April 08, 2010

gift from a friend & rosemary!

Still plugging away on my Village and some other things too...I seem to be having some Attention Deficit problems where my stitching is concerned, ahem. So in the meantime, I wanted to share something my friend Patti stitched for me.
It was actually a Christmas gift this past year, and finally, four months later, I post about it!

Isn't it lovely?








Patti used some sparkly threads in the wings of the bees, it's kind of hard to pick up with the camera though. Thank you again Patti, your stitching is perfect, as always!



OK, see this pretty little rosemary plant?



Well, I am infamous for my plant killing skills. Trust me. Even my hubby calls me "the Morticia of the plant world". Plants come here to die. It's not pretty. But despite my knowledge of this, I keep on lying to myself! I got this on the way into Central Market with Patti a couple of weeks ago, maybe a week and a half. Because there's a killer (oh hahahaha) potato recipe I've been making that uses rosemary and I thought, oh boy, FRESH rosemary, how wonderful would that be? (Silly, stupid disillusioned woman)! So....we're walking through the store and a lady working in the deli department spotted it and said "oh, are you going to plant some rosemary? It's very hardy and easy to grow, it'll take over". I said, "yes, I'm going to try, but I kill everything"! She said "I can't get rid of mine, it keeps coming back, even after I put a big rock on top of it, it grew back up around the rock". I'm just shaking my head, thinking, lady, you don't know me, I'm the grim reaper of plants, seriously.

So can you see where this is headed? I won't show you a picture of it, but believe me when I tell you that part of it is already dead. It's in my sun room, getting plenty of light (indirect), I've watered it, misted it (which did perk it up some), read the directions over and over (not watering too much, etc). But yep, still trying to die. I'd like to plant it in the back yard but with three male pugs that use the back yard as their bathroom, there's a lot of hiking and peeing on things, so that's probably a worse idea. Maybe out front....we have a flower box on the front porch that gets a lot of sun (direct)...any ideas? Put it in a pot or plant it in the ground?

I'd like to keep it alive at least until I make the potatoes again ;-)

28 comments:

Chocolates4Breakfast (Terri ~ Boog) said...

Hmmm... not sure I'd plant it in the back where the poochies pee and then use it in your potatoes! tee hee hee! I plant mine in the ground and it does okay - I don't think it gets quite enough sun so it doesn't get huge but it does survive. Try planting it in the ground, water it the first couple of weeks and then, pretty much ignore it!

Your To Bee or not to Bee is very pretty! Love the pinks!

DaisyGirl said...

I killed my rosemary plant too, so don't feel too bad! I love the way rosemary smells and the spicy taste it gives food!

Sandra said...

I never think plants survive long in those little pots, so it might be better to plant it up in a bigger tub away from the pugs. I haven't looked at mine this year yet, we lost so many shrubs this Winter, but hopefully it will have survived. Oh, and it won't want too much water as they are Mediterranean plants and survive in the hot and dry climate.

KarenV said...

When we first moved into this house, we had rosemary bushes in the front garden (direct sun, gets very hot in the afternoon in summer) and they thrived. We don't have them any longer, as we completely redesigned the front, but we have a small pot in the back garden on our (sunny) deck and it's doing fine. I think outside would be better than inside and direct sun is fine, so maybe try your front garden?

Love the gift that you received, very pretty!

Vonna Pfeiffer said...

I love your To Be or Not to Bee :) Sweet :) Deb always, always does a perfect job and this one is no exception -it's gorgeous!

Rosemary, I kept mine in a pot last year. Grew like gangbusters, I had grand illusions of making it sort of like a topiary tree and taking it in and out of doors as the season called for - but I forgot to bring it in before frost....ooops.

connie said...

I LOVE rosemary..mine died out this past winter so I will be getting another one when I get to the greenhouse..I like to cut pieces off my rosemary and bring them in the house they smell so good..I would plant your rosemary in the ground..If you didn't want to plant it in the front yard is there a sunny place on the side of your house or garage you could make a small herb garden..Would you share you potato recipe that uses rosemary when you get a chance..

Nancy said...

I've never tried growing herbs so I can't give any advice on that subject. I wish you luck with your Rosemary!

Patti stitched you a gorgeous gift!

Margaret said...

That's a beautiful gift! About the rosemary, I won't be any help at all. I'm a pretty major killer of plants too. lol! Good luck!

Faye said...

I have Rosemary in a pot and growing wild in the yard...tastes better from the pot though....Love your LHN exchange piece~~ Faye

Marjorie said...

OK, I am not a plant killer, but I have pretty much ignored my rosemary since I stuck it in the ground in the front of my house and it is now shrub-sized. As long as you make sure it has water until the root system is established it should be fine.

Wakana said...

me too! my family tells me i have a black thumb...BUT so far my rosemary plants that i got last year are still alive so there's hope for us:) I have mine planted on the south side of the house - they get lots of sun, and I don't water much, probably i should but they're okay so far. I got mine after an italian friend of mine treated me to her white pizza - simple pizza with sliced potatoes, fresh rosemary from the garden and olive oil. No cheese, but it was very yummy :)

Laurie in Iowa said...

