The In and Out Game

For years, our various dogs have played the in and out game. You know the one... we put them out, they want back in. We let them in, they want to be out. It is a favorite of theirs and can go on indefinitely.

Up until now, I thought this was an animal game only. But this year, our potted plants are joining in the fun.  On a beautiful spring day, they want to be alive and well watered, so I let them out of the garage and tell them to go play in the sun, while I bathe their winter hardened roots with water.  In the evening, they are worried about frost and want to come back in. But by noon the next day, when the sun is shining and the breeze is soft, out they want to go again.   Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if I didn't have to pick them up and carry them (or pull them along like an ungainly child in a wagon)., but there you have it. Who knew that these silly houseplants would be needier than a pet?

We have lots of potted plants on the front and back patios. Most of them are semi-tropical, so they have to come inside every winter. Last Wednesday  was a beautiful spring day, which was the perfect day to start these plants on their way out of dormancy. We realized, while pulling them out of the garage, that many of them were terribly root bound. Good thing we just bought three bags of potting soil!

Brian and I started with the unidentified tree. It took quite a bit of cajoling on our part to pull that giant root ball from its pot. Once it was out, Brian worked on separating the roots, while I tried to water it into submission. After a long struggle, we succeeded in giving it some breathing space and getting it replanted. After that, we repotted several others, including a Norfolk pine and an Umbrella plant, along with a geranium and some unidentified green leafy house plant things.

After the repotting, we placed them out, hoping to leave them there for awhile. But no, there was a frost warning, so back in they went. In and out. In and out. Tonight they are staying outside. At 50 degrees and drizzling, I think they can just man up and stay there.