As I’ve mentioned before, we’re moving to Kingston, Ontario at the start of this summer. From September 2008 until some time in February 2009, hubby and I took numerous day trips to our new city to visit homes for sale that a realtor we hooked up with lined up for us. On average, we usually viewed about five houses per trip, so you can well imagine that as the weeks and months passed, we looked at many, many homes.

Every time we took yet another trip to Kingston to trudge through someone else’s house, we hoped we’d finally run across ‘the home’; the one we’d want to call ‘our home’. But summer turned to fall and fall turned to winter and nothing interested us. Okay, that’s not entirely true. We did visit one home that charmed us, but we didn’t act on it (even though we did visit it twice) and eventually it sold. And when it did sell, we shrugged and said “Oh well…”, so it didn’t bother us all that much, which makes me wonder if we knew, subconsciously, that it wasn’t ‘the one’ and simply let it go.

Anyhow.

After a few months of futile house hunting, I began to wonder if we’d ever find a home. And why we weren’t taking an interest in anything we’d seen so far. Were we too picky? Were we reluctant to commit to a mortgage? Did we have house hunting burnout? Is there even such a thing? Because it wasn’t like there was anything really wrong with the homes we viewed, aside from one way out in the country, in a really secluded area, which made my hair stand on end. Its location makes for an ideal setting for a horror film, the slasher type, where people (usually on vacation, quite naïve and always entering pitch black rooms or sheds with a pen-sized flashlight even when a bloodcurdling voice is saying ‘get out’) are hunted down, one by one, and brutally murdered by some sadistic serial killer that has escaped from an insane asylum or a lunatic with anger issues because his mother didn’t hug him enough as a child or some really ticked off supernatural entity with a chip on her shoulder or some cannibal that lives in the woods and preys on people, usually skinny young girls with bleach blonde hair that giggle too much and have such an annoyingly high pitched scream that you’re actually relieved when the killer finally catches up with them and puts them – and you – out of their misery.

And I’m not being paranoid or some such thing because I’ll have you know that there were a lot of places, in and around that isolated house, where a madman could dispose of the victims that he cuts up into tiny little pieces that would, most likely, never be found. You laugh, but these things happen; you just never know with these out of the way locations. So yeah, the place creeped me out. My husband, on the other hand, thought the eerie house was really cool, which was quite unsettling.

So, moving along.

Finally, after what seemed like the millionth home we viewed, ‘the home’ appeared, although I didn’t realize it at the time because the price was higher than what we planned so I didn’t take much interest in it. But hubby, the eternal optimist, said to sit tight and wait it out, that the home’s price would fall because it was, after all, a buyer’s market and when the price did fall we’d make an offer. I said “Bah, it’ll never happen”. He said “Have a little faith”. Again I said “bah”. But it turned out that my optimistic half was right: the weeks passed, the price fell, we visited the home for a second time, made an offer that was accepted and we finally became home owners at the start of April. And that, dear readers, is why my Water Roots site has been really slow lately; why there have been delayed Hydro Logs. Until the end of June we’ll be managing two households and moving back and forth between the two on weekends. It’s been busy, really busy, and I’m overwhelmed and exhausted by the abundance of responsibilities. But at the same time I’m excited by the prospect of finally doing some outdoor gardening after so many years. Maybe not this year because of all the things we need to do to prepare our new home to move into, but definitely next spring. The point of all this babbling is that I’m trying to keep up with my website, like many other things, but it’s not always easy. Things should be much better when summer arrives, so please be patient during this dreadfully busy period. I will try my best to keep adding information to my website. And things will get better in time. I promise.

Today’s addition will revolve around Pachypodium lamerei, which is such a cool-looking plant. It came to mind when I was at our new home last weekend because the kitchen’s eating area is surrounded by windows and faces south (or southeast or southwest) and I thought to myself “Look at all this glorious light. I bet the small Pachypodium lamerei I have at home would thrive in here.” Followed by “Hey, maybe I should write about it in my next Hydro Log.”

And so here I am.


Caring For A Madagascar Palm

Although it resembles one, Pachypodium lamerei, commonly referred to as Madagascar Palm is not a palm at all. Originating from Madagascar, this succulent can reach heights of 6 – 9 meters (20 to 30 feet) in its native habitat. As an indoor plant it is much smaller, thankfully, attaining a height of about 1 meter (a little over 3 feet) after many years of healthy growth.

An unusual rather than attractive plant, the Madagascar Palm resembles a cactus with its swollen trunk that is covered with long spines. This Pachypodium is worth a try if you like succulents because it is very easy to grow and will tolerate hot weather with humidity as well as it does dry air and cooler temperatures. Broad, bright green leaves grow from the top and, according to certain sources of information, beautiful white flowers appear on large, mature specimens, which I’ve never witnessed but would certainly like to.

Choose the sunniest spot available and reserve it for your Pachypodium lamerei. This plant needs a lot of light to thrive and grow properly. When deprived of sufficient light, the Madagascar Palm’s trunk will grow thinner and there’ll be less leaf development. If you do not have a sunny spot, a very bright location may prove sufficient; the plant will adapt to that location but it won’t perform as well.

During the summer, always keep the potting medium slightly damp but never soggy. Make sure you use soil that is very airy and fast draining. This plant is very susceptible to root rot, so be careful with the watering can. In the fall and winter, keep almost dry; water sparingly. Pachypodium lamerei enjoys 2 to 3 months of dry dormancy during the winter, although it’s not absolutely vital. Dropping of lower leaves is normal, but if your plant loses all its leaves, it’s most likely due to too much water or excessive dryness. Adjust accordingly. This is a prime candidate for Hydroculture. Wash the roots free of soil and pot in clay pellets. The conversion is very fast with little or no problems. The plant may lose some leaves during the transition, but they will grow back quickly.

Humidity is not an issue; the plant can tolerate warm, dry air so well that you can even place it on top of a radiator and it won’t be harmed. A very warm location with a temperature between 26°C - 28°C is ideal but lower levels that are cooler and thus more comfortable for you are fine. 13°C - 15°C can be tolerated for awhile but your plant should not be exposed to that much cold for too long or too often, which can lead to blackened leaves. Ideally, you should try not to expose a Pachypodium lamerei to temperatures below 18°C (64°F). From spring to late summer, you can feed every 3 to 4 weeks with a cactus fertilizer.

Repot only when necessary and be careful when you do. The spines on this plant are very sharp and can cause injury. Wrap several layers of newspaper around the trunk before handling. In addition, the trunk and leaves contain a highly poisonous milky sap; you might want to avoid growing a Pachypodium lamerei if you have children or pets.



Pachypodium lamerei is sold throughout the year in greenhouses and garden centers with a reasonable price tag attached to it. If you’ve never grown one of these eccentric succulents before, you might want to consider one the next time you spot it at a local store. It’s really worth a try.

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