So,
my basil is dying.
Slowly.
It
looks like a slow burning fire is starting on the outer tip of each
big leaf and slowly consuming toward the center.
It's
not an uncommon sight. Plants of mine have died before.
Do
you remember the character of Elmira from baby Looney Toons?
The
one with the baby rabbits and baby characters. I kinda do, but my
memory may not be spot on.
I
do remember an overly enthusiastic girl who continually finds any
animal, rushes to it and loudly
exclaims.
“A NEW PET!
I WILL LOVE YOU FOREVER AND EVER. I WILL FEED YOU AND PET YOU AND TAKE
YOU FOR WALKS.”
Holding it in a bone cracking hug.
All
the while the unwilling creature is terrified and seeks the first chance
to escape.
I'm
like that with my plants sometimes...ok all the time.
I
have a habit of taking plants that have been in the ground and
transferring them into pots with the dream of them growing lush and
huge.
It's
a wonderful fantasy.
Living
in a jungle of mint, lemon balm, basil, and rosemary. Having it greet
me fresh in the morning, and whimsically plucking from each what I
want for tea, or anything else I wish to make.
But
there are a few differences between my dream and reality.
For
example. Plants, especially ones that have lived long tracts of time
(like their entire life) outside are very receptive to the stuff that
happens out of doors.
Like
temperature valleys and peaks.
The rhythm of getting cold at night and warming up
during the day.
Also the amount of sunlight makes a big difference.
It's
amazing to me in the fall to see the trees changing color, and yet
the day is still 70 degrees.
I
want to yell at the trees, “Hey! It's still warm out, don't change
yet. Cuz when you go, then it's winter!”
I'm
not a huge fan of winter. But it's not the temperature that is
dictating the color change, it's the decreasing sunlight.
Same
thing for my little pot-bound plants.
Maybe
my basil is just reacting to having less and less sun.
Maybe
it's reacting to being next to a window pane, where the cold air
seeps through the glass, sending chills down it's spine.
Or reacting to the cranky dragon-like radiator that sits right beneath it, exhaling
bellows of desert hot heat.
Maybe
that's killing it.
Or
maybe it's something I haven't considered.
I've
had a love affair with plants for a while now, but it's only fairly
recently that I realize how vastly important a plants root structure
is. Its the part you never see. So, naturally I don't think is very important.
When
digging up plants, I used to take a shovel full of roughly equal to what would fit into my pot.
Disregarding
the inches, feet, or miles of roots I may have left behind. I though that they can always be regrown once the plant realizes what a great
little space it now has.
It's
just logic, right?
Yes,
I foolishly think that plants will reason and come around to my point
of view. Instead of begrudging me about taking them from their homes,
friends, family, and most important, their favorite TV shows.
This
past summer I relocated a Sweet Woodruff plant.
Historically,
Sweet Woodruff was dried and put in straw tick mattresses to keep the
bugs away (think Citronella for a bed). Now-a-days it's used as a
pretty ground cover under trees and other very shady areas.
The
move was out from a sun bather's paradise to a shady spot.
I found him hiding among the Lungwort.
Although
this little guy only stood above the ground about three to four
inches, his root system connected him to another refugee brethren
that I hadn't noticed before, as well as 5 other long roots spreading
out in other directions.
I
followed what I could, pulling up a chunk of the Lungwort while I was
at it.
Which sparked the philosophical debate if it was OK to kill a
bunch of many in order to save a few of a few.
I
relocated the 4 inch Sweet Woodruff, and it's long interconnected
root system. Upon last checking, he's making modest growth in his new
home!
Moving
small plant with great consideration for it's root needs...success!
You
would think I have learned, right? Even small plants have big roots.
And not so tiny plants can have phenomenal root systems!
Alfalfa
roots can go amazingly deep into the soil. While some trees are
sticking to the surface for collecting rainwater, Alfalfa is trekking
deep into the depths of the unknown seeking the water table as well
as minerals that other plants could only dream about.
For
those who may not know, Alfalfa has 8 essential amino acids and the
highest chlorophyll content of any plant, along with being rich in
vitamins and minerals. It is a popular blood purifier and cure for
inflammations, including rheumatism.*
So
move aside gerbils, here I come!
If only I can figure out how to make
it taste better...
So
I learned my lesson, right? Wrong, when this fall hit, and I dreamed
of having some cheery lemon balm to knit away the winter hours with
me.
I
grabbed a shovel and roughly dug up about the same amount as what
would fit into my pot.
Totally disregarding
all roots I may have cut off.
Roots that are responsible for the vast
majority of the water, and mineral absorption of the plant.
So
what I did was kinda like taping someone's mouth shut, and sticking
their feet in a bucket of water. Explaining that what they need will
be absorbed through the skin, that their mouth isn't really necessary
for stuff like eating, drinking, and so on.
Needless
to say, my Lemon Balm is looking a bit green around the gills as
well.
Not
only is it adjusting to the shock of having it's roots hacked off,
and being in a temperature controlled, hyper dry environment.
It
also is facing the rather annoying challenge of staying alive when
it's rhythm says that it's time to sleep.
"Drop
your leaves, go into your roots (you know the same one's I chopped
off) and chill for a couple of months, you've been working hard all
summer." says Mother Nature.
The
last thing is nutrition.
In
my naive potted plant owner state, I mistakenly believed that if you
kept the soil fairly wet, it was enough for a plant to live and grow
and thrive. I've gotten plants from the store with roots curling upon
roots, or giant trees in small pots, and figured all they ever got
was a watering when they needed it.
It
wasn't until I read in a book, at a thrift store that said plants can
survive in pots because you provide all their nutrition... WHAT?
I
missed that part in plant parenting 101!
So
this year I bought my first box box of Miracle Grow, and like putting
make-up on for the first time. I awkwardly applied it to the plants
as I gave them their regular drink.
Worrying
all the time that I'm doing too much, or not enough, lopsided, or sneeze while I have the mascara in my hand, looking like I have a black eye.
I
still don't know how much to give them. Considering my box recommends
using it by the gallon, and I'm watering by the random cups of water.
Also
in an effort to counteract the uncontrollable weather, the waning
sun, and all the other things that I can't control. I water
constantly in the winter time.
Constantly
Actually
I water pretty obsessively all the time, but in the summer they need
it.
In
the winter, they don't.
So in my effort to be helpful, I turn my
plants into deep sea divers.
And
still I wonder why my basil is dying.
If
you have any tips for keeping plants alive over the winter. Please
let me know.
May you take care of yourself happily
* I don't know everything, info taken from www.bulkherbstore.com catalog
