The Plant Girl

Check this out

2005-06-26T20:54:00.000-07:00

My friend Stephanie has a site for any of you ladies who are into pampering yourself. Please visit her site here.

Kenny Chesney

2005-06-26T20:39:00.000-07:00

Here are pictures when I went to see Kenny Chesney on Friday. Enjoy!!!

I am back!!!!

2005-06-26T19:42:00.000-07:00

Well, I am back after my ordeal last week. As many of you know, I was hospitalized for 1 week with a severe case of asthma which required 5 days of oxygen. I am feeling better than I have for a long time. I have had asthma all my life, but you don't know how precious air is when you are struggling to breathe with each and every breath.

Thanks to all of you that sent many well wishes and prayers. It means alot to me that you care. And, thanks to those who kept Bill in line. I heard he was partying all the time. (Just Kidding). He is my best friend and I will always love him.

I will try to post more often now that I am feeling tip top. And, try not to be so boring.

Jackson Lake

2005-05-26T12:00:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of Jackson Lake. It was so beautiful.

Jackson Lake

2005-05-26T11:56:00.000-07:00

These are pictures of Jackson Lake where the set of the movie Big Fish was filmed. Pretty neat huh!

I'm Back

2005-05-26T11:34:00.000-07:00

I have been extremely busy to post in a while. Between school, kids, work I just don't have much time anymore.

I recently went to Alabama for a family reunion. It was awesome because I have never met them before. See, I was put up for adoption when I was first born. I found them in 2001 and have kept in touch with a few of them.

Here is a picture of my first cousins.

And here is a picture of my second cousins.

Amazing!!!

2005-04-30T18:38:00.000-07:00

I am off to a great start with my new business adventure. I now have three clients and people are recommending me to do some landscaping.

New Revival!!!!

2005-04-26T13:19:00.000-07:00

I have been renewed today. I started my own business today and it was invigorating to say the least. Even though, I am out of shape and not a spring chicken anymore. It was great to know that people trust me to complete a yard and landscaping. It may take me a few days to recover but it was worth every bit of it.

Where does the time go!

2005-04-22T16:31:00.000-07:00

I am having a hard time finding time to do the simplest things. If it is keeping the house in order, going to the store, school work, whatever. I don't seem to have the time anymore. And, it doesn't seem to get any better. I am feeling overwhelmed and busier each new day.

Can someone give me some wise or useful hints to make life go smoother?

Thank you for letting me get this off my chest. I just had to vent.

Hooray!!!!!

2005-04-15T16:51:00.000-07:00

I received an email from one of the instructors at PCC stating that a woman in Aloha needed some help with her yard. I placed an estimate/bid today for time and labor and I got the job. It will only be a couple days per month but I am getting my foot in the door. She now has some more clients in her neighborhood that would like my help.

I am starting out small, but eventually I will have a good start to my own Landscape design/construction business doing installations and landscape maintenance for my clients.

Hooray, I am so excited.

National Day of Prayer!!!!

2005-04-15T09:20:00.000-07:00

Click the link here to find out more on The National Day of Prayer.

Puppy photos

2005-04-14T19:21:00.000-07:00

Here are some photo collages at birth and at 2 wks old. Click the thumbnail to see a larger picture. Enjoy!

Another poem

2005-04-14T17:50:00.002-07:00

This poem was written when I was 8 yrs old.

I have been inspired to!!!!!

2005-04-14T10:22:00.000-07:00

I have written poetry in the past and have been compelled to post some inspirational words. Hope you like it!

Loving Him!!!!

There is a love deeper than
the oceans
and wider than the seas

A love that endures all
but is unseen

A feeling that you
are never alone
with the powers that be

Faith is an understanding that
He is always there
for you and for me

You love Him because
He first loved you
You praise Him because
He died for you

Pruning roses!

2005-04-09T11:47:00.000-07:00

Most roses are a grafted form which means that the rootstock is a hardier type of rose and above the root ball is called the scion that has characteristics that we usually look for in roses. For example, longer blooming, larger roses, more fragrance.
Most require yearly rejuvenation keeping younger canes on the shrub.
The first types we will discuss are hybrid teas, florabundas, and grandifloras that bloom on current wood.

Feb/Mar
1.Prune dead, damaged, or diseased wood.
2.Prune the weak or spindly growth (thin twigs usually at the base).
3.Prune to open shape in center (prevents disease and helps air circulation).
4.Prune any crossing branches (this helps to keep center open).
5.Prune the older wood more than 3 yrs old to base (this promotes more growth).
6.Prune to take out root suckers (if allowed to continue will revert plant back to the rootstock which usually doesn't produce the best flowers).
7.Prune the rest leaving about a 1/3 of the canes (usually 8-10" of 3-5 canes for hybrid teas, grandifloras, and minitures; and 12-18" of 3-5 canes for florabundas and patio roses).
8.Always try to prune just above an outer bud or vertical branch with a slight angle cut (this will insure that the new branches will grow out rather than into the center).

