Amaryllis bulbs

I have planted up my bulbs,

(Amaryllis bulbs - the correct name for the indoor flowering Amaryllis is Hippeastrum)  hopefully, to bloom at Christmas. 

 I don't know why I bother with these flowers so much ...........

I just love them!

and so did my Dad - they were his pride and joy during the winter months.................... most would have just one single bloom

but sometimes there would be two or three .............

such joy to all of us .............. and the neighbours .................... and the visitors ...................

all had to be shown the magnificent flowers and we all aaahhed and oohhhed in all the right places!!!

So mine are now potted up and we will await the results.  I am expecting to have a lot of leaves and no flowers as I can save bulbs over the winter (or summer!) and then they grow blind. 

But we shall see.

While I have been potting up - PJ has been pithering ................ in the garage/workshed!!

This cat lives at the railway and not only is she pretty but she loves a fuss.

She is looked after by the guys who work there and, at present, there is a lot more going on than usual. 

 The guys have moved from their old - think dilapidated - hut (bothy) to a new home, more sheltered and clean (well - for a short while) and the younger guys, or apprentices have a portacabin in which to spend their breaktimes. 

Trouble is the cat now has nowhere to shelter or sleep as the guys feed her and look after but do not want to leave her overnight in their new hut.

PJ has been clearing their old bothy in readiness to knock it down and out of the kitchen cabinets he has made a new house for the cat!! 

Why not? 
The wood is only going to be chucked out and we are into recycling so with a bit of a cleanup, touch of paint and a clean old blanket -
New Home for Cat.


Remembering .............

 

My Father became a gardener when we moved to Grandad's house.  I don't remember him doing much in the garden of the old house ...............I suppose while he was Park Keeper he worked long hours and usually had me along!!!

He would grow the most magnificent dahlias and chrysanthemums.  They would be cared for in detail although he never entered them in shows, but we knew that he should, they were always huge flowers.

These were Dad's favourites and he spent a lot of time helping them to grow large!

Mam always had a nice selection to cut and take to Auntie May, or whoever she would be visiting, even given to me and Ena after we had left home.

 This is how it looked - Dahlias interspersed with Chrysanths.

I wasn't keen on the dahlias as they often had earwigs in them

I always made sure that when I was given a bunch I turned them upside down - much to my Mother's horror! - and gave them a good shake.  The earwigs usually fell to the ground and scuttled away!!   

Dad had certain colours in his Chrysanths as well, autumnal ones, making sure that each one had the right amount of curling petals.

He would place each flower bud into a paper bag so that, as it opened, the petals curved like these......................................

We often looked out of our lounge window to see lots of flowers like these!!!!

And then when the garden was cleared in the Autumn ready for the winter weather to work the soil  ......... we would have the Amaryllis to look forward to...................