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It's not hard to see how the sapphire tower gets its name. Image Credit: HannaTor/Shutterstock.com Sometimes in nature, there are events that we have to wait for. Some, like the upcoming American cicadapocaplypse might not be so popular – whereas, across the pond in Birmingham, UK, botanists are thrilled to reveal the blooming of their sapphire tower. The sapphire tower plant (Puya alpestri) from the Chilean Andes can take up to 10 years to flower. The plant is a member of the bromeliad family, distantly related to the pineapple. Normally found at high elevations of up to 2,200 meters (7,218...

The Weekly Gardening Thread is a weekly gathering of folks that love soil, seeds and plants of all kinds. From complete newbies that are looking to start that first potted plant, to gardeners with some acreage, to Master Gardener level and beyond, we would love to hear from you. If you have specific question about a plant/problem you are having, please remember to state the Growing Zone where you are located. This thread is a non-political respite. No matter what, you won’t be flamed, and the only dumb question is the one that isn’t asked. It is impossible to hijack...

Some say it's sad that the flowers wither. I say it's a good thing. Flowers are a kind of reminder, a timer for our love. By the time they fade it's a reminder it's time to say "I love you" again.

The pandemic has inspired many people to make big life changes. For Ashley Manning of Charlotte, North Carolina, COVID-19 was an opportunity to leave her job in pharmaceutical sales to become a stay-at-home mom. She even used her extra time at home to launch a small business, “Pretty Things by A.E. Manning.” The self-taught florist has always loved working with flowers and seeing the joy they bring to their recipients. She hoped to make just enough money to justify a babysitter while she worked, but the business turned out to be a bigger hit than she imagined. For years, she...

Spending Valentine's Day alone after losing a loved one can be hard - which is why a North Carolina woman is dedicating her Valentine's Day to delivering hundreds of flowers to widows. Ashley Manning, a florist from Charlotte, won't be celebrating the day of love by having a romantic date night with her husband, but will instead be offering comfort to those who no longer have a husband with whom to celebrate. With the help of 300 volunteers and thousands of donations, the mother-of-four plans to deliver more than 400 bouquets to women who will be without their significant other...

Whenever I’m asked what I miss most about youth I answer “the optimism.”Hello May,You seem a bit hesitant to commit this year. Please do, you’re arrival will be as welcome as, well, a breath of fresh airSo stop screwing around and settle in please; we could really use your optimism this year.Springtime, 1921, Penleigh Boyd (1890-1923)Posted from: MOTUS A.D.

For those who aren’t good at keeping their houseplants alive, don’t worry, LEGO has you covered. The Danish company is now selling plants you won’t have to (painstakingly) grow, but rather, you’ll just have to build. LEGO’s new Botanical Collection features sets that let you turn bricks into floral arrangements. One is called the LEGO Flower Bouquet, and it includes 756 pieces which can be customized into roses, daisies, poppies, asters, and snapdragons. Let the florist in you go wild; you can create a flamboyant bouquet as high as 14 inches tall, or make smaller arrangements and spread them around...

LOS ANGELES – The FBI knew about Chi Mak's retirement plans, what his dining room looked like and what he allegedly took home from work. The 66-year-old engineer for a Southern California defense contractor and his 57-year-old brother, Tai Mak, were under surveillance for months. Agents tapped the Maks' phones, planted listening devices in their cars, sifted through their trash and installed a closed-circuit camera above Chi Mak's dining-room table. Investigators suspected Chi Mak was taking restricted documents about naval technology from his job at Anaheim-based defense contractor Power Paragon and passing them to his brother, who was going to...

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-Mich) ordered state police to “investigate and exterminate unauthorized gardens” that have popped up in the increasingly warm spring weather in her state. “Look, I outlawed the purchase of seeds as part of my stay-at-home directive,” she explained. “The appearance of well-tended gardens raises suspicion that the homeowner has either illegally bought seeds, gone outside for nonessential activity, or both. If we allow some individuals to flout the law like this people will tend to lose confidence in my governance.” “I have instructed law enforcement to act on either on their own initiative or in response to...