Jul/Aug
1.Prune stems to the second or third set of leaflets.
2.Prune dead, damaged, or diseased wood.

Mid-Nov
1.Prune canes to waist high to prevent wind rock or ice damage.
2.Prune dead, damaged, or diseased wood.
3.Mound mulch over bud union to prevent frost damage.
4.Occasionally, you can strip leaves off cane.

And here are the after pictures...

2005-04-08T09:08:00.000-07:00

Pretty cool, huh?

Design pictures before...

2005-04-08T08:45:00.000-07:00

Here are before photos of the design project that I worked on.

Rhodies and Azeleas

2005-04-06T20:21:00.000-07:00

I have always been good at keeping my Rhodedendrons alive and in good condition in my front yard. But, I couldn't understand why my Azeleas that I purchased last year kept dying. Well, last term I took a soils class and the instructor suggested that it was probably the soil. Rhodies and Azaleas like alkaline soils and where I was planting them was right next to the lawn which needs a more acid soil. To avoid this, try adding dolomite lime. That will change the pH level of the planting beds.

Puppies

2005-04-05T20:47:00.000-07:00

The new puppies will be available for sale around the last week in June. They are AKC toy poodles with mom and dad on the premises. They will be 5-7 lbs full grown. I will be asking $500-$700. If you are interested post a comment and we will find a way of getting in touch.
See my previous posts for pictures and more info.

More On Propagating House Plants

2005-04-05T18:49:00.000-07:00

Many house plants can be grown by taking a leaf cutting. First, you will a leaf with some of the stem called a petiole. If it is a large leaf you may need to cut in half. Take the stem and dip into some rooting hormone and place the stem down into your prepared soil media leaving the leaf portion on top of soil. Use a pin and poke through the leaf to keep it stationary on top. Mist water 2-3 times a day for about 2 weeks then do the tug test to see if there is any resistance. If there is resistance then you know that roots are growning. Eventually, the leaf on top dries out and dies out then new sprouts will start to grow. From my personal experience, any type of begonia, fettonia, philodendron, and pothos work great by using this method.

Propagating House Plants

2005-04-05T13:27:00.000-07:00

Propagation of house plants is a very inexpensive and fun hobby. I purchased a small greenhouse a few months ago and have over 20 house plants growing already.

A good soil media helps with the sterility and growth of the plants. I have found from personal experience that using the store bought soils don't work as well as home-made soils. I use 2 parts perlite to 1 part peatmoss or vermiculite. Another tip to help avoid pests is to sterilize all your planting pots in 10% bleach water.

House plants may be propagated a-sexually which means that the new plants will be identical to the parent plant. The methods can be done by cuttings, air-layering, division and runners.

Tip cuttings are generally 3 to 5" long and are removed from the parent plant just below a leaf. A rooting hormone (purchased from any garden store) may be used just to get it started faster. Dip the end of your cutting in the hormone then place in your soil media. Use a mist spray (squirt bottle) 2-3 times a day for about 2 weeks or until you see growth. Another tip is after 2 weeks you can do a light tug test (where you tug lightly to see if there is any resistence). If have had good success at using this techniques with philodenrons, begonias, pothos, fittonias, and purple waffle.

Air-layering is more complexed and I will give tips in a later post.

Division and runners are fairly easy. Division is the process of dividing into smaller pieces. First, remove plant from container and seperate plant with fingers or knife. Each division should have some roots and place in seperate container. Usually, this method is used for variegated varieties. Runners (creepers) such as strawberries are propagated this way. Place cluster of runners in contact with soil and place a paper clip or stake to hold it there. Where the union between the plant and soil you will notice roots starting to grow after about 2-3 weeks.

You can also propagate house plants from seed, but they take longer and they are more sensitive to get started and maintain the proper moisture and temperature.

Facts!

2005-04-05T07:48:00.000-07:00

Here are some known facts about our earth's crust.

Did you know that on the earth there is only about 7% of useable vegetative land available for use? Most of the land is unuseable due to erosion, pollution, desertification (mis-mananged soils), changes in soil chemistry, salination (accumulation of salts), and the loss of organic matter in the soils. This fascinated me to think that we can do our part to help save our land. The less pesticides we use the lower the amount of pollution that can be leached or drawn deeper in the soil layers.

Did you know that water covers 79% of the earth? The rest is land.

