With all the open houses and cocktail parties to attend at this time of year, think twice before you buy flowers for your host or hostess. An increasing number of the roses and other cut flowers we buy have been imported from large flower plantations in Latin America and Asia, where workers, primarily women and […]
Indoors
Christmas-season houseplants
Around this time of year, the number of plants inside my house nearly doubles. Succulent planters come indoors for the winter, as do the houseplants that live outdoors during the summers. Then there are the seasonal plants: amaryllis, paperwhites, poinsettia. I’m more of an outdoor-plant person, so I get kind of nervous when I’m charged […]
To do: Coax Paperwhites
There’s something untoward about the term, “forcing bulbs.” I always feel for the poor mistreated bulb: was it bullied? Terrorized? Coerced? That’s why I prefer coaxing. Whatever you choose to call it, forcing bulbs refers to the act of creating conditions that mimic nature’s springtime, confusing the bulb in winter. My favourite bulb to coax […]
Eggling
From the Cute-but-impractical File: Egglings (from Japan) look and feel like a real egg, but are made of white porous ceramic. Kids (or adults!) just crack it open, add water and sun… and voila! Basil, thyme or Italian parsley at your fingertips. Plants grow for up to five months in the eggling’s fortified peat mixture, […]