Yesterday a co-worker surprised me by giving me a young tomato plant to adopt. The thing looked a little dilapidated; one branch had already died, and a couple others looked like they’re on their way. Still, I was thrilled as a kid in a candy store with my new plant!

I got home and repotted him. (”Him” being “Henry,” which for some reason, I find myself calling the plant. Don’t ask.) Organic soil and a little wire cage to help stabilize him for later. Supposedly if you’re to stick anything in the soil, such as stakes or cages, it’s best to do it when repotting so as to reduce the number of shocks the plant gets. I gave him a good watering and left him out in a sunny spot outside for the day.

While tomatoes are supposed to love sun, I think my little guy is still in shock because when I got home today, one of the dying branches looked even more dead than it did yesterday. I thought about pinching it off, but decided to leave it on for another day. However, a couple of the bloomin’ tomatoes were looking OK! Granted, this is my first ever tomato plant so I don’t really know what “looking OK” is supposed to look like. I guess as long as it’s not black or dried up, then I’ll assume things are fine.

On a more successful note, the rose bush in the front of our property is having a grand ‘ole time right now! Not too long ago, our gardener whacked off pretty much the entire thing, leaving little more than a stump. I was mortified, thinking that that was the end of our one and only rose bush. Considering how little we know about plants, it was quite a pleasant surprise to find the bush revived and thriving.

Filed by Maria in garden