Your gift is beautiful. Rosemary plants love being on the dry side. Let the pot totally dry out, leave it dry for a day or so, and then give it a drink of water. If you decide to plant it outdoors, make sure to plant it in a location near your kitchen. Otherwise you not going to want to bother going out to clip some sprigs for your cooking.
I wouldn't plant it where the pups have access... don't think you want that kind on flavoring on your taters. :-)

Unknown said...

What a beautiful finish - I agree, Deb does the best work!

Poor little rosemary plant, lol. I can't help either.

Enjoy your weekend.

Catherine said...

Lovely finish on that exchange!!

My rosemary didn't survive the winter here. Maybe next year I'll bring it inside for the winter months.

Alice said...

I just love Patti's gift to you. To bee or not to bee is one of my favourite phrases. With the puggy boys peeing out back they would definately choose the rosemary to do it on to improve their boy smell. Out front would be the solution. Rosemary wants full sun but it hates cold winds. Its a plant that wants excellent drainage but if you "harvest" too many leaves it can kill the plant so beware. When you plant it make sure that the soil level of the rosemary is level with your garden's soil surface or your pot's soil surface. NEVER plant it deeper that the soil builds up against the plant. A sure killer. My rosemary did not make it through winter as its planted outside and it was a freezing.
I have never found that rosemary is very happy inside the house even with a lot of sun but I think the real killer is over-harvesting.
Alice
xxx

Melissa said...

Plant it outside, in a planter if you'd like. Give it sun, some initial watering. Make sure it's in a place where it gets rainwater too, then "step away from the plant" Andrea! lol. Mine grows just like that in a planter and it doesn't need any care. Really.

You know we're all going to keep asking you now how "Rosie" is doing, don't you?

Michelle said...

Love the Bee piece - so sweet!! Hope you've gotten some tips on your rosemary. I am disastrous with plants too. Sigh.

Donna said...

Love the stitching. Now onto the rosemary.
It is probably root bound in the pot. Get a bigger pot, put some soil in it and plant it there. Water it a little. Then as one other blogger said, "step away from the rosemary". Put it in the front, away from the puppies.
And good luck.

Tammy said...

I do ok with outdoor plants, and I adore indoor violets, but don't have any currently. I guess I have a so-so green thumb. Nothing to brag on. Your finish is stunning and I agree--perfect! The black trim really sets off those little bees! I am partial to bees.

Jan said...

Love your special gift from your special friend, wonderfully stitched and finished!

I think the best thing is maybe try and divide it, plant some outside and leave a bit inside. Pamper the first few days, then ignore, hoping it all works out for you!

Nancy in WI said...

Hey, plants die for me too! In the early years of marriage back in the 70's I had a spider plant I didn't like. I didn't water it and put it out on the water heater in the garage and it thrived for months! My son says I'm the only one that can kill a cactus! When he was in college he wanted me to keep his cactus and I killed it! Nancy in WI

Brigitte said...

The bee pinkeep looks so nice. Great gift that you received.
I don't have a green thumb either. It's my husband who cares for all the plants in and out the house. And that's why they survive, lol.

Siobhán said...

I love that pinkeep from Patti! It is so pretty. Deb's finishing is always exquisite.

The rosemary plant... I haven't a clue. I have plants here that I have managed not to kill, a fact that amazes me daily. Except for two Christmas cacti that were thriving and now are pretty sad looking. I had these grand plans to do an herb garden, or at least have a bunch on my window sill. I started with a coriander plant--once I realized that cilantro is called coriander here. I put it on the window sill, used it once in PW's Pastor Ryan's Tikka Masala. The next morning it looked like I mowed it down. I went to water it and noticed a bug flying nearby. I looked closer and the freaking plant was CRAWLING with bugs. DH thinks it must have had eggs on it and then hatched. Lovely. I opened the kitchen window and pitched the thing outside. BLECH. So much for the herb garden. :P Good luck with the rosemary plant!!

xoxoxo

Carol said...

That's a beautiful gift and the finishing is awesome. I seem to have ADD in all areas of my life! Oh well....gotta learn to live with it.

Stitch By Stitch said...

What a really nice finish! Love the extra effort in the bees wings with sparkle! Have a wonderful week.

Joy said...

What a lovely gift! I'm convinced rosemary dosen't like too much attention. Happy Week!

Katrina said...

I am with you, love Deb's finishing. She's wonderful. Cute piece :-).

I can't grow plants either so I am no help.

MyLifesAStitch said...

Love the Bee piece! what a cutey, and wonderful finishing, too!

Ya know... I wish I could help with the rosemary, I really do... I have a sorta kinda green thumb, but rosemary... it defeats me. I've bought it potted several times, and every single time I've managed to kill it within a week, lol!! NO idea why!!