Gardening...

is not something that we spend a lot of time at--mostly just putting water in the pots of our little plants by the front door, but they have their special stories.

When the Oropezas were here, they had an African violet with small flowers that put out prolific runners. Bro. Smith started some of those runners in pots and they keep growing and growing.

The sábila or aloe vera (below left) came as baby starts from the McLaughlins, a Canadian couple who had an investment property in Maxcanú, a small town about an hour from Mérida. There are still two survivors of the original half dozen, but this one survived a fall and is gradually righting itself.

The albahaca or basil (below right) was given to us by Ricardo, one of the gardeners who died after a short, mysterious illness. He told me to water it frequently and not to let it go to flower, but to keep it cut back so it would continue to have tender shoots. For awhile it was sickly, but it has revived after being put out in the sun and the frequent rains the last couple of months.


This fern was overgrown and very ugly. One day I asked Jesus Reyes Can y Pool, another of the gardeners, what to do with it. He said he would cut it back and that would help. The next day it was chopped off down to brown short sticks! Within a couple of days, little green leaves started to appear and we think it is beautiful now :)


Actually, this is more my style--
SUNCATCHERS IN THE WINDOW!