Garden

[cheriere]

@ChiliPepper 

I LOVE ❤️ your flowers!  🌸 

We've never planted that particular variety either.  The color is gorgeous!  I'm so glad you posted this because I want to put some out next year too!😃❤️🌸🌸🌸

[ChiliPepper]

@cheriere 

They are FABULOUS!!!

So easy & they self pollinate & grow & grow & grow!!

That pic of the grouping started as one plant that I planted a few years ago as a bit of an "honor garden" in my Mom's memory. A few years later they have exploded into that!

No fuss, no muss too! Deadhead them as needed, other than that - no work at all!

I take the dried heads & sprinkle the seeds around & you will have a whole new bunch next year!

[cheriere]

@ChiliPepper 

What a beautiful flower to choose as a garden honoring your mom's memory.  I really love that idea.😃❤️🌸

It's good to know they're not super hard to grow either.  It seems like I spend a lot of time in the early fall deadheading and drying out seeds of things I'm planning to put out next year.  I've done this with many of the old fashioned flower and gourd varieties that came from my grandparents house.❤️

I save large vitamin and pill bottles specifically for this.  Last year, I took my rheumatologist a bottle of dried seeds she'd been wanting to try and grow.  They're a very old fashioned fruit plant we call "Plum Granny's" around here.  These seeds came from some my dad had grown.  He's been planting and drying the seeds every year of this old variety for over 50 years himself.  I have some nice ones almost ready I'll be posting soon.😃❤️❤️❤️

[ChiliPepper]

@cheriere 

Ya, my Mom loved plants too so it's a fitting tribute! She really loved roses but I don't have the time to tend to roses right now, maybe when I retire.

She loved Hens & Chickens too so I have those everywhere. Another easy one; even with our TERRIBLE New York winters!

Oh how wonderful!!!

So great to be able to "carry on" with some plants from your family!!!

I have never heard of a Plum Granny. Gotta go look that one up!

[cheriere]

@ChiliPepper 

There's a really interesting story about these.  The yellow flowers turn into the fruit.  Here's a sneak picture of a ripe one.  I'll be posting about them on Saturday.  I've really been keeping these a secret because I've been so excited about posting lol.😃❤️

They run as vines, so we usually plant along a fence.  These aren't where we usually plant them.  A vine just came up here by the patio.  They're about the size of a small apple to a baseball.

[ChiliPepper]

@cheriere 

So it's a fruit??? Like a melon???

Fascinating!!!

[cheriere]

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@ChiliPepper wrote:

@cheriere 

So it's a fruit??? Like a melon???

Fascinating!!!

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Yes, they're a species of melon.  You can eat them, a lot of old timers do.  But,  I'm not particularly fond of them.  What I love them for is their scent!  It's amazing!  Just one sitting on a counter fills the room with its aroma.  When I was a little girl, my daddy would always bring the first one in just for me.❤️

Some people will fill a decorative bowl with a few to fill the house with scent.  One funny thing I did learn though is to never put one in a ziplock to take to someone.  I did this on a short trip @ 3 hours when taking one to my dr lol.  When the bag is opened, the smell will knock you down and it changes to very pungent.  The bag has to be tossed, but the plum granny will return to its normal smell though.😃❤️

I forgot to mention, the iPhone isn't even able to correctly identify it from a picture.  Also, did you notice the green one in the back?  It's not ripe yet.  This is actually kinda early for ANY to be ripe.  Must be the crazy hot summer we've had.