Ah – winter is just around the corner – my greenhouse is still in disrepair and once again plants are moving into my living room. Yip – I have hook after hook mounted in my ceiling. Plants are clustered in those large wire baskets meant to have a coconut fiber lining in them – but alas, there is no lining in mine because they are edge to edge with pots of various sizes filled with plants that really need transplanted into larger pots but there is no more space, so these tight quarters must do for the winter.
Of course, not every plant can hang. Flats filled with tiny seedlings must sit on a shelf – and there must be light no more than six inches above those tiny green sprouts. Seed starting – after all – isn’t limited to spring – or even late winter. Nope – around here there is always a new tropical plant to start from seed, or more vegetables or herbs. Flowers – for the most part – are the last seeds sown – and that generally doesn’t happen until about eight weeks before the last spring frost – that is, if there is room for any more flats.
Smaller pots dot the top of the entertainment center, sections of shelving that flats won’t sit on – and any other available space I can find. Large pots – some so large a dolly is required to move them – are crammed into every bare spot on the floor I can find. Sometimes furniture is put into storage just to make room for the plants. After all spring will be back, the plants will go outside and thus the furniture can come out of storage.
This may seem overwhelming to some – but if you are a plant-a-holic – or live with one – you know this scenario quite well. Even if you have a greenhouse, sometimes you still run out of space and the house gets filled with the overflow.
This is – however – my life – and I wouldn’t trade being a plant-a-holic for anything – even a million dollars. I love growing plants. I love seeing them burst into bloom or eating the fruit of my labor. I love growing plants that shouldn’t thrive here in Indiana such as chocolate, cinnamon, ylang ylang and nutmeg.
Are you a plant-a-holic too? Confessions welcome below –