Did you know the air you breath contains 78% Nitrogen, 21% Oxygen, and .03% Carbon Dioxide? This is true.

Did you also know that roots of plants grow in the top 12" of soil? That is true because that is where more water can be found, as well as, organic matter, and air.

Did you also know that our soil is made of weathered rocks chemically or physically broken down into smaller particles? This is true physical weathering is when rocks absorb water and expand or contract and causes fractures in rock, and chemical weathering is when rain water changes the chemicals in rock into new compounds and adds oxygen to it.

I found this information interesting that if each of us does our part we can help preserve the good soil structures that we have left.

Let me know what you thought of the information that I gave and if it interests you.

My dog Heidi...

2005-04-02T18:26:00.000-08:00

I took my new dog Heidi who is 8 yrs old Pomeranian into the vet today to have her teeth cleaned and possibly a couple teeth pulled. I was quite surprised when I went to pick her up and found that they were only able to save one tooth. She needed 10 teeth pulled. Poor Heidi she looks all doped up and staggering around.. They said that eventually she will be able to gum hard food. How sad huh?

Enjoy!

2005-04-02T11:42:00.000-08:00

Here are pictures of the new puppies. What do you think?

(Click the thumbnail to view a larger photo)

New Arrivals are here!!!!

2005-04-02T00:56:00.000-08:00

My toy poodle named Lucy went into labor this evening about 7:45 pm. So far she has had 4 puppies with one not making it. She had 1 black male, 1 red male, and 1 brown male live births. I still think she is in labor and may have one more. She is continuing to strain so we will see. I will have pictures on my site tomorrow so you all can see the precious little ones.

For those dog lovers out there....

2005-04-01T13:13:00.000-08:00

I wanted you to check out a website here. This website and business is owned by my Aunt Michelle. She has raised and bred toy poodles for over 25 years. Her website features some beautiful toy poodles which some have been sold to actor's and other famous people.
She gave me my first dog as a birthday gift over 4 yrs ago and my business has grown three fold since then. It helps to pay for college.
I have two litters that will be born in the next 3 wks. I will post pictures on here when they come.

If anyone is interested!!!

2005-04-01T12:41:00.000-08:00

If anyone is interested in having a small residential landscape design plan done by me, please let me know. It will give me experience and more practice. Last term, we designed and installed a landscape as a group for an apartment in Forest Grove which was very exciting. Next year, we will individually go out to a home in the area and will be doing a plan and installation on our own. So, the more practice the better.

Spring Class

2005-04-01T12:30:00.000-08:00

I am in my 3rd term of my first year at PCC for Landscape Technology. I am enrolled in a class called Pesticides. Now, that sounds extremely exciting doesn't it. Actually, it is a required course that I must take. The instructor that I have came to class today unprepared. He was stumbling over his words, hesitating, and acting as if he hadn't read the text. Now, this is his 2nd term teaching this same class. You would think that the school would make sure all the instructors were versed on the course content. We as students knew more about the content than he did. Needless to say, the class was all bored. A few students fell asleep and we had to nudge them awake.
Sorry, I just had to vent about my day.

Coming soon!!

2005-03-31T16:25:00.000-08:00

What's hot for the small yards or spaces. Propagation and proper pruning techniques.
Stay tuned for information of these topics.

Props

2005-03-31T16:05:00.000-08:00

I have to give my friend Danielle props from Ferguson's Fragrant Nursery. She is a local resaler in St. Paul. She sells all types of fragrant plants and trees and has a wonderful garden landscaped. She has been featured on Gardening by the Yard, Koin-6, and KPTV-12. Please feel free to visit her website here.

Hi again!!

2005-03-31T16:01:00.000-08:00

I hope that people will find my site helpful for the gardener in us all. Thanks to all who have made me feel welcome.

Hi it's me!!!!!

2005-03-31T13:16:00.000-08:00

My name is Kathy and I am the wife of the infamous Bill Hayes who has a blog site www.igetsomad.com. We have been married since 1988 and have three wonderful children. Billy 14 yrs old, Matt 13 yrs old, and Lexi 7 yrs old.
I started this blog site to be with the in-crowd of bloggers. I am currently in my 1st year of college at Rock Creek studying for a landscape contractor and design license. As you can see the blog name fits. I have the in's and outs of anything having to do with indoor plants, trees, and shrubs. I can answer any questions, give advise, and help with small design plans.
My other hobbies or interests are my pets. I breed toy poodles in my spare time(like I have much of that now-a-days). I own 1 male toy poodle named Zack, 2 female toy poodles named Lucy and Sissy (who are both pregnant and due anyday), and Heidi who is a pomeranian and 8 yrs old. We also own 2 cats Tiger and DeeDee.
I just don't know where I find the time.