Indoor Holiday Troughs

Sorry for the lapse in postings, my dear readers. The holidays brings its own set of urgencies, doesn't it? I hope you found a place of growth and small shoots of life growing up inside yourself, despite its being the dormant season, horticulturally.

I share with you a few surprises that came to me this season and lessons learned about troughs as gifts. I had a surprising number of requests for the dear simple trough I named Jingle (below).

High demand and not enough supply for this winner

Alas, I had not purchased a sufficient number of Chaemacyparis obtusa 'Chirimen' -- nor had I constructed sufficient numbers of 8 x 8" troughs to fulfill these orders. Dang!

Another lesson: the medium-sized troughs seemed to be the ticket and my daughter-in-law asked me to put together two indoor troughs of this size so she could give them to family members. Another revelation: not everyone wants a miniature alpine forest growing in a hypertufa container on their back patio. With the advice of my trough consultant Chris, I found some lovely durable indoor plants and managed to fill two medium troughs that delighted those who were the recipients. Good idea, Chrissy!

Indoor troughs: Who knew?

In this trough: Polka Dot Plant (Hypoestes), Golden Spike Moss (Selaginella kraussiana 'Aurea'), and "Dwarf Umbrella Tree (Schefflera arboricola ~ syn. Heptapleurum arboricolum)

This trough contains English Ivy (Hedera helix 'Glacier'), Christmas Cactus (Zygocactus
Schlumbergera x buckleyi) and more of the above-mentioned Polka-dot plant.

Final holiday lesson: Some people simply want troughs (usually of a reasonable size) without the plants so they can do with them what they want. My sister purchased three empty troughs from me and filled them herself to give to her adult children as a Christmas gift. She filled them with bright red Violas!

Lessons for the season:  Keep making those 8 x 8s, and keep those Chaemacyparis obtusa 'Chirimen' in good supply!

Trough of the Week: Jingle Troughs ~ On Sale This Week!

I will be at a holiday craft sale this Saturday at the First Parish Church in Beverly 9a - 2p. If you are in the area, drop by and see these new living festive creations. These long-lasting troughs make a wonderful gift that keeps on giving.

Trough of the Week: Jingle Troughs ~ Phase One

As I have laid to rest a solid stash of 3-season troughs, I turn my thoughts now to my holiday line. I call them "Jingle Troughs." I am preparing them for a Holiday Market I will be attending on Dec. 1.

Behold the be-decked Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Chirimen'! For now,  I am playing with the idea of having this unique miniature conifer be the only star in the Jingle-trough show, along with various holiday accoutrements that inevitably warm one's heart in the season. One of the two (above, left) is livened up with a cutting of Winterberry (Ilex verticillata), God's gift to gardeners during the winter. The other (below, right) is the tree, a rock, and some ACMoore specials. I'm still playing with various arrangements, so don't judge me yet. This attempt is Phase One: to be looked at by me for a few days and then expanded upon as my sensibilities dictate.

Back to some life lessons:

Aspiration: To make money selling these babies because I am broke.
Garden Lesson: So many versions of natural life play well with another to create an ambiance unmatched by plastic and glitter.
Life Lesson: Take pleasure in the simple, natural, beautiful gifts of earth which, by the way, don't cost a penny.

Propagating Miniature Arborvitae

In anticipation of my upcoming line of Holiday Troughs I recently purchased some miniature conifers that take on the look of Christmas trees. (More on my Holiday Troughs soon.) I have become especially enamored with the Wansdyke Silver Arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis 'Wansdyke Silver').  The Evergreen Plant Nursery describes it this way:

An absolutely gorgeous arborvitae that has nice dark green foliage that is speckled with bright, white to very light cream colored variegation. Very pyramidal in growth, and holds its green color well in the winter. We suggest planting in full sun for best color, but will accept partial shade as well. This particular arborvitae is one of our latest additions to our arborvitae selections - and it is extremely hard to find. 

Having shared my enthusiasm about this great find with my (now) trough advisor Chris (read about him here), he immediately said, "You oughta propagate it. See that double-leader? Cut it off and see if you can get a two-fer." That's Chris -- always knowing the exact thing to do with a conifer and the exact way to do it.

The steps for propagating the Wansdyke Silver Arborvitae are as follows (per Chris):

Behold! Miniature Wansdyke Silver Arborvitae
with obvious "double-leader" making it a good
candidate for propagation.

Close-up: the double-leader

Before making the cut, be sure to have on hand your mix
of special propagation soil: some sand, Pro-Mix, compost,
perlite

Make a clean cut near the base of the second leader.
Can you tell where my cut is? It is the second white-looking
thing to the left of the main stem.

The look of the tree with only the single leader.
As Chris says, "It looks more like a tree."

At the base of the cut stem, shave the bottom
half-inch or so, exposing the inner live flesh

Dip the tip of the stem in water

Then dip the tip of the stem in rooting hormone. Some people
do not like to use rooting hormone. I sometimes do and sometimes
don't. In this case, Chris told me to use it, so I did.

After dipping the stem in rooting hormone, plant it in a
container filled with the special mix of propagation soil.
(While I was at it, I planted several double leaders off of various plants.)

During the incubation period I have tucked the
specimens into a dry-cleaner bag to create an
environment that encourages root growth. I will check
them again in several weeks, watching to make sure
the soil stays moist but not drenched.

Thank you, Chris!

Special Note: My Holiday Troughs will be on sale soon, including three that contain miniature Wansdyke Silver Arborvitaes. Reserve yours today by emailing me here.