Ginseng can take on some weird shapes!

Hi all,

I found this Ficus Microcarpa Ginseng in the gardening section of a department store. Amused, I quickly and surreptitiously snapped a shot. I was tempted to buy it, but since I don’t have a green thumb at all, I thought it may have better chances of living a long and happy life when somebody else takes it home. However, if it’s still on the shelf the next time I go there, I might get it. It would be my only live plant indoors.

Nature seems to repeat herself. I hope she’s not running out of ideas. :slight_smile:

Claudia

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Hi, Claudia

I’ve never noticed this plant although I’m sure we have it in our supermarkets.
It’s very decorative and interesting. At least this one. And its leaves look so strong and healthy!
If you’re still thinking of it, I think you should go and buy it.

You used a word which I find very cute here, as the action itself: “surreptitiously”. If it were for sell, I would buy it. Since it isn’t, I will steel it from you, so I’ll leave your topic surreptitiously … and I won’t put my signature.

:-))

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Hi Monica,

no need to steal it from me. If you were living nearby, I would have bought it the day I saw it. Then, when I came to your house for coffee and cake, I would have given it to you as a little gift. That way I’d sleep well at night, knowing that the Ginseng is in good hands while I could visit it from time to time and surreptitiously look at it, marveling at how well it’s growing. Those precious, round cheeks would only go flat if left in my care. :wink:

Claudia

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… and … if left in my care, those round cheeks would lose weight day by day, ending by looking like dried figs because I’m even worse. I usually forget to water the flowers. I killed a few, with this habit of mine :-((( Sorry, dear flowers!
What I wanted to steel was your word: surreptitiously. Fortunately, words don’t need water :slight_smile:
But I make good coffee on Saturdays and Sundays and I often have it with milk and cookies so… be my guest! We’ll have our coffee in English :slight_smile:
Monica

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I am so happy and relieved that I am not the only (especially female) person who fails at growing and taking care of plants and flowers! Everyone I know seems to be a great indoors gardeners while I gather my fake ivy twines every three months and shower them off to get rid of the dust on their fabric leaves. I like to dry certain flowers, though; that way I am allowed to kill them. Woohoo!

I misunderstood you. Sorry about that. It’s true: words don’t need water, but they need an intelligent mind to thrive.

I would love nothing more than to have coffee and cookies with you. We could have Latte Italian style, or French Vanilla, or with cream the German or Austrian way. And I would like to taste Romanian coffee. I like my coffee spiced with curcuma. Have you ever tasted coffee with curcuma? If not, would you give it a try?

Claudia

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You’re funny dear Claudia, and I’m sure we would have a very good time in the neighborhood of two cups of coffee, on the beach, in the shadow of a dried palm tree which became dry because you love dried plants :))

Now let’s see what kind of:

  • Latte Italian style…I’ve never tasted, but I like the coffee with milk;
  • French Vanilla … I’ve never tasted, but I love coffee with vanilla flavor;
  • German or Austrian way, with cream … yummy! I love it!
  • Arabian way: coffee with “hell” – different from any other; very tasty (I had only one in my life, and I couldn’t ever forget it);
    - Claudian way: coffee with curcuma … I wonder how it is, so you can be sure that I will try it, because you mad me extremely curious.

Thanks,
Monica

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Quickly, before you rush out the door to get curcuma: forget curcuma, get cardamom instead! Silly me confused the two!

Please let me know how you like it once you tried it. I’m anxious to know! :slight_smile:

Claudia

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I was just about to leave house to getting some curcuma!
You were just in time! Are you sure that curcuma is not good?

Cardamom? Never heard of it! So, I googled it, quickly. And … surprise!
Do you know what it is?
It’s hel, the ingredient which gives that special flavor to the Arabian (Arabic?) coffee that I had mentioned in my previous post tonight. (I had spelled it incorrectly - hell).
So, now I can say that I like coffee with cardamom. I will try to buy some, fix a coffee and see if it’s as good as it was the first time. If I don’t know how, I will ask for your help, OK?

