Houseplant Surprise

Last week I was puttering about in my little conservatory watering everyone, when I tipped the watering can down over my sanseveria plant and saw an astonishing sight.  A flower stalk about a foot or so high was emerging at the bottom of the clump!  This was a revelation to me, for I am primarily a perennial/outdoor gardener, and I readily confess to a certain level of ignorance when it comes to houseplants.  In fact, I only have the sanseveria for sentimental reasons; the original plant was in a dish garden from my mother's funeral.  The nice thing about this plant is that it's really low maintenance, which suits me just fine.  However, not knowing much about it, I had no idea that it could flower.  And a lovely flower it was, too - whorls of lime green flowers all the way up the stalk, and with a light, sweet scent of freesia.  I get the feeling that indoors, this flowering might be a one-off, and I'll never see it again.  And that's OK - the important part was being reminded that no matter how old you are or how long you've been gardening, there's always something new to learn.  Always.

The REAL First Day of Spring

Somehow, I can never quite accept the date of the vernal equinox as the official first day of spring.  This is probably because, living in upstate NY, the weather generally bounces all around the dial until the end of May.  We have a nasty tendency to go straight from 38 degrees and snow flurries to 80 degrees in a matter of days, thus eliminating the need for spring weather.  (I do not exaggerate - I can remember one Mother's Day when we had about 6" of snow on the ground! That was a particularly trying event because I had called my mom in Ohio, and she chirped on about how it was 70 degrees, and she had her windows open, etc.  All this as I sat and glumly watched snowflakes sift down on top of what should have been flowers.  We were not amused.) Still, ever the optimist, I celebrate the first day of spring on April 1.  Once the calendar says April, I can allow myself to believe that spring really is on the way.  After all, you can always rely on the winter aconites, the snowdrops and glory-of-the-snows no matter what the weather conditions. And if you're patient enough, suddenly the crocus and early daffodils appear.  Then comes the happy day when I look down and see my tiny sweet violets in the beds, and I know there's no stopping it - spring is here, baby!  In your face, winter!!