Hi y'all! All is well around here and I hope all is well over there where y'all are! I didn't have many plant chores at all today; ended up watering one of my Hoya and refilling my humidifiers.  ALL of my plants are okay at least for a few days and that's kinda rare around here.  

Let's get on down to the plant of the hour ~ My China Doll.  A week or so ago I got my Rocky (see post No. 4); my China Doll was the other plant that was delivered via DoorDash (of course) along with it.  I show off one plant at a time so Rocky was the only one featured last Sunday.  I kinda couldn't wait to show off this plant y'all I'm not gone' lie.  I've been thinking a lot about my Mom and my lifelong exposure to houseplants. I remember all the plants her friends and herself anticipated as well as the ones that were always readily available.  The China Doll was one of them.  I talk a lot about my Mom and her friends because they had to be doing some helluva research to know when these plants would be in the stores back then.  There was no internet or anything; but they all had cool relationships with the local nurseries and big box stores so its safe to assume the folks just simply told 'em.  They kept those dates near and near because it was always an event when they got ready to go buy the new "it" plant!  I loved seeing the plants they chose and hearing them talk about them.  They had so much fun with their plants!

Last week some time I was day dreaming about plants and I all of sudden thought of the China Doll.  I decided to check and see if it was available. Y'all Lowe's ended up having one!  I hurried up and put one in my cart and its been here ever since.  I loved it from my memories and loved it even more when I saw it again. 

Lemme share a bit about this beauty!  Back in the day it was kinda on the expensive side but I paid $15 bucks for mine; again from Lowes.  The botanical name for the China Doll is Radermachera sinica; but we ain't got time for all thatttt OMG so China Doll is it.  The plant can be found growing wild and beautifully in tropical regions of China and Taiwan; hence the name.  The plant prefers bright, indirect light with some full sun in the mornings being perfectly fine.  However, full sun in the afternoon and evening shares too much heat and will burn the leaves!  If the lighting is off the plant becomes leggy and starts dropping leaves. This plant is NOTORIOUS for dropping leaves! Now this is a thirsty plant IMO; but it doesn't like to dry out completely.  This plant prefers consistently damp soil but never soggy!  It will do quite well in a self-watering pot.  The plant is Bonsai-like in terms of it needing to be pruned often to maintain a nice shape and look.  It's not very hungry at all although it does appreciate diluted plant food during Spring and Summer.  Humidity isn't a big deal for this plant either; but it does love a climate with more humidity than less.  If you notice brown tips try and increase the humidity levels by misting, a humidifier, or growing this plant in a bathroom.  If you don't have a window in your bathroom do NOT go putting nothing alive in there trying to grow it!  Just don't; thank ya!  Lets go over everything again; this pretty girl likes bright, indirect light (the brighter the better) but be easy with the full sun.  The plant likes its soil to remain evenly damp so it would benefit from a self-watering set up. Lastly, don't be afraid to snip off any foliage to maintain uniform growth.

Now y'all I done talked and talked about this plant and I promise you I can write at least three more paragraphs about it but Imma leave y'all alone and go ahead and share this pretty girl!  

Best, 

Christy  

No. 3 Elegant dinner with Fabian? 

Happy Sunday y'all!  It's a beautiful, sunny morning and I'm up watching Take Down with Chris Hansen!  All my real folks know how I feel about Chris Hansen; that's my boy frfr!  Look at me already rambling; let me get back on the subject!

On this weekend's plant search I found thee snazziest indoor tree/plant.  Since I've been growing plants for so long my collection has long been curated with all the plants that I want to grow so nowadays I'm just looking for cool additions.  I've been sooo lucky lately!  The big box stores in my area have been disappointing for a while now; there's hardly ever a plant I wanna buy from any of them.  I don't really have any plants I want from my favorite online shops at the moment either.  The plant attacks still happen so I've been going to the grocery stores hunting for plant gems!  I've been finding the cutest plants in the grocery stores in my area and this weekend did NOT disappoint!  I ended up going to the Dollar Tree first; they have a cute little gardening section now.  I picked up a cloche, some more 3" terracotta pots, and pruners.  Trader Joe's is right next to the Dollar Tree so I went to browse their plant section.  When I first walked in I noticed some ornamental gift plants and bouquets; Trader Joe's always has nice, fresh flowers.  The hyacinth I bought from there a week ago had already bloomed and withered.  It was a forced bulb so I knew it wouldn't last long.  It was so pretty though and I wanted another one.  This go 'round I bought a blue one, the last one was pink.  It had a nice scent too but my allergies didn't let me get too close!  

Whewwww chile see how I get distracted when I talk about plants? Okay, okay so let me gather my thoughts!  Now when I went into Trader Joe's I initially saw a table of Deliciosas.  Right next to them were the hyacinth vases; I picked one and headed to the plant corner.  I found the cutest little fern but I couldn't look much.  There was another gal looking too and the plant corner isn't very big at all.  But when I was leaving that's when I noticed the Fabians.  They were labeled "Aralia" but I had never seen the cultivar before. I bent down to get a closer look and I instantly fell in love.  I told myself I didn't need it because I have added quite a few new plants to my collection lately~mainly to my philodendron collection.  So I went home and started watching TV.  That feeling I get when I can't get a certain plant off my mind was something serious; mannn I couldn't even get comfortable!  At first I told myself the usual "If you still feel like you wanna get it just wait until the morning and go" but I knew damn well I wouldn't be able to handle the disappointment if I waited, went back, and they were all gone.  I went on back to Trader Joe's to get my plant y'all and picked the one that wanted to go home with me!  I felt immediate relief of my "plant fever" when I got it home **insert sinister laugh and hand wringing**  I re-potted my new plant immediately like I always do; but I almost didn't this time.  The soil actually looked okay which is unusual for the nursery plants because they're usually potted up in a peat-y, soggy, muddy mess with the occasional millipede or two smh.  I re-potted my new plant in a super chunky soil mix and watered it up; it was kinda on the dry side which was a sign of good health IMO.  

My new Polycias scutellaria or Aralia 'Dinner Plate Plant'  have circular leaves that curve upwards.  In the wild, the leaves grow so big they are actually used for plates and bowls!  This is one cool houseplant y'all~ I'M OBSESSED. I did a little more research because I still didn't know that my new Aralia was also known as the 'Fabian' or 'Fabian's Stump'.  I'll be referring to him as Fabian.  The stump part of this cultivar's name refers to the trunk; it resembles bonsai.  It is just so eleganttttt. The botanical name Polycias is Greek for "lots of shade" and scutellaria translates in Latin to "a small dish, tray, or platter" , again referring to the cool AND resourceful bowl-like leaf shape.  I kept reading about my new plant and found out Fabian will do best in bright, indirect light; full sun will burn his leaves.  He prefers high humidity but will do just fine in normal home humidity too.  I watered him thoroughly after I re-potted him however the folks who have experience growing the Fabian say to be careful with watering as he is prone to rot.  I'm only going to water mine when the top soil is dry to make sure I don't over-water or trigger leaf drop.  

Y'all probably like girllllaaa show us the plant!  Take a look at this dapper fella and if you're on the hunt for collectible instead of "just plants" head on over to your nearest Trader Joe's and see what they have!  Don't forget the other grocery stores too!

Okay y'all be sweet 'til next time! 

BEST,

Christy