Christmas Around my Neighborhood

Hey everybody! Happy Christmas Eve!! There is officially only a few more hours until Christmas day!! I would like to share some Christmas decor that I've found interesting around my neighborhood. In the first photo, there's a very festive wreath on my neighbor's door. I like how it stands out because I haven't seen any others like it. The second photo is a decorated patio area; I really am liking the lights on the shrubs and also the railing! I hope that everyone will have a fantastic Christmas 2014 and create many memorable times that you will not forget!!

Phalaenopsis Orchids

Happy Wednesday everyone, it sure has been very cold and cloudy outside lately. I hope that everyone is enjoying the Christmas season! I would like to share with you an update on two orchids, one that I acquired back in May and another in which I acquired in August. Here is a photo of the two plants; the orchid that is in the purple planter is the one that I bought in May of 2014 at a discounted price at Lowes. It did have some dead buds and then it gradually sprouted out a bud which successfully bloomed and then it later dried up and fell off which is pretty much normal. The orchid that is in the blue planter was acquired in August of 2014 when it had some very beautiful blooms on it. I've also found this one discounted at Lowes. The buds gradually dried up as well. On both of the orchids, the green leaves did grow a lot during the warmer months. Hopefully during the next growing season, both of them will develop more blooms! I am now a lover of orchids! At first I completely disliked orchids because I thought that they were very difficult to maintain but my perception changed since I've had these two. Here's my first two orchid successes!! Woohoo!! As of now their growth rate has slowed down because it is officially winter now so they're resting and will enjoy the rest of the holiday season. Well here's to the countdown to Christmas, it's only one day away! I hope that everyone have a fantastic Wednesday and thank you so much for reading! :)

My Christmas Spirit for 2014

Hello all! I am deeply sorry for not posting at all for the past 6 months! I've been super busy in the last few months but I wanted to share with you my Christmas tree that I recently purchased:

it is very beautiful indeed! It is a Norfolk island pine which can be grown as a houseplant year round. I found this at my local Lowes home improvement store for 50% off of its original price. It is very healthy as well with no dried out branches. I did add some multi-color lights which makes the tree look incredible. Here's another view of the tree:

The plant is sitting in front of a west/ northwest facing window in my living room. It does bring a lot of Christmas spirit after all! I also decorated my kitchen window with lights:

I really love the way how the kitchen and living room have a compelling glow to it with the presence of the lights! For the past few days the weather here in North Carolina has been very cloudy, cold, and rainy which is my favorite. I hope that all of you will have a Merry Christmas for this year of 2014; I will try my best to post more frequently going into the upcoming new year. If you have any questions and/ or comments feel free to leave one below. Thank you all for reading!!

More Things Going On

Happy Summer Solstice also known as the first day of summer and the longest day of the year. Lots of progress has been made in my indoor garden. My Peace Lily or 'Spathiphyllum' is starting to bloom:

This plant has come a long way since I rescued it from Lowes about 3 weeks ago. I'm very excited about when the flowers will open. Here's another photo of the peace lily:

When the plant needs to be watered, the leaves wilt a little bit. I like the spathe of the flower and the concept that the flower represents a peace flag that give this plant the name Peace Lily. Another plant that is showing more progress is the umbrella plant or 'Schefflera Arboricola':

I gave this plant a watering today and I occasionally spray the foliage of this plant to keep dust particles away. Sorry about some of the blurry spots in this photo. This plant is very happy, I love to see when small baby leaves appear and gradually over time they get bigger. New growth has been appearing more often and I will keep you posted on this plant. The last plant but most certainly not least plant that I'll be sharing for today is the Boston Fern or 'Nephrolepis Exalta':

I also gave this plant a soaking today and I mist this plant just about everyday because humidity levels in my home are considerably low. New growth appears every week on this plant. Soon when it gets larger I would like to place it in a hanging basket. The plant is now much larger than when I first bought it. I will keep you posted on all 3 of these plants. Thank you everyone for stopping by on my site and reading. Have a great summer 2014!

Philodendron 'Pink Princess'

Happy Saturday!! It's been a very nice and extra warm week here in North Carolina and I decided to purchase a new addition for my indoor garden. I decided to take a different route and purchase a plant online. As frightening and as risky as it can be, I was wondering if the plant would arrive in great shape. I ordered online a Philodendron 'Pink Princess' :

The plant itself is very beautiful and I love the colours of the leaves! The pink variegation is georgeous!! I was really impressed when the plant arrived in great condition. The package arrived a week after I placed my order. This is a man made hybrid of philodendron which is also a rare species. These can be very expensive online as these are very difficult to find in a conventional store. The philodendron is a small starter plant but over time, it will grow into a larger specimen. I actually had a great experience with purchasing a plant online and I would do it again. I hope that everyone will have a great weekend and I'm proud to announce that this month makes the third anniversary for this blog. It doesn't even seem like that it's been that long, wow time really flies. Thank you for reading everyone and expect many more posts for this month of June!

New Things Going on in The Garden

Hello everyone! As the month of May is coming to a close, a lot is going on in my indoor garden. I've been busy a lot lately so that's why I haven't been posting very frequently but I will try to be more consistent :) first up is the Cordyline plant or the Hawiian Ti plant also the Hawiian good luck plant:

This plant really likes this spot in the afternoon sunlight and I bought this plant about a month and a half ago from Walmart with a 50% discount due to some sun burned foliage. This plant is recovering well and I love the bold purple color! The next plant is a new addition to the indoor garden and here it is:

Here's my Prayer plant or maranta leucineura erythroneura. I love the patterns on the leaves. We know where the plant gets it's name from the leaves closing at night in the position like praying hands. I had a prayer plant in Texas but that was a green variety. This variety is more colorful and I love it! This plant likes moisture but not too much. I'm very excited about this plant. The next plant is another new addition from Lowes:

It is a Peace Lily or spathiphyllum. The plant was in poor condition so I recieved a hefty discount and only paid $1.60 for the plant. The plant was very root bound so I repotted the plant immediately:

This is the reason (I'm assuming) that the leaves were yellowing. I plan to get this plant back to good health. Peace Lilies are great purifiers of the air indoors which is a plus. The yellowing leaves were trimmed off and I'm looking forward to the new growth from this plant. Lastly but not least is a small update on my phalaenopsis orchid that I bought almost a month ago:

There's a new leaf growing!! I'm happy to see progress with this plant as this is my only orchid. I really like this plant and I'm very glad that I've found it. That's everything for now. I will try to post more often. Thank you for reading and feel free to leave a comment. Have a great day! :)

My New Phalaenopsis Orchid

Hello everyone!! For today I would like to share my new find from Lowes and here it is:

This is a mini phalaenopsis orchid. I did find this plant on the clearance shelf and it was only $3.50 which is an excellent deal on an orchid since they can be a little pricey. The orchid does have some dead blooms but eventually they will fall off naturally. There are some buds that haven't opened yet and I'm very excited about the future blooms:

This plant is also in a spagnum moss medium which holds moisture that is beneficial to the plant plus I wouldn't have to water frequently as I would with a  tree bark medium. I hope you enjoyed this post about my new orchid. Feel free to leave a comment. Thanks for reading and have a great Monday!