Before I went to Hawai'i for Uncle Art's service, technically it was Spring but I wasn't really seeing it in the plants in the yard.
The sweet cherries were just starting to form buds, now the blossoms of the Van (a Bing-type cherry) are done and the Rainier (a Queen Anne-type cherry) are in full bloom.
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| April 16th |
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| March 24th |
The blueberry buds were also just starting, now the Blue Ray is in full bloom. The 3 other varieties are in various stages.
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| March 28th |
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| April 16th |
The leaf buds on the apples were just
forming. Now the Gravenstein apple tree is in full bloom and the buds on
the Spartan are just starting to form.
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| March 26th |
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| April 16th |
The Solomon's seal was less than a foot high and the bleeding heart leaves were just coming up. Now the Solomon's seal is nearly 3 feet tall and the bleeding hearts are blooming.
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| March 26th |
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| April 16th |
The rhubarb was about a foot across, now it is about 3 feet wide.
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| March 19th |
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| April 16th |
The camas was coming up and now it is about a foot high, though no blossoms yet.
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| March 19th |
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| April 17th |
I am going to miss this part of the changing of the seasons but not the part where the fall and winter air is so damp it is hard to keep warm without my battery-heated vest. Hawai'i does have a change of seasons but it is more subtle than in the more temperate regions. Fruiting trees tend to have distinct months when they blossom though it does vary according to the variety. And a few trees do actually drop their leaves. Some plants, like poinsettias and kalanchoes, set flower buds when the day length starts decreasing but won't bloom vigorously in Hawai'i unless you trick them by making the day length appear even shorter. This can be as simple as moving a potted plant to the north side of the house under the eaves. I will have to get myself reacquainted with the rhythms of the
aina. Mom will appreciate it when I get a garden going for her again.
Just spent almost half an hour talking Mom through refilling her pill box; I am very glad my brother usually fills it for her every week when he does their grocery shopping. (He got distracted this week and forgot to do it.) The only pill she did not refill was calcium citrate; she could not find the bottle. I am letting it slide this week, Curt should be able to find it next week. It was very apparent that she can't fill the pill box on her own any longer, she tried to put 2 of her prescriptions in twice.
Up until about 18 months ago she was able to put the pills in by herself and also remember to take them daily. During my trip back home around that time I discovered she was not taking her pills regularly. We decided we needed to help out with that; since he was there it made sense for Curt to fill the pill box when he dropped off their grocery items on Sunday. Since I had less meetings it made sense for me to be the one calling 3 times a day to remind her to take them. (Hooray for cell phones!) I also order the refills; I count her pills when I am there and figure out how many weeks of pills she has left. Then 2 weeks before she runs out of pills, I call the automated pharmacy line when it is convenient for me. Within 5 working days of the order being placed they mail it to her for free. Winner!
Happy Birthday to the Lady in Red!
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