Cissus quadrangularis and Haworthia faciata...they have survived 35 years in my parent's house

Both of these plants come from desert areas; they've evolved to survive under tough conditions. I deserted (sic) them at my Mom and Dad's house 3 decades ago and they seem like they're pretty happy. Both of my parents are great with plants so they haven't been suffering but still....how many of us have kept indoor plants we didn't actually choose for over 30 years?!

I turned 18 years old in May of 1970 so I was more or less an adult for the entire decade. It was an interesting period. Walt Disney had taught us to revere Nature and mistrust authority. Personally I went more down the Nature road; I was suspicious then and to this day retain a certain cynicism regarding those in charge. As time has passed I have realized though, that most people are at least partly motivated by a desire to do the right thing. By and large the problems of the world aren't caused by evil persons doing evil deeds; they result from an imbalance between good intentions, circumstances, and self-interest. While maintaining intellectual sympathy with the revolution, I spent my time backpacking, studying nature, and gardening. I was true to Walt in my own way.

Plants were, for me, what postage stamps had been for generations before me: a portal through which I could transport myself to exotic locations around the world. I could grow in my room the same plants the lived in the Amazonian rain forest, the deserts of North Africa, the otherworldly cloud forests of South America. Plants from everywhere: from Madagascar, from mountain passes in the Pyrenees, from the slopes of volcanoes in Hawaii. At the same time I could, with a clean conscience, yield to that ubiquitous human flaw, covetousness. Acquiring, collecting, plants must be a good thing. Lust, greed, envy, pride....surely those deadly sins didn't gain a toehold in me through my plants!!?? I hope. Anyway, I built a nice collection of succulents; some are with me still, others have been given away or died, and a few still survive in the plant window of my Mother and father's house. I have, from time to time, been tempted to take cuttings or divisions and grow them in Adelphi but something always seems to stop me. Some day I will do it but not today.

Bulbine natalensis

Of course it's in the Asphodelaceac; look at it! It looks like King's Spear, Asphodeline lutea. As the specific epithet implies, this one is from Natal, or in modern geographic terms, KwaZulu-Natal Province in South Africa. Like many Southern Hemisphere plants, it flowers during our winter. We run three different temperature houses in the winter at the USNA: a cool house that stays just above freezing; a warm house that hovers around 80F; and this house that is in between. There is always action in the warm house, not so much here since the chrysanthemums for the Bonsai exhibit were culled and cut back, but spring is coming and it comes more quickly to a heated greenhouse.

I can remember my first Bulbine. I bought it from Karen Rexrode when she owned and operated Windy Hill Plant Farm in Aldie, Virgina. I know many of us in the Washington area frequented Windy Hill; I can look around my garden and see plants that came from there. or I can look at my windowsill and see the Bulbine. Of course Karen is still around doing many things including photography, but I miss her Nursery.

At the Arboretum the provenance, or authenticated history, of a plant is of critical importance; a plant with no provenance is essentially useless. If it's incredibly wonderful and heretofore unknown we like it anyway. Otherwise we prefer to have plants of unknown provenance grown in Public Gardens without scientific missions. Well.....most of us don't have such strict requirements for our personal gardens, but we do like to know the history of our plants and often they have a sentimental provenance Looking out my front window I see a bi-color Azalea that George Waters gave me, a propagation from a seedling selection he made. I see an Agave from Ed Aldrich and two large Ericas grown from 2"pots that I bought from Rock Spray Nursery many years ago at their only appearance at the Philadelphia Flower Show. I know in the back garden I have plants from my grandmother, and the Stapelia gigantea hanging on a post in the picture window was given to me by Hildreth from Bittersweet Hill Nurseries. I suppose in some sense the history of our plants is as important to us as the provenance of the Collections at the Arboretum.