19 April 2012

The Tiniest Tree

happy, happy baby trees

Not quite a year ago, I received 20 clove seeds direct from Hawaii. I didn't expect many of them to survive at my altitude, and I didn't know if any would survive the winter. I planted them indoors, some in direct sunlight, some in indirect sunlight, and two with a little of both. I didn't know how much light they would need, and I wanted to give all of them as much chance as I could to survive, to thrive.

Sixteen of the seeds sprouted. Fifteen grew. I gave one away. One couldn't decide if it wanted to grow up. I moved it into direct sunlight, then I moved it again to provide maximum sunlight. Last November, it still couldn't decide if it wanted to grow.

not dead yet

The day after I broke my wrist, the tiniest clove sprouted a leaf! Over the next few days, a second leaf appeared.

tiny clove tree

In the meantime, one of the seedlings suddenly and inexplicably withered.

one happy, one sad

All of the seedlings seemed to go through a dormant stage during winter. I moved all of them into direct sunlight and provided a grow light during December and January. I used a space heater to keep the babies warm when the central heating couldn't quite combat our multi-day blizzards alone.

In March, almost all the survivors began sprouting new leaves. Maybe these tropical kiddos will adapt to Colorado after all!

tiny tree

Growing taller!

6 comments :

  1. Sometimes you just never know...and without trying you'd never find out. Long live your tiny tree!

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  2. Who knows, from the tiniest tree may come the mighty. I find it amazing to watch the growth. Hope they continue.

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  3. Tis a mystery, but having a classroom filled with seedlings is keeping me hopeful...

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  4. I do hope they survive...

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  5. I hope they grow big and strong :)

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  6. A little forest of potential. They're beautiful.

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