Sunday, March 7, 2021

Repotapalooza


That snowy-looking landscape is actually springlike -- those are blossoms in the trees, with the steeple of the cemetery chapel just beyond. The early blooming trees all seem to have very pale flowers, white or slightly pink. The brighter cherries and crabapples come later in the season.

We went to the cemetery partly because, in late morning, our upstairs neighbors the Russians surprised us by suddenly DEMOLISHING THEIR KITCHEN! I don't mean a domestic spat. They have those all the time. I mean workmen with sledge hammers and drills and god-knows-what-else ripping the cabinets off the walls and smashing all the tile. They hauled all the appliances and the sink out onto their terrace, on the roof of our living room.

The sound was deafening. It's weird, because I'm pretty sure they redid the kitchen just a couple of years ago. I think Mr. Russian did it himself. Maybe he screwed it up, or maybe they just didn't like the end result. Who knows.

Anyway, yes, Olga, Dave and I all went to the cemetery to escape the wrecking crew.


The wild primroses are blooming again. There aren't as many as in past years, partly because the cemetery has seen so much foot traffic during our lockdowns. Like Hampstead Heath, it's had a lot of visitors and many of the plants have been trampled. These are tucked between several gravestones.

Back home again, we also spent time in the garden repotting many of our plants to get ready for spring.


This is our poor alstroemeria, or Peruvian lily. Have you ever seen anything so pot-bound in your life? Dave divided it -- just took a shovel and hacked it in two -- so now we have two of them. (Assuming they both live; it seemed like a pretty brutal procedure, but he swore they'd be fine.)


And we bought a gigantic new pot for our purple heart, which has been root-bound for a while now. It's greener and leggier than it should be because during the winter it doesn't get as much sun as it would like. It's a tropical plant, and ideally it should look like this. I think when the weather warms up I may move it outside for the summer, along with the avocado.

We bought the pot online, and you should have seen the packaging that was used to ship it -- giant coils of rolled, wadded brown paper. I've never seen so much paper in my life. I was afraid the recycling guys might not take it all, but they did. I hate to think of the carbon footprint of that one purchase. (But at least it wasn't plastic.)

I also repotted one of our Thanksgiving cacti and our sage, and I lifted and added soil to our Chinese lantern and a couple of our geraniums, which had sunk way too low into their pots. There's more to do, of course, but that's a good start.


Here's some scratchy time with Olga. See all those black spots on the back of her neck? She's always been a spotty dog, but they've become more pronounced as she ages. Her neck used to look much more white. I don't know whether her fur is getting thinner or her spots darker!

42 comments:

e said...

Olga looks happy in the garden.

Anonymous said...

The video of Olga is both funny and interesting.
I didn't know alstroemeria is also known as Peruvian Lily, which I've heard of.
Yes, we've had something as potbound as that plant. Barely a scrap of soil to be seen.

Moving with Mitchell said...

The top photo is mystical. Good for you and all the work you've gotten done. Oh yes, I've had a lot of plants as root-bound as that. I love the ones you can simply chop into new plants like that. Olga sure is loved (and loves).

Yorkshire Pudding said...

By the sound of it the Russians upstairs went to the Vladimir Putin School of Civility. How neighbourly and pleasant it would have been to knock on your door during the week and say "Ve are sorry to tell you dat ve vill have vorkmen in our vlat. Ve are heaven a new kitchen put in. Ve can afford it for ve are Russians and we no pay tax."

Jane and Lance Hattatt said...

Dear Steve,

We are in love with Olga. So adorable and clearly loving every minute of her snuggling time with you. Wonderful.

It must be a coincidence, we imagine, that your dog has a Russian name since we cannot think that you would wish to be reminded any more than absolutely necessary about your Russian neighbours. When one lives in an apartment house, as we do, it is so important to treat the neighbours with respect, especially when it comes to noisy activities. We all have to live and let live but sometimes people just do not act with consideration and that can be very wearing. Still, a good opportunity to visit the cemetery and see the primroses and blossom. All so joyful!

Colette said...

Oh what fun early spring gardening is. I have been known to take a saw to divide roots that pot bound. Thanks for sharing the primrose and the daffodils.

Ms. Moon said...

She thanked you! Sweet old girl. Also? I love the snake plant by the fire place. When Jessie and Vergil lived in NC I begged her to get a snake plant to put by their fireplace- just like yours! And she said that no, she didn't like those plants very much. And now she's growing them. On purpose. I wonder if some things just come with age like an appreciation for snake plants, the love of watching birds.

ellen abbott said...

I'd have chopped off that dense layer of roots at the bottom. I have 3 big plants I need to repot into bigger pots. maybe today. no blooming trees here yet after the deep freeze. so doesn't your landlord own the upstairs flat as well?

Anonymous said...

That video of Olga is great. She's adorable and sweet, and I loved seeing her look into the camera.
You remind me that we have a few plants that need repotting. I'll probably put it off for a few more years!

My life so far said...

The peruvian lily will survive. When I get plants like that I hack at the roots. It shocks the plant but also encourages new growth. Seems to work.

