The Perfectionist In Me

Ever walk out in the garden and get frustrated?  That was me today as I was outside working on bits and pieces here and there.  I had to pull out two dead Jacarandas and then I replaced them with two Mandarin orange bushes.  Little by little the fruit garden is coming along.  However, as I was carefully taking one of the Mandarin bushes out of the container, the roots all fell out and I had to carefully try and place them into the ground.  I'm crossing my fingers that the plant will be okay.  If not, I have the plastic container and receipt. 

Look at this garden!!!  Can you believe that this is my headling pic for the blog?  It has filled in somewhat, but I had to trim the Cereus and Jacaranda down and all of it shows new growth.

As I move over to the fern garden, I see my basil is coming up nicely and I fertilize the bamboo.  The trees are all swaying in the wind and I'm enjoying the breeze until I see that the VERY top of my Euc has a bare branch.  Being OCD, I stare at it for several minutes.  I grab my binoculars, research info on the internet, and take a chair with a very long pole to examine where the tip of the tree goes bare.  I'm still just wondering if the leaves will come back as there are many branches with new growth.  Essentially I want all traces of winter gone from the garden NOW!

For the good news, I see fresh fruit on the apricot, peach, fig, tangelo and mulberry trees. The persimmons is about to flower.  In fact, I ate several of the mulberries and was very thankful that we have fruit trees all around us.  I looked at the whiskey barrels and saw beautiful flowers on the cacti.  My castor beans are coming back as are the older bougainvillea.  My only remaining sacred Jacaranda is very green and lush(only half the tree survived).  BUT for every several steps forward, we take one backwards!  An interesting thing in the bougainvillea world happened.  The freeze killed all the first year regular looking bougainvillea in the sun garden YET the Torchglow variety all survived. And what about all of those elephant ears I planted last year?  I believe May will reveal whether the bulbs survived or not.   I've got so much more work to do! I have one whole side of bamboo garden to put in while on another, I've still got to do the citrus garden. One thing at a time....I know.  It just is overwhelming sometimes.  So do you ever look at your garden and get frustrated? 

The beginnings of my succulent garden.

The Bulbs

It's time to get back to my gardening journal.  The intent of my write is to help gardeners in Tucson that are either questioning if a plant will grow here or help out new gardeners who are trying to figure out what to buy in the market.  This is a priority to me because right now stores are going to be putting out boxes and boxes of bulbs and other fun things to put in our gardens.  A person may ask, "Can we even grow such things in the desert?"  And my answer is a whole hearted, "Yes."  I'll share with you some of my experiences with these plants and what does and does not do well here in Tucson.  There are a couple of things you need to know first.

The BULB RULES

1. You can buy bulbs now, but do not plant. Keep them in a dry and shady place.
2. If there are bulbs in the ground right now, but no foliage, be careful not to overwater and cause the  existing bulbs to rot.
3. Be patient.  Ground temps need to be at least 50 degrees F before anything starts leafing out(I'm specifically speaking about caladiums and elephant ears here)
4. Once summer arrives and the plants leaf out, they will need to be watered regularly....sometimes daily. Some are more high maintenance than others.  
5. Most bulbs, etc enjoy morning sun but struggle in afternoon sun not the heat. Cannas are the exception.
6. Did I mention water?:)
7. My recommendation is to put all tubers, bulbs, corns, and rhyzomes in pots because they require more water:)
8. Things generally start taking off the middle of May and into June.
9. Many bulbs once established love a good fertilizer......manure seems to work wonders.
10. Do not separate newer baby plants from the bulbs until it's warm enough to transplant.
11. Bulbs like loose soil.
12. Asian markets that sell "taro" roots, which are delicious by the way fried, are also a variety of elephant ears.  If Wal-Mart or other gardening places don't have them, think outside the box and buy some large and healthy taro roots.  Sometimes it's cheaper than buying them at the gardening center. 
13. Be wary of ordering online.  Bulbs come well packaged but you end up spending too much money for the tiny bulbs in the mail.  In my opinion, it's wasted money.  Be patient and keep your eyes open at the garden centers.  They'll come:)

There is so much information to share with you all during this time of year.  I wish I had people there for me when trying all this stuff out, but it hasn't been lost.  I've kept the data and am sharing it with you all so that you may have a better success trying out these fun and exciting plants.  They make wonderful fillers and add that beautiful tropical foliage you seek in your desert garden.  Stay tuned for the next series of posts on bulbs and related plants. Remember, ALWAYS have a place for them in the garden.  Plan out the areas well before going shopping or you'll waste A LOT of money.  Until tomorrow, stay tuned for the Elephant Ear and the many varieties.  There will also be a follow up post on Alocasia vs. Colocasia.  Until next time......