Heavens, you have been busy, Nancy. Beautiful plants and a lovely job.

All beautiful plants Nancy. Is that one in the smaller pot in just crushed granite? How does it do in that media? I have one in gritty mix that I'm thinking might need more turface because it gets dried out so quickly. Maybe I'm just not being too god about watering lately with this stressful semester.

Nice looking jades! I love that first combo pot!

What a handsome little fellow :). I feel like I am in a constant battle with one of my cats and my succulents. Two of my cats leave my plants completely alone and then there is my youngest... First I had to figure out which windows I was 'allowed' to put plants in, then I had to figure out which plants she wouldn't enjoy ripping out of the soil to bite and play with. I had a C. tomentosa in a community pot and she was obsessed with pulling them out and playing with them. I kept finding little bear paws all over the bedroom. I also just repotted one of my Kalanchoe plants into a new pot in some gritty mix and when I came home the next day she had pulled one of them out entirely. It was down the hall and full of bite marks; I had to throw it away.

-Erica

My cats love to "help" me, too ;-)

I like your packed pots....really great textures. For the first week's watering, yes, just do a light watering to moisten the surface inches and keep the roots from drying in the mix. For the second watering, do a thorough saturation to prevent dry-pockets in the mix.

Josh

Thanks everyone, for your compliments. Happy St. Patty's Day too! Irish Soda bread to make tonight :)

Hi Marguerite, It was a busy weekend, even went to Smith College's Spring Bulb Show but
skipped half the slow lines and went to the cacti & suc's
greenhouse. I will post pics of their jades & other suc's later in
the week.

Hi Deva, not sure what stone it's made from. The decorative sand is from Arizona East but their website says they only sell to wholesale. I get it at a garden center, it's rather expensive, so I try to use it sparingly... I just used it as a top dressing of about 1/4"
Maybe Josh or someone else could chime in about adding turface to your granite for more moisture. I am new to ingredients still, and hate to blindly guess.

Hi Josh, thank you for answering my Q, I watered them lightly with a pointed restaurant squeeze bottle. I quess wait 5-7 days before next watering... still trying to understand the que of when to water in a gritty type mix. Ohh, and I added a sprinkle of Osmocote, but it was a smaller particle...so I think it fell downward in the mix. In a few weeks, once I see growth, I plan on doing diluted Foliage Pro.

Past summer, the cats were playing chase a little too fast, and knocked over my two pups of Agave desmetiana 'Variegata'. At least they came back to check on the damage.

Some other pots I did this weekend. This hobbit may be my favorite for simplicity & balance... and the lovely red highlights :)

Nancy
very nice plants & looks like good re-potting!
And the cats - they are photogenic, that's for sure.
Larger rocks are good for supporting plants; the string is ok too, just watch it so it doesn't cut into that branch.

Rina

Thanks Nancy. I didn't even think of the possibility of top dressing! Silly me! I think I just need to be better about watering it. I'm also thinking of getting it in a bonsai pot. If I do that I'll have to keep an extra eye on it!

Rina, thank you for the compliments. I enjoy taking a ton of pics of the cats, especially in good sunlight...same with the jades, lol. I agree, the elastic could cut the branch... I
will fix that this morning with rocks.

Deva, I love bonsai pots, they compliment the jades so nicely. Yeah the little pots may need water more frequently, though I've had some hobbits in regular soil, that I forgot about for a few weeks and they were fine, minus some leaves though. Would love to see a pic if you re-pot it.

Nancy

Your plants look great and the decorative pots add nicely to them!

Thanks Camellia!

Nancy,

I am a total 'cat lady.' Thanks for sharing your pictures, they are both beautiful :).

I love that Hobbit you included after the last cat picture; it is indeed very simple. How long have you had that one? I have some Hobbits but they seem to grow very slowly.

-Erica

Nancy, I love that Kitty Kat you grew. Also the pictures of your singly potted plants; as far as I'm concerned, you can go on and on and on about your plants and I will read every post. And that last plant in the blue bowl, Deva, lovely. Simple is best. Is there any more graceful plant than a well-grown jade tree in a handsome pot?

Thank you & your welcome Erica :) Very glad to hear. I'm a "cat mom" of three, I wish I could have more but they can be expensive and a lot of work (ohh and I'm allergic, lol). I would love to see your cat(s). I realize now, the pics above are hard to tell the brown gals apart... my oldest gal, a calico, has alot more white.

I must say you are very kind, Nancy. No wonder your cats and jades are happy.

That Orange cat just loves your plants!

I'll have to find some good pictures to share of my three.

Now that you mention it, I have rarely seen Hobbits for sale and I can't remember where I got mine. I have them in tiny pots so they aren't getting much bigger. I'll be keeping my eye out for one to keep in a larger pot.