Monica

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She’s not! Here’s another sample of nature’s great imagination. An exotic plant, I didn’t retain its name. I took the photo last summer in a botanic garden.

I think it’s very good looking and interesting. I also think it needs a lot of water.

Monica

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I’m so glad you didn’t get curcuma! That spice isn’t hel but it would be hell in coffee! :wink:

Wow, this is one awesome plant! It looks like something I could grow. I once found a potato in my pantry that looked like that.

Claudia

Hi all!

Is there something wrong with these birds?

Monica

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Potato? You must be kidding!

Unless you forgot it in the microwave and it exploded.
Did you?

Hi my dear girls!

If I good remember it something, what exploded in Claudia’s microwave, it was

an egg! Please no more explosions in the Claudia’s new renovated kitchen!

Sorry Claudia! I hope I didn’t denounce the secret.

Yes this plant looks very interesting. I think about the smell…?

According to me there is nothing wrong with the birds. Very decorative!

Are they really the birds? those white, look like flowers. Beautiful!

Alicja:))

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Hi, Alicja

That big plant like Claudia’s potato? I don’t remember whether it smelled or not. I will probably go again to that place this summer and I’ll tell you then.

You are right about the white birds! They’re not birds, but orchids. Spectacular ones, aren’t they? Another sample of nature’s imagination. I didn’t know they exist, until last week when I saw them in a magazine.

I won’t tell anything about the parrots.

And OK, no more explosions inside microwaves if you say so. But how can a potato, which is so dull, can turn into such a full-of-imagination plant like that one, I wonder?

See you,
Monica

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I had to renovate the kitchen because of that darn potato.

Claudia

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How right I was :)))

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;-)))

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Those green birds look paradisaical! They make a great decoration for a simple glass of water. They look better than slices of lime! The only drawback is that you can’t squeeze the birds to give the water a zesty citric taste. Oh, well. There are always two sides to a coin.

The white feathery orchids would work well as bait. By the time the fish realizes he has flower petals in his mouth, he’s already out of the water, struggling to get off the hook.

The birds and the orchid are beautiful. Thank you for showing us that such unique animals and plants exist, Monica.

Claudia

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Hi, Claudia

How on Earth did you make a bait from an innocent white bird? When I think of a seagull for example, I see it hunting little fish. You’re seeing the scene inversely! Your fish must be a big one (not as big as shark, but still big), then!
It’s interesting but so … bloody… for both bird and fish - I wouldn’t have thought like that, ever. The way that neither me, nor you, wouldn’t have ever thought that the little green parrots were not parrots, but the fruits of a plant! That is interesting too, isn’t it? It’s a tricky idea of Mother nature :)) which is full of ideas that never end.

I had a coffee with hel yesterday! Gooood, but I’m not sure I made it right: I added a little hel powder in the coffee and then I put it in the boiling water, on fire, and continued to boil for a few seconds. I took it off the fire, left it for a while, and then poured the coffee in a coffee cup, with sugar. I also added some vanilla sugar because I’m addicted to vanilla flavor. I also added some coffee milk. I didn’t care about the recipes which are available on the internet. But I’d like to know how you make it. Can you tell me please?
Thanks,
Monica

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Wow, so the white orchids aren’t really orchids but birds? And the green birdies aren’t really birdies but fruits? Hey, that means I can squeeze them without drawing the attention and the hatred of animal rights activists to myself and getting charged with animal cruelty! Coooool! The world is strange, isn’t it? Some fish fly and some flies fish. Nature is amazing, indeed. I guess that’s why I like plastic. It doesn’t change and it never breaks . . . unless I hold it over a lighter.

If you enjoyed the taste of your coffee, you made it right. :slight_smile:
I brew my coffee first, then I spice it with a pinch of ground cardamom, sweeten it with stevia and pour some low fat milk in it. Vanilla sugar is a great idea!

Claudia

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