Making Up The Numbers
By AndrewR
16 comments
Last night was our Garden Club’s AGM at which we award two trophies
One is for a competition which runs over the course of the year with a different theme for entries each month (this year, these have included ‘Bulbs’, ‘Variegated Leaves’ and ‘Winter Scent’). Normally I don’t take this too seriously but with very few members contributing anything, it has fallen to committee members to supply most of the entries. Despite a concerted push, I finished in second place to the Club treasurer.
The other competition is for a houseplant which is usually held in January. But due to the weather and icy roads, we had to cancel the January Club night. With Matthew Biggs (from Gardeners’ Question Time), our Club President attending, we decided to have the houseplant competition last night instead. Now, I don’t ‘do’ houseplants. I don’t water anything in the garden and tend to treat anything indoors the same, quickly resulting in ex-plants. I do however over-winter one or things indoors which would not survive heavy frosts. To make sure there were enough entries to be worthwhile in for Matthew to judge, I took along a spiky succulent which has sat in my living room since November.
Not the prettiest thing and it ‘bites’ if you get too close!
So you can imagine my astonishment when Matthew ignored an orchid in full flower, a blooming begonia and a collection of cacti and awarded first prize to my ugly duckling. I guess the moral is “You’ve got to be in it to win it.”
PS. It’s a dyckia leptostachya, a South American bromeliad I bought at a Rare Plant Fair last summer.
10 Mar, 2010
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Comments
Well done Spiky ...
... you'll now be promoted to a place of honour in the living room :o)
What was the prize ? Rosette ? Wine ? Trophy ?
10 Mar, 2010
Well done Andrew. Your plant looks so healthy and glossy, it must deserve to win. I'm like you with indoor plants, just no good at them.
10 Mar, 2010
Well - if you've kept it alive since last summer, you must have found your 'soul-mate' houseplant! It deserved the prize - for staying alive in your house, Andrew! LOL.
I like it, actually......:-0))
10 Mar, 2010
Well there you go Andrew just goes to show, if this plant can win over
an orchid, and a Blooming Begonia, then its just not looks. It must be
that it is unusual......different. Personally, i like it too.
10 Mar, 2010
well done............. its a very nice plant...
10 Mar, 2010
TT - I should have won a Cup but last year's winner has left the Club and we haven't got it back so far. Instead I got a special certificate (which be a lot easier to keep clean!)
10 Mar, 2010
Matthew was obviously looking for the unusual well grown rather than the 'sock-em-in-the-eye' type of plant. It is certainly striking. Well done, Andrew.
10 Mar, 2010
Well done you :o))
10 Mar, 2010
great news andrew, so you will be starting a new house plant collection now lol
do you really not water your garden, even in hot summers when we have them :o)
10 Mar, 2010
Blimey! Well done Andrew, but I think I'd have been a bit grumpy if I'd had my orchid in there! lol ;)....not a fan of spiky things!
10 Mar, 2010
I hope you eventually get the cup, Andrew...
Certificate is nice though.
10 Mar, 2010
we have had Matthew Biggs at our hps group and he was very complementary about the members plant stall. He made the effort to talk to us too.
glad you had something out of the ordinary to show. well done.
10 Mar, 2010
Sanbaz - the last time I was watering plants in the garden was the really hot summer of 2006 and even then, only the plants that were really struggling. Everything gets a good watering when it is first planted and maybe once or twice more if it stays dry after that, then it just has to fend for itself. I believe in planting for the soil conditions so the shade lovers are in moisture retentive soil with a mulch and the sun-lovers are in gritty, open positions
10 Mar, 2010
thats great andrew, saves alot of work and time, :o)
11 Mar, 2010
Well-done, Andrew! Lovely plant...:)
11 Mar, 2010
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Well Done Andrew :) I think its a Lovely Plant :)
10 Mar, 2010