I Have Phloem and Xylem On My Hands

(This is a cheater post--it's a slightly expanded response to a FB Friends question. 😏)

I have a beautiful brand new container garden each and every year because, sadly, I am a killer with phloem and xylem on my hands.

Phloem and xylem are the sap, or lifeblood, of plants. Phloem is nutrient-rich and flows from leaves to the stem and roots feeding them sugar and other nutrients.  The Xylem is more water-based and flows from the roots up. (I am not smart enough to have known or remembered this, if I ever learned it back in school. It was information I read recently on the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension website.)

When I purchase a plant I tell it, "I picked you because you looked like you are strong enough to survive me. If I am right, and you survive, you will graduate to a 'real' container next year."

I have a few plants in real containers. A couple are actually over 10 or 15 years old.  But the vast majority are new each season.

When I was in Nursing School I had 22  beautiful, healthy, strong plants. The 23rd killed all of them. Now, even easy plants aren't as easy as they used to be. But "hope springs eternal."

Or maybe that should be, "Spring brings eternal hope."

Agriculturally as well as Spiritually.  😏