Saturday, December 04, 2010

Winter Whites

Spider Lilies

Are you a lover of white flowers? I'll confess, I am not. I see so much white, in the form of mountain snow, that the thought of planting white flowers never really snaps my socks.

Moth Orchid

But, hey, I'm a Libra, and we're perpetually undecided.

So, after visiting Lona's pretty blog yesterday (she had an entire post of stunning white flowers) it got me thinking about how much prettier our gardens can be when we entertain the notions of others.

Christmas Azalea

Left to my own devices, things would be a sea of pink and blue. But, my daughter loves white so I'll include a couple zzzzzzzzzz, ever so dull, white perennials in the flower beds just for her.

African Violet

And, if you catch me on a good day, I might grudgingly agree with Hocking Hills ~ white flowers pop like nobody's business against my sea of blue.

Christmas Cactus

What I didn't realize, until yesterday, is that white pops indoors just as beautifully.

And, that I am clearly in the minority when it comes to white flowers!

Because all the pretty blossoms in this post are past holiday gifts from white flower lovin' friends.

Plum Bonsai

Full Disclosure!
* I'm not nearly as popular as it might appear. :) Some of these whities are 5 or 6 years old. I expend a great deal of effort trying keep gifted perennials alive. Yep. I'm just that insecure. I have nightmares about the awkward moment when some friend pays me a visit, glances at the sunny window, and demands:

Hey! Where's that white something or other I bought you? 

Oh, it died.

And, you feel qualified to be a garden blogger???

Yikes.

27 comments:

CanadianGardenJoy said...

Kate girl .. you made me laugh and that is GOOD thing right now .. I think my bedroom TV has died and I can't go to sleep without that as background noise ? haha
I love white dotted here and there and only wished I had enough room to dedicate to a white garden : ) or is that called a "moon garden" ? doesn't that sound amazing ?
Any whoooo .. hey, I didn't know you were a Libra too ! We have such a hard time making up our minds don't we ? perpetual "let me think about that and I will get back to you!" type deal, even with ourselves ! haha
Don't worry .. I won't ask about those beautiful white flowered plants when I come over for coffee .. I already know what happened! LOL
Joy : )

Marguerite said...

All those lovely white flowers, if you hadn't said so I'd think you had a love affair going on with white. I once did several planters all in white - lobelia, carex 'Ice Dance', impatiens, etc. Still my absolute favourite planter many years later. Particularly when shade gardening, white just brightens everything up so nicely.

KC said...

Well, I kill most houseplants eventually so please don't look for any past gifts at my house. I feel bad about indoor plants that I buy because I know I am giving them a death sentence. I sure do enjoy them while they last though.

Lona said...

Hi Kate. Girl you have some beautiful white plants indoors. I love your Lily and the Winter Azaleas. Just gorgeous. I do not have great luck with plants indoors. No good windows with lighting. This old house just was not built by a gardener. LOL! If you can keep that beautiful orchid alive you are my hero. LOL!

Wendy said...

Well without your disclosure, no one would every have known!

I love white. I particularly love a spot or streak of color like in the first few photos.

Susan in the Pink Hat said...

Haven't heard from you for awhile! I loved this. As for white flowers, they usually have some sparkle to them to make up for their lack of color in adding to other virtues like fragrance. Lovely pics.

sweetbay said...

I'm down to 0 indoor plants (except for the holiday cactus that come in freezing nights) so I'm not one to judge. :) I didn't use to be a fan of white flowers until I had a garden in partial shade, and now I love them in all situations. They really make colors sing.

donna said...

Kate dear....I'm a huge fan of white blooms and so enjoyed this post dedicated to white. White flowers brighten up the entire garden....espeicially at dawn and dusk.

Houseplants....uggghhh. I can't grow them. What I don't kill, Butterscotch the cat does.

Late September, I brought the mandevilla inside for the winter. So far, so good.

Happy Day to you, friend.

donna

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

Hi, Joy!
A moon garden... hmmm... I love that idea. Especially since we tend to sit outside on summer nights to star gaze. Hope you get some rest. If you can't fix the t.v. try reading more of my blog posts. They work like a sedative for most people... ;>)

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

Hi, Marguerite;
I'll bet your white planters were absolutely stunning. My daughter would have fallen madly in love. I, on the other hand, read the word Lobelia and thought ah, geez, Lobelia comes in blue, too! :))))) thanks for paying me a visit. I'm quite enamored with your area of BC.

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

I am well aware of your murderous legacy, KC. And, I luv ya in spite of it.

But, you don't have to worry about flowers from me, this year. I planted your Apple Blossom so late that chances are I won't even give it to for Christmas.

PS: You can still give me stuff, though... :D

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

Hi, Lona;
My muse for the day... I can't decide what I liked the most about your lovely post. The winter whites or that very pretty holiday blog background. I tried with my background, it didn't really work. I'm already tired of the blue stars and it's only the 4th.

Anyhoo, yes it's very funny about this old house. It was most definitely designed for a gardener. The bay windows are enormous and I grow pretty much everything in them.

But, I've met the people who built the house and -- get this -- they wanted nothing to do with flowers or gardening. (??)

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

Hi, Wendy;
Well, I obviously have a number of white flower loving friends. Which is kind of cool. I never really noticed that until Lona started talking up the whites.

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

Hi, Susan;
Yes, I've been absent from the blogosphere lately. Too much real life drama going on, I guess. But, I miss it and thanks for paying me a visit. I like your description of sparkling. Now that you mention it, those white (indoor) azaleas really do sparkle...

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

Well, Sweetbay, if I lived in your little paradise, where it's hardly ever cold, I wouldn't bother with indoor plants. But, the reality of a mountain gardener's life is polar opposite. It will be 6 long months before I can play in the mud. To avoid cabin fever I need an indoor garden season, too!

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

Happy day to you, too, Donna. Hope this finds you well and in good spirits. I know you've been dealing with a lot lately.

Perhaps plant some oat seeds for Butterscotch? I do that in winter to keep my serial kitties from killing every little houseplant in the sunny window. They love nibbling on those fresh greens...

Tatyana@MySecretGarden said...

I don't have many white flowers in my garden... Hmm... Is it right? I started counting and it looks like I have a good number of them! They do make statement in the garden but I never wanted to creat a white garden. Kate, you are doing a great job keeping your gifted plants alive!

Rose said...

There's so much pressure on us when we say we're gardeners, isn't there, Kate?:) I've avoided planting very many white flowers, too, because I want that impact of color. But after seeing other people's white blooms and seeing a small white garden in the area, I'm rethinking my stance. I'm a Gemini, so we can have many opinions:)

I'm impressed that you've kept so many of these blooms for so long!

Snowcatcher said...

A wonderful collection! I don't have any orchids yet, but I have several white Christmas cactus, and I think they're my favorite. Mine are all going nuts now!

Dig, Grow, Compost, Blog said...

Ha, loved that. And I love that white African violet. It's so different. I could almost smell some of those flowers. For some reason, I always think of white flowers as being fragrant.

Laurrie said...

I dunno, I think your white blooms are definitely sock snapping! I liked seeing the purity and simplicity of yours (and Lona's in her post). Lovely.

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

I'm the same way, Tatyana! I didn't realize I had so many white plants until I started inspecting the sunny window...

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

'Tis true, Rose. Does this happen to you? People gift me their dead plants thinking I can wave a magic wand and bring them back to life. This time of year I'll get several dead poinsettias who have not been watered in over a month.... And, there's just no fixing that!

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

Hi, Snowcatcher;
I'm beginning to love my white Christmas cactus, too. But she doesn't flower for every long... :(

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

Hi, Jean;
I'm glad you like that violet. What's your address? I'll send it to you. Just kidding. I'm not a fan of white violets though - wouldn't ya know - she is the most prolific bloomer, outshining by purple violets year in, year out.

Kate/High Altitude Gardening said...

Thx, Laurrie;
I thought Lona's collection was just stunning.

Anonymous said...

Recently I have begun to appreciate white flowers in my garden. They are the elements that brighten and contrast so well with any color.