Garden Gossip: What’s Growing Out and In

Posted on May 25, 2023 by Enchanted Seashells by Princess Rosebud

Before it gets so hot and dry that everything dies a slow and painful death, here’s a few pics from the garden:

The raspberries aren’t ready to eat, but oh so pretty cherry red.

Still thriving; a decades old bottlebrush.

Flowers everywhere!

Photobombed by my resident Scott’s Oriole. What a show off! Look at how adept he is balancing on the tip of an agave.

And then he flew over to the bottlebrush in time to get his photo taken again.

I have pretty good luck propagating alstroemeria; now it’s blooming everywhere!

And indoors, it looks like all these plants are growing out of the fireplace, but this is where they get the perfect amount of diffused light. My Monstera looks bright and healthy living her best life with a fresh white orchid.

Lots of happy plants in and out. I hope you enjoyed this tour of Casa de Enchanted Seashells!

Happy Valentine’s Day From Me to You

Posted on February 12, 2021 by Enchanted Seashells by Princess Rosebud

My plans were to post this on Sunday, Valentine’s Day, but I’m getting the second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine tomorrow and if predictions are correct, I might be too sick to do anything but lay on the sofa rolled up in a warm blanket and watch Netflix or reruns of Bewitched, so here it is!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Image result for 1960's old fashioned vintage valentine cards

I’ve always loved Valentine’s Day in spite of the commercialism. In elementary school, I looked forward to the day we’d give and receive those little Valentine’s Day cards (including the inedible heart-shaped candies.)

Later on, I especially cherished Angel Boy’s handmade cards –which I saved–every single one of them.

There’s something lovely and old fashioned about being thought of as someone’s Valentine, and I like that a lot.

I have simple wants; a bunch of wildflowers is treasured as much as a dozen red roses; all gifts from the heart are appreciated whether it’s a Chanel or a seashell. Or a handmade card from the Angels.

These flowers are called alstroemeria. Native to South America. I prefer their other name, Lily of the Incas, ‘cos it sounds exotic. I’ve been growing them for about fifteen years. Surprisingly, they do quite well here and are drought tolerant. I’ve even been able to successfully dig up and divide the tubers.

I hope you’re having (will have) a happy, happy day!

I love elephants of all colors

Posted on April 19, 2013 by Enchanted Seashells by Princess Rosebud

White elephant: A possession that is useless or troublesome, especially one that is expensive to maintain or difficult to dispose of. According to Wiki, the tradition derives from tales which associate a white elephant with the birth of the Buddha, as his mother was reputed to have dreamed of a white elephant presenting her with a lotus flower, a common symbol of wisdom and purity, on the eve of giving birth.^[5]Because the animals were considered sacred and laws protected them from labor, receiving a gift of a white elephant from a monarch was simultaneously both a blessing and a curse: a blessing because the animal was sacred and a sign of the monarch’s favor, and a curse because the animal had to be retained and could not be put to much practical use, but cost a significant amount to maintain.

Hmmm…that sounds very much like a description of Princess Rosebud, don’t you agree?

April is Prevention of Cruelty to Animals month….I’ve protested and spoken out with Peta against the cruel practice of elephant rides at our San Diego County Fair in Del Mar. The life of a captive elephant (or any animal) trained for humans to profit by is barbaric and must end. Please join me in caring about the lives of other species. We must work together to end animal abuse. Click on the link to learn more: http://www.peta.org/b/thepetafiles/archive/tags/elephant+rides/default.aspx

Here’s my very own white elephant. She is extremely beautiful and, as you can see, quite useful, holding a vase of alstroemeria flowers from our garden. I found her at Ross Dress for Less for $29.00. The vase is from Anthropologie. I picked up some color chips from Home Depot to repaint the wall for contrast but I haven’t decided on a color yet.

More elephants!