Love the video of Olga. She's a lovely dog.

Red said...

Neighbor noise can be a pain. some just don't care or don't seem to know what a nuisance they are.

Edna B said...

My little Pogo got darker spots as he aged too. Olga is still beautiful as ever. Enjoy your day, hugs, Edna B.

Sharon said...

I can relate to that noise. Last week there was some remodeling going on in an apartment either below me or across the hall. I couldn't figure out exactly where but boy was it loud.
I love the video of Olga.

The Padre said...

Loved The Photo Of Olga Girl In The Garden Just Chillin Out - The Pretend Snow Shot Is Magical - But That Video Takes The Cake - The Little Whine Mid Yawn Was Adorable - Such Expressive Eyes She Has - Thanx So Much For The Video - Made My Weekend - Stay Strong This Week

Cheers

Linda Sue said...

The video is so calming, sell it with some new age music and lavender scent and there you have money in the bank. Such a pretty girl, that Olga.
You are the Pot man, nice blue BTW. I suppose going to a nursery is still not advised, riding tube or bus- so all of that packing paper is OK. Just stay safe, sir. The overhead destruction sounds horrid! Not even a note to inform you? naughty neighbors! I am so glad you got the garden flat instead of theirs, though!

Allison said...

Do the upstairs people have access to the garden, or is that your domain? Here's hoping the remodel goes quickly and peace is soon restored.

gz said...

Seems a bit excessive if the renovation was done two years ago...but I suppose people we finding things they can do.
Well done on the gardening, indoors and out.
Lovely to see the primroses.I wonder how long it will be before we spot some here?

Margaret said...

The Russians are renters and they're allowed to do that? (would never happen here) It seems very discourteous not to let you know before hand. When I was getting the exterior of my house re-painted, I made my close neighbors aware that there would be more noise earlier in the morning for a week or so. My painters got here at 7:30 but tried to be as quiet as possible until later in the morning. That is great that the packaging was all paper; my new chandeliers came in Styrofoam which was awful. I wanted to recycle it, but it can only go in the garbage. :( Horrible stuff.

Catalyst said...

I enjoyed hearing her say "I'd like more!"

Ellen D. said...

You sure do have a lot of potted plants to take care of. Most of my plants are fake! I never know what the heck I am doing with live plants!

Linda Sue said...

In Swedish Baby Names the meaning of the name Olga is: Holy.

Steve Reed said...

Ha! Well, fake ones are certainly easier. :)

Steve Reed said...

Never enough!

Steve Reed said...

No, the Russians are owners. They own the upstairs flat and our landlords own the downstairs. I do wish they'd told us ahead of time, but I suppose it wouldn't have made much difference -- we can't go anywhere because we're in lockdown, and fortunately they ARE only working during the day.

Steve Reed said...

It does seem excessive, I agree. They're always doing some kind of home maintenance, which is perplexing to me.

Steve Reed said...

The garden is entirely ours. It doesn't seem quite fair, particularly because the Russians have children who could no doubt use the outdoor space -- but that's the way it is. (I once suggested letting them use it but Dave doesn't want them trampling our plants -- and it does raise questions of liability and that kind of thing.)

Steve Reed said...

We actually thought the pot was more green when we bought it -- but the blue works OK. Olga is such a calming influence, isn't she?!

Steve Reed said...

I knew you'd appreciate that video! :)

Steve Reed said...

This is RIGHT OVER OUR HEADS! And right over the part of the house where we spend most of our time. Argh!

Steve Reed said...

I mean, people get spotty skin as they age, so why not dogs?

Steve Reed said...

They are at least being reasonable about when they start working and when they stop. I'd really be annoyed if they continued into the evenings.

Steve Reed said...

That's what Dave says -- it's actually good for the plant. It just seems so HARSH!

Steve Reed said...

Ha! Well, they'll tell you when they're desperate.

Steve Reed said...

Oh, I didn't even think of taking off those lower roots. We should have done that, because the root balls were a bit too tall for the pots we put them in. (The biggest ones we had available!) There's lots of space for them to grow to the sides, though.

Steve Reed said...

I love snake plants too! And they're so versatile. They'll grow anywhere.

Steve Reed said...

Fortunately we didn't need a saw -- but it's good to know that you can do that and the plant still lives!

Steve Reed said...

Ha! The fact that our dog has a Russian name and we have Russian neighbors is, indeed, purely coincidental. In fact they were quite amused when they learned the dog's name is Olga.

LS: I didn't know that was the meaning! I wonder if that's true in Russian as well?

Steve Reed said...

Yeah, I do wish they'd warned us ahead of time. But it's not like we could have done anything about it. Under normal circumstances we could have arranged a weekend out of town, but not during lockdown!

Steve Reed said...

Well, I'll let you know if the lily division is successful!

Steve Reed said...

Alstroemeria is also called Lily of the Andes, or something like that. I guess it must be from that part of the world.

Steve Reed said...

She LOVES the garden, especially when the sun comes out!

Janie Junebug said...

It's good to be Olga.

Love,
Janie