freezer for next year.

Another Expensive Seed Update!

I was just about to throw the jiffy pots out and email the seed company but after 31 days later a Sunshine Pepper seedling has finally appeared.
It doesn’t look like much but here’s to hoping that some of the other 5 seeds will sprout too!

The Most Expensive Seed Update!

The Minnesota Midget Mini Melon, Hawaiian Currant Tomato and Pomodoro Ciliegia Tomato seeds are all growing like gang busters. However, there is not a  Sweet Sunshine Pepper to be seen. Well, I’ll wait 1 more week and if they still don’t make an appearance I’ll email the company. After all, at $6.99 for 6 seeds I think at least 1 seed should sprout…which would then make me the proud owner of the most expensive pepper seedling ever!

Zucchini Grow Kit Update!

It’s True Salsa!

The Fashionista Friend bought me a Zucchini Grow Kit at the dollar store for $2. It came with a large compressed disk of peat moss , 6 zucchini  seeds and a slightly garish purple plastic pot.  I soaked the disk until it became dirt, filled the container (for decor reasons I swapped the purple plastic pot for a green ceramic one) and planted the seeds.  5 Days later and there are already seeds sprouting. Well done Fashionista Friend!