2013-06-21
Welcome to my blog, Balcony Bliss! This blog is about my little piece of Heaven I was able to construct on my tiny apartment balcony:
I have found great reward and learning from having many plants in my home. I have always had an appreciation of nature and animals, but now I’m finding that I get to have that appreciation up close. This has accelerated more of a learning desire as well as appreciation that I have a small role in caring for living plants, animals and even insects.
I am a firm believer in crediting your sources, so I must state to you the reader as to why my interest in this is so strong. Three years ago, I was inspired by a 10 year-old girl. I met her along with her mother at my job where I was a maintenance technician for an apartment complex.
Her mother and I got to know each other, and she spoke about how her daughter wanted a tree. Mom took her to a store, and she picked out an oak tree. This tree was in a five gallon bucket, and this young girl loved this tree very much, and named him Steve.
Her mother explained to me almost daily how her daughter (they are both Czechoslovakian, and there is no way I could pronounce, let alone write their names properly, lol) watched Steve every day. How she would measure every single stem and leaf, and write down the progress of his growth. And how Steve was almost her best friend.
But something was happening with this girl, when previously she had no issue with: she was breaking out in rashes from head to toe. Of course at first, this was dismissed as her playing outside and perhaps it was a wild plant of some kind that caused a rash.
Through motherly perseverance and a doctor’s assessment, it was found that it was Steve that was causing the rash. This was devastating for her daughter.
Her mother approached me to see if I could take care of Steve, with her daughter standing nearby and smiling. Mom explained that she knew I cared for the landscaping at the property, and even spent time pruning the many boxwoods throughout. I of course, and without hesitation, took Steve home.
With my severe lack of experience caring for any plant whatsoever, the Midwest had a monumental drought that season. I did everything I could, researched online, asked people who knew plants and the like, but sadly and even though Steve fought to live, I lost him by the following summer.
In this pic, which is still my inspiration, do you see the stick hanging on the hooks? This is Steve, and my driving inspiration for the balcony garden I have created.
When I brought Steve home, I started with plants that, from learning, were low maintenance as well as plants that I always thought were pretty. I picked up a handful of boxwoods, bleeding hearts, monkshoods and balloon flowers.
At this point, I am still learning, but anxious to do so and happy to have been inspired!
Post a new thread about this blog entry:
