Nigel just got back from a train trip to California, a little vacation on his own. He had a rebate voucher from Amtrak that paid for a trip there and back on the Coast Starlight, so in between he spent a couple of nights (and one day) at Disneyland. While he was away,
Watson's Nursery posted on Instagram that they were having a 40% off sale on houseplants, so I decided to take myself over there to check things out.
They had some interesting ferns.
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| Some lush staghorn ferns |
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| Simply labeled Pteris sp. |
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| Eyelash fern/Actiniopteris semiflabellata |
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| I was tempted by this heart fern/Hemionitis arifolia, but I've heard it can be finicky to keep alive. |
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| Button fern/Pellaea rotundifolia |
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| Variegated brake fern/Pteris ensiformis |
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| Technically not a fern, Cycas revoluta (Sago palm) looks a lot like a fern |
I also considered the prayer plants.
And this remarkably colorful Cordyline.
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| Cordyline terminalis 'Cherry Cordial' |
A couple of months ago, I was visiting Watson's when they had just started putting a green wall together. If you scroll down through their Instagram feed
here, you'll find a couple of videos about the process of putting it together. It turned out fabulous.
The Bromelaids in the wall reminded me to check out their Bromeliad area, where I found some wonderfully lush specimens.
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| This flowering Vriesea had babies popping up already in the center |
I found a small but interesting selection of Dyckias from Little Prince of Oregon on their succulent table.
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| 'Grand Marnier' |
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| 'Grape Jelly' |
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| 'Burgundy Ice' |
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| Most of these were simply labeled either Aloe or Gasteria, including that strip in the center, which I'm pretty sure are Aloe aristata. |
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| Mangaves! 'Inkblot' |
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| One Mangave 'Falling Waters' |
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| Rows of fluffy Echevaria |
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| Various tiny pots of cactus and succulents |
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| I liked the look of that chocolatey, wavy Echeveria, but there weren't many to choose from |
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| Crown of thorns/Euphorbia millii |
Little knobbly, stripey Gasteria
They had some intriguing wooden containers and driftwood pieces, but of course, they weren't part of the sale.
I wasn't sure if these were included in the sale or not, but they gave me ideas.
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| Cool, but not $90 worth of cool, especially since I could get the plant for considerably less |
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| I don't know if those fungi are real dried specimens, but it's an interesting use for them |
Unfortunately, perusing the sale also meant having to endure this...
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| I'm old school, seeing Christmas decorations before Thanksgiving doesn't just make me shudder, I find it annoying |
What did I bring home? One of those little chocolate Echevaria, a Crown of Thorns, a staghorn fern, two Aloe aristata, and a few Dyckia, two 'Grand Marnier' and one 'Burgundy Ice'.
