tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-152912292794917756.post272638247534597273..comments2022-09-24T05:14:55.866-07:00Comments on floraphile: Welcome to the flora files, floraphiles!floraphilehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04344467260152393742noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-152912292794917756.post-61430070684278132782010-11-16T16:34:18.880-08:002010-11-16T16:34:18.880-08:00Dear ficusphile: Did you notice that the NYT arti...Dear ficusphile: Did you notice that the NYT article was not high on ficus? I share their lack of enthusiasm. However, I noticed that those experts all live in little apartment, so they must have small plants in small containers, hence their recommendations. And I believe what you are missing is having an indoor tree, yes? Your ficus was that big, still is nearly that big in its desecrated form. You could try a less fussy ficus, the fiddle-leaf fig. But that could be asking for more heartbreak. There's the dracaena marginata (Madagascar dragon tree), which I've seen with the trunks braided. I know that was your beloved ficus' style. Rubber plants are pretty indestructible. I say, go to Ikea and see what they've got. That's right Ikea. I bought a number of Ikea houseplants that are still going strong 1 year later. You can get a cheap plant and an inoffensive pot in one place. And, take it from a friend: It's about time you moved on. Stop punishing yourself and that braided stump in your living room.floraphilehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04344467260152393742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-152912292794917756.post-32639185946634503332010-11-12T21:47:48.269-08:002010-11-12T21:47:48.269-08:00Dear Floraphile: Cool Blog. I am a ficusphile, b...Dear Floraphile: Cool Blog. I am a ficusphile, but my ficus bit it--hard. The dried limbs cut to stumps it now sports stuffed animals that my tiny guy doesn't like anyway -- a sad, perverse xmas tree. So I keep thinking what to do, how to replace it? I'm reading today the NYT Hard to Kill article(http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/11/garden/11houseplants.html) about houseplants that even I might keep alive. But they're hardly ficus worthy. Any suggestions for something more inspired and hardy?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-152912292794917756.post-41914338019164156922010-11-10T13:16:50.557-08:002010-11-10T13:16:50.557-08:00Hi Hil:
I really loved your pictures and your ex...Hi Hil: <br /><br />I really loved your pictures and your excellent writing style. I think you need to get a job teaching writing, spelling and vocabulary to today's young people. I read and hear the most outrageous mangling of our language in the NY Times, on NPR, etc.<br /><br />We thought your tree was a bay laurel, too. Can the leaves of the CA bay laurel/OR myrtle be used for seasoning?<br /><br />Much warm aloha.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-152912292794917756.post-7363464750107115272010-11-10T10:40:54.640-08:002010-11-10T10:40:54.640-08:00jvr, who are you?jvr, who are you?floraphilehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04344467260152393742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-152912292794917756.post-27218007230706231892010-11-08T17:31:32.970-08:002010-11-08T17:31:32.970-08:00Love the blog. Can you write a bit about your fant...Love the blog. Can you write a bit about your fantastic neighbors?ph290https://www.blogger.com/profile/09723226261115559579noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-152912292794917756.post-77771057226855459032010-11-08T14:48:47.907-08:002010-11-08T14:48:47.907-08:00Thanks, Tris. So here's what I have gathered: ...Thanks, Tris. So here's what I have gathered: The trees that grew in both our yards were umbellularia californica, called California Bay Laurel in CA and Oregon Myrtle when in OR. It is not actually true Bay Laurel, which is laurus nobilis and hails from the Mediterranean. This I have growing in a pot on my front porch. There's a Pacific *wax* myrtle that's a shrub. So, you can tell Greg that my nomenclature needed correcting.floraphilehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04344467260152393742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-152912292794917756.post-27699234593772463342010-11-08T09:39:12.861-08:002010-11-08T09:39:12.861-08:00FloriBUNDA! Love the blog. Question...you may be ...FloriBUNDA! Love the blog. Question...you may be surprised to hear this, Greg and I were "discussing" whether your beloved 4th Avenue tree is the same as ours? We've always thought it a Bay Laurel? Greg was ready to correct you. I, of course, corrected him. Thus, my question. Any insights, o master gardener(ish)?Trishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16451075638094512836noreply@blogger.com