My Whacky and Whimsical Containers

When I did this I was accused of being downright eccentric and whimsical by my family, but now these ‘best out of waste’ ideas look like work of art, at least to me.It was, thanks to some careless handling on a bad mood day that the base of my favorite water flask came off. The sight of the fresh Kiwi fruit on the body had made this flask a much cherished one. So obviously my despair knew no bounds when the base gave away. Not in a mood to throw away something so dear to me, I hit upon the idea of planting some ornamental Asparagus in it. And now the plant is thriving and the flask with the kiwi fruit photo too is all there.What used to be a beautiful lamp once was reduced to a rotund glass structure after meeting its nemesis in my little daughter. One fine day she decided to test the resilience of the lamp by banging the telephone receiver on it; as it turned out, receiver won the mini battle and the lamp was left separated from its neck. And so here it is, sitting pretty in my garden, with a portulaca in it instead of a bulb.
This sea shell was brought from Kerala coast, where my hubby had gone on an official trip, and I instantly knew the best use I could put this shell to. So that’s Haworthia in a Sea Shell for youThis one actually is an earthenware pot, which was a ubiquitous presence in Indian households for storing water, before plastics and other synthetic derivatives displaced everything traditional and healthy. Because of the naturally present micro pores in the earthenware pot, it kept water very cool and lend a slight ‘taste’ to the stored water making the water feel very fresh to the palate. As a fond remembrance for the, now vestigial, earthenware pot, I planted a Tradescantia in it, and as the structural material of this pot is same as the conventionally used one, plant is happily thriving.
Having read a number of articles about the dangers posed by plastics, I have come to despise them, especially for microwave cooking. I believe that warmth can cause the toxic chemicals from the plastic vessel to enter into food, even with the so called ‘food grade’ plastics. Saying no to plastic for cooking, I used it in my garden! The Portulaca seems to enjoy its modified container.Aromatic tea gave way to beautiful Caladium, as the handle of this cup gave away, and the floral pattern on the cup makes the cup appear at home amidst other plants…or so I hope!
Now that is numero uno in the list of my whacky containers. I had a sedum planted in this loofah and had it hang through a support.


Having seen me indulge in these whacky, and may be downright atrocious container planting, my hubby says, “I am scared that if I am to stand still for more than 15 min, you might even start entertaining the idea of potting something in me” Now that is so inconsiderate!

My Heart goes Banana...

Its time to go bananas again! I was rather impatiently, and with a little apprehension – the fondness of bugs for my fruits has been all too evident in the past - waiting for the bananas to ripen.

Fruits are arguably the best thing that comes out of a garden. One can buy a whole bunch of bananas in the market but it is not a patch on a single one produced in your backyard. After all it is not without reason that most of the anecdotes allude to these wonderful gifts [fruits] of nature. Have we ever heard of, ‘reaping the flowers of one’s labor?’ Or may be, ‘tasting the sweet vegetables of success?’ quite obviously these altered proverbs don’t cut any ice with logic.
Finally ripen they did. When the bunch of this, potentially creamy, juicy, but now raw green fruit showed slight roundening of borders, I knew that the time was ripe to free the bunch from the branch.
Now, here was the catchy part as I had to invest in a kilo of apples from the fruit vendor so that I could put one of those apples with my beautiful bunch to enable ripening. The acetylene gas, which is liberated in whole sale by the apple, helps ripen the bananas quickly.
The banana bunch, with the apple, are put in a bucket and covered nicely with a newspaper…
Lo and behold! Rich, sweet, creamy, healthy, power packed, absolutely homegrown(but for the solitary apple), bananas are ready…

Happy Diwali

The festival of lights, Diwali, is here. On this wonderful occasion I wish all my blogger friends peace and prosperity.
As per Hindu tradition this festival marks the homecoming of lord Rama after slaying the demon Ravana. Therefore the festival in essence is celebration of restoration of good after destroying evil and etymologically Diwali means a ‘row of lights’. The houses are spring cleaned, decorated and lit with a row of lights.
I will get on with the preparations and may you all have a very Happy Diwali.
(photo courtesy-kalisipudi.wordpress.com)