Monarch Resurrection in Fort Lauderdale

I want to share this amazing butterfly on a cool morning last week. Enjoy the photos. This monarch was resting outside my door. I brought over some flowers for nourishment and little by little she became active.
I lifted her up with a piece of paper and placed her on a collard green leaf and brought her into the sun. She then had enough energy to fly away.

Shamrocks and Irish Expressions - Miami Gardening | Examiner.com

Shamrocks and Irish Expressions - Miami Gardening | Examiner.com

Best Irish Blessings

The plant of the day is the shamrock (oxalis.) This one shown is a hanging basket that was originally planted with an impatiens plant. The shamrock was a volunteer that started growing in the pot on its own. I never got around to pulling it out. It eventually overpowered the impatiens and came in handy when I was doing my St. Patty’s Day class and nature crafts at the nursing homes. I am a horticulture therapist.


Here are some great Irish expressions
• As you slide down the banister of life, may the splinters never point the wrong way.
• May you be in Heaven a full half hour before the devil knows you are dead!
• May the lord take a liking to you but not too soon.
• Do not resent growing old, many are denied the privilege.
• A blessing does not fill the belly.
• He who has water and peat on his farm has the world.
• Often a person’s mouth has broken his nose.
• A shut mouth catches no flies.
• It’s no use boiling your cabbage twice.
• May your kilt be short enough to dance theIrish jig but long enough to cover
your lucky charms.
Drink enough green beer and it comes out green as well.
• May you live to be one hundred years, with one extra to repent.
• May the lord keep you in his hand and never close his fist too tight on you.
• May the road rise to meet you.

May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face, the rains fall soft upon your fields, and until we meet again,
May G-d hold you in the palm of his hand.

Old Fashioned Roses Are New Again

There is a new phenomenon in the south Florida gardening world. What is old is new again. Heirloom roses are becoming available at local garden centers and nurseries. There are wonderful benefits to growing the old fashioned roses.


Old fashioned roses are easier to grow than the new hybrid roses. They require little to no spraying of insecticides or fungicides. Heirloom roses flower more profusely than the newer hybrids. They often have a wonderful aroma. They grow on fuller bushes so they look less straggly than traditional hybrid roses. They require less pruning than modern roses.


The drawback of heirloom roses is that they do not have long stems, so they are not used in large vases. The stems are also very thin and are best suited for a bud vase. The flowers usually have fewer petals and fall off the stem in a shorter time than new hybrids. The color selection is limited.

There are a bountiful amount of old roses, such as the Gallica, Damask, Centifolia, Portland, Bourbon, Ramblers and more. Some of these early hybrids originated from the old china roses. European in origin, they came here with early settlers to the United States. Southern plantation owners covered their entry fences with many of these roses. They became own as Dixie roses.