March is already here. Since coming back from Portugal, the first thing I feel is... it's still cold in Germany! That being said, I managed to escape the freezing days of around -10°C while I was away, so I guess I can't complain too much.
As for my plants, some survived well while others struggled during my absence. Since cold weather was forecasted while I was away, I gathered them all inside by the window where they could get as much light as possible before leaving.
The yuzu tree is doing well as always. It's so strong. But the kumquat and lemon trees have lost some leaves, which is a bit concerning. I plan to keep the lemon tree indoors for now, but as the weather warms up next week, I’ll move it back outside.
One of my bigger failures was the chili plants. I had placed them in the dark, cold hallway outside in an attempt to overwinter them. Before leaving, I moved them indoors and covered them with plastic bags with holes to prevent drying out. Unfortunately, the humidity was too high, and some of them developed mold... 😭
Interestingly, even among the plants in the same pot, some were affected while others were not.
Aside from excessive humidity, there may have been other factors at play. Perhaps I should have waited until I got back to wake them up. Learning by doing, that's gardening 😉
On the bright side, some plants did really well. The fig tree and Shiso plants I had placed in the small greenhouse I bought last month survived without any issues. In fact, even some more fig plants sprouted. These figs were grown from seeds of fresh figs from Hive Fest, so I’m very happy to see them doing well. This greenhouse is quite practical, so I’m thinking about getting a few more.
As for the shiso seeds I sowed in trays, their germination has been a bit uneven, but both red and green shiso have started to sprout. Since I’d like to have a bit more red shiso for syrup-making experiments, I plan to sow some more today.
Oh, and these little ones that traveled back with me from Portugal should soaked enough water by now, so it's time to plant them.
Ah, it feels so nice to be home with plants. I both like regular days at home with plants and travel to explore the world.
Wishing you all a wonderful Sunday. Happy gardening!
はやいことにもう3月ですね。ポルトガルから帰ってきて思うのは、ドイツは寒い！です。とはいえマイナス10度くらいになる極寒の日々はポルトガルに逃げられたのでよしとしましょう。
ただ、外出中の植物のケアは成功したものもあり、失敗したものもありという感じです。旅行中に寒い日が予報にあったので、こんな感じに窓際の光が当たる場所に大集結させて家を出ました。
柚子は元気なのですが、金柑とレモンが葉を落としていてやや心配です。レモンは家に取り込んだままにして、来週暖かくなるのでまた外に出そうと思っています。
もう一つ失敗したのが唐辛子でした。越冬させようとして暗くて寒い玄関の外の廊下に置いていた唐辛子を家の中に入れて、乾燥しないようにビニール袋をかけて家を出たら、湿度が高すぎて何株かにカビが生えてしまいました・・・😭
同じ鉢に植っている株でも違いがあり、過度な湿度の他にも何か原因があるのかもしれません。焦らずに帰ってきてから起こしても良かったのかもしれません。Learning by doing, that's gardening!です。
うまくいったものもあって、先月購入した小さなグリーンハウスに入れておいたイチヂクと紫蘇は無事でした。イチヂクはさらにいくつか芽が出ているほどです。Hive Festから持ち帰った種で育てているイチヂクで、元気にしていてくれて本当によかったです。このグリーンハウスは扱いやすいのでもう何個か買い足そうと思います。
トレイに種をまいていった紫蘇は、発芽がややばらばらなものの、赤紫蘇も青紫蘇も発芽しています。紫蘇シロップの試作用にもうちょっと赤紫蘇があるとよいので、今日もう少しまき足そうと思います。
そうそう、ポルトガルから一緒に帰ってきたこの子たちがそろそろ吸水したと思うので植えないと。お土産を眺めてみると食べ物、お酒、食器、カトラリーと植物で、自分がご飯と植物が大好きなことを改めて実感するのでした。
ああ、自宅に戻ってほっと一息。植物たちと再開できてうれしいです。
それではみなさん、素敵な日曜日を。Happy gardening!