Memorial Day is just around the corner! That means summer is coming up fast. The garden is blooming and the leaves are… greening? Everywhere I turn, it seems like there’s a little less room for me on the balcony. The plants are taking over.
If you’ve got a garden you want to show off, don’t hesitate to write your own Six on Saturday post! They’re easy to make and I’d certainly enjoy taking a look at more gardens. If you want to learn how they work, check out where it all started!
1
The wildflowers have finally put up their first flowers! They somehow seemed to open overnight, and now are hanging delicately in one corner of the pot. These seeds are supposed to be a mix of flowering plants, but none of the others seem to be showing any buds yet. I can’t wait for the whole lot of them to throw up their brilliant colors and feed my wonderful hummingbirds. Still not sure why they’re not growing in the center of the pot, but they’re filling in nicely regardless.
2
The Calathea beauty star is thriving wonderfully in its window-ish home. I can’t get over how lovely the streaks of pink are becoming in the older leaves. As all the colors darken, the red tones really start to come out. I don’t know whether this plant is going to flower, but eventually I’d like to move it up to a larger home so it can spread out some.
3
I’ve finally clipped the rest of the cress. I’m letting it dry out in the sun for now – not sure what to do with it. It had completely taken over a planter over the course of a few weeks. For months afterward, it quickly became one of the tallest plants on the balcony. I couldn’t eat it fast enough, and I’ve now overeaten on it. I don’t think I’ll plant even half as much next year, and instead stagger it out a little bit. They definitely got scraggly looking at the base towards the end.
4
The Ginkgo is still a happy little bundle of green life. Those leaves are just magnificent! It seems to have stopped growing where it is, with the bases of the branches only bearing a few small leaves. It looks a bit like a poodle, but I don’t tell it that. The leaves are slowly turning away from their hydrophobic starts, letting some water bead up on them.
5
I’m starting to think this was a cherry tomato plant that ended up growing. I had gotten the seedlings mixed up back when they got started, and only one survived. The plant is spreading out faster than I can build a scaffolding for it. The amount of flowers is making me think it’ll fall over once the tomatoes start growing in earnest.
6
The mint has finally made itself at home, after weeks of getting settled. This plant had started from a half-dead cutting a long while ago, and somehow managed to grow roots and leaves underwater. Since then, I’ve planted it and watched it basically freeze in place. There was no change for the longest time. I was almost certain it was going to just stay like that for the rest of time. It’s decided to prove me wrong over the course of a few days, with new leaves sprouting widely and more pushing their way up from underground. I think this mint is growing underground like it grew underwater, and is slowly filling the planter with mint leaf roots. Only time will tell!
Thanks for stopping by! I hope you had a pleasant time checking out the plants. If you’re in the mood for more nature, please stay in touch!
Mindful Foliage 
That gingko is really lovely! I have never seen a small one and would love to grow one. Did you buy seed or a plant?
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That particular one was bought, but I’ve grown them from seed as well. The germination rate is pretty low, but they’re hardy once they get going!
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