On this date in 1854, an Albany, N.Y. man named John Hendrickson hanged for the murder by aconite poisoning of his wife, Maria. “He has suffered the highest penalty of the law,” New York’s Weekly Herald pronounced the next day — “but whether justly or not, will likely never be known on earth.”...The district attorney introduced evidence courtesy of chemists named Salisbury and Swinburne, to the effect that it was no mean arsenic that carried away Maria Hendrickson but the more exotic potion of aconite — derived from a toxic herb seeded (per Ovid) by Cerberus himself. One can peruse...

U.S.—According to sources who dared to peek their heads outside this morning, God's brilliant creation is moving on after a long and difficult winter. It has been reported by several dirt-embedded journalists that flowers are continuing to bloom in a bright array of dazzling colors in spite of state governors' clear instructions to shut everything down. In addition, trees are sprouting leaves without any concern for clear state directives. "Even the sun, in a callous display of insensitivity, is shining brightly," said CNN reporter Deebles McNarderson. "It's as if the sun is completely unaware that we are in a national...

Learn how to plant flower bulbs this fall for beautiful blooms in Spring. WATCH THE VIDEO...

Today in chapel, we confessed to plants. Together, we held our grief, joy, regret, hope, guilt and sorrow in prayer; offering them to the beings who sustain us but whose gift we too often fail to honor. What do you confess to the plants in your life?

The problem with Harvard University’s collection of glass flowers, explains professor of botany Donald H. Pfister, is that they’re too realistic. “When they’re photographed, they just look like plants,” he says, ruefully. “So how do you make a photo book that lets people know that these are actually glass models?” Even the first director of Harvard’s Botanical Museum, George Lincoln Goodale, was initially fooled by the models. During an 1886 trip to Germany to visit the home of glassmakers Leopold and Rudolf Blaschka, he saw what he assumed to be a vase of blooming, freshly-cut orchids. In truth, each...

Tulip growers in the Netherlands are pleading millennials to stop taking selfies among the flowers, after tourists caused thousands of euros' worth of damage by trampling over the plants in search of the perfect picture. Colorful tulip fields throughout the Netherlands are popular destinations for visitors, but the rise of the selfie in recent years has resulted in damage as people enter and walk across the fields.

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Here’s What Grows in King Jesus’ Garden Msgr. Charles Pope • August 13, 2018 • Flowers, besides being beautiful, have often been used in Christian tradition to signify virtues and remind us of the saints. For example, consider this brief meditation of St. Augustine on the virtues related to our state in life:I tell you again and again, my brethren, that in the Lord’s garden are to be found not only the roses of his martyrs. In it there are also the lilies of the virgins, the ivy of wedded couples, and the violets of widows. On no account...

Add this to the ongoing list of fun facts about the Trump family: Melania Trump has an orchid named after her. The flower is a hybrid orchid known as Rhyncholaeliocattleya Melania Trump, or "Rlc Melania Trump," and it even won an award this weekend. When you know the context, the fact that this flower exists isn't so bizarre. It was created by Chadwick & Son Orchids Inc., a company that breeds orchids and has a longstanding tradition of naming flowers after the spouses of the two leading presidential candidates during election years. The company gave both Melania Trump and Bill...

It’s mother’s day, don’t forget to get mom some flowers. It doesn’t matter if you pick them, plant them or purchase them.Every mom loves flowersTo celebrate mothers is to celebrate life. If you’re fortunate enough to still have your mom with you, give her a hug. If not, honor her memory by recalling the good times you had when you were both young.Happy Mother’s Day to all the Mom’s out there – and to everyone else who has - or ever has had - a Mom! P.S. I would suggest you put politics aside today, even though Liberals don’t seem...

CARPINTERIA - This picturesque coastal town cradled by mountains and sandy shores is a scene out of a Southern California postcard. Residents of Carpinteria say they feel lucky to live in what they consider a slice of paradise. But change is in the air. And sometimes, they say, it stinks. That’s because marijuana has become a new crop of choice in the farmlands surrounding this tight-knit community of 14,000, which has long helped fuel the U.S. cut flower industry. Residents say a thick, skunk-like odor from the marijuana plants settles over the valley in the evenings and before dawn. To...