Rocks in the garden

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The stars of the show at The Tropical Paradise are the plants, of course, but their supporting cast is rocks. If you think that some part of the garden is invisible because you don't care about it, think again.

Most of the rocks I have in the garden have been given to me, including the flagstone. I'm no expert on rocks, but I know what they look like. And if you've ever seen fake rocks in the garden, you know what I mean. You don't need a degree in geology to spot a fake, and the best of them always look bad.

Here in this tiny area of The Tropical Paradise I have one of two pieces of petrified wood that were given to me by a friend who collected them from The Petrified Forest long before that became illegal. And when my friend visited me today, he was dismayed at how dull it looked! And I realized that after seeing it every day for many years I had lost track of how beautiful its original color was.

The problem was a buildup of hard water. This rock had been getting sprayed for years and years and had built up a fair amount of calcium on its surface. The solution was easy - CLR, just like what you use in the house to clean hard water stains. I had some in the cabinet and I just did a treatment. By the way, do wear gloves when you use this stuff - learn from my fail - I had a tiny cut on one finger, and it hurts! I gave it a good scrub with the scraper I use for my golf clubs and rinsed it off, being careful not to get anything on the plants. I used a bucket of water, not the hose.

Rocks in the garden should not look like they belong under a glass case. They need to look natural. A little dirt on them should look right. But a big coat of calcium needs to be cleaned away. I will remember to add this to my regular maintenance of the garden.

By the way, you can buy petrified wood legally at the larger garden centers. It's pretty expensive and very heavy, but it's beautiful!

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