blossom

gardenia

the winter before last, i took the pruners to these two enormous bushes beside our front porch. no one had trimmed them at all in at least ten years, and they were not only tangled together, but they were also ugly, leggy, and taller than the house. so i decided to cut them way way back to see what happened--if they didn't make it, i would just pull them out and put something new in. against all advice, i cut them back to about 1/6 of their original heights, shaped them up, and waited. (i also pulled my back in the process and could hardly walk for 2 months, but that is another story. let's just say i should have either gotten a better tool (read: chainsaw) or some help (read: hippie), but i am stubborn and was determined to do it myself (read: moron). but anyway...) so that spring, they leafed out a little, but looked crappy, and i thought they would not make it. but i am a hopeful person, so i just left them alone--this spring, i didn't even trim them.

well--last night i was watering all the outside plants (which took like 40 minutes!), and i kept getting these faint whiffs of gardenia. and i was like--WHERE is that coming from? i followed the smell, and lo and behold--my gardenia is blooming! and not just a little--it is full and bushy and COVERED in beautiful, sweet-smelling blossoms! it is still in need of a little shaping, and it is still all entangled with the other bush, which is also blooming. but man--it was such an unexpected treat! i cut one and brought it into the house, and now my whole kitchen smells like gardenias. yay for blossoms! :)